The best options for powering your project.....Bang for the buck wise!

We talked earlier about the path of least resistance. Hot Rod ran an article about a year ago on the top 20 hot rod engines of all time. The readers voted, and I think the results were pretty accurate. I've had people ask me for my unbiased opinion on the best musclecar powerplants and their always surprised by my lack of "Brand Loyalty".  You didn't ask me what I personally liked; you asked me what offered the most bang for the buck. I personally like Pontiacs-I have owned many GTOs, Firebirds,Trans-Ams, Gran Prix's and Venturas over the years. But the fact is-they have been out of production for 34 years, and even back in the '70's-you could build a small or big-block Chevy with the same amount or more power for less money. It has nothing to do with loyalty-it's dollars and cents. Anyhow here's how I'd rank powerplants for your musclecar projects. # 1. This is a no-brainer. Like it or not-you have to go with a Small-Block Chevy. No other production engine has had the racing and commercial successes of the SBC. The basic 1955 design is still being used in NASCAR in 2013. Regardless of the buff magazines fascination with LS motors, GM Performance Parts is still selling "Old School" hi-performance small-blocks-the carburated ZZ4 350 and ZZ383 crate engines by the thousands. The widespread parts availablity and interchangeability make the Mouse motor the undisputed heavyweight champion when it comes to making big power for low bucks.  # 2. Big Block Chevy. These cost more to build than a small-block, but nothing makes power like a Rat. You can make 350 hp on junk gas with 8.5:1 compression and iron intake and exhaust manifolds. You can make 500 hp so easy-like the cliche'-like taking candy from a baby. 600hp? 700? 800? your only limited by your wallet and imagination. Yes, a Chrysler Hemi or Boss-Nine Ford can make as much or more power-at double or triple the cost. For sheer horsepower-per-dollar-nothing beats a big-block Chevy. # 3. 1965-79 Pontiac V8. Like the small-block Chevy-interchangeability is a big factor here. Pontiacs are externally identical from a 326 to a 455. And they make gobs of low-end and mid-range torque. The main thing about a 389+ inch Pontiac is less is more. Just like I said about the big-block Chevy-you can make 350 hp on junk gas with 8.5:1 compression and iron intake and exhaust manifolds. An aftermarket intake, cam and headers will get you 400+ hp pretty easily. 500+ hp-you'll need aftermarket heads like Kauffman or Edelbrocks but their readily available. These rank so high because the bang for buck ratio is exceptionally high-yes you can easily build a big Ford or Mopar to make more power-but not for anywhere near the same  money, with mostly stock or junkyard parts. # 4. 1963-78 Chrysler "B" and "RB" engines. While the Hemis may ruled NASCAR in the late '60's and early '70's, it was the wedge-style 383s and 440s that gave the Road Runner, Charger and Super Bee their street cred. Hemis were great on the dragstrip too-with slicks and 4.90:1 gears. But on the street with normal gearing like-3.23:1 or 3.55:1-a 440 4bbl would eat a Hemi's lunch. And that of many GTOs, Chevelles and Mustangs as well. The great advantage of these engines is interchangeability-the only thing you can't swap between "B" and "RB" engines is the intake manifold-the deck height is different. Other than a big-block Chevy-you won't build more power for less bucks than the big Mopar. # 5. 1967-2000 Small-block Mopar. Like the small-block Chevy-this basic design is still being used by Dodge racers in NASCAR today. Again- parts interchangeability is a big factor. You can use '92 and later "Magnum" heads on '67-91 blocks. ( You'll need a "Magnum" style intake, but Edelbrock has you covered.) 318s are ok in a really light car-i.e.-Dart / Duster-but for anything else you'll want a 360-which can be stroked to 410 cubes pretty easily. # 6. Small-block Ford. These have great parts interchabgeability and availability, but their only 289 / 302 inches. Or 351, if you lump in the 351W. Spare me the pictures and timeslips from your 11 second Fox-bodied Mustangs. Yes, these engines can make huge power-say 400+ hp very easily- but not for the same or less money than a Chevy, Mopar or Pontiac. Bang for the buck, remember?  And like it or not-small-block Fords have many different oil pans, flywheels, balancers, bellhousing bolt-patterns, fuel pumps, water pumps, etc that are very model-specific-a 302 out of a Maverick will have totally different external accessories than a 302 out of a Cougar or Mustang or pickup. Unlike a Chevy or Mopar or Pontiac-where you can play musical engines from many years and many models, and not even have to change a hose or belt. If you throw in the "Cleveland" engines, it gets messier. Yes, a 351W or 351C can make as much or more power than a 350 Chevy or 360 Mopar-but at a substantially higher dollar outlay. If your a Ford Fan, that's the lay of the land. Which brings up # 7. 1963-76 Ford "FE" engine. Yes, I know the 429 / 460 offers more bang for the buck, but chances are if your restoring a '60's Ford Fairlane, Galaxie, or even a '67-70 Mustang or Cougar-your going to be looking at a 390 or 428. Same deal- there is good aftermarket support-heads, cams, intakes, headers, etc-you can build a 390 or 428 that can give those arrogant 396 / 454 Chevelle, 400 /455 Trans-Am and 383 / 440 Road Runner drivers a surprise they won't soon forget. It'll just be expensive. # 8 1965-80 Olds V8. Regardless of the 442's fearsome '60s and '70s street rep- and the big Olds engine's great success in boat-racing-these rank low for three reasons-# 1.-they've been out of production since 1980 for the 350  and since 1976 for the 455. # 2. The big 455 was used in mostly-"Big Car" applications-you don't see many in a Cutlass that isn't a 442 or Hurst / Olds. Which means you'll have to scour junkyards and swap parts and engines laying in the dirt, if you can find them at all. # 3. There is fair aftermarket support-Edelbrock makes heads and intakes, Lunati and Comp Cams make cams, Hooker makes headers etc- but the parts are substantially more expensive for the Olds than they are for a Chevy or Ford or even a Pontiac. Not fair-but that's the market. Feel free to send in your rankings. Mastermind                        

If you want a rare bird......Build it!

I read an uplifting article in a Chevy High-Performance magazine. This guy loved 427s and wanted one for the Chevelle he was restoring. As we all know 427s are expensive and rare, and are usually snapped up by Corvette restorers. And the new 480 hp / 427 Crate motor sold by GMPP is priced over ten grand. What to do?  This guy found the solution. The 427 and 454 are the same bore size. He bought a used 454 out of a Suburban, bored it .030 over, and installed a 427 rotating assembly-crank, rods and pistons-that can be bought from Eagle, Scat, and many other companies. He had it internally balanced as well. He used a factory solid-lifter cam, oval-port heads, and an Edelbrock Torker II intake, with an MSD HEI distributor and Hedman Headers. His goal was 500 hp, which he just missed-it made 492 hp on the dyno. However, he built it for less than $3,500!! ( He only paid $300 for the wrecked Suburban ). You could do other rare birds just as cheaply. If you wanted a 302 Chevy for a Z/28 clone or a 327 for an early '60s Impala, Nova or 'Vette-a 350 block has a 4 inch bore. GMPP, Scat, Eagle, Lunati, and others sell cranks with 3.00 or 3.25 inch strokes so you could build a 302 or 327 if you wanted. ( You'd need the proper pistons, but those are plentiful). If you want a 421 Pontiac for your '62-'66 Catalina, 2+2, or Gran Prix-you can buy a 4.00 inch stroke 421 / 428 crank and put it in a 400 block. ( These are offered in both stock 3.25 inch mains and 3.00 inc mains-which is 400 size. ) If you want a Boss 302 or Boss 351 for your Mustang- Edelbrock and Trick Flow offer aluminum "Cleveland" style heads that will bolt up to 302 and 351 Windsor blocks. They also sell matching intakes so you can create a "Boss" engine at a reasonable price-probably 1/5 of the price of a real "Boss" Ford engine-if you could find one for sale at any price. And you don't have to just do this for some "Old school" hot rod-think about this you can meld "old-tech" and "new tech"-a high-winding 327 with Vortec heads and a solid-roller cam could be a real rocker in a light '80's Camaro or "G" body Mote Carlo or Malibu. You could build a stompin' 340 Mopar with Magnum style heads for your Dart / Duster, or '60's Barracuda. Something to think about-you'd have big power for low bucks and have a unique combination-not a "Cookie-cutter" 383 Chevy or whatever. Mastermind    

David can beat Goliath.....Without God's help!! .

High Performance doesn't have to be expensive. Like the hit detective show "Numbers" it's simple math.  All other things being equal-a 300 hp engine in a 3,000 lb car will run just as fast as a 400 hp engine in a 4,000 lb car. And the 300 hp engine will be cheaper to build and will probably idle smoother and get better gas mileage. You'll note I said "All other things being equal".  Now some people will argue that "A 454 can beat a 327 every time."  Really? Let's say you've got two Chevys competing in the "Pure Stock" drags. Driver A has a 1970 LS6 Chevelle and Driver B has a 1967 Nova SS. The Chevelle has the 450 hp 454, a TH400, and 3.31 gears, and weighs about 4,070 lbs. The Nova has a 350 hp L79 327, a 4-speed, 4.11 gears and weighs 3,278 lbs. The Chevelle will probably run anywhere from 13.40-13.80 on street tires. The Nova could very easily run 13.10-13.30-depending on the driver's ability to ride the clutch. Because The lightweight Nova will launch with less wheelspin and have an equal power to weight ratio, it might run a faster e.t.  Another example- A guy with a 1965 Tri-Power 389 GTO beats a 1972 455HO Trans-Am in a drag race. Again- the '65 GTO weighs 3,400 lbs, has a 389 rated at 360 gross hp, a 4-speed and 3.90:1 gears. The T/A weighs 3,731 lbs, ( 3,830 with A/C ) has a 455 rated at 300 net hp, and has 3.08:1 gears with an automatic or 3.42:1 with a 4-speed. Who's going to win? When you factor in the difference between gross and net hp ratings, The power to weight ratio is about the same-it comes down to tuning and driver skill. Let me tell you a true, but funny story. My dad had a 454 2wd short-box 77 Chevy Pickup that showed it's tailgate to many a Camaro and Mustang. He sold the 454 to a friend who was building a big-block Chevelle and put a 400 small-block in it. Except the 400 had a 350 hp 327 cam, headers, and an Edelbrock Performer intake and a 780 cfm Holley carb. The 400 actually had more torque than the stock 454!! With the 454, it could beat my cousin's IROC-Z out of the hole and hold the half-car lead until almost 90 mph. With the 400, it just lit the tires up, which caused a loss in an impromptu drag race. Even if we walked it off the line and hit it 20 feet out, it still fried the tires.  The pumped-up 400 small-block had more low-end torque than the stock 454 and didn't launch as good, even though the engine obviously had more power. So, it's the total package. Big power is useless if you can't put it to the ground. Mastermind          

More on the path of least resistance......

The path of least resistance is not always the cheapest way. Sometimes something 5 or ten times more expensive might be the better deal. An acquaintance was looking for a '70's Firebird for a project car. He found three on Craigslist-one was a 1971 Formula 400 for sale for $500. It had a good body-but that was it. I mean this was an engineless, transmissionless, radiatorless, gas tankless, interiorless hulk. The second one we looked at was a '77 Skybird. It was priced at 2 grand, and it was mostly there, it just needed paint and some minor inteiror work-recovering the seats-etc. And it ran good-it just had a 350 Chevy under the hood. The third one we looked at was a 1974 Formula 400. It was priced at $3,500. The red paint was oxydized, but the body was straight and rust-free, and except for the front seats needing to be recovered the inteiror was in great shape. And it had 400 Pontiac under the hood backed by a TH400. And it ran good. I told him to buy this one, that it was the best deal. "How?" he asked-it's way more than the other two?" "Forget the first one." I said. "It will cost a lot more than $3,500 to get that basket-case even drivable." "Do you realize all the crap your going to have to chase down?" "Your better off  just spending more money and getting a better car to start with." "The second one's ok-but you basically have a Camaro." "It will cost a ton of money and grief to change that one to "Real" Pontiac Power-which is what you want." "The red one has a 400 / TH400 powertrain already in it." "It only needs minor cosmetic work, and you can spend the rest of your money on a killer motor or wheels and tires or suspension, or whatevetr." Trust me the red one's the best deal." He thought about it, did some math, and said-"Your right." "Even though the red one is 7 times o more than the '71 and almost double the price of the '77, it is the best deal for what I want to do which is have a badass Firebird with a Real Pontiac engine, not a Chevy." I'm glad he saw the light. The first one would have been a total nightmare. Besides no engine or tranny it was missing umpteen thousands of dollars of trim pieces, brackets, light sockets, etc. It would have cost him ten grand to make that thing as drivable as the $3,500 one. The second one would have been a pain in the ass because besides finding a Pontiac engine and a BOP bolt-pattern tranny, he'd have to chase down all the accesories-starter,alternator, fuel pump,water pump, p/s pump all the brackets, etc. Valve covers, oil pan, timing cover, etc. Like I convinced him-he'd be better off hot-rodding the Chevy engine that was in it, or just looking for another Pontiac-engined one. Even though he initially invested more money-he's going to be much happier in the long run, and save a ton of money and grief. That's the path of least resistance. Mastermind

Take the path of least resistance......

I get e-mails all the time from people asking my advice on should they or shouldn't they invest a ton of money in the latest and greatest thing. It's like their unsure and they want a professional to validate their wishes. I hate to be a jerk, but my advice is almost always no, there's an easier and less expensive way to do it. Here'a a few of my personal favorites. # 1. High-Port heads and aftermarket blocks for Pontiac engines. The allure of the Pontiac has always been it's massive low-end torque-like 500 lbs ft at 2,700 rpm!! ( A 1970 455 Bonneville engine ) That's what made the '64 GTO such an awesome street machine-even with only 389 inches and small port bathtub heads they make 424 lbs of torque at only 3,000 rpm!! When you've got 400+ lbs of torque from idle on up, you don't need to rev to 7 or 8 grand. That's why the legendary GTOs, Firebirds and Trans-Ams were so popular. Yes, for racing a 427 Chevy or Ford or 426 Hemi Mopar may make more power for going 7,200 rpm for 500 miles at Daytona-in the 60's and '70's-or for drag racing where you could run slicks and 4.88:1 gears they were king. But on the street-in stock or near stock trim with reasonable gear ratios-like 3.55:1- the wedge-style Pontiacs were awful hard to beat in a "Stoplight Gran Prix". The fact that they weren't reliable over 6,000 rpm didn't matter because they made such massive torque from idle-5,500!! That was the beauty of them. With a Pontiac-less was always more-you didn't need a huge cam that made power to 8 grand because the heads didn't flow much over .480 valve lift anyway. Even the vaunted RAIV's aren't much good over .530 without porting. But that low-speed and and mid-range port velocity is what made them SO STRONG at low speeds. If you want a 500 inch engine that will spin 7,000 rpm-go buy a Big-block Chevy or Chrysler Hemi crate engine. The GMPP 720 hp 572 Rat makes 685 lbs of torque and is redlined at 6,700 rpm. Mopar makes a 528 inch Hemi that makes 610 hp. Ford SVO has a 514 inch "Boss 429 / 460 based stroker with 650 hp, and they all cost less than a "High-Port" custom Pontiac. And for god's sake-Jim Butler or Len Williams will build you a "Regular" Pontiac 455 with 550 hp that will run on 89 octane gas for about $7,500. If your GTO or T/A "Needs" more than that-then you need a Chevy 572, a competent therapist or a cage. You want a Rat Motor, go buy one, but don't try to make one out of a Pontiac. # 2. 427 and 454 inch Small-Block Chevy. Dart and Blueprint Engines offer these, and they have like 540 hp. They also cost $10,000 or more. My question is-"Why?" # 1. If you want a 454 inch Chevy engine with 550 hp, you can buy or build a 454 big-block with that power level for a lot less than 10 grand, and it will be a lot less peaky and more reliable than a stroker small-block. #2. 540 hp isn't that much. If you need that much power out of a small-block package-because of a small-engine compartment- that can't physically house a Rat Motor-i.e. a '32 Ford, Cobra Replica, '57 'Vette, '63 Nova or whatever-again-you can get that much power from a 350 or 383 pretty easily for a lot less than 10 grand. # 3. 460 / 514 stroker in a Fox-bodied Mustang. Yes, it's possible-but why would you want to? I know guys that run in the 10s with 302s or 347s ( a 302-based stroker ) both with and without nitrous. I know guys that run in the 9s with blowers and or / nitrous on their 302s. Is a 460 going to be faster than that? Probably not, and it's going to cost more to build, and be a bastard to do it. Just because something is possible, doesn't mean it's the best thing to do. Mastermind          

These people are like rabbits.....They just keep multiplying!

The last two posts have stirred up the crazies. Got a ton more e-mails from people claiming to have rare cars that again-don't exist. Here's some more good ones. # 1. 5-speed manual transmissioned '70's Trans-Ams. Pontiac never built a T/A with a 5-speed stick until 1983-and those were the 3rd generation 305 Chevy powered models. From 1977-79 DKM inc.-builders of the "Macho T/A"-offered the Doug Nash 5-speed as a dealer-installed option. ( The "Macho" mods were performed in the service department of Mecham Pontiac in Glendale, Arizona.). Also in this time period former Pontiac engineer Herb Adams-who partnered with Cars&Concepts in Michigan offered a similar performance package called the "Fire-Am", and they too offered to swap the stock T10 4-speed for the Doug Nash / Richmond 5-speed. So it's possible that these people bought these cars new from a dealer-but since GM wouldn't give the "Machos" or the "Fire-Ams" an MSO-Manufacturer's certificate of originality-they were sold to DKM and Cars&Concepts, modified, and then re-sold by dealers as used cars, even though they may not have had 10 miles on them. But the fact remains that the Doug Nash / Richmond 5-speed was never a factory option installed by GM. # 2. 400 / 455 Powered 1980-81 Trans-Am. Same thing-Tuners were everywhere in the late '70's and early '80's. There was an individual that was offering a "Bandit" performance package-playing on the popularity of the 1st two "Smokey&The Bandit" movies. The package included Recaro seats, and swapping the normally aspirated 301 Pontiac or 305 Chevy, or Turbocharged 301 V8s for a pumped-up 400 or 455 inch "Real" Pontiac V8. The guy was charging as much as $30,000 for these cars in 1981. But the last factory-built 455 T/A was made in 1976, and the last 400 model was made in 1979. So, these "Bandit" editions exist-but they weren't built by Pontiac. # 3. 1973-75 Rat-Motored Camaro, Nova or Firebird. The 396 was discontinued in the Nova after 1970, and in the Camaro after 1972. However-Joel Rosen of Motion Performance-partnered with Baldwin Chevrolet in New York, or Nickey Chevrolet in Chicago would sell you a new Camaro or Nova with an L88 427, or LS6 or LS7 454 crate engine installed. Hot Rod magazine did an extensive road test of a 1973 Nova SS with an L88 stuffed in it. They also did this swap on a few Pontiac Firebirds as well. The advent of Catalytic Converters and ever-tightening emission laws made these cars unfeasible-which is why Baldwin and Nickey stopped selling them. But again-yes you may have walked into a dealer and financed the car-but it wasn't built by GM, it was Hot-Rodded by these performance oriented dealers, and sold as a used car. # 4. 1978-79 5-speed L82S Corvette. Riding high on the success of the "Macho T/A", Dennis and Kyle Mecham offered a similar performance package for the Corvette. He called it the "L82S". They took an L82 / 4-speed 'Vette, and swapped in the Doug Nash 5-speed and Hurst shifter, added Hooker Headers and real dual exhausts ( with two cats like the Macho T/A's ) re-curved the distributor and re-jetted the carb. They also lowered the suspension, installed Koni shocks, and larger wheels and tires and Recaro seats. Car Craft tested one and raved about how badass it was. DKM also did a few Z/28 Camaros and called them the "Macho Z". Neither of these were as wildly popular as the "Macho T/A", but a handful were built, by DKM, not Chevrolet. # 5. 1978-79 "Ringer" "Li'l Red Express" truck. The "Little Red Truck" was popular with the buff magazines of the day. They all mused-why did Dodge choose to use a 360 in this hot-rod pickup-when you could get a 454 in a short-box 2wd Chevy / GMC, and a 460 in a Ford F150. Why didn't they use the 440? To this day-some Mopar Freaks claim this was the fastest American car built in 1978-79. This stemmed from a November 1977 Car & Driver test where a "Prototype" "Li'l Red Express" blew the doors off both a 400, 4-speed Trans Am, and an L82 / 4-speed Corvette. However this "prototype" had a 360 V8 with the camshaft out of the old 340 V8, a set of NASCAR-spec "W2" cylinder heads, an aluminum Holley "Street Dominator" intake manifold, and a 650 cfm Holley Double-Pumper carb, and catalyst-free dual exhausts!! Rest assured- the production examples with a garden-variety 360 with stock heads and cam, and a Carter Thermo-Quad on a stock iron intake manifold were substantially slower!! I test-drove one, and it wasn't any faster than my dad's 350 Chevy pickup!. But the legend persists to this day. # 6. 1979 "W30" Hurst / Olds. This car was built entirely by Oldmobile in Lansing, Michigan, on the '78 and later downsized "G" body Cutlass platform. They had a 350 Olds V8 that wheezed out 160 hp, that the marketers shamelessly put W30 emblems on, trying to capitalize on the 442's late 60's and early '70s glory. The last W30 455 was built in 1972. There was nothing special about these cars other than the white and gold paint job and Hurst shifter. The "W30" designation meant absolutely nothing, and they couldn't even break out of the 16s in the 1/4. These are a "Hurst / Olds" in name only-not like the Hurst-Performance built special editions based on the "A" body Cutlass 442 from 1968-75.  Mastermind          

Still more cars that don't exist.....and more idiots that think they have something valuable....

My last post really riled some people up. There must be a lot of villages missing thier idiots because their all in internet cafe's e-mailing me about their non-existant cars. Here's a few more where comedian Bill Engvall would say-"Here's your sign." ( That says "I'm stupid" if you don't know Engvall's comedy ) # 1. This clown claimed to have a 1976 Z/28 Camaro. In the pictures, it was painted like a '74 Z/28-with the big graphics on the hood. And it had a 350 with a 4-speed-which you could get on a base-model or Rally Sport that year. However-the Z/28 option was killed in the middle of the 1974 model year. There were no 1975 or 76 Z/28's. After seeing the phenomonal success of the Pontiac Firebird Trans-Am-sales doubled or tripled every year from 1973-76-even before "Smokey and the Bandit" was released-the Chevy Brass-realized their colossal mistake-and brought back the Z/28 package in March 1977. This clown had a Rally Sport Camaro, that some previous clown had put Z/28 stripes on. # 2. This guy was a Sports car enthusiast who claimed to have a 1969 Pantera. Here's your sign. The Pantera-if you live in a cave-was a joint DeTomaso / Ford venture that was introduced in 1971. The Pantera was a swoopy, two-seat sports car with a 351 Cleveland mounted mid-engine. It was often called the "Poor man's Lamborghini". They were sold through Lincoln-Mercury dealers for about $10,000 from 1971-75. After 1976-some people imported a few until about 1990. What this clown has is a DeTomaso Mangusta-which is the predecesor of the Pantera. It has a mid-mounted 302 Ford V8, and looks a lot like a Pantera. They were built from 1968-1970. A Mangusta is a cool, rare, car-they were ahead of their time-mid-engine, 4-wheel disc brakes, fully independent suspension-but it is NOT a Pantera. # 3. This clown claimed to have an "Extremely Rare" 302 Chevy powered 1969 Trans-Am. !st off-there were only 697 T/A's built in 1969 and they all had 400 inch Pontiac engines. 2nd-the race cars campaigned by Jerry Titus and Milt Minter had special, one-off 303 inch Pontiac engines, that Herb Adams and other engineers built by de-stroking a 400. These engines were expensive to build, had a lot of one-off exotic parts and were unreliable-they blew up a lot-that's why Titus only won a couple of races from 1969-70 before he was killed at Lime Rock. When Pontiac pulled their support-after DeLorean left-race teams- a lot them privateers-couldn't get parts or replacment engines. The SCCA made an exception and ruled that since the Camaro / Firebird were GM "sister" cars-racers could run the much more prevalant 302 Chevy engines in the Firebird bodies. What this guy did-he told me in his e-mail-he bought an old race car to run at the Monterey Historics. I told him to send the vin to Pontiac Historical services and see if it's a "real" Trans-Am-not a '69 Firebird that someone turned into a race car. If it's one of the 697 T/A's built in 1969-it might be worth restoring. If it's a gussied-up base-model Firebird then I'd leave it a race car. But either way-there was NEVER a 302 Chevy powered Firebird Trans Am built by GM. The 302 was only available in Z/28 Camaros from 1967-69. Here's your sign. Mastermind      

More cars that don't exist.......

I love getting emails from idiots challenging me. calling me names, and swearing they have some "Moon Rock" car, and then them being crushed when I produce irrefutable proof that their wrong. I guess I have a sadistic streak. Anyhow-here's a few I dealt with this week. # 1. This clown claimed to have a 1974 GTO-not one of the 7,058 350-powered Ventura based models-no, he had an extemely rare LeMans based one with a 400 and a 4-speed, that "slipped out" before Pontiac made the change. Because that's what the Idiot that sold it to him told him! Here's why he's wrong. Yes, Initially, the GTO was going to be continued on the "A" body LeMans platform for 1974. Except for minor trim changes it was going to be identical to the 1973 version of which they'd only sold 4,806 units. The brass thought that if the SD-455 was available in the Goat, it might jump-start sales. But then they decided that the Trans-Am was now the performance flagship, and that they shouldn't waste time on the GTO that was clearly a car without a market. Both the "A" body based Grand Am and the Grand Prix out sold the GTO by ten times in 1973. A few die-hards didn't want to give up on the legendary nameplate-and suggested going back to it's roots-a big engine in a stripped-down light car-a badass street fighter. That's where the idea for the Ventura ( read Nova )-based Goat came from. Since Pontiac V8s are externally identical from a 326 to a 455-and the 350 was already an option in the Ventura line-these guys suggeted dropping a 400 into the Ventura-much like the 1964 original when they dropped the "big car" 389 into the compact Tempest / LeMans. This was seriously considered-but then dropped because a 400 in a 3,200 lb Ventura would have blown the doors off a 3,800 lb Trans-Am even if it did have an SD-455. Since the T/A was now the flagship, that couldn't happen. And because of the gas crisis of 1973-74 the brass thought the 350 Ventura / GTO might sell anyway. So, all '74 GTOs were Ventura based and were 350 powered. What this idiot had was a "LeMans G/T". This option was still available on the LeMans for 1974-and yes you had basically the same car as the '73 GTO. The standard engine was a 400 4bbl rated at 225 hp ( '73's were rated at 230 ) with either an M20 Muncie 4-speed or a TH400. The L75 250 hp 455 was optional, but only with a TH400. They are rare-I think less than 1,000 were built-but they are a LeMans GT, not a GTO. Obviously some clown slapped '73 style GTO emblems on this car and duped this moron for big bucks. I think he said he paid $12,000 for it. That's actually not bad for nice 400 4-speed LeMans, but it's NOT A GTO in any way, shape or form!! # 2. Another Pontiac-this clown claimed to have a 400,4-speed 1972 GTO Judge. In 1970 Pontiac sold 40,149 GTOs-of which 3,797 were Judge models. This was down substantially from 1969 when they sold 72,225 GTOs of which 6,833 were Judge models. In 1971-sales plumetted to 10,000 units-down by 75% from 1970. Only 374 Judge models were built in 1971-357 hardtops and 17 convertibles and they were all 455HO powered. This was also the standard engine in the Trans-Am. In 1972-The GTO was no longer a separate model-it returned to being a option on the LeMans-and the standard engine was a 400 4-bbl rated at 250 net hp. Optional engines included the 250 hp L75 "Station Wagon" 455 and the 455HO rated at 300 hp.  Unfortunately, partly due to a late 1971 UAW strike- the re-designed "A" bodys that debuted in 1973 were slated to be '72 models-the '71s were carried over basically unchanged. It didn't help-sales halved again-to a paltry 5,807 units. Further muddling the waters-the "Endura" ( read GTO ) front bumper and scooped hood could be ordered on any LeMans model including wagons. There was also a LeMans "Sport" model and a LeMans "GT" package in 1972. This poor bastard didn't even have a GTO-I told him to contact Pontiac historical service and get the original window sticker. He had a LeMans Sport that was originally built with a 400 / 4-speed combo-but some schyster put a spoiler, a hood tach on it and '71 Judge style graphics on it and got this clown for $32,000!!! A nice 400 / 4-speed '72 LeMans might be worth 20K, but not 32!!! He got robbed. There was NEVER a 1972 Judge option. I felt sorry for the guy-he said-"I wish I'd contacted you or PHS before I wrote the check." Obviously. That's why the term "Buyer Beware" was coined. # 3. This guy claimed to have a "Rare" "SS454" 1974 Chevelle Laguna. In 1973-the "SS" option was still available-on any V8 engined Malibu-which included a 165 hp 2bbl 350, a 175 hp 4bbl 350, and the 454 4bbl which was rated at 245 hp-down 25 hp from the 270 hp rating of 1972. Also optional in 1973 was the "Laguna" plastic front end and grille-much like Pontiac's "Endura" set up. However-all of the "SS" models had the ugly steel chrome bumper. You could NOT combine the SS / Laguna options. ( In a Camaro-you could still combine the Rally Sport and Z/28 options ) You could get a 454 in a Laguna however. The "SS" option was dropped at the end of 1973. In 1974 the Laguna S3 was the top trim option, and the 454 was available, until 1975. But there was no "SS" package available in 1974. So he has a 454 Malibu with the Laguna package-but it is not an "SS" in any way shape or form. I can't stress this enough-before you pay big dollars for some "Rare Bird" verify if it is what the seller is representing it to be. Email me, or Hemmings Motor news, or Musclecar Review, Hot Rod, etc. Dennis Mecham is still in business in Arizona and will verify or de-bunk any "Macho T/A". Investigate before you spend your hard-earned cash. Mastermind                 

"Project Clunker?" Might be fun......

A few years ago Popular Hot Rodding did a 1972 Nova that they called "Project Cheap Shot." They tried to get the most bang for the buck when making modifications. I'd like to take it one step further-and say no new parts. Everything has to come out of a junkyard or be bought used off the internet or at a swap meet. Here's a few ideas I thought that might be fun. # 1. 1975-77 Chevy Monza "California" model. These cars offered a 262 or 305 V8 in the other 49 states; however since the 262 / 305 wasn't EPA certified for California emissions, if you ordered a V8 and lived in California-GM substituted the 350 that was Calif certified!! Granted, they had 2bbl carburation, single exhaust, and salt-flats gearing-but like the magazines of the day said-you had a "Factory V8 Vega". A 4bbl carb and intake, some dual exhaust, a shift kit for the TH350, and swapping the 2.41:1 gears for some 3.23:1 or 3.42:1s would turn this "smog dog" into a "pocket rocket". You could give those smug 5.0 Mustang owners a run for the money they'd not soon forget, for very low bucks. # 2. 1972-77 AMC Gremlin. I'm not kidding. A buddy had a 304 Gremlin in high school, and he and his dad swapped in a 401 out of a Matador police car. ( A bolt-in; AMC engines are like Pontiacs-they are all externally identical from a 290-401.) He showed his taillights to quite a few flabbergasted Camaro and Mustang drivers. He even beat another kid in a sleeper-a 454 Monte Carlo. 401s are a little hard to find now, but 360s were used in Jeep Grand Wagoneer's until the early '90's-plenty of those in junkyards. And the Gremlin's short wheelbase and good weight distribution actually make them good drag racers. You could also use a 1972-78 Hornet. Short-wheelbase, light weight, and some had 360s stock. # 3. 1971-77 Ford Maverick / Mercury Comet. While a lot of these cars had six-cylinder motivation, the ones to look for are the 302 versions. They only weigh about 2,900 lbs and their are a million ways to build power into a small-block Ford. A buddy of mine with a 440 Road Runner got his doors blown off one night by a hot 302 Maverick. # 4. 1983-88 Buick, Olds, or Pontiac "G" body. An '80's Monte Carlo SS or Grand National will bring a king's ransom, but a garden-variety Gran Prix, Regal or Cutlass can be a great sleeper. The G/P to look for is a 305 Chevy model-a 350 or 383 would be a bolt-in. As for the Buick and Olds models-look for ones with a 307 Olds V8. A 350 or 403 OldsV8 would be a bolt-in swap. All of these cars had 200R4 trannys-that have closer gear ratios than a 700R4-their's less rpm drop between gears. # 5. 1975-79 Dodge Aspen / Plynouth Volare. These replaced the Dart and Duster, and Mopar fans were not amused. But you can buy them dirt cheap, and their light. Look for 318 versions. These can be hopped up cheaply, or if you need a replacement engine-their are millions of 318 and 360 "Magnum" engines in junkyards in '92 and later Jeep Cherokees and Dodge trucks and vans. A 360 "Magnum" powered Aspen would be a great, fast sleeper. Any of these could be a low-buck hot rod. Mastermind        

Project "Heavy Metal"......Redux.......

Someone reminded me that back in the '90's Car Craft had a project car called Project "Heavy Metal." It was a 1965 Impala with a fuel-injected 502 inch Rat motor, trick suspension, and 4-wheel disc brakes. The car was actually stolen and never recovered, sadly. This person suggested I do a similar project-but not a Chevy. I gave it some thought, and came up with a few viable ideas. # 1. 1965-68 Pontiac Catalina or Gran Prix. I personally think the '65-66 Pontiacs, with their Dodge Chargerish "Coke Bottle" flanks and semi-fastback roofline are one of the best looking cars GM ever put out. The '67-68 models arent quite as sexy-but the fastback body is still cool, and the GP's have hidden headlights. ( Ray Liotta drove a '68 Gran Prix in "Goodfellas" ) Plus, the bulletproof  TH400 was standard all years, and the standard engines were 389 and 400 cubes. The optional ones were 421 and 428 cubes. Later "Big Car" front disc brakes ( although some 67-68 models may have them stock ) can be adapted easily, and in these years Pontiac built a lot of ambulances and hearses. I mention this-because these commercial vehicles had huge front and rear sway bars. If you can find one in a boneyard. On the upside-any aftermarket suspension or brake upgrades that fit an Impala will also fit these cars. And there are a miilion ways to build power into a Pontiac V8. # 2. 1966-69 Buick Riviera. These cars had the sexy, fastback body of the Olds Toronado-but are still rear-wheel drive. And I think the Riviera's styling was actually cleaner. I'm going to blaspheme a little here-there's not a lot of speed equipment available for Buicks. However; I have both a 428 Pontiac and a 455 Olds in my garage. There is a TON of speed equipment-( aftermarket aluminum heads, cams, intakes, etc ) for Pontiac and Olds engines and either one would bolt right up to the BOP TH400. ( Chevys have a different bellhousing bolt-pattern.) I see one Jet-Black or Palladium Silver with 17 inch torque-thrusts. # 4. 1967-71 Ford Thunderbird. The '67-69 models have hidden headlights and cool styling. They also have 390, 428, or 429 cubes under the hood. The '70-71 models have swoopy, Nascar-inspired styling and 429 cubes under the hood. Which means that a 460 based 514 stroker would bolt right in. You could do anything from "Pro Street" to "Pro Touring". Cool. Mastermind

Project "Lion's?" Or Bonneville.....Or Riverside?

I spoke earlier about a street machine done in '60's Trans-Am style-like Popular Hot Rodding's-"Project Talledega" a Chevelle Laguna done in '70's NASCAR style. That got me thinking that it might be cool to do a '50's hot rod one of three ways. We all love '55-57 Chevys-but that would be too cliche' and too expensive. I was thinking of doing a '55-58 Olds in '50's "Gasser" drag racing style. Remove the front bumper, install a straight front axle-radius the rear wheelwells for big tires, remove all the chrome and fill the mounting holes. Paint it flat black, and run Chrome reverse rims, or maybe Cragar S/S mags. I have a 455 Olds engine and TH400 in my garage.  "Project Lion's Drag strip". # 2. A popular swap in the late '50's was the "Studillac"- a Cadillac V8 stuffed into a 1953-55 Studebaker Starliner Coupe. A lot of guys ran these at Bonneville on top-speed runs because the swoopy Stude body was more aerodynamic than just about anything else from the '50's, and the big Cad V8's made more power than the  239 inch Ford Flathead V8s or the 283 inch small-block Chevys of the day. A buddy of mine has a 472 Cad engine he'll sell me cheap. Smooth out and de-chrome the body, put on some big wheels and tires with Moon disc hubcaps-"Project Bonneville".  # 3. Smokey Yunick and Fireball Roberts were the scourge of NASCAR in the late '50's and early '60's with their fire-breathing Pontiacs. They won 22 races in the 1961-62 season alone, a record that stood until Richard Petty won 27 in 1967. Then came the infamous June 1963 GM ban on factory-backed racing. So I'd have to use a 1959-63 Catalina,Bonneville, or Gran Prix. I've got a 428 Pontiac engine in my garage, and I have an Offenhauser dual quad Pontiac manifold ( set up for Dual AFB's, but modern Edelbrock Performer carbs will bolt right on and look the same ) Thst would look just like a factory 421 SD induction setup. ( although a lot of the time Smokey ran a single-4bbl, I just think the dual quads look and sound cool ) I'd use a Muncie or Saginaw 3-speed stick-because that's what they ran. For some reason, Smokey didn't like the 4-speeds on the long tracks. Radiuse the fenderwells, use black painted steel wheels with chrome lug nuts, put numbers and decals and "421 SD" emblems on the body. It would look badass and with 428 inches under the hood, it could back up the image. "Project Riverside"-one of Roberts' most exciting victories came there. I think any of these would be cool and unique-not something you see every day. I'll see if I can get some magazine support-maybe they'll serialize the build or donate some parts. Anyone else have similar ideas? Mastermind   

Project "Lime Rock" ? Maybe.....

Popular Hot Rodding's "Project Talledega"-A 1975 Chevelle Laguna built like a '70's Nascar racer is wildly popular with readers. I was thinking of doing a similar theme-building a street car like a '60s or '70s Trans-Am racer. But a Firebird or Camaro or Mustang would be too cliche'. I was thinking a 1971-74 Pontiac Ventura. I have a 428 Pontiac engine in my garage. A lot of suspension and brake upgrades that fit a Camaro or Firebird also fit the "X" bodies-i.e.-Nova,Ventura, Omega etc. WS6 suspension, a snarling 428 inch engine-how cool is that. For bodywork I'd go '60s Trans-Am style-radiused and flared fenderwells, Mini-Lite Wheels or American Racing Torq-thrusts with fat tires. Front and rear spoilers, maybe even use a "Shaker" hood scoop like the Ventura-based '74 GTO had. It wouldn't be hard-buy a used or replacement 1970-76 style Trans-Am shaker, and cut a hole in the hood to clear it. Add a bunch of decals-or race-style graphics- numbers, and stuff like "STP" emblems, Bardahl, Sunoco, Hooker Headers stickers etc. Or you could go monochromatic-solid black, with blacked out trim and bumpers, black Nascar-style steel wheels, or all white-with white-spoke steel wheels, side exit exhaust painted with white or black VHT. Or maybe a red, white, and blue scheme like Mark Donahue's Javelin. You could do a Nova with a hot small-block, or an Omega with a 350 / 403 Olds. I like the Pontiac idea because I already have the engine, and with 428 cubes it'll have more power than a small-block Chevy or Olds, and if I used aluminum Edelbrock or Kaufmann heads it will handle better too. Doing a 'Cuda / Challenger would be too cliche' as well, but a Duster / Dart with a 360-based 408 stroker done in Trans-Am style would be unique and cool, as would a Maverick / Comet with a hot 302  or 351W. But none would be as badass as a Ventura with 440 inches ( 428 bored .060 over ) of thundering Pontiac power! A Rat powered Nova would be as fast or faster in a straight line-but wouldn't handle nearly as good-it would be too nose-heavy. Maybe I should start looking for a rust-free Ventura.....Mastermind      

The "Original" 5.3 liter GM V8s......They make good boat anchors...

Had someone ask me if it would be worth hot-rodding the small GM V8s of the early-mid '60's. If you don't know-in the early '60's GM, Ford and Chrysler had sort of an unwritten rule-small cars got small engines, big cars got big engines. That's why all the performance cars of the early '60's were full-size cars-409 Impalas, 389 and 421 Catalinas, Bonnevilles and Gran Prix's, 394 and 425 inch Olds "Rocket" 88s, 401 inch Buick Rivieras, 390 and 406 Galaxies, and 383 and 413 Belvederes. When GM's infamous ban on racing came down in 1963, people were worried-especially the brass at Pontiac who had climbed to second place in sales behind only Mighty Chevrolet-largely through their performance image. Smokey Yunick and Fireball Roberts won 22 NASCAR races in 1961-62 in their fire-breathing 421 Catalinas. This is where the saying "Win on Sunday,Sell on Monday." came from. John DeLorean and Pete Estes came up with the idea of building a high-performance street car, rather than a race car. At the same time Oldsmobile broke the rules and put the small 330 inch V8 in the Jetstar 88 and lowered the price. A direct assault on Pontiac's best-selling Catalina. This infuriated De Lorean, who found a loophole in the rule. The GM rulebook said no compact or intermediate car could have a standard engine larger than 330 inches. Estes and Delorean dropped the "Big Car" 389 into the lightweight Tempest / LeMans and the GTO was born. They got away with it, because the GTO package was an OPTION, not standard equipment. The rest is history-the horsepower race was on. Anyhow, back to the question at hand-if you have a Pontiac Tempest, Chevy Malibu, Olds Cutlass, or Buick Skylark built from say 1964-67-are these standard engines worth hopping up?  I have to say no. The only one worth hot-rodding would be a 327 Chevy. However-the only reason anyone would want a 327 is if they were restoring a 63-68 Corvette,Impala SS or Nova SS to the nth degree-and then you'd want it to be stock. For a "Hot Rod" 350s are the proverbial "dime a dozen" and are a lot easier to find than a 327. And, honestly-if I wanted a badass Nova- or "Gasser" style '55 or whatever-I'd probably build a 383-a 350 with a stroker crank, rather than mess with a 327. Dont' get me wrong- a properly built 327 can really rock-it's just that a 350 can make the same or more power for less money. The 327 has been out of production since 1969-that's 43 years. GM is still selling 350 crate engines to this day. Yes, most all SBC parts interchange-but stuff like cranks and pistons-are way cheaper for a 350 than they are for a 327 because of demand. Everybody and his brother has a 350. Junkyard's are full of them. So, like I said- unless your restoring say- a '64 Corvette-I'd just use a 350. # 2. 326 Pontiac. These are not worth hot rodding beyond adding dual exhausts and installing a 4bbl carb and intake, and maybe swapping the 2-speed ST300 trans for a TH350. Here's why-Pontiac engines are externally identical from 326 to a 455. Swapping in a 389,400, 421/428 or 455 would literally be a bolt-in. And these make waaay more power than a 326 could. Secondly-if you wanted to hot rod a 326-you couldn't-the big-valve heads off a 400 or larger engine that you'd need to make any serious power-won't work on the small-bore 326-the valves will hit the block. If you have a 326 LeMans or Firebird-I'd save your money and get a 400. #3. 330 Oldsmobile. The only thing a 330 is good for-is they have forged steel cranks that are the same stroke as a 350 Olds. The snout of the crank would need to be slightly modified to fit a later 350, but Mondello Performance can do it. This might be something you'd want if you were building a stompin' 350 Olds and wanted to run nitrous. However-to get any real power-you'd need 455 heads and special pistons. If you have that much money-and need to go that fast-why aren't you building a 400-425-455 Olds V8? The only good thing about a 330 Olds is they are externally identical to the later small-block engines. This means that a later-model 350 or 403 would bolt right in. There's a fair amount of aftermarket support for them-a mildly warmed-over 350 / 403 and a TH350 in place of the 330 / ST300 would make a '64-67 F85 / Cutlass a really nice driver that could still put down some rubber if you wanted to. But the 330 is just too small for serious performance work. # 4. 300 / 327 / 340 Buick. There is practically zero aftermarket parts for these engines, and a '68 and later 350 makes way more power stock-and there is some aftermarket support-T/A performance makes cams and intakes and headers for 350 Buicks. If I wanted a really fast Skylark I'd build a 400-430-455. But the 340 and smaller ones are just good doorstops. Hope this clears some things up. Mastermind                     

Think hard, shop around, and get the most "Bang" for your Bucks!

I was talking to a friend the other day who had just bought a '71 Chevelle. He couldn't decide whether to go big-block or small-block. He first got excited about the GMPP 383 small-block package. It's rated at 425 hp and 449 lbs ft of torque. It retails for $5,499, and that's a "Long Block"-you'd still need to buy a carb and intake, a distributor and headers. Figure $200 for an Edelbrock Performer RPM manifold, $400 for a 750 cfm Holley or Edelbrock carb, $200 for an Accel or MSD HEI distributor and $200 for some Hedman Shorty headers-and the tab is up to $6,500. I told him he could build a 400 hp Small-block for half that amount. He scoffed. I showed him an article in "Super Chevy" where they bought a garden-variety rebuilt 350 short-block from Checker Auto Parts for $650. They spent another $650 on a pair of brand-new Iron Vortec heads from Scoggin-Dickey, added a Competition Cams 270H "Magnum" cam, an Eddelbrock Vortec bolt-pattern Performer RPM, intake and a rebuilt 750 Holley from Summitt, and some Flowtech headers also from Summitt. When they were done it made 390 hp on the dyno-( The goal was 400hp; they just missed ) and the total cost to build it was $2,600!! I asked my friend-is 35 hp worth $2,900?  Then he looked at the big-blocks and lighted on the 500 hp, 567 lb ft 502 GMPP deluxe crate engine for $8,999. I pointed out that the GMPP ZZ454 / 440 crate engine was rated at 440 hp and 500 lbs of torque and cost only $5,999. "Believe me, 60 hp and 67 lbs of torque is not worth 3 grand." I said. "You can get another 60 hp out of a 454 for a lot less than 3K" I pointed out that Edelbrock claimed 540 hp from their big-block "Performer RPM" package-that was based on a 454HO short-block! If he switched to the Edelbrock cam and intake it would cost him less than $500 in parts. ( The ZZ454 / 440 has aluminum oval port heads from the factory-no need to change them.)  He'd have 540 hp instead of 500, and the total cost would be $6,499-a savings of $2,500 over the 502 crate package! The $2,500 he saved could be used for a Tremec 5-speed conversion, or bodywork and paint, or whatever else he wanted. He was stunned. I told him about the "Junkyard Jewel" article I read where the magazine built a 400 Pontiac that made 440 hp and 460 lbs of torque, and they were so proud of the fact that it cost "only" $4,400 to build including the aluminum Edelbrock heads. I showed him the dyno sheet for the 400 in my brother's GTO. It has iron 6X heads, cost $1,900 to build and cranked out 381 hp and 422 lbs of torque!! I asked my friend-"Is 59 hp and 38 lbs of torque worth $2,500?" He laughed and called me an evil genius. "I'm not a genius, I just do the math on what gives the most bang for your buck."  Take heed, and save yourself some big dollars on your next project. Mastermind           

For the last time these cars don't exist!!!

I have gotten many emails from people claiming to to have owned or knowing someone who has owned some "Moon Rock" car, yet they can't produce a window sticker or a build sheet, they can't produce even a photocopy of a title, or a registration or pictures of the car in question. Like Micheal Corleone at the end of the "Godfather" today I am handling all family business. I am de-bunking these falsehoods for everyone. # 1. There were never two "mystery" 426 Hemi prototype engines stolen from Chrysler Corporation in 1964. This was even done in the "Speed Racer" cartoon series- the "GRX" engine that the villians unerathed from the cemetary that went so fast only drivers on drugs could drive the car that housed it. If it happened-the person who stole it-would have to have been a high-ranking Chrysler employee-and why would he risk his job and career and jail time stealing a prototype? And who could he sell it to? GM or Ford? The Japanese? How could he race it? If something broke, where could he get parts for this one-off, prototype engine that wasn't yet approved for production? This is a myth that morons everywhere perpetuate.  # 2. There were no 1970 LS6 Corvettes ever built. Originally the mighty 450 hp LS6 454 was slated to be an option not only in the SS Chevelle, but in the Camaro and Nova as well. Camaros and Novas had an SS396 option, so the 454 would have been a bolt-in. Zora-Arkus Duntov-Chief Corvette engineer-fully expected the more radical LS7 -basically a 454 inch L88-with 12.25:1 compression, a .580 lift solid-lifter cam, an aluminum manifold and an 850 cfm Holley as standard equipment-to make production as the 'Vette's top engine option. That's why the 11:1, milder cammed,780 cfm vacuum-secondary carbed LS6 wasn't on the option list. The standard "big-block" in the 1970 'Vette was a 360 hp hydraulic-cammed, iron intaked, Q-Jet equipped "station wagon" LS5 454.  At the last minute the GM brass killed the LS7 as a production option-it was sold to racers as a crate motor for years-and limited 1970 LS6 production to the Chevelle / EL Camino line.  1100 or so 9:1 compression 425 hp 1971 LS6 Corvettes were built, but there was NEVER a 1970 version, and no GM engineer has ever verified one, and no magazine has ever produced a build sheet or a window sticker for one. # 3. There was never a GTO station wagon. In 1971-72 you could order the "Endura" front end and scooped hood on any LeMans model including wagons. You could also pay extra and get Rally II or Honeycomb wheels that were offered in the Firebird / GTO line instead of hubcaps, and the 400 and 455 V8s were optional. However the 455HO which had 4-bolt mains,forged pistons, and RAIV heads and intake paired with the "068" cam-and was the standard engine in the Trans-Am and the Judge-and optional on "regular" GTOs, 1971 Tempest T37s, 1972 LeMans GT models, and Formula Firebirds was NOT available in a LeMans Wagon. Again-no one has ever produced a build sheet or window sticker for a GTO wagon, and no ex-Pontiac employee has ever verified one. If you see some clown who claims to have one, it's a LeMans Sport wagon that someone slapped GTO emblems on. # 4. There was no 440 / Six-Pak option for 1972 Chargers and Road Runners. 1971 models had 10.3:1 compression and were rated at 385 hp. The option was listed in very early 1972 sales literature with 9:1 compression and rated at 330 hp; however they had trouble passing the stiffer 1972 emissions standards and the option was scrapped, leaving the 280 net hp 440 4bbl as the top engine option. Some people claim that "10 or 12" '72 440 Six-Paks "slipped out" before the option was killed, but I have never seen one, or seen one verified by Hot Rod, Musclecar Review, Hemmings, or any other reputable publication.      # 5. There were only 295 SD-455 Pontiac engines sold to the public in 1973 and they were all in Firebirds-252 in Trans-Ams and 43 in Formulas. Again-the option was listed in early 1973 sales literature as being available in the GTO, LeMans, Grand Am and Gran Prix models as well as Firebirds.  High -Performanc Cars magazine even voted the '73 GTO as the "Car of the Year" since they drove a prototype in the summer of 1972. However-the engines had trouble passing emissions with the RAIV cam. This was swapped for the milder RAIII cam and the horsepower rating was changed from 310 to 290. Then they had trouble with the connecting rods and trouble with the EGR valve function which further delayed production. Finally in April 1973 the EPA certified the engine in the Firebird line only. That's why only 295 were built and that's why all of them have May or June production dates. The option was continued for 1974-another 943 were built-again only in T/A's and Formulas. So any moron who claims to have a 1973 SD-455 Gran Prix, Grand Am, or GTO is a liar. It's a 250 hp L75 "Station Wagon" engine. # 6. There were no 455HO Trans-Ams built after 1972. In 1975-the buff magazines and Pontiac enthusiasts everywhere howled to the high heavens when the SD-455, and the L75 455 were dropped, leaving the mighty T/A with a catalyst choked 185 hp 400 as it's only engine, and the only drivetrain options being a TH350 ( Besides having the lesser-powered engines and not needing the beef, TH400s wouldn't leave enough undercar room for the new Fedrally-Mandated Catalytic Converters.) with 2.56:1 gearing or a 4-speed with 3.08:1s. You couldn't buy a 4-speed in California. In response to the public outrage Pontiac released a mid-year "455HO" performance package that included a 4-speed and 3.23:1 gears. Of the 23,000+ T/A's sold that year only 857 had this option. However the engine was a 7.6:1 compression generic 455 that wheezed out 200 hp. It DID NOT have RAIV heads, an aluminum intake or an "068" cam that the real 455HOs of 1971-72 had. Again the buff magazines derided the car screaming about how Pontiac had desecrated a classic name. The 455 option returned for 1976 basically unchanged, but the Shaker hood scoop emblems read simply "455" instead of "455HO". Of the nearly 50,000 T/A's sold in 1976-only 7,500 had the 455. The rest were all 400s. The 455 was dropped for 1977, but then "Smokey and the Bandit" was released..... # 7. The last "Real" Hurst / Olds was built in 1975. By real I mean the last one produced on the "A" body Cutlass platform and the last one with a 455 cubic inch engine and the last one built by Hurst Performance. There were no 76-78 versions. The 1979 model was based on the downsized "G" body Cutlass, had a 350 V8 that wheezed out 180 hp, and was built entirely by Oldsmobile in Lansing, Michigan and the engineers shamelessly put "W30" emblems on this little "Smog dog" that couldn't even break out of the 16s in the 1/4!! The 1983-84 models were based on the same "G" body platform and had an even more anemic 307 inch V8 that made 145 hp. Yuk.  Hope this clears these myths up once and for all. Mastermind                   

The math hasn't changed.......

Had several posts a while back about running in the unlimited class in the Silver State Classic. We talked about various car / engine combinations and agreed that the combo that gave the most bang for the buck-i.e-horsepower+aerodynamics+low curb weight would be a Rat-motored '82-90 Trans-Am. I'm still getting emails from people coming up with different car / engine combos. The latest was a guy that agreed the T/A with only .028 drag coefficient was the best body choice but suggested using a 400 small-block instead of the Rat. Huh? We all agreed that a 720 hp 572 inch GMPP crate motor or a Blueprint Engines 540 incher with 650 hp MIGHT be enough for a two-way 200 mph run. Now, if that's iffy-what makes you think a 400 small-block would have the same amount or more power for LESS money??  The new Dart 400 small-block "Short Block" package costs $3,200 and that's with cast pistons and a cast crank. If you upgrade to a forged crank and forged pistons-which you'll definitely need to stay together for high-speed running, the price goes up to $4100. Just for the block and rotating assembly. You still need hi-perf heads, ( either Dart or Edelbrock or Trick Flow, all around $1,500 a pair ) cam and valvetrain, carb and intake, ignition, exhaust and a flywheel and balancer and all the tin. The price will go over 10 grand pretty quick, and a 400 small-block will make 500 hp pretty easy, but not 600-700hp, like a Rat would for the same amount of money. If you were running a 2.56:1 axle ratio-and the 400 inch motor could pull 7,000 rpm reliably-that would still only get you to about 185 mph, not 200+!  Yes, NASCAR SBC's have about 800 hp, but they cost about $25,000 to build. So, No, I don't think that's a better idea!! The math hasn't changed-unless you want to build a $100,000+ car-your not going to beat the the Rat-Motored '80's F-body that can be built for about $25,000-If you figure five grand for the car, 15 grand for the motor and another 5K for a transmission, and wheels, tires and a rollcage!! My orignal statement still stands-Yes you may go just as fast or faster-with a 528 inch Stroker Hemi or a  514 inch Boss-Nine Ford, but not for anywhere near the same amount of money!! And definitely not for less!!  Mastermind   

The "Other" 350s......Again....

Had some people ask me to re-run an older post about hot-rodding the "Other" non-Chevrolet 350s-i.e. Buick, Olds, and Pontiac. Don't know how to re-upload it, and for those of you who don't want to search through 3 years of posts for it, I'll re-hash it here. The reason this information is relevant is from 1968-1980 GM produced millions of Pontiac Tempests, LeMans, Firebird and Ventura models, as well as Olds Cutlasses and Omegas, and Buick Skylarks, Regals, and Centurys. These cars can be purchased for many thousands of dollars less than their big-block brothers-i.e.-GTOs, Trans-Am and Formula 400 / 455s, Cutlass 442s, and GS400 and 455 Skylark / Century / Regal models. If you have or want to buy one of these cars and the price is reasonable, by all means do it. They make great drivers, and the obvious way to infuse big power is to swap in one of the larger 400 or 455 inch engines. However-if you don't need or want 500 hp-( You'll definitely need the larger engine for that ) or just want a little more oomph while your building that killer big-block, heres some good advice, broken down by each line. # 1. Pontiac. Since Pontiacs are externally identical from a 326 to a 455, swapping in a larger engine-i.e.-400-428-455 is literally a bolt-in, most Pontiac enthusiasts go this route. However, if you have a Firebird, LeMans or Ventura with a 350-you can still have some fun for low bucks. The limiting factor on a 350 Pontiac is it's a small-bore / long stroke design. This causes two problems. One-the big-valve heads needed to make SERIOUS power-can't be used-the valves will hit the block. Two-the heavy, long stroke crank and rods ( the same as a 400 ) make the bottom-end unreliable at speeds much over 5,500 rpm. What you need to do is accentuate what Pontiac did to start with-make big torque at low rpm. The largest improvement you can make on these cars is intake, exhaust and gearing. Most had 2bbl carbs and single exhaust. Switching to a factory or aftermarket 4bbl carb and intake-( the manifolds off a 400-455 will fit ) and adding dual exhaust either with or without headers will make a huge improvement. Since most of these cars were automatics, a shift kit from  B&M or TransGo will work wonders, as will swapping the 2.73 or 3.08 gears for some 3.42s or 3.55s. These minor changes will make people THINK you swapped in a 400. A mild cam-like the Edelbrock Performer grind or the Crane Blueprint "068" cam will infuse a ton of mid-range torque. A setup like this-( depending on whether or not you changed the cam ) will give between 290 and 340 hp, and between 350 and 400 lbs ft of torque. That's enough soup that you can smoke the tires at will and you won't have to take crap from little boys in Honda Civic Sis or soccer moms in V8 Cherokees when leaving a stoplight, or just give you a fun, reliable driver until you get that killer 455 built. # 2. Olds 350. From an engineering standpoint this is really the only one of the non-Chevy 350s that's worth hot-rodding. It's an oversquare design-large bore / small stroke, and their was a factory high-performance version-the vaunted "W31" that was grossly under-rated at 325 hp. Do the math- the "standard" 350 was rated at 310 hp. The "W31" with bigger-valve heads, special exhaust manifolds, an aluminum high-rise intake, and hot cam with 308 duration and .474 lift only made 15 more hp than the one in mom's Vista Cruiser wagon?  Riiight. That's why they were only available with a 4-speed and 3.90:1 or 4.33:1 gears! The Olds 350 engines respond well to traditional hot rod tricks-headers, cam, carb and intake, etc, and there's decent aftermarket support-Edelbrock intakes, Lunati cams, Hooker Headers all make performance parts for these engines. You can use 455 heads on a 350-but you'll need special pistons, an electric fuel pump, and the only intake you can use is a special Mondello Performance port-matched Performer RPM. There's other people that espouse getting a 350 Diesel block and using a stroker crank to get 440 inches, but to both of those scenarios I have to ask- "If you have THAT much money and need to go THAT fast, why aren't you building a 455 instead of a 350?  # 3. 350 Buick. Sadly-there's not much aftermarket support for these engines. The reason is-unlike Chevrolet and Olds- that had performance oriented 350 models-there was never a factory Buick 350 high performance version, and unlike Pontiacs-( where almost everything interchanges from a 326 to a 455 ) with the Buicks nothing interchanges with it's 400-430-455 inch cousins. I mean Edelbrock doesn't even offer a Performer intake for 350 Buicks, even though they offer them for 231 V6s and the larger 400-430-455 V8s! A company called T/A performance ( why they specialize in Buick parts and not Pontiacs with that name is beyond me ) offers some hi-po Buick parts but most of those are geared to the big-blocks. Ditto for Kenne-Bell-most of their stuff is for GS455 or Grand National racers. However-swapping the 2bbl carb and intake for a 4bbl one, and adding dual exhaust will help immensely. As will a shift kit for the TH350 and swapping the 2.56:1 or 2.73:1 gears for some 3.23s or 3.42s. Don't waste your time or money buying 3.73 or 4.11 gears; these engines have neither the oiling system or the valvetrain to make power much over 5,000 rpm anyway. If you have a '60's or '70s Skylark or Regal / Century and want to go real fast your only choices are build a 455 or ( Gasp! ) swap in a Chevy. I know it sucks, but that's the lay of the land. Hope this helps out. Mastermind        

Iron fists....in Velvet gloves

Had some people ask me how could they get big power out of their musclecars and still look totally stock?  Here's the best ways to do it without breaking the bank. # 1. More cubes. The old saying-"There's no substitute for cubic inches, except cubic dollars" is still true. And no one is saying you have to go buy a whole other engine. Eagle, Scat, Lunati, and many other companies offer stroker cranks and / or rotating assemblys ( that include the rods and pistons, and rings&bearings ) for most popular engines. There are kits to turn a 350 Chevy into a 383, a 351W Ford into a 392, a 360 Mopar into a 408, a 400 Mopar into a 451 and a 400 Pontiac into a 455. All other factors being equal, the larger engine will always make more power and torque with the same equipment. # 2. More compression. It's not like the old days where you could build an 11:1 or 12:1 motor and run it on the street because your local Chevron station had 100 octane "Custom Supreme" for 39 cents a gallon. However, even with only 89 or 91 octane gas available today for 4 bucks a gallon, you can get away with about 9.2:1-9.5:1 with Iron heads pretty easily, and if your cooling system, and fuel system and ignition is perfect, you can sometimes get away with 10:1. (Aluminum heads can tolerate more because they dissipate heat better, but then you wouldn't look stock, would you? ). In most cases, you don't have to change pistons-you can just change the heads. For example the average 350 Chevy built from 1971-86 has about 8.2:1 compression, with 76cc combustion chamber heads. Switching to 64cc heads would up that one full point to 9.2:1. Using 58cc 305 heads would up that to about 9.6:1. Switching from the stock 83cc heads that come on '73 and later 350 / 403 Olds engines to the 70cc heads of the 68-72 350s will bump compression a full point from 8:1 to 9:1. ( You'll have to re-tap the bolt holes on '75 and later blocks, but Mondello Performance sells a kit for this ) Most 400 and 455 Pontiacs built after 1970 have compression ratios around 8.0:1. Some 75 and later models had 7.6:1 ratios! This was achieved with combustion chamber sizes of about 90cc on a 350 / 400 and about 111cc on a 455. Switching to 72-75cc heads on a 400 will raise the compression to about 9.5:1. Switching to 87-90cc heads on a 455 will do the same. ( It's quite popular to put 350 or 400 heads on a 455 for this quick boost.) The 72cc heads would bolt on to a 455, but the compression ratio would be about 11.5:1 which is much too high for iron heads and pump gas. The same goes for many Ford and Mopar engines as well. Consult books about each individual engine line for what years and casting numbers to look for. # 3. Cylinder head airflow. Especially if your going to change the heads anyway in looking for more compression, you might as well get a set that flows better as well. A couple of good examples-1996 and later small-block Chevy "Vortec" heads will bolt onto earlier blocks, and are worth 30 or 40 hp. Their 64cc chambers will give you the compression bump over stock 76cc heads, and they flow way better. You'll have to get a Vortec-style intake, but Edelbrock, Weiand, Holley, and even GMPP have you covered. (Most are aluminum, but if you paint them the stock color, 99% of people won't notice.) Plus, most of us will accept the HUGE power gain for not being totally stock looking. The same goes for small-block Mopars. 1992 and later 318 and 360 "Magnum" heads flow better than any factory head and many aftermarket ones, and they will bolt onto '91 and earlier blocks. Same thing-you'll need a "Magnum" style intake manifold, but Edelbrock and Mopar Performance have you covered. 1976-79 "6X" Pontiac heads flow better than any factory head except the vaunted and rare 1969-72 RAIV / 455HO heads. Again-check "How to Hot Rod" books for your particular engine line; most of these will tell you what casting numbers interchange and what they flow. # 4. Cams. No one can tell what cam your running by just looking at the engine. And if you've increased the cubes and compression, your going to need a bigger cam anyway. Edelbrock, Crane, Lunati, Competition Cams, etc-all offer performance cams for most engines and their catalogs will give you solid advice on what engine size, carb, compression, gear ratio, converter stall speed etc, to use. If you follow their guidelines you won't go wrong. # 5. Induction. There are several ways to look stock and still improve here. For example-GMPP makes an exact replica of the original Z/28 / LT1 manifold ( That Smokey Yunick says was the best SBC manifold ever made-it's good from idle-7,200 rpm ) in cast-iron. This was done for circle-track and drag racing classes where the rules say you have to run an iron manifold. However it will work on the street just as good as an Edelbrock Performer RPM, it'll just add about 30 lbs to the engine compared to an aluminum intake. 1975-79 Pontiacs had a VERY restrictive intake-the EGR valve actually protrudes into the the throttle opening. This really limits power above 4,000 rpm. It's so bad-that you can't even bolt on a spread-bore Holley carb-the throttle blades hang up and won't open fully. Most people just trash them and replace them with an Edelbrock Peformer. However-if you want to look stock-the 1967-74 factory iron Q-jet intakes are quite good up to about 5,800 rpm. This manifold is about equal to the Edelbrock Performer.  In fact-Popular Hot Rodding tested a bunch of aftermarket intakes on a 400 Pontiac several years ago. Only the Edelbrock Torker II showed a noticable gain of 20-25 hp-above 4,500 rpm. Some of the others actually showed a loss. Since then Edelbrock has come out with a Performer RPM Pontiac manifold that is supposedly worth 25 hp and 30 lbs ft of torque over the Performer or the good factory one, but they won't fit under a Trans-Am hood, and they don't look stock!! I could go on and list other examples, but you get the point. And you can always have a factory iron intake port-matched to the gasket and extrude-honed for increased airflow. You can usually get away with a 1/2 inch or 1 inch spacer under the carb for a few extra top-end ponies, although you'll have to richen the carb jetting. #6. Exhaust. Obviously headers will give any engine a big boost, but they definitely don't look stock, and unlike heads and intakes that can be painted or have numbers and logos ground off, there's no way to make headers look like stock exhaust manifolds. However-all is not lost. The main thing is to use at least 2 1/4 inch pipe ( preferably 2 1/2" or 3" on engines over 400 cubes ) some low-restriction "Turbo" style mufflers and a balance tube or x-pipe between the two pipes to maximize flow. And, again-read up on what factory exhaust manifolds flow best. A couple examples-for years small-block Chevy "Hobby stock" and "Street Stock" circle track racers have used the "Ram's Horn" exhaust manifolds-because the class rules say no headers allowed, and these flow better than other stock manifolds. R.A.R.E., NPD, Year one, and others offer reproduction exhaust manifolds for just about anything. If you have a Pontiac with D-port heads ( only the RAIV / 455HO / 455SD's had round ports ) the Ram Air III or "long branch" factory or repro iron manifolds flow almost as good as a set of "shorty" headers. And they can be ported and extrude-honed as well-as can manifolds for Fords, Mopars etc-you get the picture. # 7. Mechanical advantage. Most '70's and 80's cars because of tightening fuel economy and emissions laws have high ( low numeric ) gearing like 2.56:1 or 2.73:1. ( Even 5-speed "5.0" Mustangs came with only 2.73 or 3.08s from the factory ) Swapping this Salt-Flats gearing for something in the 3.23:1 to 3.73:1 range will give you a huge boost in acceleration without hurting gas mileage or freeway drivability too much. If you have an automatic transmission-"Shift Improver" kits from B&M and TransGo will drastically improve performance. A slightly higher-than-stock stall speed torque converter is a great "stealth" modification to get quicker acceleration. Just don't go overboard. For example-even if you have a 1993-2002 Z/28 Camaro or Firebird Trans Am with a computer-controlled LT1 / LS1 engineand 4L60E overdrive automatic-you can use a converter with up to 3,300 rpm stall speed. ( Anything over that and the computer thinks the trans is slipping and burning up and goes into limp-home mode ). However, computer-controlled or not, you'd have to have an awful radical setup to actually NEED a conveter with a higher stall speed than 3,300 rpm!! # 8. Ignition. Petronix and several other companies offer kits to convert point-type distributors to electronic ignition, and still use a stock-looking cap. Even if you want to stay with a point-type ignition-Accel and Mallory offer hi-performance point type distributors, ( just put a black cap on them ) and they sell point sets, and re-curve kits for stock ones. You can paint a 50,000 volt Accel, Mallory or MSD coil black, and no one can tell the difference between it and a crappy parts store one that doesn't even put out 25! If you have a 1975 and later GM or Ford product or 1972 and later Chrysler with factory electronic ignition, Accel and MSD offer performance upgrades-curve kits, modules, vacuum advances, higher-output coils, etc that will drastically improve performance, and drivability. So get to work and build a badass stock-looking "sleeper"!  Mastermind