Im not concerned with mpg, but I am with structural integrity the the vehicle. So I assume placing an engine that produces more torque that could be an issue. What are somethings I could run into with a bone stock 454, & how could I avoid some issues?
Big block cons
- Thread starter oldiejams
- Start date
- Status
First and foremost is extra weight, on the order of 200 pounds for an engine with iron block, heads, and intake.
At some point you can plan on pretty much upgrading the entire car from strengthening the chassis to a new trans, driveshaft and rearend.
Most stock big blocks don't stay stock for long when the need for power kicks in, so plan ahead.
The first big block I put in my Monte was a mild iron headed 454 I built for a guy's Nova, later on I built a 496 out that block and went with Dart aluminum heads
and of coarse now I have my 565 BBC in there with a Merlin Race block and AFR heads, as you can see in my case they just keep getting bigger.
Nothing quite fills up your engine bay like a BBC in a Gbody and believe me they can look impressive when you open the hood.
Most stock big blocks don't stay stock for long when the need for power kicks in, so plan ahead.
The first big block I put in my Monte was a mild iron headed 454 I built for a guy's Nova, later on I built a 496 out that block and went with Dart aluminum heads
and of coarse now I have my 565 BBC in there with a Merlin Race block and AFR heads, as you can see in my case they just keep getting bigger.
Nothing quite fills up your engine bay like a BBC in a Gbody and believe me they can look impressive when you open the hood.
I would(and did) reinforce the frame with any engine. Big block, small block, LS or turbo 6 will all benefit from a stiffer frame.
If you have a welder or access to one this will be the least expensive upgrade you can do in comparison to everything else, it is just time and materials.
Could you get by without it, possibly but the big block will reveal any frame weakness relatively quickly once you start having fun with it and many frames
besides being 30+ years old will have worn out or missing body mounts along with the possibility of the notorious rear frame rail rot.
Could you get by without it, possibly but the big block will reveal any frame weakness relatively quickly once you start having fun with it and many frames
besides being 30+ years old will have worn out or missing body mounts along with the possibility of the notorious rear frame rail rot.
Big blocks aren't known for their outstanding oiling systems either.
We had a friend with a cam, intake, carb, and headers big block let his wife start the car one day and she went straight for the throttle. All we heard was the bendix of the starter, then a vroom, then a squeak as it all went silent.
Honestly, in this technological day of LS based builds, why bother. LS motors can achieve over 454 ci and still be in "small block" form while retaining the all aluminum weight savings and can easily go over 1000 hp with a turbo or blower set up.
We had a friend with a cam, intake, carb, and headers big block let his wife start the car one day and she went straight for the throttle. All we heard was the bendix of the starter, then a vroom, then a squeak as it all went silent.
Honestly, in this technological day of LS based builds, why bother. LS motors can achieve over 454 ci and still be in "small block" form while retaining the all aluminum weight savings and can easily go over 1000 hp with a turbo or blower set up.
But at what cost? In a perfect world a built LS would probably be the way to go but I would rather see a ginormous slab of cast iron in these cars vs another LS swap. A bone stock 454 is plenty motor for the street but you start throwing parts at it and its game over. The funnest car I ever rode in was a 502 Monte Carlo g body and that was all I needed to persuade me. Nothing against the small blocks and LS engines but for an old car you cant beat a big block(any make). This is just my opinion.Alex41 said:
- Status
Similar threads
