| RE:350 vs 400 sbc |
Subject: RE:350 vs 400 sbc by Jer on 2008/2/3 3:57:18 I had a 400 small block in my '70 Monte Carlo back in high school in the 80s. It was lightly built with 327/350 hp cam, headers, Weiand single plane, Holley 750 and ignition. The car really hauled ass and I gave the smackdown to a lot of bitch ass punks street racing. I'd normally spin it up to 5,500 rpms. This car ran hard for years and I even drove it in sub zero temperatures in the winter in the Midwest. I eventually just wore out the rings. I kept the block for years but eventually just sold it when I moved. I've read it is hard to find a good 400 block. I read a story interviewing David Vizard who said he has only come across a few decent 400 blocks. Evidently core shift is an issue. Plus, you can't really bore them out too much. Also a lot of people would talk about the higher rod angle with the shorter 400 rods. Cubes rule. Now there are more choices for aftermarket blocks. It is way cheaper to go the 383 route. Coast High Performance has good deals on 383 short blocks. With an aftermarket block you could go ape shit on the cubes, which would be sweet. I just got back from a ride in my 410 cubic inch stroker Windsor. This puts 440 lb ft of torque to the wheels. It really pushes you back into the seat. I would love to have an engine like that in my vette. Here is an excerpt from a good story on the Motown blocks: At this point, it would almost be ridiculous to compare a production 400 block to the new Motown. Thin cylinder walls were a constant problem during the 10-year life span of the 400, siamesed cylinders without larger water jackets meant that low-rpm cooling was an issue, and main webbing weakness affected the engine's durability. All things considered, this was a great option 20 years ago when building a performance motor. Thankfully, things have changed. Nowadays, the best service you can do yourself when looking at a 400 core for a performance-oriented buildup is to look past it. Accomplished engine builder and author David Vizard (www.davidvizard.com) sees no advantage to using most production 400s. http://www.gmhightechperformance.com/ ... block_solution/index.html |
