Hot Rod Forum banner

reaslistic cost of supercharged motor?

2K views 20 replies 8 participants last post by  nitrocorsair 
#1 ·
hey guys, im just starting my research on a supercharged pontiac power plant, its a long term project, and the motor will be the last part(cant see even starting the motor for atleast 5 years) i prefer to build my car to handle the motor rather than do it in reverse. i've ordered a few books and been searching the web, but im impatient and want to learn things now :D

Just wondering if anyone has a idea of what a 400 or 455 blown motor would cost to build browsing thru whats out there, not counting the cost of the stock 400 ill be starting, im coming up around 8-9,000 stage 1 with a polished setup for a 871 based on the products at superchargersusa.com


also for a street car, is it worth going to a stage 2 setup? the cars mainly being built for me to drive and enjoy, the occasional meet or show, and maybe a drag strip once or twice a year.
 
#5 ·
68NovaSS said:
Doing it "right" to me includes billet splayed mains and more. If you're stroking the machinist and wrenching yourself (and know what you're doing) you might get it done for $8k.

That I would contest. In most street cases, an SHP block would be adequate... Race on the other hand would be another story. you could drop more than 8G's on just the blower for a race engine.
 
#7 · (Edited)
i want to keep it at a 455, just to keep it at a number easily recongnised as a pontiac. and i do want to do it right, above everything else reliability is my top priority then power. thanks for the help guys, i guess ill figure around 10,000 to give myself a comfortable work budget.

68NovaSS said:
Doing it "right" to me includes billet splayed mains and more. If you're stroking the machinist and wrenching yourself (and know what you're doing) you might get it done for $8k.
i do plan to do the work myself(other than the machine work) i've built my fair share of motors, just never anything supercharged, never had the money.
 
#8 ·
I'd say it depends, but I'd plan on $12K to start with. You'll want to start with either a 400 block or an IA1 or MR2. Stick with the 3" journals and not the larger journals of the 455. I'd go with a forged crank and forged rods and you're going to need quality pistons. If you go with a 400 block, you'll want to bottom fill it. You'll probably want some quality heads. Then you may want lifter bore braces. The list goes on.

If you know your way around ponchos you might be able to save some money, but you need to be careful. Pontiac stuff is different, and because the market is smaller the prices are higher. Believe me, I unfortunately know.

BTW, where are you in PA?
 
#10 ·
That I would contest. In most street cases, an SHP block would be adequate... Race on the other hand would be another story. you could drop more than 8G's on just the blower for a race engine.
ap72 - You contest what something means to me? How does that work? How many blown motors or Pontiacs for that matter have you built at 23 years of age? That's been discussed here before.

You're entitled to your opinion if that's what you meant.
 
#11 ·
i do plan to build this motor overboard, meaning i dont plan to cheap out for what its going to cost me i want it to last a good long time, ill spend what i need to, to get it right, right now im still in early planning stages and just trying to get a rough idea of a target budget.


wmhjr- im from mifflinburg, kinda in between Philly and state college. I actually grew up on pontiacs and chevy's, Ive always had a Pontiac car and a Chevy truck, Its a sad thing that so few people understand them anymore, i've picked up more than one car just cause some 16yr old thought he was working on a chevy motor and couldn't get the old Indian to run. nothing sticks out at a gm show thou like a nice 70's bird :thumbup:
 
#12 ·
I know what you mean. 30 years ago or so I was a chebby guy and picked up a 442. Swapped motors and didn't think anything of it. Couldn't figure out why the darned thing wouldn't start. Backfired like nuts every time and I was sure I had it right. Then somebody mentioned that Olds had a reverse firing order from Chevy. Doh.

Now I'm into ponchos. I'm spending way more on this particular one than I ever spent on a chebby, but I want to do it right. When you start getting over 500hp on an original block, there are things you need to think about that are completely different than a bowtie motor. Still love the chevies - both small and big, but there's something about planet turning torque that these ponchos can put out easy.
 
#13 ·
A big issue with blower motors is the amount of boost one runs. The amount of boost proposed will have a direct impact on motor expense..Stay at around 7lbs and it will look cool, Make nifty blower noises and there will be a nice increase in performance..Crank up a blower to 20-30 lbs of boost and one can be finding shrapnel in the trees for ages..

Just be aware

Sam
 
#14 ·
as i said this is going to be a street car, hp and torque wise what i want i could probably get without the blower, but i've always loved the look and sound of a blower and have always wanted one, so thats what im going for. so ill probably be keeping boost on the low side.
 
#16 ·
I agree about the whole blower experience. To be honest, before I picked up this pontiac I was actually thinking about building a Gen 1 Camaro or Chevelle and putting a blown big block in it. Then I stumbled onto this car, and I just couldn't disfigure the classic '66 GTO front end with a blower stickup up through that beautiful hood. If I hadn't found this project, I'd have a blower myself this year. That whine just makes you tingle.
 
#17 ·
68NovaSS said:
ap72 - You contest what something means to me? How does that work? How many blown motors or Pontiacs for that matter have you built at 23 years of age? That's been discussed here before.

You're entitled to your opinion if that's what you meant.
2 blown engines, and 4 ponchos, and as i noted i thought he was looking at a chevy 400, witha basic street build- which i'm sure most of you could piece together for less than 12G's.

pontiac stuff is more expensive, and if you want you can build it to the hilt. a street engine makng 500 flyhweel horsepower on 4psi is a lot easier and cheaper to build than one making 800 hp on 12 psi.

hell if you find a good runnng 400 chevy you can slap a set of budget heads and a miniblower on it and have a hair under 600hp for about 8G's.


Another thing to consider is the rest of the drivetrain, which will probably match the cost of the engine when you're all done.
 
#18 ·
Brawler, take all this with a grain of salt. Some of us have actually been there, I've built some hellafast 389's, all forged, and the parts aren't all that bad, especially for a street motor. Figure out the power level you want and based on how deep your pockets are, build it accordingly.

Four psi is nothing and 12 isn't even near earth shattering.

wmjhr - I know what you mean about the early GTO's, I had a '65 I bought in '66 and just sold another '65 up here, good looking and strong.
 
#19 ·
thanks 68novass, you've been a big help, i ordered the book you recommended in my other post, i think im going to do my research and learn more about them before i go setting goals as to what i want out of the motor, i just know i want a blower, when i was a kid a older guy two houses down had a blown 67 firebird, that i thought was the coolest thing i had ever seen, you always knew when summer was here as you'd hear him roar down the road in her. it was the whole reason i got into cars and birds.
 
#21 ·
I have built and ran over a dozen blown motors for street and strip. I had two blown Oldsmobiles and I can tell you they didn't come cheap. The ponchos are expensive on normal build-ups. Throw a huffer on top and things get crazy.
I have run anywhere from 6 to 30 lbs of boost with every configuration of compression, timing,duration and fuel distribution. You need to look at longevity and dependability as well as performance. I had a blown/ injected big block that I spent more time under the hood than in the saddle. It ran like hell, when it ran.
Blowers are awesome with realistic expectations. 10 grand is a good start if you plan on doing most of the work yourself. If you go to a guru house, tack another five on it. As mentioned in an earlier post, look at the drive line too. You are asking a lot from a standard build-up tranny and rear end once you start crammin' air into the eight holes.

Lee
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top