318, 383 or other? Which one

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I'm guessing your car has air shocks because the rear springs are shot,thats an old bandaid..cal-tracs are great but if you want you can also just replace the worn out springs,that'll help a LOT and of coarse drag shocks,pinion snubber ans some drag radials..i run a set of a Mopar xhd springs cheap Summit drag shocks and a pinion snubber my car 60's in the 1.40's...As for going the stroker route save your money till you have enough to do it right..its not cheap,when you have it done right..mine cost $10,000.00 when i was done with everything...
 
fishy68 said:
Like some other guys said earlier in so many words you can build all the power you want but if you don't stick it to the ground you ain't goin nowhere and that 454 will eat your lunch. First spend money on suspension mods. Cal-tracs. Drag shocks and sticky tires. With just that alone you should be in the 12's with how you described your engine. Unless he has several mods done to his it ain't gonna be faster than that.

Just a note on building a stroker since so many guys think it can be done for $1000. I can guarantee you that $1500 won't go nowhere on building a stroker. It might buy most of the parts but what about the machine work (at least $600 just for the block if you do it right) and peripherals after you get it in such as oil and filter change x2 right off the bat. Then theres antifreeze. Probably some hoses and belts. Spark plugs and maybe wires and cap. There's another $125-200. I'm building a stroker right now and I can promise you that you won't build even a basic stroker for $1,500 unless all the parts are used.

Unless you have a brother that runs a speed/machine shop and sells you parts at cost and does machine work free forget the stroker idea for $1500.
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yeah, that about says it all. If it was that cheap, we'd all have them. I'd have 3 or 4 :D.
 
True, I forgot about all the machining work. I have a machine shop at my disposal for very little money, so that makes my cost a bit less than most. Still though 1500 can go a long way to building an engine.


Mike
 
Ok so what I am gathering is leave the 318 in there, put a new Holley Double Pumper(what cfm would you recommend?), get some cal-tracs, a pinion snubber, some racing shocks and possibly some new springs and also get some sticky tires.

Look correct?
 
Dartdude72 said:
Ok so what I am gathering is leave the 318 in there, put a new Holley Double Pumper(what cfm would you recommend?), get some cal-tracs, a pinion snubber, some racing shocks and possibly some new springs and also get some sticky tires.

Look correct?
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Yep. Other than you don't need Cal-tracs and a pinion snummber together. They basically do the same job and having both won't be any benefit. You might be just fine with good HD or SS springs, a pinion snubber, drag shocks and sticky tires. If you still have traction problems replace the snubber with cal-tracs and that should take care of any problems there. On a 318 I'd think a 650 Holley should do fine.
 
I agree with Fishy and it's within your budget. If the camaro surprises ya and stomps ya at the lights come back and we'll go a little further so you can return the favour.

Terry
 
demon seed said:
I agree with Fishy and it's within your budget. If the camaro surprises ya and stomps ya at the lights come back and we'll go a little further so you can return the favour.

Terry
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Haha, yep we will see. Once it is all done I will have to cars to smoke, his 73 and his 77 that has a 350 with carb and headers and a 4 speed that he thinks can beat my Dart. Hopefully he still has the 77 so I can stomp it first then when he decides to whip out the big guns I can stomp the 73 too.

Thanks for the help.

Dan
 
Dartdude72 said:
Haha, yep we will see. Once it is all done I will have to cars to smoke, his 73 and his 77 that has a 350 with carb and headers and a 4 speed that he thinks can beat my Dart. Hopefully he still has the 77 so I can stomp it first then when he decides to whip out the big guns I can stomp the 73 too.

Thanks for the help.

Dan
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Seems to be the general difference between the attitudes of Chevy and Mopar guys. Chevy guys will talk all day about their car being the fastest and will be so confident that they will win, but Mopar guys second guess themselves; as a result, we make sure our cars are the fastest. You'll probably do fine.
 
You dont want SS springs wih the Cal Tracs.. consult with them before you replace springs. I believe they want you to run single leaf if you can, and yes, omit the snubber.
 
i wouldn't even consider the 383 lots of extra weight, lots of money to upgrade!!!!! i know i got nearly 6000 k in a 440- 60 over evrything except the crank & rods r new. then i thought of upgrading to aluminum heads & roller cam which was going to be another 3000 k. in a 67 cuda.i sold it & i'm starting over with a 360 motor & tranny i bought for 500$,. if u what a stroker sell your motor sounds like u got alot done to it already no sense tearing down a good strong motor & starting over.that will at least double your budget now u got 3000 to 4000 to work with. go find u a 340 or 360. around here there's lots of complete 340's, 5 or 600 $ then build it. or a 360 for 200$ that needs rebuilt. and a good set of gears. a 391 or even a 411 depending on tire size. cost u 3 to 500$ for a good set. easy install. you already got a good tranny & stall converter so get u a good cam that put u about the 2500 to 6500 rpm range. 250$ a stroker kit for $2000 & machine work whatevers $1000 , thats $3250, & if u can squeeze hard enough & get a set of edelbrock heads for 1400$ that's 4600$ u r looking at 500 hp easy!!!!!!!!!
 
i din't notice this thread was 4 yrs old what di u end up with? & big question here did u beat that 454????????????
 
I'd spend the money on heads, heads are where the powers at as long as you got the right combo of cam, intake, carb, exhaust and compression to go with it and get her to hook up is a good idea as well.
 
Maybe he still in the planning stage :) never notice the date
 
Did finally beat His buddies camaro, I need to know!!
 
I say beat him with the motor you got. It sounds like it's up to the task just get the most out of it you can. Traction is king in 1/8th mile racing. Get him off the line and he has less track to catch you, if he can.
 
Bill Dedman said:
If you just want to outrun that Camaro the cheapest way possible, I'd suggest putting a 200HP nitrous kit on it. You were pretty vague as to just how fast you think you need to go to beat that GM car, so it's really hard to say, but if that N20 kit doesn't do it, you can always swap a 360 short block (with your cam, heads, manifold, carb, N20, etc. on it) and that should SURELY get the job done. You may not even need the 360....

The 383 is a GREAT engine and could undoubtedly be built into a powerhouse performer. but at what cost? You'd have to have a different transmission, as the bell housing bolt pattern is different from your 318's, and new A-body/B-block headers... a new driveshaft, probably, and hooking up your existing exhaust system could be problematic, with the new headers.

As exciting as a 383/A-body is, as a concept, the $$$$-factor would stop me cold, unless cost was no object.

See if you can find out how quick your car needs to be to get the job done. Surely, the guy with the Camaro has some idea of what his combination is going to produce, in terms of e.t.'s....

It would be a lot easer to predict YOUR best buy in performance if we knew how much horsepower you're gonna need.

Good luck with this. Maybe someone else will have an idea of how quck you need to go to handle this guy...


Bill, in Conway, Arkansas
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CI's might rule on the street but you are spot on about swapping a bb in an A. It is never as cheap as anyone says it is!!
 
DusterKrazy said:
CI's might rule on the street but you are spot on about swapping a bb in an A. It is never as cheap as anyone says it is!!
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Well, the OP of this thread hasn't been on FABO since Valentine's day of 2011... 2-1/2 years ago; he may not even have that car, anymore.

I'd say it's a moot point...:banghead:
 
better power per dollar
get a 440 / eddy heads / the right pistons for your gas

or a 400 stroked out to a 451. the 400 will give you a little more space under the hood

you will need to get a kit to mount the big block in there, and your rear will need to be solid and the right springs / tires / etc so you hook

you will walk all over most any camaro.

i know a guy with a 7 second one however... be careful what's under their hood
 
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