well i have the 1980 camaro everythings stock on it 350 eng. 350 trans. i want to stroke it out to somthin better, where should i start on it? what should i buy first. Money isnt really a problem right now.

just would like to get some advice on making it better and faster, thanks

 

with a 4 bolt main block and build it from there

 

Take a look at the hi performance crate motors Chevy sells. That's where I'd start, unless you want somethng REALLY built!

 

First you can get plenty of power without stroking it. Second a four bolt main block produces no more power than a two bolt. A four bolt is not needed unless you are going for really high power and really high rpm's. Now starting mid 70's motors were built with fairly low compression for emmissions control so you are going to want to bump that up. You can get away with 10 to1 on pump gas. You want make sure you are actually getting the compression you are trying to, different cc heads will give you different compression ratios with the same pistons. Take a look at your heads also that year car probably has small valve heads that you will probably want to replace. My choise would be alluminum there are alot of options and almost always come with the intake and exhaust passages ported as well as bigger valves. Valvetrain is the place to get the biggest horsepower gains. After that you need to chose a camshaft carb and intake that will work well with your other choises. Finally you will want to install headers and a good high flow exhaust. The better the engine can breath the more power it will produce. A good book you can read is called HOW TO HOTROD A SMALLBLOCK CHEVY. When you are ready to start find a good machine shop with people that are willing to talk to you and help you make the right decisions for what you are trying to do. After you are done with the engine dont forget to overhall the trans. good luck

 

"How to Hot Rod a Small Block Chevy" or "How to Hot Rod a Big Block Chevy" are both fantastic books! I've had both for too many years, and the info inside is priceless! The BBC version sure saved me a lot of heartache and expense when I decided to build up my 427 BBC engine!