76greybeard

I have a stock L48 in a 76. I want to beef up the motor this winter and am wondering what cam some of you are running. I have a LT1 cam on the shelf but have been told the duration will be a problem with my low compression. This is a driver, I would be fine with a pretty serious lope at idle but am looking for something for around 375 HP. Any suggestion. Thanks in advance for your help

BKbroiler

What else are you planning to do to the motor? You will need heads, compression, exhaust and intake improvements and a cam to get close to 375 hp.

phildawg19

it takes a lot more than just replacing the cam. and when you get delt into all of this its best to start from the back. gears and such and then start headin towards the front of the car. im looking at getting some new heads right now as a matter of fact. good luck!

Solid LT1

If your Vette is a 4speed manual trans car, you want a Comp Cams "Thumper" series of cam for your lopey idle sound but, if you have an auto trans I wouldn't go this route.

Here is the link, call Comp Cams: http://www.compcams.com/thumpr/default.asp

Skip Burney

Same here a cam alone won`t get you near 375 hp. If you want that build you a good streetable 383. A lot of folks just stuff a big cam in an engine and then don`t understand why the car actually runs slower

CaseyJones

All good advice here. Personally, for my '80 I am pulling my stock damaged L-48 and replacing it with a motor built for better all-around performance. Four bolt mains, steel crank, "pink" rods, flat-top hypereuteric pistons good for around 9.7 to 1 compression with late-model 2.02 heads, 350\350hp hydraulic cam, stock aluminum intake with Rochester carb and 2.5" cast iron manifolds ahead of true dual exhaust. It will look stock and give a good bump in performance. I already have 3.55 gears and a beefed-up automatic trans so this should be a fun package. Then I can rebuild my original engine at my leisure. I looked at building a 383 but feel that a 350 is more cost effective for me. Special pistons, crank grinding, block clearancing, new external balancers, etc really runs up the price in my part of the country. Good luck either way!