Well i think i finally got everything straightened out, new 383 in, and was able to go out for a cruise for the first time tonight. Holy Crap are these engines impressive. The thing is just a torque monster....never realized how much fun i was missing. Crusing up main st in my town doing about 20-25mph punched it and the thing just lit em up. :eek: Not sure who was more surprised me or the people walking on the sidewalk. Oops. Only problem is I used to only have to worry about my wheel hop in 1st gear, now i have to worry about it in the first 3 gears. :D Wonder how long before i get my first ticket.

Congratulations Thorpe! Did you go with a crate engine or build it yourself ? What kind of numbers do you have on it?

Dano :beers:

...I used to only have to worry about my wheel hop in 1st gear, now i have to worry about it in the first 3 gears...

Best line of the day!! :thumbsup:

which 383 i jus put i 385 with a hot cam kit with a built th350 and 3.73 posi and havent driven yrt due to slectrical prob in puttin in guages so can i live thr :clonk: your typing :

That sure is encouraging news... I'm going to build one shortly to have it ready for the spring. What are the numbers/specs (compression, heads, carb, gears... you know the good stuff). What sized motor were you running before? My little 350 is just no fun..... Congrats.

I previously had a 350 in my car as well. It was a fairly stock 350. I had the new motor built by a local shop who has a real good reputation. They dyno'd the motor and it turned 415hp/450 torque. Its 10:1 compression, Dart Iron Eagle Heads 200cc, Edelbrock Performer RPM intake (would have gone with Air Gap but i had just bought the RPM 2 weeks before my 350 bit the dust), Holley 750CFM double pumper carb, Comp Xtreme Energy Cam..think its an XE274 but not 100% sure.

i bought mine straight from summit for 4200

Very similar combo to my friends 383. Darts with some porting, RPM AirGap, Demon 750, XE274. Was pretty strong. Put 305hp, 335tq to the wheels while extremely rich. Probably another 25hp or so if tuned right. 13.3@102 was the best on street tires, very traction limited.

Began as a crate motor. Lasted about 6 months. Rebuilt it, lasted about 7 months. Daily driven, and I guess the 3 straight days of Road course, AutoX, and Drag didnt help.

Got a 366 roller motor ready to put in it now. Strokers can be okay, but expect it to run warm, and DO NOT rev it past 6K.

The car: http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b217/RamAirDave/NFME19pt2.jpg

Call the coroner: http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b217/RamAirDave/Dead5-24-2005.jpg

The "Death Leak": http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b217/RamAirDave/Dead5-24-20052.jpg
It got much worse, Exxon Valdez style.

If it breaks, it needed to be fixed anyway, right?

dave

Ya gotta love 'em, gotta comp hyd. roller, dart iron eagle 215's,etc., put it in a '29 ford, no fenders, no int. ,WOW, 'don't care who you are, that's FUN right there!!! :clonk:

I totally disagree that they run warm and cant be revved over 6K. Mine runs 180* even in 105* Oklahoma heat, and too easily revs well over 6K. And its a 388 (.060 over).

But I do agree that once you've had a 383, you'll never want another 350. When I built the one in my nova, I never expected to be able to punch it at 45mph and turn sideway :D Comparing the mild 350/stock convertor/2.56 gears it had to a solid lifter 388/3500 stall/3.73's is like comparing a moped to a V-Max.

I don't know anyone that has built or owned a 383 and didn't like it. The only people that don't like them or have anything negative to say about them has never had one. They are great running engines.

I don't know where the 6K RPM limit came from. I shifted my previous 383 at 6500-6700RPM, my 385 at 6300-6500, and my blown 388 will rev to 7000 - 7200. Your combintation will dictate where you shift. Typically in a street car with a 383 you don't "have" to rev it to make power like you do with a smaller engine. 383's make plenty of torque. None of my strokers ever had a heating problem. Even the blown .060 over engine on 100* ++ days. Get your timing and cooling system right and there won't be a problem.

Congrats!! Thorpe. I wasn't a believer until I built my first one, I thought they were mostly hype. Once you feel the difference, there's no turning back.

I put a new 4 core radiator in the car when i dropped the motor in. Last night after nearly 2 hours of cruising including stop and go, temp never got above 190...in fact with new radiator its running a little cooler than my old 350 did. The other thing i didnt mention that surprised me as well was how much different sounding (and louder) my car is now. Same exhausts that were on there before ( Flowmaster Delta 40s) but waaay different sound...i like it. I am a believer now for sure...even though ive only put 50-60 miles on it.

I'm sure it will be weeks before that grin comes off your face. Sounds like a neat setup. Now, start saving for the replacement tires.