michanic220

how much would i have to modify my stock 280zx engine bay to make a 454 fit in the bay? it looks like it has plenty of room for a 350 long block.. the 454 long block cant be much bigger i assume? i've seen it done i just wanna know what im getting myself into before i do somthing like this.
from what you guys have told me i have rack and pinion steering.

snwbrderphat540

all custom mounts radiator and driveshaft and a little re-wiring assuming your going carb's

michanic220

yes, with this L28E im deffinatly done with EFI! lol.
wouldnt i have to change out the springs on the front suspension to handle the weight? it says a stock 454 with iron blocks and intake weighs in at 650, if you change the heads and intake to aluminum it takes 90 pounds off of that. so i get 560 pounds.. would i have to upgrade for that?
but other then that i wouldnt have to make any body changes to fit the engine?

snwbrderphat540

maybe a little, the stock L motor aint all that heavy, def isnt light though. but springs, is not a hard thing to do at all. i doubt you;ll have fitment issues the engine bays on these cars is pretty big. might have some trouble with powersteering though might have to do some craftsmanship.

K Cuv

why a 454? why not go LS1? its smaller, much lighter, cheaper, easier to maintain, newer, more reliable, EASY to make crazy fast, and its been done before so you can probably find some good write ups!

NismoPick

^^^ He said he's done w/ EFI... even though EFI has much more potential.

K Cuv

yea i missed that sry - but dealiing with a 30 year old datsun motor vs. a less than 10 year old corvette motor is a diff ballgame. i personally would be way happier with the LS1, just my opinion.

NismoPick

I agree 10000000000000%.

SHADY280

dont bother with the 454, your gonna have to rip out the fender wells and maybe change to mustang 2 front suspension to make it fit nice. the dang 350 is shoe horned. the 454 is wider yet, and the frame rails arent

michanic220

well still you could never get the torque from a LS1 that you could from a 454 (part for part)
and im not really a fan of the vettes unless its a older stingray.
everyone around here is bolt on this, bolt on that.
and i've always been one to be different, so i want a powerful engine without bolt on parts.

michanic220

i dont know, i can get a 350 for 250-300$$, or a 454 big block for 550-600$$
either engine i go with is going to be torn down and rebuilt so mileage doesnt really matter.

NismoPick

Welp... apparently you know something everyone else doesn't... so get to it! Let us know how it goes.

NismoPick

PS... here's your Chevy V8 hp / torque ratings. Not really much torque for all the work and $$$ you're going to spend.... unless you plan on towing a cattle trailer or mobile home behind your Z.

EDIT... peak hp is at 3600rpm... that's about grandpa speed right there.

michanic220

i never said it was going to be bolted to a low-geared 4wd tranny brah'.
the 454 is rated at 240HP and 400 foot pounds of torque. unsure of the 350 tho. havent looked.

Bleach

a Chevy 350 has 165hp??? wow! toss out that 170hp L28 quick!

snwbrderphat540

did you read that? the 454 makes a woping 210hp LOL LOL LOL LOL!!!!! OMGZ!!! so much power! there is no replacement for displacement. hahahaha... it does do 330ft/lbs though neato! if you need to tow ****

michanic220

whats the L28E engine top out in horse power? someone on here said 300?
whats the chevy 350 top out in horse power?
just trying to learn somthing new =]

NismoPick

According to internet sources... the LS1 was rated @ 305-350hp / 335-375 ft/lbs torque. The 454 was rated @ 205hp / 335 ft/lbs torque. If I did my math right (and I'd like to think I did), sounds to me like the LS1 has much more potential.

+$1k to $3k to make it work in your car.

All of my previous posts about hp would probably be flywheel hp... gearing is gearing...

So are you going for the cheapest way to get hp? Just throw in a 200 shot of Nitrous and you're set!

snwbrderphat540

top out in hp? no one has built a crazy bad L28 yet 300 NA is topped out if you build right, turbo ive seen 600hp. but like i said, it wasnt a crazy build

lww

Trying to pin TOP HP numbers on ANY engine build is an exercise in futility as every build has numerous compromises in order to achieve a specific goal. If you built an L series motor for "maximum" HP with no regard for any other element, it would be a VERY high number. This goes for a Chevy, Ford or Chrysler motor whether it's a small block, big block, LSx, etc.

The most "useable" HP I've seen in a turbo L6 series Z car was 600whp.

The most "useable" HP I've seen in a non-turbo L6 series Z car was just under 300 whp.

Edz280zx

Good luck fitting the LS1 into an s130 engine bay. Me and my buddy test fit one into his car and had less than an inch of clearance between the driver's side head and the gear box, that was without the manifold(or header) on. I don't know how it would be on a rack and pinion car, but it doesn't look like it would be much better. I think this swap would require some tube chassis mods to get it to fit. Just my 2 cents.

michanic220

well, i can look on craigslist but i dout i can find a LS1 under 2K.

michanic220

nope, cant find one... altho there are a set of nice heads for $250 for a LS1.

michanic220

i dont see anything wrong with this "175 hp 350 small block" guys

http://daytona.craigslist.org/pts/771771634.html

NismoPick

^^^ Go for it.