olds 455 build help

[85_455_cutty]

I have an 85 cutlass that I put a 455 in and last year It started knocking. I want to build the motor up since im gonna have to rebuild it. Can anyone give me some help on the build? Im gonna have 2000 to spend ( I know its not much) and want to get the most out of it. I want to get back to destroying the rice burners in my town. Eventually I want to have around 650-700hp without nos or anything but right now im just trying to get a good start on something decent for now. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[dan2286]

Is the engine still stock?

 

[85_455_cutty]

Yeah its all stock

 

[joe_padavano]

...Im gonna have 2000 to spend ...

...I want to have around 650-700hp without nos or anything but right now im just trying to get a good start on something decent for now. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I assume from this that you don't expect to put out that kind of power for a $2000 build. If you are simply planning to lay the groundwork now for a pay-as-you-go buildup (which is a good plan) then you need to spend the money on the short block for now. Good forged pistons, good oil system, roller chain, etc. The problem is that you'll make horsepower with the heads and cam, but the parts you need will be out of your current price range. If you put the cam in now with relatively stock heads, the car will be a dog. The engine needs to be built as a system, with the parts matched to the application, in order to build decent power. Since you can't afford that now, you'll need to expect to make some compromises and even have to do stuff over (like put in a cam that's matched to the package today and swap it for a more radical one when you can afford the good heads). Sorry, but that's reality. $2K won't even buy the heads you need to get to that level, much less the rest of the package. A reliable 700 hp without any power adders is a $10,000 motor, easy.

Of course, a $500 nitrous kit makes a BIG difference...

 

[85_455_cutty]

Yeah i knew 2 grand wouldnt get me that kind of power 😛 Do you know any good rebuild kits that would put me off on the right step to get goin?

 

[bigdan]

first things first:
take it out of car , tear down , inspect and write down results ....
then take decision on engine .

what year is the engine ? is the crank still in good condition (rebuildable)
what heads ? C,E,J ,or?

if engine knocked for real : forget the $2000.00 target .this is if you want more HP ( cam, headers etc...)
Dan

 

[Blake442]

Agreed, you need to pull your engine out and take it apart to see if any or how much damage has been done.

 

[85_455_cutty]

The main bearing is knocking but they said the block is still good. It happed during a race and havent driven it since then. Im not sure what year it is I called a salvage yard and asked for a olds 350 and he said it came out of an older cadillac that an old lady hit a cow in. When I went to pick it up it was a 455. They ran the numbers on the block and it was 72 or 73-76 is all the shop said.

 

[CutlassJ]

It cost me just over 2000 bucks that was just for machining my 455. My advise would be pull it take it apart see what u got, u may get lucky and just have to put bearings in it (maybe). Before i pulled the 455 it was fast and was stock just had an tocker and 750 carb that was it, cam was really mild but i bought it that way. But do some research on what u want it is snowing by me at least. You got time before spring to get it rolling. good luck. If u got any more questions just ask.

 

[85_455_cutty]

ok im suppose to have my friend help me pull it here pretty soon. So hopefully this gets goin soon.