Well this episode has been a LONG time coming, and here it finally is our much delayed Big Block Wars featuring iron headed (mostly) big blocks from Chevy, Pontiac, Oldsmobile, and Mopar all with similar street setups throwing down on the dyno to see what's what! Every gearhead has their favorite but which one is better? Or... is there one that's better? We run them all, discuss their builds, and give you a breakdown of each!
First off we have a classic 454 LS6 Big Block Chevy, this was a GM Performance Motor purchased in the mid 80s to power a classic '57 GMC Truck. Stuffed full of good stuff from the "factory" this motor just needed an overhaul and cam change to bring it down more into the range more fitting the truck it was powering. Of the 4 units we tested this one is also the only one running a roller cam and valve train, but still give us some very useful information. Classic wisdom says the 454 Chevy is the best... is that true?
Secondly we ran an in house built 455 Oldsmobile that will be powering Rich's own '65 Oldsmobile F-85. The factory crank and rods were checked and reconditioned then topped with a set of SpeedPro pistons, and an out of the box set of Speedmaster heads. Of the four motors we ran this is the only one with aluminum heads and honestly we feel are equivalent to a set of GOOD cast iron Oldsmobile heads. How did the ole "FA" Olds Rocket 455 do?
Thirdly came the Pontiac 455, mated to a set of 6X cast iron heads. This motor came out of our own 1970 Pontiac LeMans and actually performed pretty respectably when tested. To accompany the freshly rebuilt heads we ran the factory crankshaft, Eagle forged rods, and SRP forged pistons. This motor was also fully machined and assembled at Performance Research Inc in Columbus Ohio so there IS some more advanced "machine shop magic" hiding inside. Would the Poncho show why the 455 GTO was often considered a king of the streets?
Finally we have tossed the freshly built 451 Stroker Mopar on the dyno that will be the new heart for 73ChargerChic 's "Momma's Mopar" 74 Dodge Charger. Built out of a 1977 Dodge 400 block with the rotating assembly out of a early 70s 440 the machined and prepped setup brough displacement within striking range of the other 3 big blocks so we thought it was fitting. On top of the classic Mopar rods we mounted some ICON forged pistons to handle any future track abuse that is likely coming. Not many people know of this type build, so it's been a pretty interesting experience bringing it to life. Will this B series Mopar Big Block sneak up on the competition?
We hope you enjoy this episode, these motors have been coming together over the past 3 years and getting a chance to finally film all this was great. 4 of the big boys of Classic American Muscle all in one video! Which one won? Well, what do YOU think?
Lucore Automotive is a small independent american small business located just outside Columbus Ohio. While we are a full service shop that maintains and repairs countless daily drivers we are also well known for our work on classics, race cars, and collector cars.
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