I am original owner of '77 that has been sitting for about 10 years. Has always been garage kept so body and frame are in good condition. Rather than rebuilding stock drivetrain, I am leaning toward replacing with crate engine. I would appreciate feedback from anyone as to what's a good engine choice. I would like to have a much faster car, but it would be mainly for the street and run on pump gas. The car has collectors plates, so emissions is not an issue. I plan to do this as a hobby project. I've already removed stock engine and transmission and technically comfortable installing a crate engine but I would like to hear some opinions on various setups. What's the latest and greatest. How much horsepower can I go with before needing to upgrade trans, rear and suspension and what upgrades do you recommend? Are there frame issues with too much torque? Car has been modified to a convertible. I guess I'm asking for opinions on the best for this application and still run on pump gas. Any opinions on zz383?? Or this engine from Year One. Thanks [/align]








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Gears + Hp to push it = speed
I, personally, prefer home built engines.
What you want to achieve, denotes what ya need ta do.
I went for a complete suspension upgrade, change over to a 454 @ 9.5:1, .030 over and runs on pump gas, 400 to 450hp. Soon a 3 sp stick (manual) w/od.With 3.07 rear gears, she ought to have a pretty tall top end.Shootin' for 75 mph @ 2300 rpm.

 

I agree. Shoot for around 400 HP 400 TQ and you will have a quick car. Exceed those numbers and you will have to start replacing drivetrain parts to handle the power. There are lots of nice crate engines out there. Most agree that a GMPP crate engine is the most reliable for the money and there are several to choose from. It's more like what you are willing to spend, the prices range from about 2 grand to 20 grand. 350 ci. ? 383 ci ? Carbed or F.I. ? Stock belts or a serpentine setup? So many choices! What rear gearing does your car have? You are going to want to keep highway RPM's reasonable like C3 said. What transmission do you have?

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