I'm not sure if this is the right place for this post, but I really want to ask, since many of the people on this board have a lot more experience than I do.

What is the upper limit of HP/ torque that is actually usable on the street, with street tires, etc.? At this point, it's still a wish list, but I'm planning my build, and not sure if I want to go with a 400 hp 350, or step up to 500+- hp 383 stroker engine.

I know that there are a lot of cars with more power than that, but how much can you really use? I seriously doubt I'll get much track time, so I really want to optimize it for street driving. At the same time, I don't want to go through the time and expense of putting a new motor in and then wishing I had more.

Any facts/ideas/opinions?

 

i got somewhere around 600 or more on motor i estimate on the nitrous and i use it on the street just fine with my street tires. granted you have to start from a roll, like 45 mph or more. I have sticky 295/30/19 tires tho.

I have broke them loose from 45-50 mph rolls and spun to 75 mph before they hooked again but normally it doesnt do that.

On motor alone i have 400whp and its fun. Plenty of traction in gears over 1st. First pretty much is a waste now when its cold out. in the summer if i went from a high first roll, it would hook ok, but you have to roll into it to control it.

i would go for the 383 stroker build and shoot for a good 375-400whp and you'll love it

 

any idea how much torque you have at 1500 - 2000 rpm? I was thinking of building an engine with a little higher torque peak so I wouldn't have quite the traction issues. Am I off base here or is that a feasable idea?

 

i make peak torque at 4100-4500 rpms... its flat in there. actually its quite flat to 5000 and is pretty flat at 3500 or whereever the dyno started to read


i have no idea what its doing below 3500-3700 rpm. i have 3600 rpm stall so i never feel anything in the sub 3000 rpm range.

to get higher torque peak you need more cam and that will raise your peak hp. i make peak hp at 6250 rpm just for reference.


With any motor like this, you need a torque converter with more stall speed. If you have a manual then you dont need to worry about this For a stalled auto car you never know whats goin on below the stall speed since the car never will operate there really. manuals i guess you can go WOT at 2000 rpm but i dont think you will want to. You want to be in higher rpm range to enjoy the motors power band

I can tell you on the highway with the converter locked up, cruising at 1700 rpm or so and i slowly step down into the throttle abit, just keeping the converter locked still but NOT at WOT, the car starts accelerating well. Good passing power here

 

Right now my car is auto, but I'm thinking of converting to manual...not 100% sold on this yet though.

Here's the real question: off the line, do you have to baby it to get it going? I just don't want some 260 hp mustang beating me off the line because I can't hookup my 500 HP stroker. The widest tires I will probably run would be 285/16's.

Thanks for the info, man!

 

eh, its pretty tempermental in first gear on the street. In the summer you can work it abit more but the colder roads now (winter in pa) its alot harder. The car will spin tire easily if you want it to, but if your controlling with the pedal you can walk it out and then lay into it.

Depends on the tire tho. with my ET streets i can hook pretty good on the street.

But let me tell you this, if a 260hp mustang gets a car or two on you off the line, once you hook up and can get 100% throttle, that stang will be as if he hit the brakes.

With a manual, if you bog the motor down alittle with less rpm launch off the line, you should maintain traction well enough to get into throttle quicker.

its harder with a higher stalled auto car. I got 3600 stall like i said, and it can light up the tires when i want so you have to get used to it.

 

Whenever I hear that someone wants a 500+ HP street car, the first thing I ask is if they've ever driven a 500 hp street car before? Although it's possible, it's not practical. For most people, something that can put 300-400 hp to the wheels is more than enough.

When the average street car puts less than 200 hp to the wheels, jumping to 400 hp is a big jump.

 

Stephen it right - most cars don't make more than maybe 200hp to the wheels, and thats plenty for most people. When I got my LT1 (285hp/345ft-lbs at the crank) I let a couple people drive it, and even though its not ALOT of power by any means, it was enough to make a couple of them nervous driving it lol. I recommend taking a drive in something over 300 or 350rwhp and see what you think. Even 400 crank HP is more than most people can handle, or want to handle.

Butr it also depends on what you build it from too. What I mean is - SBC, BBC, LTx, LSx.

A 500hp gen 1 small block is going to be a pretty wild motor, will probably run somewhat poorly at light throttle, get terrible gas mileage, and having it start and run on its own on a cold morning will be like winning the lottery lol. Its also going to be LOUD. All the time.

Now, jump to the other end of the scale - LSx engines. There are LOTS of guys with relatively small engines (5.7, 6.0) making 500+hp in their cars, and they are still very driveable cars with pretty good street manners. Theres quite a few LS1 f-bodies in my area running deep 11's on street legal tires with a 6-spd and a full weight Camaro/Firebird. With the correct parts choice and tuning by someone who knows what they are doing, a 500hp streetable LSx engine is definitely not unreasonable.

The other element is HOW the power is made - NA with a big cam? Turbo? S/C? Carb or EFI? I have a buddy with a Gen 1 350 with a BIG turbo on it. This thing runs through the lights at something like 127mph or so. Still a full weight GTA and still has an OD trans. Its got a similar cam to what I used in my '83 and I drove that all year round. He drives this car on the street pretty regularly, and even takes it on highway trips. I wouldn't doubt for a second it makes WAY over 600 crank HP. Its also got EFI on it as well (Stealth Ram). EFI and forced induction can go a long way is making easy, driveable power.

I also mentioned the BBC, just because LOTS of cubic inches make it easy to make alot of power and still keep it driveable and reasonably streetable. There are alot of easy to drive, 500hp 454ci and 496ci engines out there.

 

Mine is at 400 to the wheels and thats probly 475-480 on motor, maybe 500 if the 20% thing is true Its very driveable and streetable, starts very well even tho it could use more tuning in that area, but your right, the mileage isnt the greatest and its very loud

 

Thanks for the info. That's alot to think about, which is good, because I'm not to that point yet. A relatively mild smallblock may be the way to go for me, then I can add a centrifugal supercharger later. Hmmm...

 

i have a hair over 500 horsepower and 520 ft/lbs to the flywheel, and the motor is very streetable. I dont drive it everyday, but i dont see why i couldnt if i wanted to, aside from gas and emmissions issues. Im actually thinking about a cam swap and head work for a little more power