is 800+ hp street-able? Turbo 440?

[MightyMats]

Good Evening,

Sorry if this is a little long winded.

I have been drooling over what to do with my free time (money) when I finally get back state-side. A little back-ground, I have a 1967 Chrysler 300 2 door w/440. I have owned the car for about 3 years and I would really like to re-do the drive train and have something that is really cool and street-able. Emphasis on the street-able part.

My question is, for those of you with 800+ hp do you really notice a difference on the street? After 600hp am I just going to spin the tires on anything that isn't a drag radial? Am I crazy for wanting to turbo a big block and daily drive it?

A little back-ground on myself. At my last duty station I got a job working at a custom shop building cars. It was everything I ever wanted, and I was hooked. I worked 40 hours a week at the shop, about 30 hours working for uncle-sam depending what was going on, and on the weekends I was building a Jeep for myself from scratch.

I'm going to be honest and say I don't have any experience driving a car with any exceptional amount of hp. I want to turn my C body into something really cool that can be daily driven and when I decide to show it off on a sunday a few times a year I want people to **** themselves when they look under the hood.

My original plan was to throw a twin turbo set-up at my 440 and make 1000+ hp. But after research I wouldn't want to put a stock blocks survivability to the test. I think a smaller twin turbo set-up would spool faster making more torque at lower RPM's putting more stress on the webbing. Plus it would honestly be more expensive than a single turbo set-up.

My idea now is to put a single Borg Warner S480 on my 440, run about 12ish pounds of boost with an air to air intercooler and a blow through carb for the extra cooling of the gas so i can run 91 octane and still daily drive my boat. The bigger turbo will take longer to spool so I think i'll be fine at lower rpm's (2-3k) putting around town. But it should provide all the power i want when i put my foot down.

I priced out everything generously I'd need just for the engine build and im estimating it will cost me about 13k minus all machine work. That is with a full forged rotating assembly, caps/girdle, turbo, headers, plumbing, carb, ignition, TFS heads, fuel pump, hydraulic roller cam, intake, intercooler etc. And I would do this all on a stock block.

I think @12 psi w/ good heads, cam, and a single plane intake on a turbo I should easily be able to make somewhere around 800hp+ @6500rpm.

Am i out of my mind?

Is this something that will make my car a nightmare to drive around on the street?

Am i throwing my money away putting 13k worth of parts on a block that was never meant for high 3 digit numbers?

Should I just rebuild it with 10:1 compression and forget about it?

Any thoughts and suggestions are welcome. Thank you for stopping by.

 

[commando1]

My question is, for those of you with 800+ hp do you really notice a difference on the street?

You're kidding, right?

 

[77newyorker440]

This sounds really awesome. I am not sure about the streetability, but sounds like a really cool idea and I cannot wait to see what happens with it.
77newyorker440

 

[MightyMats]

You're kidding, right?

Seems like there are a good amount people are running 1000hp engines on the street. I go on youtube and all i see are twin turbo LS's or super charged Vettes making 1000+ hp. Dodge sell the helephant that makes 1k hp or you can buy the hellcat that makes 700hp. Maybe this is just me being de-sensitized to the idea because all I hear about is those power levels.

 

[commando1]

Seems like there are a good amount people are running 1000hp engines on the street. I go on youtube and all i see are twin turbo LS's or super charged Vettes making 1000+ hp. Dodge sell the helephant that makes 1k hp or you can buy the hellcat that makes 700hp. Maybe this is just me being de-sensitized to the idea because all I hear about is those power levels.

@1978 NYB Help me out here.

 

[65sporty]

Depending on the cam and torque converter you chose it will be very street-able. I may go with EFI instead of a blow through carb, for ease of tuning. Depending on the boost level, it should be a torque monster. @furious70 should be able to give you some advice as he has been there and done this.

 

[furious70]

For a 100% street car you're just chasing a number to chase it. No harm in that, just understand your goals. You won't be able to use 800 hp in a street trim.
If you want to chase the number and have it purr like a kitty cat I would go 500" and then turbo on top. The cubes will keep it milder.
The increased cylinder pressure of turbocharging is much easier on parts than rpm.

 

[MightyMats]

For a 100% street car you're just chasing a number to chase it. No harm in that, just understand your goals. You won't be able to use 800 hp in a street trim.
If you want to chase the number and have it purr like a kitty cat I would go 500" and then turbo on top. The cubes will keep it milder.
The increased cylinder pressure of turbocharging is much easier on parts than rpm.

I am not chasing a number. As stated above I am more interested in having a turbo hiding under the hood. I just want to take her out pop the hood, and someone is like "hey thats ******* badass."

The old girl runs decent. She could use some love but i never spin the tires in her. She goes putt putt around town and the steering sucks. I'm just weary of building an engine that's going to drive like ****, want to kill me, and cant drive around a corner. I am just trying to see if there is anyone else around here who did something similar. Or anyone who runs that type of power on the street and either likes or doesn't like it.

 

[furious70]

I don't have that kind of power, I have the 'lookie at that' kinda of thing with a twin turbo 383, so I get it.
Keep the 440 stock and put the BW unit on it, run 5-8psi and you'll have what you want.

 

[CBODY67]

You have to understand that if it were not for the sophisticated electronics on the late model 700+ horsepower engines, they would NOT be making that much power. A big balancing act that "analog" just can't do, I suspect.

No real need for anything past about 5.5-6psi boost, to me. That's what the Buick 3800SCs had in them. And what most stock blocks can tolerate reasonably well, I believe.

Port EFI would be a better deal than tryng to seal a carb against pressure, although there were some '66 Shelby Mustangs that did that. Most carb'd superchargers had the carb up-stream from the blower, for that reason.

For any turbo set-up, plumbing will be an issue. Upside-down cast iron exhaust manifolds can be a start. I suspect a supercharger would be easier to do.

To me, visual POP and reliability can easily override the need for 1000horsepower (modern horsepower rather than what it took to get that kind of power in the 1970s) any day of the year. If you want to fudge a bit on the power figures, that's fine as only YOU and the DYNO will know for sure. Might add a gear drive for the cam (in place of a normal timing chain) for some extra auditory impact.

Better upgrade the rear suspension and such to handle the extra power.

Just some thoughts,
CBODY67

 

[marko]

1009hp on a carbed 577

 

[twostick]

I'd build a low compression 508 stroker with good heads, that turbo and EFI.

It should hit your number and still be mild enough for your grandmother to drive. With a wide LSA turbo type cam it shouldn't idle much rougher than a stock 6pak cam.

Kevin

 

[440Chrysler]

For heads and internals on a budget, check out -440 Source
If the block you have in the car is original, you have the high nickel block, which means that it's the best option for block strength. Spend the money on strengthening the bottom end and go from there. As for turbo set up, making turbo headers is going to be difficult as there isn't much room between the block and the steering column, especially with bigger heads.

That being said, post updates! I'd love to see this come to life. Good luck!

 

[furious70]

A low deck would offer some advantages in room to package, that is true. When doing a diy turbo kit spending weeks trialing different ideas about placement with the turbo and scrap pipe is your best plan. Always think about serviceability and access.

 

[FURYGT]

Good Evening,

Sorry if this is a little long winded.

I have been drooling over what to do with my free time (money) when I finally get back state-side. A little back-ground, I have a 1967 Chrysler 300 2 door w/440. I have owned the car for about 3 years and I would really like to re-do the drive train and have something that is really cool and street-able. Emphasis on the street-able part.

My question is, for those of you with 800+ hp do you really notice a difference on the street? After 600hp am I just going to spin the tires on anything that isn't a drag radial? Am I crazy for wanting to turbo a big block and daily drive it?

A little back-ground on myself. At my last duty station I got a job working at a custom shop building cars. It was everything I ever wanted, and I was hooked. I worked 40 hours a week at the shop, about 30 hours working for uncle-sam depending what was going on, and on the weekends I was building a Jeep for myself from scratch.

I'm going to be honest and say I don't have any experience driving a car with any exceptional amount of hp. I want to turn my C body into something really cool that can be daily driven and when I decide to show it off on a sunday a few times a year I want people to **** themselves when they look under the hood.

My original plan was to throw a twin turbo set-up at my 440 and make 1000+ hp. But after research I wouldn't want to put a stock blocks survivability to the test. I think a smaller twin turbo set-up would spool faster making more torque at lower RPM's putting more stress on the webbing. Plus it would honestly be more expensive than a single turbo set-up.

My idea now is to put a single Borg Warner S480 on my 440, run about 12ish pounds of boost with an air to air intercooler and a blow through carb for the extra cooling of the gas so i can run 91 octane and still daily drive my boat. The bigger turbo will take longer to spool so I think i'll be fine at lower rpm's (2-3k) putting around town. But it should provide all the power i want when i put my foot down.

I priced out everything generously I'd need just for the engine build and im estimating it will cost me about 13k minus all machine work. That is with a full forged rotating assembly, caps/girdle, turbo, headers, plumbing, carb, ignition, TFS heads, fuel pump, hydraulic roller cam, intake, intercooler etc. And I would do this all on a stock block.

I think @12 psi w/ good heads, cam, and a single plane intake on a turbo I should easily be able to make somewhere around 800hp+ @6500rpm.

Am i out of my mind?

Is this something that will make my car a nightmare to drive around on the street?

Am i throwing my money away putting 13k worth of parts on a block that was never meant for high 3 digit numbers?

Should I just rebuild it with 10:1 compression and forget about it?

Any thoughts and suggestions are welcome. Thank you for stopping by.

I am offering my 2 cents based on being a former owner of the Flying Whale '66 300 ( The Flyin' (Flying) Whale ('66 300) Hits the streets again! ) and the current owner of a street/strip '68 Sport Fury with a professionally built pump gas 520" stroker under the hood.

I think your $13k engine estimate is conservative. What about the drive-line? Rebuild the transmission to handle the HP along with the rear end and drive-shaft, make a driveshaft loop for safety, fuel system changes including an electronic fuel pump and fuel pressure regulator. There are a lot of little things that add up quickly that need to be factored into your budget.

The Flying Whale was street able because it had a gear vendors overdrive unit in it. The reverse pattern manual shift automatic was a bit of a PIA but the car would cruise nicely on the highway. Forget fuel economy - I swear it was more like how many gallons per mile. My point is what is your definition of street-able and what compromises are you willing to deal with?

My '68 Sport Fury has a 3.73 rear gear and G70/15 tires so cruising on the highway at highway speeds can only be done for a very short period of time before she starts to run hot even though the 22" radiator has a 4-core narrow fin core and a shroud so it is street-able around town and on country roads or for a short distance on the highway.

Yes, a turbo would look cool but 800 HP may not be a realistic target for a street driven car. If you can do without a turbo, I think you would be very happy with a pump gas stroker under the hood.

 

[commando1]

. I just want to take her out pop the hood, and someone is like "hey thats ******* badass."

You need a shrink to address your ego , not 800hp.

 

[MEV]

Build a 440 source 505/512 stroker with their snazzy h-beam rods and low compression forged pistons then call the blower shop and have them send you a 8/71 blower and manifold and one of their drives. Might want to run their cnc stealth heads as well.

 

[MightyMats]

I'd build a low compression 508 stroker with good heads, that turbo and EFI.

It should hit your number and still be mild enough for your grandmother to drive. With a wide LSA turbo type cam it shouldn't idle much rougher than a stock 6pak cam.

Kevin

That's a good point, i'll have to look into a 110 or 114 LSA cam. I think I might pick up the RPM Edlebrock Big Block Chrysler heads. They have 88cc combustion chambers which I will help with the CR.

A low deck would offer some advantages in room to package, that is true. When doing a diy turbo kit spending weeks trialing different ideas about placement with the turbo and scrap pipe is your best plan. Always think about serviceability and access.

I have been looking for an early low deck block for about a year but I haven't been able to find one. I was thinking that the stronger webbing would make a better platform.

You need a shrink to address your ego , not 800hp.

I personally don't think I have a large ego, I guess I could come across as egotistic but I would hope not to portray myself in that light. I have no reason to drive around a car that gets 10mpg but I do it because I think its cool. I should drive a more fuel efficient car but that is the choice I make. I also want to become a better fabricator. I think one of the most fulfilling things is building something yourself. Maybe in the future when I'm done working for uncle sam I might open my own small part time shop where I can work on some cool projects on the weekend. A customer comes by to check out the shop and sees my car outside. Nice paint, custom suspension, and I pop the hood and there is a perfectly fabricated turbo with a stainless exhaust neatly tucked up under the hood.

I made some extra cash doing engine and frame swaps in 2018 out of my garage for some friends. Put a nice penny in my pocket.

I think your $13k engine estimate is conservative.

Maybe I should have been more clear. My 13k budget was only for the engine. Not the trans, suspension, rear end, etc. Maybe 13k is a little low but I do have some parts laying around and did plan on trying to get some things used.

 

[furious70]

A big reason I did my turbo kit is to tackle the challenge and to say I did it, so I get you. It's a different deal than buying a stroker and installing, not that there is anything wrong with that
You don't have to be afraid of compression if you have the system sorted. I'll be running 9.25:1 with iron heads on the new 383, with efi and water injection. With aluminum heads you can do more

 

[MightyMats]

A big reason I did my turbo kit is to tackle the challenge and to say I did it, so I get you. It's a different deal than buying a stroker and installing, not that there is anything wrong with that
You don't have to be afraid of compression if you have the system sorted. I'll be running 9.25:1 with iron heads on the new 383, with efi and water injection. With aluminum heads you can do more

Ya, i just like things that are a bit different. What are you running for your EFI?