C4 Tech/Performance L98 Corvette and LT1 Corvette Technical Info, Internal Engine, External Engine

Head Volume

Old Aug 26, 2004 | 10:53 AM
  #1  
lefoy84's Avatar
lefoy84
Thread Starter
Pro
 
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 623
Likes: 1
Default Head Volume

Can anyone tell me what the combustion chamber volume of my 86 cast iron heads is? Will swapping them out to the late 86 aluminum heads help that much? Anyone know who makes the stock pistons and rings.

The engine is sitting on a stand. It has very little wear. I pulled it because it had a massive oil leak from the upper rear of the engine. When I tore it down, I could find no obvious source of the leak.

How much can I raise the compression and still run pump gas? Stock is 9.0 and runs regular OK.

Any help or thoughts is appreciated.
Reply
Old Aug 26, 2004 | 11:15 AM
  #2  
JAKE's Avatar
JAKE
Le Mans Master
10 Year Member
 
Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 9,715
Likes: 27
From: Kempner Texas
Default

Originally Posted by lefoy84
Can anyone tell me what the combustion chamber volume of my 86 cast iron heads is? Will swapping them out to the late 86 aluminum heads help that much? Anyone know who makes the stock pistons and rings.

The engine is sitting on a stand. It has very little wear. I pulled it because it had a massive oil leak from the upper rear of the engine. When I tore it down, I could find no obvious source of the leak.

How much can I raise the compression and still run pump gas? Stock is 9.0 and runs regular OK.

Any help or thoughts is appreciated.
I originally had the same engine, with iron heads too.

I took the heads to a machine shop that does a regular business in race engines - NOT just a normal machine shop that does mostly dealership work.

I had the heads ANGLE milled - NOT flat milled - to the max. I believe .080 was the max that could be cut from mine because of the location of the water jackets.

Angle milling was chosen because it maintained the correct intake manifold alignment, whereas flat milling will call for the intake surfaces to be milled also.

Have the shop cc one chamber before and the same one after the milling and use those numbers to calculate the CR.

I still ran 93 pump gas.

Jake
Reply
Old Aug 26, 2004 | 11:19 AM
  #3  
CFI-EFI's Avatar
CFI-EFI
Race Director
10 Year Member
 
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 17,298
Likes: 33
From: The Top of Utah
Default

Originally Posted by lefoy84
Can anyone tell me what the combustion chamber volume of my 86 cast iron heads is? .
Nominally, 76ccs.
Originally Posted by lefoy84
The engine is sitting on a stand. It has very little wear. I pulled it because it had a massive oil leak from the upper rear of the engine. When I tore it down, I could find no obvious source of the leak.
It should have been obvious and you would have seen it, but the most common source of an oil leak such as you describe is from the intake manifold seal to the block.
Originally Posted by lefoy84
How much can I raise the compression and still run pump gas? Stock is 9.0 and runs regular OK.
The 58cc '86 aluminum heads will get to you around 10.2 to 10.3, depending on your deck height and gasket choice. You should be OK even with the stock cam, due to the aluminum heads.

RACE ON!!!
Reply
Old Aug 26, 2004 | 11:23 AM
  #4  
mos90's Avatar
mos90
Drifting
10 Year Member
 
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,379
Likes: 4
From: rome ny
Default

Originally Posted by JAKE


I had the heads ANGLE milled - NOT flat milled - to the max. I believe .080 was the max that could be cut from mine because of the location of the water jackets.

Angle milling was chosen because it maintained the correct intake manifold alignment, whereas flat milling will call for the intake surfaces to be milled also.



Jake
are you saying that if a get a set of heads that are 64 cc and i want to get 56 i can angle mill and not have to do intake work????
Reply
Old Aug 26, 2004 | 07:12 PM
  #5  
lefoy84's Avatar
lefoy84
Thread Starter
Pro
 
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 623
Likes: 1
Default

Is it worth it to swap out the cast iron heads for stock aluminum ones. If I do this what will the compression be with the stock pistons? What kind of performance increase will I see?

Sorry for the questions, but I am trying to learn more about engine tweaking.
Reply
Old Aug 26, 2004 | 07:29 PM
  #6  
CFI-EFI's Avatar
CFI-EFI
Race Director
10 Year Member
 
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 17,298
Likes: 33
From: The Top of Utah
Default

Originally Posted by lefoy84
If I do this what will the compression be with the stock pistons?
?????
Originally Posted by CFI-EFI
The 58cc '86 aluminum heads will get to you around 10.2 to 10.3, depending on your deck height and gasket choice. You should be OK even with the stock cam, due to the aluminum heads.

RACE ON!!!
Reply
Old Aug 26, 2004 | 07:42 PM
  #7  
lefoy84's Avatar
lefoy84
Thread Starter
Pro
 
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 623
Likes: 1
Default

Originally Posted by CFI-EFI
?????
I apolgize for missing that. What grade of fuel will that require.
Reply

Get notified of new replies

To Head Volume



Thread Tools
Search this Thread

All times are GMT -4. The time now is 05:46 PM.

story-0
10 Ugly Corvettes That We Still Kinda Love

Slideshow: 10 ugly Corvettes that we still kinda love.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-06-03 10:34:17


VIEW MORE
story-1
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer

A lot of money has changed hands at the online auction house over the years.

By Brett Foote | 2026-06-03 10:21:50


VIEW MORE
story-2
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)

Slideshow: 10 great gifts Corvette enthusiasts actually want for Father's Day!

By Michael S. Palmer | 2026-06-03 15:43:40


VIEW MORE
story-3
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems

Slideshow: These are the quirks, annoyances, and oddly lovable problems that every Corvette owner eventually learns to live with.

By Pouria Savadkouei | 2026-05-28 09:31:39


VIEW MORE
story-4
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years

Slideshow: 10 reasons why the C6 Z06 is still a performance benchmark after 20 years.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-27 17:20:09


VIEW MORE
story-5
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972

Slideshow: How much horsepower every Corvette engine lost in 1972.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-27 16:54:53


VIEW MORE
story-6
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!

Slideshow: How to Protect A Convertible Top: 10 DOs & DON'Ts

By Michael S. Palmer | 2026-04-03 00:00:00


VIEW MORE
story-7
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!

Slideshow: The 10 most explosive Corvettes ever built based on power-to-weight ratio.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-20 07:23:03


VIEW MORE
story-8
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter

Slideshow: From C1 to C8 we compare every Corvette generation by the numbers.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-12 16:54:12


VIEW MORE
story-9
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time

Slideshow: Some Corvette pace cars became collectible legends, while others perfectly captured the look and attitude of their era.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-05-11 09:50:51


VIEW MORE