ok kids, bought a used 99 SS about six months ago...knew it had problems but he price was just to inticing for me to pass up so I picked it up...had to have trans rebuilt right off the git go....so bout a week ago...blew a head gasket and have a rod knocking, we think it had been leaking oil, but couldn't find the leak...but everyone who i have spoken that have gen 3 motors said they eat oil for some reason..anywho...I am debating on what route to take...was looking at a cartek long block 382 or maybe do a slp 402 short block and build it from the bottom up...I am wanting to go with a solid head and cam package and eventually after that maybe a little juice action...Question is has anyone purchased from either of these companies or recommendations on a head and cam setup and what kind of output range these kinds of setups will put me in??? Realistically I am open to any kind of suggestions...or any other reputable builders I may contact about purchasing a long or short block solution...thanks guys...new to board by the way, hopped over from ls1.com, former northern alabama chapter director for SVTOA...2001 lighting(sold) thanks for your help everyone and looking forward to a new community...

 

with the condition of your engine I would get a 402 H/C and call it a day. you will be around 500rwhp and could build you motor to handle a bigger dose of nitrous and it could be wicked fast. shop around on the 402. a couple of the sponsors have them.

 

first off what are your goals with the car? nice stree car? all out drag racer?Whats your budget? i'm guessing very high since your looking at big boy motors.

 

BTW looks like you don't have any of the supporting mods yet so if you wanna get the most out of any motor you put in you better get all the bolt ons too. with everything be prepared to spend close to $10,000-$12,000 and thats just parts no labor.

 

yea I figured it would be close to 10 to 13 grand...the goal for this car is to be a pretty tough street strip machine...this will be a rolling project for the most part...We will salvage as many ancillary parts as possible off of the current engine and focus on the supporting auxilaries for a forged power monger...I am looking for solid starting points...being the most budget spent in any high performance application sports car is in the powerplant we are really going to focus on a solid reliable solution for us to build the rest of the car around...as I mentioned before this will be a street strip car. I am not an advocate of of trailer queens, but I am not to familiar with the various builders and alternatives for the third Gen. motors. Any experience or information is greatly appreciated...

 

Just a general idea of where id go, although I would fine tune this if I were seriously in the position to do it. Bang for the buck of the SDPC of TSP aluminum 402's cant be beat. Strap on some AFR 225's or ETs. A futral hyd roller cam around 245/250 .625/.625 112. You said you wanted to go solid, so you can go bigger. Some Jessel rockers. Fast 90/90 inatke setup. Direct port n2o into the fast. Dont forget a drivetrain and rear to back it all up.

 

personaly i would do a LS2 402 along with a cam in the high 240 - low 250 duration range with a good stage 2 or 3 head from one of the sponsors

 

 

thanks for the insight fellas...We have elected to go with a 408 iron block...although would the AFR 205s with a .30 mill produce more low end torque than a set of the 225s? As for cam profile we haven't decided yet, we don't want sleepy, but we don't really want to aggressive being that this machine will be a street/strip car. If any of you guys have any experience with some of the sponsers please let me know what you think..I understand that bias is really not too advocated in communities with multiple sponsers, but I really want to get some client feedback first...this is going to cost me alot of money right out of the gate and I surely don't want to have to spend more money for faults in craftmanship etc etc etc...or deal with frustrating customer service ya know... I will also need some ideas for a new Tranny...if you guys can also indulge for me alittle bit more...we are going to go N/A to begin with and maybe down the line put some juice on it...

Thanks again guys...

 

SDPC LS2 402 $4k
AFR 225 heads $2,200
Fast 90/90 set up $1,500
Cam 237/242 $400

 

Id go with the 225's on such a big cube motor. While the 205s wont starve it the same way a stock head would, the 225s will not be overkill on a 408, IMO.