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#2 ·
no,
but a cam and intake will really wake them up.
 
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#3 ·
I've ridden in a 68 with a 502, TH-400 and 3.55's out back. It's a great motor. Not sure I'd cam it up or swap out the alum dual plane unless you're headed to the track...it has all the power you need. Any more, and you're redoing the whole car, harmonic to axles.

What's great is how effortlessly she makes power.

I was impressed enough with the Holley 850 VS carb that I have on order for a 496.

Two thumbs up.
 
#6 ·
Well, if you truly get those kind of pricing...who gives a hoot if it fits the bill for your application or not. The fact is, it has all the inches you would need to make moster street power(well, all most people would need, you never know) and even if you need to make changes in order to suit you, your ahead of the game by far with that kind of a deal. So, yes, they are fast motors, no they arent the fastest thing in the world. They arent real wicked or anything, but lots of grunt to pull around any street car fast. If you need more, spend 2 grand on changes and your still 2 grand ahead of the others with a stock one. Now, can you get deals on anything else? Like, could you build something from scratch or is this big savings just on the crate stuff? Or, what other crate motor options do you have? Depending on what else you can save money on and what your expectations are, you may want to start with a different motor or just build from scratch. Just a thought, so let us know what you want out of the motor. How fast would you like to be, how much street time, do you have any problems with tuning and such(like...maybe theres a good solid roller in your future and that will require some maintenance....are you all right with messin with the valvetrain now and again). Let us know.
 
#7 ·
I would opt for a little more cam, maybe something in the 580-600 area. Air Gap Performer RPM will also help. Not sure whcih carb you have but the new Holley HP series work well. Timing setup and good headers are also a must. I redid a 454 HO with these mods and added the aluminum heads(milled) to raise compression. With the roller cam and aluminum heads you could bump the comp. a full point and probably be ok.

wilma
 
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#8 ·
I'm in the minority, but I don't think you'd gain anything with the Air Gap over the GM Performance intake which is a rebranded Edelbrock RPM intake,..my opinion.

But agree with the thoughts above,..decide what your purpose is, rear gear, and rpm range, and cam up if you need to.

Keep in mind, GM put a lot of effort and testing before they selected components so, off the shelf, you'll have a good strong reliable engine.

Also, once you start adding HP to the 502 (rated at 502HP) lots of stuff on the car might need to be upgraded:

Tranny and clutch, driveshaft & u-joints (w/1250's), axles (borderline), subframe conncectors, engine mounts (stockers would be borderline), fuel line (3/8's is borderline), 3" inch exhaust system, cooling system, etc.

But I still think it's worthwhile,..and you'd be surprised at rev-ability,..it'll spin to 6000 with ease.

Good luck!
 
#10 ·
You could build the 454 muuuuch cheaper than the price of a new 502. Good used cranks, rods and blocks are everywhere. Call your local engine shop and price some cores.

Another small advantage of the 454, is you get to use a mechanical fuel pump, which is more 'period correct' for your first gen.

Then you could top it off with the same GM O-port heads that are on the 502 and make some muslce. One thing...there are two versions of these heads,..one with smaller 2.19" intake valves and one with 2.25". The bigger bore 502 would be happy with the larger valve and the smaller bore 454 would be happiest with the 2.19.

You can always buy a stroker crank with a 4.25" throw if you want to add another 40 or so cubes. Some clearancing and a different oil pan are needed among other stuff. I've seen new cranks in the $600 range,..maybe you could do better...just a thought.
 
#12 ·
Of course the 502 will make more power than a 454 if everything else is equal,..but again a rebuilt 454 will cost half (or less) of a new 502. Basically, you need to ask if the extra displacement and HP (40-60 HP) is worth about $3000 (I'm guessing a 502 is in the $6000 range?)

Decisions, decisions,..a date with the blonde at Fuddruckers, or a date with the brunette to Outback Steakhouse.
 
#14 ·
With a 454 short block, a really great set of heads would be the brodix race rite 270cc oval ports. Find out what pistons would be on the 454 block, cause the heads come in various chamber sizes. They are listed on the site with 115 or 119cc combustion chambers, but, they can be ordered with a 110cc chamber even though it dont say so on the catalog... you just gotta ask! Anyways, you want the static compression to be around 10:1 in order to run a large cam(Which sounds like what you want), and still be pump gas friendly. For a camshaft, what do you want....a hydraulic flat tappet, solid flat tappet...some sort of roller? Id like a solid flat tappet. The lunati 402A4 is a real nice camshaft. It has 248/255 duration at .050 and a 112 LSA but Id get it made on a 110LSA. Along with a performer rpm intake manifold and a 850-950cfm carb.......real easy 11's and it will run on pump gas like its no big deal. If you want a solid roller....another lunati thats nice is the 502A3. Its got 245/253 duration at .050 and also a 112 LSA.

This is where youd want to talk to the lunati techs though(if you order lunati). Look up Steve when you call cause that roller cam might be better keeping the 112 LSA. The reason its, its got a lot more valve lift than the flat tappet solid and it will have more lift at TDC(during the overlap period). Keeping it on a 112 may be worth it in this situation due to the additional valve lift. Really, pick his brain either way about the cam choice. These are just two camshafts I like, but he may have something better in mind. If you wanna hop on the chevelles board, UDHarold is usually willing to answer cam questions and he is DA man. He is a cam designer by trade and is one of the best in the biz, so it dont hurt to take his advance. With those heads, either one of these camshafts will be capable of 6500 rpm or so performance......its not really necessary to go any larger unless you really want to get wicked.....those choices would be good enough for me.
 
#18 ·
I got a 502HO in my 69 camaro. It had a cam swap(just under 600 lift) and the heads are ported. My motor is very strong. It was engine dynoed just under 600hp and 620lbs of torque. A holley 850 double pumper was used.
It's a great motor.
 
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mnm99
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