396ci in a Z?

[Johnny280zx]

Hi everyone, I have a question.... I have just been given three 396ci chevy motors to sell. If I sell two then I can keep one. I am planning a build that would keep the car mostly stock looking, ie no scoop in the hood. Planning on a proper satin black finish. I will be keeping the motor stock except intake, exhaust, and maybe a mild cam. Having moved to Victoria B.C., from Prince Edward Island, I am used to having a bunch of regulations for modding a car but now have an open pallet. My question is that I have not purchased the car yet. I am looking at both the s30 and s130's and am wondering if a 396ci motor would fit without cutting up the hood. I am also wondering if there are any kits that would make this swap any easier. I am planning on running a five or six speed manual trans depending on what I can find. I like the idea of running a different motor choice then most such as the 396ci but should I just trade it for a 350ci? I know it would be easier to work with but how much easier? I am sorry if this all sounds confusing, it is my first time writing online but any help would be greatly appreciated. Another quick question, would the body withstand the power from the 396ci without twisting? Also, are there any questions that I am not asking that I should be? My biggest issue is I do not want to cut up the exterior of the body but if you can't see it, I am more then willing to chop away. Thanks again.

[Jasonmreiss]

All I heard was 396 for sale, sorry bro lol

[Pyro]

Forget the big block or even a small block.

 

Much cheaper to buy a late model 5.3 with trans from fan to tailhousing.

 

And you can make impressive power numbers with a late mode LS style engine while still maintaining good street manors and good mpg.

 

Spaces and line returns will make your post easier to read.

[Johnny280zx]

Forget the big block or even a small block.

 

Much cheaper to buy a late model 5.3 with trans from fan to tailhousing.

 

And you can make impressive power numbers with a late mode LS style engine while still maintaining good street manors and good mpg.

 

Spaces and line returns will make your post easier to read.

 

 

So I should go the LS rout? Are there any bolt in kits for this? Would it be easier to convert to carb or should I instal the EFI? Thanks

[NewZed]

http://forums.hybridz.org/index.php/forum/30-v8-z-forums/

 

http://forums.hybridz.org/index.php/forum/74-gen-iii-iv-chevy-v8z-tech-board/

 

http://forums.hybridz.org/index.php/forum/81-powertrain/

[emeraldlion]

I have yet to see an LS carb conversion that fit under the stock hood. John's Cars here in dallas, brokenkitty.com sells the LS conversion kits for the s30 chassis. A big block for the sake of orinigality would probably be creating problems and giving yourself unecessary work. There are a few who have done it. If you wanted to be original I would shoot for a mopar engine and try to make that work instead.

[Dudeboy]

It has been done. Look up member Corzette.

 

Go here:

 

If you have the resources go for it. I am doing LS swap ( TRYING TO FINISH !!!!) If I had the time and MONEY a stroked 383 with downdraft webers or mikuni carbs would have been my preferred engine. They now have TBI for LS engines I think Corzette bought the car with 396 already in it .

Edited March 25, 2012 by Dudeboy

[Michael]

Big blocks have their advantages, and these are not merely originality or the appeal of exotica. However, don't bother with a 396, unless it's a mock-up for engine installation. Build at least an overbored 454 (ideally with a stroker crank), or go with an aftermarket block. The complexity and cost of a big-block swap are only borne by aggressive displacement and concomitant power levels. Definitely use high-end aftermarket heads, a mechanical roller cam, good bottom-end components and the appropriate intake and exhaust systems. Plan on $10K+ for a suitable engine, and driveline components to match.

[emeraldlion]

I understand that there may have been a benefit to big blocks at one point. I think that they are losing their benefit because of the large amount of variation in stroke/bore combos with a small block dimension. Not to mention the power levels now being made by LS engines these days. I have a hard time seeing the benefit of the big block build in our application, giving the extra work it requires.

[rsicard]

After having rebuilt Chev Big Blocks and Small Blocks, the advantage of size and power goes to the small block. With equal spec/quality parts and displacement, the SBC and LSx provide the similar POWER output. The advantage the LSx engines have is that GM cast stock aluminum blocks. To obtain an aluminum SBC, one has to go to the aftermarket. The LSx engines have gone full circle and come back to the rectangular intake port for performance purposes rather than the Cathedral Port configuration. For its compact size, the SBC is hard to beat for HP and TQ. Aftermarket SBC blocks go beyond 454 cu in displacement in the same outward physical size. Add a supercharger or Turbo charger, and the SBC will out do the BBC.

[surpip]

You may want to ask yourself how much power you want, how much money you have to dump into it and what you will be useing the car for. A SBC build if fairly straight foreward and simple, BBC and LS/LX swaps are a bit more complicated if your looking for decent power and a simple swap i would go for the SBC.

[rsicard]

Displacement for displacement, there is NO advantage in using a LSx or BBC. For even greater power numbers, a supercharger or turbocharger can be used on a SBC.

[Michael]

Pondering this for a few days, maybe this thread is a good occasion to revisit the BBC vs. SBC debate. So I'm going to revise my recommendations posted earlier in this thread.

 

Back in the mid 1990s, when first having come across the JTR book, my initial sentiment was towards the small block. This was before the LS series and before the explosion in aftermarket support such as mainstream aluminum heads. Then I met the fellow who ended up doing the roll cage and other fabrication for my swap. He was a die-hard BBC guy, coming from a 1970s drag racing background. He swayed my opinion to big blocks because stock vs. stock, they had a durability and torque advantage that was difficult for small blocks to match. And back then, advantages of stock engine architecture were important. Thus my build was based on a Mark IV 454 BBC. Now having lived with a BBC for a while, I have second thoughts. I did not realize how much of the engine components would eventually be replaced with aftermarket parts, rendering the stock engine's advantages or disadvantages moot. And technology has moved on, of course. For example, now aftermarket cylinder heads are reaching flow numbers that 10 years ago were impressive even for big blocks.

 

In the proverbial "if I were doing it all over again" - in 2012 - I would probably go with the LS series, especially if I could find a donor engine in good condition. The only exception is if the goal was truly maximum HP. Then an aftermarket BBC-flavored block (well over 500 cubic inches) starts making sense. Today if I were doing the V8 Datsun swap, I'd probably first purchase a running F-body from 1998-2002, and use that as the donor.

[Yellowbird911]

I put a 454 in a Porsche 928, mainly because everybody said it would not fit. If fit great and fit under a stock hood. There is an early aftermarket single plane intake that is very short already and then you can mill off over 1/2 in from the carb mount itself. The top of the air cleaner was almost level with the top of the valve covers. Not the best design to make torque but then there was plenty there already. Getting it under the hood should be fairly easy. I had to build a custom set of headers but nothing real hard.

I did several track days in the car and loved it. My only complaint about the BB is that you can feel the weight of the rotating assembly, felt like the car had a 100 lb flywheel on it. Have driven the same car with a small block and the feel is very different. Still, coming out of turn 14 at CMP it would leave a set of strips in third gear, gotta love torque.

Edited July 5, 2012 by Yellowbird911