Having some engine decision making problems!!
 

I have decided not to work out my 305 so i am thinking of just getting a new faster motor. I was looking at a 350 vortec v8 with 30,000 miles on it. Is it worth getting the guy only wants $300 for it. Don't know if i should go for it or go for something else. If anyone can help i appreciate it. If anyone has any other motors to consider let me know i am not looking to spend to much. I would say maybe 1,000 or less. So if anyone can help let me know. The car is a 92 25th anni. camaro.
thanks rico

with only 30k miles that is definately a deal. i would grab that, throw in a mild cam, drop on a performer rpm, make/buy a tbi adaptor and have a fresh chip burned for it.
the result would be a substantial power increase and still have it cruise good.

later
tim

that motor would be good one to pick up , throw a good cam in in, get a performer vortec intake, and a 750 carb. only thing that sucks is that if you get any diecent cam with good lift, alot of machine work will need to be done to the heads.

or you can find a tappet short block, get some vortec heads for 250 bucks, have the machine work done to em, get an xe274 cam for 100 bucks, get some flat tappet lifters for 50, performer vortec intake and a used 750 carb or something.

the second combo is good for about 400-425 hp

if ya need help building one, ya know how to find me.

Make sure its a real Vortec motor. A set of used Vortec heads in good shape could sell for $300 alone... Pop off a valve cover and look at the casting number on the heads they'll either end with 062 or 906.

What do you wanna do with this motor? Have a somewhat quick daily driver? Have a street/strip kinda car? How fast are you looking to go? You could run well into the 11's with Vortec heads ontop the right motor.

Slow z i want a pretty quick cruiser car and some what quick drag times like 13's i would be happy. The casting number is 906 so they are vortec. What would you suggest doing without spending thousands. I just bought some forged aluminum pistions which are stock bore size which i want to use. What else should i get. I also have roller rockers i bought they are 1.6 lift that i want to use. What would need to be done to use those roller rockers. Let me know
thanks rico

You know anyone who those machine work on engines thats not to expensive.

are the 1.6 rockers you have self-aligning? If not you'll have to put guideplates on the Vortecs. The heads are going to need some basic machine work... The springs have to be replaced (I run 1.32" LT4 valve springs - they're REAL cheap and work great get them at www.sdpc2000.com), get screw-in rocker studs installed, and depending on what cam you go with you might need to get the guide bosses cut down to accept more lift. Typically Vortecs run into guide-to-retainer issues around .470" lift but not all are cast equally (mine had over .560" of clearance). All this machine work is really basic any half-competent machine shop can do it and it shouldnt cost more than $200 for everything.

I'd probably go with an RPM vortec intake, Comp's XE268 cam, 750 Holley VS, and a rebuilt junkyard HEI. For exhaust 1 5/8" headers with a typical 3" cat-back of your choice... I'm assuming the cars auto so while i was at it I'd replace the convertor with something a bit looser - if its a 700R4 maybe look for a convertor out of a 4.3L S10. Get some 3.42-3.73 gears too.. A combo like that shouldnt have too much trouble hitting atleast low 13's possibly high 12's with optimal gears and stall

slow z has outlined a good combo. only things i would do different is keep teh tbi instead of going carb and i woudl look at a roller cam.
with only 30k miles on it there is no real reason for a rebuild.
i woudl say with the addition of the gears you can easily hit a high 12 with traction. the trap speed will certainly be there.

yeah if its a roller block you could go with the LT4 hot cam ...I'm not sure if vortec motors have provisions for the factory roller setup?

all assembly line blocks after 87 were cast with the bosses in the block for a roller cam set up. most truck and marine applications the bosses just weren't drilled or tapped. it is about a 30 min job if you take your time to make the holes perfect.

later
tim