Hello everyone,

Let me give you the run down. Im 15 years old (yea im young) but Im not your average kid. Unlike others who tend to flock towards the Acuras and Hondas, I like American Muscle. I recently bought my first car. Its a 1972 Nova SS. Its got a 327 which is pushin around 350hp currently. The thing about kids though, is, thats not good enough for them. Im not looking to beat an Integra cause I can already do that. I want to embarass them. I got $1500 currently to spend on performance mods to the Nova. Got any ideas. I want to work my engine to be fast. Because sometimes when you have the smaller things, they can do great big things. Thats how I feel when people undermind my 327. So, if anyone has got any ideas besides nitrous which Im already doing and besides a blower which I cant do cause the compression is to high, It would be greatly appreciated. Im looking to hit the 400-450hp mark. 500hp would be great, but hey, how much could you possibly do to a 327?

Help me out.

Regards,
Brian

What's in it?

Pistons, heads (casitng numbers only please), cam, exahust, intake, etc. The more specific you can get, the better we can do: part numbers would be ideal, no "from a Vette" or "¾ race" or "Stage 2" or that sort of drivel.

Without knowing with you've got, it's hard to tell you where to go next.

But, in general, power lives in the heads; and the cam determines what RPM the motor makes power at, subject to the limitations (or lack thereof) in the heads and anywhere else in the induction or exhaust. In order to run a cam big enough to make very much beyond 1 HP per cu in, you need alot of compression.

It's all in the combo.

Thanks for the help RB,

I will have to get back to you on the exact specs like you have requested. I know it has a compression in the 9's like 9.5 which is to high for a blower which was my origional idea. I know it has Fuelie heads which is an added bonus. The exhaust its Dynoflow, but Im switching over to a Flowmaster 40 series or Thrush Glasspacks...I will get back to you on exactly what It has..Thanks!

Since when can you drive at age 15? You're asking a bit much,you might try nitrous.

I was hoping someone would notice Im too young to drive..But I have a permit. License is coming very very soon. HEY YOU CANT COMPLAIN! WOULD YOU RATHER SEE MORE RICE BURNERS?? Im keeping the american muscle legacy alive. O, and I always enjoy pushing things to theyre fullest potential. Thanks for the post Rabid Robert.

I wasnt complaining,I was asking a question. I think you're asking too much out of a streetable 327 if this is going to be your daily driver. Don't knock the ricers,you might get outrun by one some day. Rabid Robert? good thing I don't bite :D

Nah, I didnt say that to be mean. Plus, its not going to be my daily driver. Its my weekend street car. Im getting a 96-99 Mustang Cobra as my daily driver. Isnt it great when you save your money for the finer things in life??

I see,,,you'll drive the slow car during the week smile.gif A Ford :rolleyes: still young and confused :D seriously,put a rat in your Nova and never look back,heck if you can afford a Cobra,you can afford a big block chevy graemlins/thumbsup.gif

Very true. The car did come with an 454 engine when I bought it, but its to much hassel, plus if you saw the shape this 327 engine was in, you wouldnt want to take it out either. Freshly rebuilt 1500 miles ago. Plus my brother has a 1971 chevelle ss which he wants to drop the 454 into. It makes more sense that way. Hes not getting it for free, dont worry!

got my chevelle when i was 15 here...
sures better than integras! ;)

if you want to make the 327 run you`ll need a few things. first you`ll need to change the compression to at least 10.5 to 1 with a dome piston. then your going to have to either have your heads ported or get some good aftermarket heads. you will want to run a solid cam run alot of gear and rev the heck out of it. 327`s are my fav. sbc and my last one ran low 12`s at 114mph in a 65 chevelle. i had a bit of money into it but it was fast and was my only car. these motors aren`t known for torque so you`ll have to build it for rpm and run the right gearing to get your car going. if you want to knwo the specs of the motor i ran send me a pm or email.

You wnat to list all the specifications of the motor here, cam profile, header size, intake, carb, etc etc.......

Originally posted by 427L88:
You wnat to list all the specifications of the motor here, cam profile, header size, intake, carb, etc etc....... are you talking to me or Brian G?

Do a lot of research before you just buy anything and put it in the car.

IMO i wouldnt sell that 454 for a 327! Thats a terrible deal, tell him to put the 327 in his chevelle and keep the 454.

I'm 19 BTW, and if you are detirmined you too can do what i've done, check out my website, the gold camaro is mine.

You mentioned the fuelie heads. Those aren't the greatest head anymore these days. A switch to a modern, good-flowing head would really help if you are going to up the RPMs. If you build to rev, then you'll want to put taller gears in the back.

As someone mentioned, it's all in the total package. You'll need to pick components that compliment each other. I'd say the usual heads, cam, and intake would probably net you some good power. I don't know if you can bump a 327 up to 400hp with $1500, but someone here may have more advice on that.

How much nitrous are you going to hit it with? You'll want to make sure you have good pistons if you squeeze it hard.

A Chevelle is an awful heavy car to make a 327 very fast with out an awful lot of gear and a really not streetable combo. Remember torque is what makes street cars seem fast.

he has a nova.

Build my combo!

I was running 4.56 gears with 26x8 goodyear slicks. it also had a custom ground schnider solid cam and was very streetable, it you did`nt mind the deep gears. Here are the specs...
327+ .040 stock sj rods with arp bolts
stock steel crank
KB 10.5 to 1 .100 dome pistons
professionally ported/polished/flowbenched fuelie heads
port matched edelbrock scorpion intake
750 holley
1 3/4 hooker headers
custom ground schnider solid, 248/254@.050, .530/.530 lift
th350 with 3,000 stall, would only foot brake to 2k with the gears, was 3k with the 3.08`s.

this was a very streetable motor and pulled very hard for a little 327. the whole combo worked well together and I shifted at 7,500 rpm.