Crash7196

So hello everyone first off! Finally got the car I have wanted since I saw it back in the 90's! The small story starts here, I just traded my $1500 crotch rocket for a 95 T/A with an LT1 that needed a new water pump and opti. It also had a tick/knock that the guy said was the water pump and it sounded like it was coming from there so I didn't think twice. Well I replaced the water pump and the opti (with the ac delco replacement not a cheap one) and got all excited to start it up, ran to the local shop and got some antifreeze and started it up, bled the system and then I noticed white smoke poaring out of the tail pipes, and the tick was still there. My stomach dropped. So now that I need to replace the head gaskets and I have a lifter tick so I have decided to rebuild the WHOLE motor.
SO, my question to you all is what can I do to get some extra HP with not a lot of $$$. I am not looking for 500+ HP (right now ), just a little more than stock. I have already read about the lt4 head/intake swap. But i don't have the money for the heads (from what I have found they are about $1500+). It will cost $1999 to have a stock rebuild with head/block resurfacing, boar, balance and more and about $450 for a mild cam kit. I do not want to spend more than $3000 - $3500. So what else can I do to try and get some more power? What do I have to do to the heads and intake to put bigger injectors in? 58mm TB? Or can I do both of those a little later with what I am already doing. What about True dual exhaust W/ headers or will that only benefit me if I am pushing more HP??? Also will I have to get a computer tune and have it programed after this stuff or will it be fine stock?? Sorry for all the ?'s I know my way around a motor but not much about tuning and this stuff.
I should add this will be my daily summer driver.

96capricemgr

iTrader: (1)

Just get a used engine.

IMO the tick is unlikely to be a lifter I would sooner suspect piston/bearing damage from the blown head gasket causing the noise.

Your thoughts about LT4 heads and intake proves you haven't done enough research to understand LT1 performance yet so like I said used engine and some boltons for now. The n you can take your time and fix the broken engine and warm it up a little bit for later after you get a better grasp on what is and is not worthwhile.

If you lived over by Appleton I could help, but Eau Claire is a long ways off.

93 LT1 Vette

Shout out too Wisconsin how's about them Packer's LOL. My parents still live in Stevenspoint and I grew up there, heard it's already getting cold.

Scrap the old bullet, find a used one with no noise and run it.

Crash7196

The motor has 133,000 so I figured a rebuild would be better than getting a used motor, not as cost efficient but better in the long run. I don't want to get a used one and have something with that go wrong a little bit after because of how the PO drove it and me not knowing how it was drove. Call me paranoid but I have bought some cars/trucks where something went wrong within 1000 miles of me having it (just bad luck mabey). So my thought behind it is that I know how the engine is treated if I get it rebuilt.

Ya that is a bit of a drive

I am a Vikings fan, Wife is a Packer fan. Its getting down in the 30's in the morning but beautiful 70's in the afternoon!!

96capricemgr

iTrader: (1)

It is not cheap to build an LT1 to stock quality. You could rebuild one cheap but inexpensive cranks and pistons are a step backwards as is most average machineshop work.

The Batman

iTrader: (4)

Welcome to the forum John!