Awesome04Vette

Hey Guys,

I have an 04 base. Currently a heads, cam, nitrous car on stock bottom end. Looking to do a new motor this winter and switch to boost. I was looking at the LSX376 B15 crate motor with an F1A. However, I am seeing mixed reviews on how much power it can actually hold. I was also looking at an LQ9 408. The car is street driven pretty much twice a year... Corvettes at Carlisle and Crusin week in ocean city. Other then that its mainly track except for a rare occasion I take it out for a ride on the street.

I want to do a set up that I will have room to grow with. Don't want to have to build a new motor every time I want a little more power. What are you guys running and what would you suggest I look into? I really wanted to go procharger just because it's something I have always wanted to do but I am being told by many to go Turbo even know its much more costly it will be more efficient.

The car is currently a 6spd and I am switching to a TR6060 this winter and building the diff and basically doing the entire drive train. I will at some point go auto in the car but want to stay stick as long as possible.

I figured what better way to get info other then go directly to the guys that have already done it and know what worked and didnt work. Any suggestions or guidance would be greatly appreciated!

ysb02

It depends on how much power you want and can afford. What are your goals?

Also a T6060 conversion isn't cheap and you'll be spending coin again swapping to an auto. If it's a 99.9% drag strip car I'd just do the auto conversion now and skip the T6060 .

Rkreigh

for quarter mile big displacement and nitrous or turbos rule depending on your budget

I woudn't spend the money on a b15, as the rods and pistons aren't up to what you can get by being a bit more creative.

I'm lazy, so I went c5 ttix with automatic. the corvette is a hard platform to drag race so everything you can do helps

turbos and the auto work great, engine maint is low, and the bottle never runs out but the initial buy in is higher.

If it were my money I'd buy that TT car for 24k and never look back.

8-900 is a good starting point, above that, I'd think of maybe back halfing the car and going full race car mode as the IRS can present some expensive challenges.

I finally went back to an old BB Chevy 80 corvette with a 469 mild BB chevy, flying toilet, and modular 4 link

turn key the car was 20k and would turn 9.20s all day long

you'll have to do some work to make a c5 do that and it will cost a bunch more

ask me how I know

Awesome04Vette

I know Auto would be the better move right out of the gate but I reallllly want to keep the car 6spd as long as possible. My honest goals on the car would for the car to make 900-1100whp. I am not rich by any means but not worried about the cost. I just wanted it to be done right. I don't want to spend x amount then find out to go faster I have to do a whole new motor etc...

Awesome04Vette

Exactly why I came here and asked. Cause I know a lot of people such as yourself have already done it or atleast tried to.

That is the exact thing I have heard about the B15.. It is a great set up but internals begin to limit you. Ideally I would like to make 900-1100whp. I know going auto right away would be the more intelligent decision but I want to keep the car 6spd as long as possible.

I want to keep the car full interior and as stock appearing as possible. Not really trying to back half the car.

I like my nitrous set up on my car but filling bottles are a pain and nitrous is very tedious in my opinion. It was/is a lot of fun for the current set up. However, I want to steer towards actual boost for the new set up. ProCharger is obviously cheaper then Turbo but Turbo's you have a lot more room to grow with the right motor set up. Do you think the 408 iron block would be a better motor choice or is there other options I should be looking at?

ysb02

I'd go with a ysi kit from either A&A or ECS since they're bulletproof and will make the power you want. There's people making 6xx-12xx with them so it should cover what hp goal you want. The Procharger F1X will probably top that but the setup is considerable more.

If you just want build one motor and not have to worry I'd go with a 408 LQ9 or 427 LSX based setup. LME or Texas Speed can spec a motor. The LSX will support 6 bolt heads and is a stronger block then the LQ9.

Awesome04Vette

Thanks! Very helpful information!

Rkreigh

the ysi is a great choice

but I'm a turbo guy so here goes

347 or 322 ci engine
4.8 truck block with forged internals
t66 or so turbos depending on power goals

I like the new LS Next block and there are new china 6 bolt castings (don't look too bad) to build a nice platform that will hold 1500 or more

what you need to worry about more is the drive train which will snap like a twig at that level

above 1k at the tire back half the car or be prepared to spend the coin on beefing up the IRS which is pretty cost prohibitive to go slower

good luck staying stick, after a pile of broken parts, you'll eventually go auto if you don't wreck the car

making power is easy I have an old 4.8 LS iron block with stock crank, gen 4 rods, and wiseco forged pistons a pair of t60 garret turbos and 127 lb injectors this little baby will live all day on e85 with mostly stock parts

the short stroke and journal overlap allows the short stroke crank to live and matching the turbo maps to the displacement and intended rev range will ensure the motor makes much torq and still carries through the top end which is where turbos shine

a few other things

the blower really loads the crank
turbos are expensive and the blower is MUCH more simple to install and tune
the turbos can do boost by speed and make a bit more mid range torq

everyone thinks this is great but more often it makes the car hard to hook and the blower cars are easier to get down the track and MUCH more consistent if you are bracket racing

figure out your budget, double it, and watch that be not enough!!

secret of a how to make a small fortune, start with a really large fortune and go racing!!

Awesome04Vette

Thanks for your input! I picked up a LQ motor yesterday. Not going to happen over night but got a deal I couldn't pass up. Most likely going to do Callies Ultra I Beam Rods, Diamond Pistons, Callies Dragon Slayer Crank. I am hearing different things about reusing my Trick Flow 225's on the set up. I was originally going to do new heads and sell mine but a lot of people are saying to just use mine since I already have them and do new heads down the road. I am thinking about a 76mm turbo. I can upgrade down the road but am going to attempt to build it to run a class.

Any thoughts on reusing my 225's or should I just move on to a set of MAST 245cc's?

C5 Pete

Keep the 225s

Put a 4.8 OEM crank in that 6.0 block (good rods/pistons) and you can likely make 1000+ on E85 with a good 76mm turbo.

Most of all, have fun!

sstonebreaker

I know this is an old thread, but I wanted to comment on the B15. I've been doing a little research for my own project, and I kind of wondered why GM would put 4032 alloy pistons in the B15 when 2618 alloy is much more resistant to detonation in big power engines. Turns out there is a hell of a good reason.

4032 alloy is a eutectic alloy, and as such has much better expansion characteristics than 2618. This means the clearance required for the 4032 alloy pistons is about half that required for the 2618 alloy. This has two advantages: Less clearance means less piston slap when cold, and more importantly it means less wear on the pistons, improving engine longevity.

Also, the 4032 alloy is harder than the 2618 alloy. It will wear better than the 2618 in identical circumstances, increasing engine life.

So if you plan on your car to be a street/strip car and not exclusively a track warrior, the 4032 alloy pistons are a better all around choice, and it's why GM uses it in the LSA, LS9, and the B15 instead of the 2618 alloy.