Looking for feedback. Is it too much for a stree car? Got a line on a nice 451pushing high 400 hp but wondering is it way to much to handle on the street. Would be going into my 68 Dart. It is an auto car, 727, 8.75 with either 3.91 or 3.23's. 235/40R18 on the tire rear. Not wanting to have to mini tube or change wheels for bigger tires to drive it. Have heard some say anything over 1/2 throttle or over 3k it's nothing but tire spinning machine. Like to get on it and have fun, run down a mustang or camaro light to light but dont want to be loose and heading into the ditch whenever I get on it .
451 for a street car??
- Thread starter dgibby
- Start date
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the ditch may be a problem, will be a problem. chassis FIRST!
If it goes too fast then don't push so hard on the gas pedal. If you don't trust your driving you can always disconnect the secondaries so you are only driving around on the front 2 barrels of the carb.
I trust my driving, but my wife will debate that.
When I was 16 I was driving a '56 F-100 with a built 351C four bbl engine and a four speed. That truck would burn the tires off in any gear. It also had stock suspension (straight axle up front) with manual steering and four wheel drum brakes. By the time I finished high school I had upgraded to a '65 Dodge with a 426 Max Wedge, four speed and 4.88 gears out back. I made it out alive, figure you can too.
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
Just check your speedo a lot and start out with a light right foot until you get the hang of it. It's really easy to control your speed with the throttle on these cars (lots of engine braking force).
Even if that engine can fry the tires I feel like what you were told might have been an exaggeration (400 HP isn't crazy high). What's the fastest car you've driven, maybe we can help gauge the feel from that?
Even if that engine can fry the tires I feel like what you were told might have been an exaggeration (400 HP isn't crazy high). What's the fastest car you've driven, maybe we can help gauge the feel from that?
I drove mine 30,000 miles on the street with a 5 speed and then a automatic.Got 20 mpg on several Power Tours, ran 11.90's at the strip The best engine combo I ever had. It is now in a friends 73 'Cuda for the last 9 years..Still going strong.
famous bob
mopar misfit
agree w/ andy, your the one controlling it .
I guess it is pretty obvious. Control the throttle, control the car. Maybe I'm way over thinking it. I'm not afraid of too many cubes, or of my driving ability. Just don't want a car that is a big handful every time you hit it. Lots of post both small and big block talking about tire frying, can't hook in any gear, will smoke the tires at cruise speeds if you get on it too much etc, etc.. I love power and like to go fast but if you have to drive it like a Geo Metro to keep it on the road, I'm not interested. I'm sure there is some exaggeration in some of the post talking about blowing the tires off at 60 mph, just trying to get some feedback from those driving higher hp on the street.
In one of it's milder forms our 451 dyno'd 554 horsepower to the rear wheels. It was easy to drive, but if you rolled into the throttle hard it would start to go sideways. It never went sideways unless I asked it to. It's detuned now to 580 flywheel horsepower and in the shop truck. Still fun to drive.
I had a '71 Duster with a 451 in it, with 2 100 hp shots of nitrous. Drove it on the street 200 to 500 miles a week without N2O. Took the nitrous off the car when I sold it, the new owner let his 16 yo with a fresh new license drive it one night, he wrapped it around a tree. I bought the motor and trans back, & they are sitting in my storage area awaiting a new home. My car on the street had good manners, as long as you were careful how hard you mashed the loud pedal. I along with some of the previous posters have driven higher HP cars on the streets most of our adult lives & had to learn our lessons, some of us the hard way. Most of us survived our mistakes, but it is a learning curve when we all started out.
jbc426
Well-Known Member
LOL, my thoughts exactly!
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
You won't have to drive it like a Geo. As long as the suspension is up to snuff it should be very controllable, these cars handle lots of power very very well without needing massive chassis/suspension mods. What I'm getting at is, you can make it go sideways if you want to but it's not going to spin out of control no matter what as soon as you step on the throttle 1/2 way or over lol. Now I will admit my Duster is about 325 HP and it has 2.94 gears so it's not a handful on dry pavement but I have driven it A LOT in heavy snow practicing my drifting skills and keeping my car from running off the road (or rear-ending someone) going down the highway in thick ice and snow. In those conditions I have found even when I hit the gas and get the back end loose at speed the car stays pretty stable and it's easy to regain traction; it's honestly more stable on slippery roads than my '93 Jeep Cherokee 4x4 when I have it in 2WD, that thing goes all over the place until I pop it in 4HI.
1970dartcustom
of the Moore clan
I'd get a little wider tires on the rear...
EchoSixMike
Well-Known Member
Put the larger tires on the wheels you can fit, and I'd install frame connectors. S/F....Ken M
todd489
Well-Known Member
I have nearly 600 hp in my car, I want more! Nowadays 450 hp is nothin, cars in my area are pushing over 700 at the wheels now, but that's the newer stuff.
700 hp at the wheels, I don't buy it. now a 1000hp, that's a different story.
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