After getting my 383 for a month and driving it after it sat in the previous owners garage forever the thing seeps oil like an old truck, and while i haven't pulled the valve covers yet ( car is at the shop...again) i will later but im sure the heads are some gm garbage or at best vortec's. So i plan on doing a full refresh this winter and getting some good aluminum heads for it but afr's arent cheap plus it is an old build. Lately people have been throwing around amazing stories of 700 dollar truck motors that make great power with just a cam so I dont know whether to sell the old motor as is and go lsx or keep the good old small block and spruce it up. My goal is to make at least 400 fwhp if that helps.

 

What is your budget?

If you can't get that from a mild 383 something is wrong
What cam , intake , exhaust?

 

Lsx swap is gonna cost more than a set of aluminum heads.... As said above whats done to the motor currently?

 

that's the bigger problem. I really have No idea what kind of motor this is until I tear it down. all I can say for sure is it has an edlebrock 750 a performer rpm intake and is cammed enough to give it an aggressive idle. don't even know if it is a roller or flat tappet. the exhaust is mid length headers to 2.5 inch duals with flowmaster 40's no cats. it just doesn't seem to be giving 383 power and I figured the heads must be a problem.


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Id investigate the motor and determine what you actually have. It may not even be a 383! Sucks but you'll want to pull it and look it over. Inspect crank for a 3.75" throw and see what lifters are in the motor to determine cam type. Possibly look into cam part numbers or just buy a known cam with the new alum heads and know what you are getting

 

right now I'm afraid it may not even be a 383 but it will have to wait for cold weather for a tear down because I want to drive it as long as I can. Oh and isn't the balancer bigger on 383/400 than 350's? if I can tell that way I dot have to even waste time and just do a real 383.


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Depends on how they did it. If 400 crank method then it may be different. If an actual stroker crank kit it could use the same as it could be internal balanced. Hard to say. What block is it? If a 1 pc rear main good chance its a internal balanced stroker crank and not a 400 since no 1pc 400's exist

 

well u do know that it is a 2pc rms so either is possible but according to the previous owner it's at least 10 yrs old so the parts are definitely not modern.


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