The car:
305 TPI '87 IROC-Z
The previous owner rebuilt it with a bigger cam, not sure what else was done to the engine. The rearend was upgraded to an Auburn Gear LSD. I have no idea if the 700R4 is stock or not.

I have 3,000 to spend on just the engine. I have a seperate budget for other stuff that I want to do to the car.

After looking over a lot of stuff on the web, this is the buildup that I'm considering for my 355:
- GM Fastburn heads (b/c someone on these boards is running 11's or so on vortecs in a budget build)
- TPiS Miniram for Fastburn heads
- LT4 Hotcam

The only reason I'm considering the Miniram is b/c I think it looks better than the HSR. I was really digging the HSR pictures that I saw on various sites but I recently saw a car with it installed and it was way too tall for me (crappy reason I know).

Do you guys have any advice on what things might not work as well together or what substitutions I could make for the same prices that might increase the performance?

This will be a street/strip car. Goals are kinda loose right now. Eventually I'd like to hit high 12's but regardless of the motor I haven't yet built up confidence in my driving skills (I've yet to be to a drag strip and haven't had any 'real' street races). Thanks in advance!

 

hmmmm..... 383 miniram

do that. Stroke the 355

 

I was really thinking about that but the stroker kit would bring me right to 3 grand. I wouldn't have any left over for machine work + all the miscellaneous little things.

Everything in my buildup I priced new but I may end up getting stuff ebay or used elsewhere which would leave me room for the stroker, I just don't want to assume that I can afford it.

Thx for the reply

 

The power levels implied by propelling a 3,200-ish pound vehicle to 11-second runs would indicate that you are on the edge of ability for a factory crank and rods. At least from the perspective of longevity and reliability, you should consider doing something with the rotating unit. If not a preassembled stroker unit, then at least a stronger than cast gray iron crank, better balancing, and tougher rods.

 

Good point. I always seem to forget that the old stuff can break when I've got my eyes on the new goodies

 

how much hp is 11's??

Stock bottom on a 350 could support 300-350hp.. This not from experince. This just the popular oppinion... Revs break the engine not hp. You will need to rev that thing quite high to get that low times w/o power adders. If not a stoker then atleast forged rods and crank ( about a 1000$ i guess)

 

I just realized that everyone's advice is to get to 11 second 1/4 hehe. I'd just like low 13's to eventually mid-low 12's. With the exception of the machine work, I'm trying to do as much of this buildup myself so I can learn as I go. I would be willing to go power adder if funding gets cut or I can take the time figuring out how to do nitrous the right way and all the other issues involved with it.

As far as this top end goes, one of the things I wanted to know was if the performance of the miniram made it worth that much more than the HSR and if there were any comparable cams / cam kits to the hotcam or if there is anything more extreme that is still drivable. I don't mind a rough idle, I like the way they sound
My only concerns as far as making the motor extreme is making sure I won't stall and I don't want to have to worry about breakin the tires loose from letting off the gas

 

"After looking over a lot of stuff on the web, this is the buildup that I'm considering for my 355:
- GM Fastburn heads (b/c someone on these boards is running 11's or so on vortecs in a budget build)
- TPiS Miniram for Fastburn heads
- LT4 Hotcam "

This is where i understood you wanted 11's


should have read more carefully..

 

Yeah, I was just going with them b/c others were having good results w/o spending $1500 on a set of AFR's.. Do you guys think that the setup I'm contemplating would be able to actually do it if the bottom holds up and I learn how to drive?

 

I'm a little confused. Do you already have the 355 or are you including that in your 3000. A miniram and fastburn heads will get you close to that 3000 by themselves won't they?

If the 305 is fresh and truly does have a decent cam like over 214 degrees at .050 you might want to consider a centrifugal super charger. Just something to research and think about.

 

The 305 was rebuilt 42k miles ago. It burns a quart of oil about every 1.5 to 2 weeks and the attempt at changing sparkplugs (the originals which were installed when engine was rebuilt) w/ headers defeated me whole heartedly (I'm currently looking for one of those shorty plug sockets or someone said that a Snap-on plug socket might fit under my edlebrock headers but I haven't been able to verify this).

About four months ago I picked up a used L98 setup minus ecm and harness. The previous owner had spun a bearing and was getting rid of it. I got the whole shibang for $200.

As far as fixing whatever got borked up when the guy spun the bearings, I can get that work done dirt cheap through my cousin's machinist.

Pricelist for *JUST* parts is:

• Fastburns: $1,169.90
• Miniram: $895.00
• Fuelrail kit: $355 (295 for non f-body specific)
• LT4 Hotcam kit: $499

So that puts me at either $2,858.90 or $2918.90 depending on which fuel rail kit I went with.

The L98 currently has a Crane Cams roller cam in it but I don't know the specs so I figured I'd just go ahead with the hotcam kit since I *believe* but am not sure that I'll need the stuff that comes in the kit with the new heads (sdpc says that I need self aligning rockers so I assume they don't come with (darn!)). If I could find a good, high performance cam/cam kit that wasn't quite as expensive I would definitely jump on it.

The reason I haven't / probably won't consider a power-adder is b/c I'm learning this stuff as I go and I'm definitely not ready to read up / learn up on super/turbo chargers (nitrous either right now)

 

Original/Ideal setup:

• Fastburns: $1,169.90
• Miniram: $895.00
• Fuelrail kit: $355 (295 for non f-body specific)
• LT4 Hotcam kit: $499

Low-budget version:

• New corvette L98 heads: $938.40
• LT4 Hotcam - $499
• Holley Stealth Ram: $498.58
• Fuel line stuff: $80-100

This would take at least $700 off the cost for parts...

I would *really* like to have the fastburn heads but aren't they just aluminum vortecs? Meaning they would not match up w/ the HSR, right?