I am looking for info from people who have a 330hp 350ci crate motor or a ZZ4 355hp 350ci in their 3rd Gen. Old school Chev stuff is new to me (I am from Australia so I am used to Holdens and Fords) so I figure I would ask the experts.

Are they decent engines for street/strip/cruising? How are they for performance and reliability?

I am weighing up the options of a crate engine vs building an engine myself, which will be more expensive, but more powerful.

Another option is a customised 330hp 350ci crate engine which has the LT4 roller "hot cam", roller rockers, slightly higher compression and 750 Holley, which is done by my local GMPP parts distributor, for which they say 380-400hp. Does anyone have a similar combination to this? How do you find it?

I have decided on using a manual gearbox (most likely a Tremec TKO600) and 12-bolt diff for reliability.

 

they are excellent engines. i dont have one in mine but my brother has one in his. For everyday use and trips to the track they are awesome. But me personally would rather build it myself. I have never purchased an engine. I get more joy out of saying i built it. But should be plenty of a stout car if you do the motor/tranny/rear end setup.

 

Which engine does he have? Any track times etc to get an idea of performance? I am thinking mid 12s would be nice, but not sure if the power will be enough. I used to have an 11sec LS1 daily driver, and have driven lots of Ferrari's and other exotics, so slow cars don't really do it for me.

 

I've run GM's 350/330 HO Deluxe for several years. Absolute reliability--I'd drive it anywhere, at any distance. Performance? I'm not a track fanatic, so I can't offer any enlightenment there. Street performance, on the other hand, makes me smile--but then I haven't driven a Ferrari either.

JamesC

 

After getting a few prices, I think I should be able to build a decent engine for not much more than a crate engine.

GM 383 block, Eagle cast bottom end, Dart iron heads, a Comp Cams XR282HR cam and Edelbrock Performer RPM intake should make around 450hp or so, which is enough to do something stupid, without being over the top... plus I get the enjoyment of building it myself. Sounds like a plan....