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Question: LT1 Rebuild

WillC4

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 7, 2009
Messages
94
Location
Colorado
Corvette
'94 LT1 Green Coupe. 6-spd. All Bolt-ons.
Well, My '94 is around 130k miles and im considering a complete rebuild. Has anyone else here done a full blown engine rebuild on their cars?

Im thinking of doing a 355 set up with reliable internals that can handle at least 500 HP. The goal is about 440-480 crank HP, likewise with torque. I am already familiar with which head porting/cam combination (looking at LE1 heads/cam or AI or have the local shop do it) so that is not a concern. Although, do stock vette valve covers have enough clearance for 1.6 roller rockers? I am also going to get a larger radiator to help keep the temps cooler (these cars run way too hot for my tastes). Are there any brands/parts/replacements/steps that yall recommend?

I am also going to send my trans to get rebuilt to reliably handle the additional output as well as getting a new flywheel and clutch kit. Also I am considering getting a 3.54 ring and pinion set for the Dana 44, should i rebuild the dana 44 though?

Im trying to build a car that is on par and maybe a bit faster then modern day vettes that can last me a good while as well. More questions to come as i think of them.
 
I like the old saying if it ain't broke don't fix it. At 130K if the engine has had regular oil changes it should be good for many more thousands of miles. The LT1 was designed to last a long time. If you want more power go for it, I see no advantage of rebuilding the bottom end however.

If you are going to go with gears, go big, a 3.54 will be little difference many guys seem to like 4.10's and notice a big difference. Stock Dana 44 is 3.45.

What are your goals for the car, just more romp power or drag racing???
Trick flow makes a basically complete top end kit for the LT1 and with some supporting mods will easy make 400 (crank) HP, similar to LS2's and still be completely street-able. However, I would go with your LE1 heads and associated components for your HP goals.
 
full blown engine rebuild on their cars?
Im thinking of doing a 355 set up with reliable internals that can handle at least 500 HP.
383 will cost much the same and make that sort of Hp easier
 
Well, My '94 is around 130k miles and im considering a complete rebuild. Has anyone else here done a full blown engine rebuild on their cars?

Im thinking of doing a 355 set up with reliable internals that can handle at least 500 HP. The goal is about 440-480 crank HP, likewise with torque. I am already familiar with which head porting/cam combination (looking at LE1 heads/cam or AI or have the local shop do it) so that is not a concern. Although, do stock vette valve covers have enough clearance for 1.6 roller rockers? I am also going to get a larger radiator to help keep the temps cooler (these cars run way too hot for my tastes). Are there any brands/parts/replacements/steps that yall recommend?

I am also going to send my trans to get rebuilt to reliably handle the additional output as well as getting a new flywheel and clutch kit. Also I am considering getting a 3.54 ring and pinion set for the Dana 44, should i rebuild the dana 44 though?

Im trying to build a car that is on par and maybe a bit faster then modern day vettes that can last me a good while as well. More questions to come as i think of them.

How much $$ are you willing to put into this?

My advice to anyone thats wanting to go fast is to always start with a bullet-proof bottom end. Go forged everything. That cost more, BUT, you can then add whatever top end pieces as you want and be safe. Blowers, Nitrous, turbos...Getting 400 REAL RWHP ain;t all that easy and thats about where it starts getting fun. Oh yeah, BALANCE the crank & assy...spinning at 5000 and not having that feeling of vibrating to pieces is nice. Besides being smoother it also lives longer when its balanced real well.

There are some good kits available for the whole rotating assy that come in around $2500 for the parts, crank, nice rods and pistons, or you can shop a good crank from one store and buy pistons from another if you;re willing to wait and search a little bit. But honestly, forged is the future of performance parts.

Bottom line, if you want big power that equals big stress. If you have a solid bottom end then you can add to the top later and still sleep at night.

I've seen a guy with a more or less stock L98 run a 150 shot of nitrous to it and run 1/4 miles over and over. It can be done, but the potential for scattering the motor is huge and thats what ends up happening to most folks that apply HP adders to stock configurations. I've busted a piston and I can say for sure, that its real easy to do. About $10,000 later I was getting over it...Thats how I got my big bore 357...grinding every last .0001 of cyl wall that was left... I got to 400 but spent a fortune on exhaust, throttle bodies, chips, heads, porting, tune, intake,and prayer.

The single best money that I have spent on this car was the big aluminum radiator. Made by Engineered Cooling Products, its a big 2 row thats quality aluminum, larger tanks, as pretty as a prom date and LESS than $300 ! !
Right now I have trouble getting the darn car to get to 180* so I can have a decent heater ! In the mid summer heat it runs under 200 w/ the a/c on and maybe 210 in stop-n-go traffic. It was running 230+ under those conditions. I'm thinking of installing a blocking hood to cover half the radiator so I can drive without a parka...

Ya know it cold when you lower your side window and the sheet of ice stays while the glass goes down :L

Right now, start shopping for parts or kits prices. !30,000 is a long way from needing to be parked, so use this time to gather some good parts that build what you'd call your dream motor.

Good Luck, a 2nd block to start on is a great idea so you can still enjoy the car during the build time.
 

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