It's finished... New engine and trans are IN
Forged 383 built for boost
- 4-bolt main splayed block with Eagle caps
- Lunati Sledgehammer crank
- Eagle forged 5.7" H-beam rods
- SRP -16cc dish pistons
- ARP bolts/studs for mains/rods
- AFR 210cc Eliminator competition heads
- AI custom cam
- BTR dual springs
- Comp Ultra Pro Mag 1.6 rockers, NSA
- Ported LT4 intake manifold, required several mods
- 58mm throttle body (not installed yet)
- Stock water pump
- OEM Opti
- FLT level 5 4L65E trans
- 3200 stall Vig converter
This project kicked into gear just over 2 years ago, and there were countless bumps along the way. It's just satisfying to see something I built from the ground up finally running and on the road. This was my first engine removal and engine build also. Just thought I'd share my satisfaction.
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I drove it to work this morning to log data to get my normal driving tune figured out. It runs well everywhere except idle, where it bogs and surges pretty badly when stuck in traffic. I suspect the stock throttle body is part of the problem, but I don't have a way to log IAC counts. I have a 58mm throttle body waiting to go in, but I want to figure it out with the stock one before adding another variable to the mix.
I'm not beating on it until I get the VE tables tuned in. Like I said, I have a wideband so I can keep a close eye on the A/F.
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Surprisingly, my catalogs so far show the ve tables weren't as far off as I thought they'd be, but still more than 10% off either direction for some cells. The trims are keeping the mixture where it should be. The 58 mm won't go in until I figure the issues out.
As far as cost, I bought some of the big ticket parts used: machined block, heads, intake, transmission, and throttle body. I don't have an exact breakdown, but I think the engine and tranny cost somewhere around $7500 total since I did almost everything myself and got some good deals on the used stuff.






