Dart BB for DD/Tow rig

F

fzsk4p

Forum Member
Looking for a bit of advice/direction on a Dart based BBC for a DD/tow rig.

First a history lesson ;

Back in my working days (retired now) had the pleasure of driving several company concept trucks based on Chevy Suburbans. Ones made for foreign government evaluation/use. Several of these `Burbs had Lingenfelter BB`s that were simply awesome. Talking close to 600 inches. Idle all day in traffic and then give one helluva rush when the fun pedal was pushed. Linear powerband, no crankiness or bad habits. Hell my wife would drive it too the grocery store. Her only comment was that it seemed to have a little miss at idle. Really enjoyed the ride home from work with those kids in there Z28`s and Mustangs. Imagine getting shut down by a big butt Suburban.

Fast forward to today;

Late 90`s 3/4 ton 4wd Suburban as the runner. 4L80E, 14 bolt geared to the engines torque curve. Typical driveline upgrades.

Looking to build a Dart BB to use in this `Burb. Emphasis on towing (7000 lbs) and driveability. Overkill I know but hey.........:cheers:

Thinking along the lines of around a 572 with 310cc intake/119cc chambers heads. High lift moderate duration cam. Enough lobe separation to draw decent vacuum at idle.

Typical headers/exhaust etc.

Any ideas on a good setup ? 572 ? short of tall deck ? Head choice, cam ? Intake FI, carb ?

I have a fair amount of engine building experience but nothing like this.
SBC`s, SBF`s, Pontiac`s,

Last engine built was a Jeep stroker with an off-set ground crank, Eagle rods, Diamond pistons etc.

This Dart project is something I need some help with. Most folks (seems) are trying to get a bunch of power at what I would say is a higher RPM then what I am looking for. Want a good torquey muscle motor with good manners.

Any thoughts on set up ? Shops around that are familar with big inch engines ?

Thanks much !!
 
I think tall deck would fit more cubes but I would not want to commit to any of those thoughts without seriously studying the pistons rod and crank assebmly for durability and ring wear.

I think 570ci with 310cc heads would come up short in the TQ department. Give me a few days to think about this and I will throw some ideas at ya.
 
Thanks guys for the insight.
The new LS454 looks pretty good but take a look at the torque curve. At a typical 2000 rpm cruise it is a liitle light. Crank it up to 2500 and we are now talking.

Here is my thoughts.
A 581 (4.6 bore x 4.375 stroke) short deck.

Spin under 5000 rpm and cruise at about 2000 rpm pulling. With the right combo of parts it should make about 800lbs torque.

Dart 310 aluminum or 308 steels ought to keep velocity up. Somewhere around 9.5 compression.
Camshaft 226°/230° Ought to idle at 500-600 rpm in gear with a little lope.

Air gap with a FAST FI.

Typical headers and exhaust ought to do the trick.
 
how about use an 8.2l block which is a 502. stroke it to a 548. some dart heads. medium hydraulic roller camshaft. iit had a 114 lobe sep and around [email protected] duration. .600 lift recently did same set up and made about 650hp @ 5300rpm. peaks torque was 680 @ around 4000rpm. ganna be your best bang for the dallar. was only 9.3 compression on marathon 93 octane with only 29 degrees of timing. so pretty conservative tune up prolly has alittle more in it. this was with a holley single plane intake and 1000cfm throttle body. depending what year truck it is u could prolly use the factory engine controls. just need an intake set up to support the power your lookin for. hell even with a set of stock heads with some good valvse and valve job would prolly make 600+.
 
1bad Lad said:
how about use an 8.2l block which is a 502. stroke it to a 548. some dart heads. medium hydraulic roller camshaft. iit had a 114 lobe sep and around [email protected] duration. .600 lift recently did same set up and made about 650hp @ 5300rpm. peaks torque was 680 @ around 4000rpm. ganna be your best bang for the dallar. was only 9.3 compression on marathon 93 octane with only 29 degrees of timing. so pretty conservative tune up prolly has alittle more in it. this was with a holley single plane intake and 1000cfm throttle body. depending what year truck it is u could prolly use the factory engine controls. just need an intake set up to support the power your lookin for. hell even with a set of stock heads with some good valvse and valve job would prolly make 600+.
Click to expand...

These are some of the ideas I am looking for.

Sounds like the engine you describe had plenty of untapped power.
With a torque peak at 4000 I`d bet that at a 2000 rpm cruise it is still pumping some good numbers.

Let`s get some more ideas here.

Given thought to the 572 crate engine and taking some cam out of it. Not sure about the heads though. They may have to large of a runner for good low end. Plus it a carb and FI is the way to go. Think we can do better cheaper.
 
fzsk4p said:
These are some of the ideas I am looking for.

Sounds like the engine you describe had plenty of untapped power.
With a torque peak at 4000 I`d bet that at a 2000 rpm cruise it is still pumping some good numbers.

Let`s get some more ideas here.

Given thought to the 572 crate engine and taking some cam out of it. Not sure about the heads though. They may have to large of a runner for good low end. Plus it a carb and FI is the way to go. Think we can do better cheaper.
Click to expand...
cheaper......exactly i dunno how more cheaper ur ganna get than the set up i got in mind. can use a factory style block. and use the factory fuel injection system. now obviously there is some internals that will be needed but still ganna be cheaper than some other routes. now if your lookin for more power whats ur thought of puttin a whipple on that 8.2 liter. can run a stock crank keep it a 502 put rods and piston in it with the stock style heads. put stainless valves in em for the extra heat for durability. and obviously the blower acts as an intake. these blowers usually make monster torque numbers. also this would allow for awesome streetability with yet attaining gas milage but when time comes to get down to business u'll have everythin u need when u give it to it. and it sounds bad ass....shit that thing would be smokin all 4 around the block lol
 
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