Sorry if this has been asked here before.
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 162
Likes: 8
Sorry if this has been asked here before.
NCM Grand Opening Veteran
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 20,979
Likes: 384
From: South of giving a damn
St. Jude Donor '11, '17
No, there is no one, anywhere that has made high power with a Gen1 SBC 
Go read the last 15 years of this sub-forum and then report back
Free answers do not replace research
Go read the last 15 years of this sub-forum and then report back
Free answers do not replace research
Last edited by ratflinger; Jun 9, 2019 at 12:48 PM.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 6,842
Likes: 285
From: Palmdale CA
The writer of that article is a LS snob. "But in this modern age where we see 350hp out of NA V6’s and now turbo 4 cylinders with that level of output, 400hp doesn’t really sound or feel all that special. Is it possible for the hotrodders mainstay to compete with modern engines?" Of course you're going to get far more horsepower out of an LS motor, that's a fact, jack. But when we're talking modern V6's and 4's with 300 hp in a modern car, they still don't sound nothing, like a 300-400 hp, built little SBC. Sure the Subaru's and Honda's are faster, but they sure don't have that fury, sound and excitement that comes from my C3 at full song. They have a hydraulic clutch and little girl shifters, or paddles that you snick through the gears with. I have a Z-bar mechanical clutch and a Hurst Shifter that takes your whole arm to shift. I'm not interested in competing with modern cars, except maybe getting it on, a romp and stomp with newer Mustangs and Camaros just for the hell of it. This is a saying, I came up with below. My bud restores vintage Austin Mini's and believe me, they are hilariously fun to drive! That's how I came up with that philosophy.
It ain't how fast it goes, it's how it goes fast!
It ain't how fast it goes, it's how it goes fast!
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 961
Likes: 275
From: Frederick MD
Bear in mind that HP is a function of torque and RPM. You can make 500 hp out of an engine with the torque of a hand held kitchen mixer as long as you can spin it high enough. Many of these 400 HP small blocks are doing 400 HP below 5,500 RPM.
Case in point the Honda Civic SI with a turbo charged 4 banger made alittle over 300 hp but only made 295 ft lbs of torque. A 400 hp SBC is going to make 410-440 ft lbs of torque. That's a huge difference with part throttle response and just general power curves and drivability.
Case in point the Honda Civic SI with a turbo charged 4 banger made alittle over 300 hp but only made 295 ft lbs of torque. A 400 hp SBC is going to make 410-440 ft lbs of torque. That's a huge difference with part throttle response and just general power curves and drivability.
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Le Mans Master
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 7,739
Likes: 630
From: Unreconstructed, South Carolina
well yes, if they had variable valve timing, very hi compression, attenuated by hi-pressure direct injection and managed by advanced computer ...
... but then, it would no longer be a gen1 sbc; would it?
by the same token ... a 2019 dodge challenger making a zillion horsepower with hemispherical combustion chambers ...
... isn't really a "hemi" anymore; is it?
... but then, it would no longer be a gen1 sbc; would it?
by the same token ... a 2019 dodge challenger making a zillion horsepower with hemispherical combustion chambers ...
... isn't really a "hemi" anymore; is it?