mcalus

Ok... So I want to buy a LT1 that has a bunch of miles, and rebuild it as a end of winter/spring/summer project. Basically when I have some extra money I want to put it towards this. I would like to get a LT1, High Mileage, prefer a manual, some body work is ok. What are my prices that I should look towards? For the car and for the mods. I would like to have it as a street/drag car. It wouldn't be my daily driver just something to have fun with on the weekends. My buddy has a procharged 5.0 and he constantly has to worry about it over heating and he can barley take it very far, I dont want that problem. What do you guys suggest. I was thinking mild cam, full bolt ons. Another thing is I would rather prefer not to drive very far.

Thanks a ton!

M

mcalus

Anyone?

HardcoreRM125

You can build supercharged set ups that wont overheat. Theres a ton of supercharged LT1 cars on here. Check the forced induction section. Costly though to build it right, but your redoing the bottom end anyways so it wouldnt make that HUGE of a difference aside from the cost of the blower set up.

If you wanted to do a whicked budget set up, use the stock crank, stock rods, forged pistons, quality bearings, and get a LE2 head/cam package. This should lay down around 400RWHP give or take.

You could always throw some N20 at it if its not fast enough for you with 400+ to the wheels. Just make sure you plan everything out before you build it. It would suck if you decided later on to run some nitrous and the ring end gaps are too tight for it ...

mcalus

Thanks for the reply. That is good info...I am not sure why his car overheats I know it needs a tune real bad. I hear the "how to rebuild an LT1" is a real good book for starters. This would be my first real build by myself, I got a buddy that is rebuilding a 350 for his S-10 he could help me out if I get in a bind. I would really like to supercharge it but that would be a little pricey for me. I just dont want to be fixing stuff every other time I take it out. Where would H/C and full boltons put me at?

HardcoreRM125

For a awesome budget deal, check the for sale section on this board. Just try to double check who someone is before you buy so you dont get screwed. Ive had nothing but good experiences off here though buying parts.

An LE package goes from around 1300-1900 I believe. For a daily driven car, I wouldnt go bigger than a LE2 on a 350/355. If you end up building a budget stroker motor, the extra cubes would help tame the cam and make a LE3 package more managable.

If you want CHEAP performance, get the LT4 hotcam kit, ditch the springs for Comp 918 Beehives, throw on a set of Pacesetter long tubes, ORY, a cutout, CAI, & a tune. This WILL get you into high 12's if you can drive.

As far as tunes go, PCMforless and MadZ28 are the two best mail order tuners for LT1's. A dyno tune is obviously better but it costs over twice as much.

As far as doing heads and cam goes, I used a Bauer Racing Engines custom grind cam. And if I had to do it all over again, I would have done things exactly the same. Cant be happier with my set up. Its pretty whicked for stock heads. I DO wish I did the heads, but they werent in my budget. Well, they are, but then a GSXR1000 in the spring isnt ... lol

nes

if hes going for cheap performance he should definately step it up from the hot cam lol. cc503 or cc305>lt4 cam always. and he wont be spending much more if any at all.

mcalus

How much does the LT4 hotcam kit usually cost and what does it include? How much HP will I be gaining from that? Whats the price and HP difference from the hot cam vs the cc503 or cc305? Thanks!

HardcoreRM125

Hot Cam Kit is around 400. Comes with Cam, Springs, Locks, Retainers, 1.6 Roller Rockers, Poly Locks for the rockers.

You can get a CC503 for around 260ish, just the cam, will have similar powerband, comparable lope at idle, same driveability, and usually puts down slightly more power. Im not one to quote numbers but Id say an extra 5-10, more TQ. Its an all around better cam, with no real trade off for the gains. But a CC503 will NOT work with LT4 Hot Cam Springs. So you'd want the PAC equivalent of Comp Bee Hive 918 springs ( Comp had QC issues ), 10* locks and retainers, and then if your going that far, you should top it off with a quality rocker arm, such as a Comp Pro Mag which is 250-260ish. You'll have a solid set up that doesnt need to rev all that much higher than stock, and if you had to guess numbers, id say at least 30, possily more HP from that. Definatly will want the PCM tuned for it though.

mdenz3

I just finished my 503 rebuild am I'm loving it.

What is your budget?