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[Rks1]

My car has 181000 miles on the original motor I believe the only things the,pv owner did to my knowledge was headgaskets car is stock otherwise. So im planning for the future but im trying to see what route to take. Do I find a short block and rebuild while still driving the car or rebuild the motor in the car whwn it dies? Also how much would a basic rebuild run? I would also like to do the basic boltons to the current motor but scared to up the power beacuse of the milage.

[Rks1]

Car is a 97 formlua

[killerz28]

I say find a good block to rebuild then you dont have any downtime. Much better than having to rush to get a motor together to get your car back on the road. If anything just do a tune up a keep your car in the best shape you can until you finish the other motor. Bolt-ons are ok nobody said you had to use every bit of power your car produces everyday.

[93phoenix]

i wouldnt push what you have, 181k is alot of 5280s..... it really depends on how much down time you want to be involved in. you could go ahead and get a block fairly cheap, get all the machine work done and start building your base short block. then whenever your ready it isnt alot of work to transfer over your heads and accessories. thats the route im taking anyway. this way you will have some spare parts in case of catastrophic failure, or if it all goes well you can start freshening up your origional block for the innevitable upgrade towards a turbo project, big cubes, ect....i like the thought of having a spare motor that could go in if i needed it to.

[Rks1]

Finding a spare block is the route I was originally thinking of taking, anybody got,a decent block they,wanna sell. Lol and how much,would a basic rebuild run? Or mabye a 383?

[SchaefZ28]

A spare engine is the way to go IMO, in fact, I have a spare one taken apart in my basement right now :secret: My car still has the stock motor, and it is running very strong with 190k miles on it. I don't beat the piss out of it, but I do drive it hard pretty often. I've had it since 141k, and it was bone stock with a moroso cold air intake on it. I don't think the valve covers have ever even been taken off lol... Right around 180k miles, I went ahead and put headers and exhaust on it. Really there is no reason that bolt-on's should hurt your car or effect your engine's longevity. It's all about how you drive it, and how you take care of it. Who knows, if you wait for your factory engine to crap out, you might be waiting a very long time for that rebuild. :peace2:

[Rks1]

Lol thats the kind of news i wanted to.hear now I can start my boltons and looking for a block

[James Montigny]

181k really isn't that old for a stock engine anymore, but if you're looking at a performance build with honed walls and fresh rings finding a spare might not be a bad idea.
It will keep downtime to a minimum.

What did you have in mind for the new build? Any goals or build ambitions?

[Rks1]

Dont have to much in mind right not, some where around 350-400 hp. I wanna build the other block to see somewhere around 500-700 hp and the bottle.

[93phoenix]

Dont have to much in mind right not, some where around 350-400 hp. I wanna build the other block to see somewhere around 500-700 hp and the bottle.
have a spare ready.....

[James Montigny]

Dont have to much in mind right not, some where around 350-400 hp. I wanna build the other block to see somewhere around 500-700 hp and the bottle.
350-400 is easily doable with a Heads/cam package and a decent exhaust.
Do a leak-down test before you start so you'll have an idea of how the rings are doing in the existing motor.

To reach 500-700 and handle N20 pressure, you're looking at a custom, purpose-built project.
It doesn't have to be a stroker either. A properly built 355 will handle a lot of RPM without breaking the bank.
Set it up specifically for N20, install a direct-port system and you'll be flying.
(Yes, I know ... it sounds a whole lot easier on paper)

Make sure you have suspension and drive train to support those ambitions though.
You'll destroy the stock trans and rear end in no time.