I got 5 grand in my pocket and was thinking about building a 400ci/408/418 ect. Is it possible to have one built and get a decent set of heads for $5000 or less?

What are the hidden costs? The main ones are obviously having it built and buying the engine, and buying the heads. What else? New intake manifold/ tb?

 

And heads? probably not. You could find a used one for around that price though. But just for the short block, my guess would be yes. Try Texas speed, there usually pretty competitive with prices.

 

hidden cost are all the little stupid things most dont think about. gaskets, seals, bearings, fasteners, plugs theres likes 1K +/- a few hundred depending on what you go with.

with a 408 you would benefit for a 90/92MM intake. I would say it would be tough to do it for 5K but if you can do your own machining/assembly and bought parts on the cheap (iron over aluminum block, GM cast heads) maybe.

for 5K though you could rebuild/forge your motor

 

What could i do with a rebuild 346? Im obviously looking for some bigger numbers... what are my options in that field

Or are you saying to make a 383 or something like that? What kind of hp/tq numbers are we talking about.

 

I wouldnt want to spend 5k just to forge a 346. I would want to go bigger like this guy. I mean, nowadays a 383 seems kinda small when you have guys running 427ci on the street or TT 408's.

 

exactly what i was thinking

 

5k with heads will be very difficult the crank alone is 800+ even if you ran L92 heads which can be had and assembled with good springs for 1K you still will be stretching it.

 

how much could i get for my 346 block/assembly? Could i make up some ground in the budget department there?

Edit: oh yeah stock heads too

 

you can get L92 heads for 175 a piece from SDPC bare, and you can get them assembled for 399 a piece, or you can get them upgraded to bigger springs and they are 499. and so on you get the picture. the intake runner is at 279+/- CC it flows right around 320CFM and the intake valve is 2.160 but you have to have a 4" bore or larger to run them and currently there are no after market rockers exept for the exhaust side. but i've talked to the guys at Scorpion and they are making special roller rockers for the L92 head which should be out in around 4-5 months. you have to use the L76 intake on this head or the LS3 head BUT from what I've found Wielands new Warrior will have a l92 intake, they will have one that flows WAY better than the l76 and ls3 intakes, but they l76 and ls3 intakes are pretty much the same anyways. and match that with hollys 94 MM TB. ohh yeah. diamond is also making there pistons for the l92 heads with valve cuts to match the HUGE intake valve. but unfortunatly they are 70CC heads stock, but you can have them milled down. I'm going to have them milled down to 64CCs

 

Iron LQ9 block 370ci
L92 heads
L76 intake
Stock crank LS1
Stock rods
Diamond pistons
150-200 shot

Stomp all over the C6 Z06 and kick a lot of other cars asses.

 

Yella terra makes a shaft rocker for the L92s about $400 not really in a budget build.

Figure about $1500 for machining balancing and assembly of the motor then see how much you can get the parts for.

 

I jsut bought a 408 short block and it was over 4K alone. I'll be looking at over 9K in mine but I'm buying new 1-7/8 headers also. You could build it yourself and save some money but you will still need to get some heads and all the small stuff. I think you would be over 5K even building it yourself and reusing old parts from your old motor. I'm selling my old motor to offset some of the other cost of the built.

 

I would rather wait for the direct bolt on Lifetime warranty of the scorpions just me though

 

I just bought this for $6100. The engine has about 2000 street miles on it, never raced:


402 LS2
Eagle 4.0" forged crankshaft,
Callies 6.125" forged H beam rods
Wiseco forged pistons 8cc
C&A Dura Moly rings
ETP 245 heads
244/250 .646" .646" 112 LSA
Custom Sheet-metal Intake

It came with valve covers, oil pan and coils but no accessories.

 

Wow good deal the heads are about $2200 alone. and a sheet metal intake is by far not cheap.

 

If you're just talking about a long block it can be done. My, "friend" bought his block machined, lunati pro mod rods, and 4 inch eagle crank for $1500. Pistons are around $800, machining and balancing are about $500, studs, fasteners, and gaskets are about $1000, and you can get L92 heads super cheap like mentioned above. It can be done and well. If you take your time to search for deals you can put stuff together really cheaply.

 

is 245 the intake port size?

 

Yes it is.

 

Where did you find that?

 

Ive got $3900 in my newest 408. Ive never spent over $5000 on any of my 408ci motors. And everything I buy is new, I dont buy used engine parts.
Its all about price shopping. Why would you pay $850 for a crank when you can buy the same one for $698 from another company...etc. Every piece of your rotating assembly, block and heads can be bought cheaper than you would think. You just have to take the time to look for the best price. This can save you $1000+ on your build. Trust me Ive done 3 408's.