There you go! Just your basic 350 Chevy! You will find that most production V-8's and V-6's are very similar in their configuration. A typical four cylinder, unless you get into a VW, Subaru, or Porsche flat four, is really just about like one bank of a V-8. The flat fours and Corvair's and Porsches flat 6's are a whole different animal as far as the assembly goes.
Really the main differences that we are seeing as motors get more modern are fuel injection and moving the camshaft from in the block to the overhead position on top of the cylinders.
Now that we've got that beggar apart, let's watch a couple of Aussies from DandyEngines.com putting together your "basic" 869 hp small block Ford race motor!
Obviously, there's nothing "basic" about 869 horsepower! But hey, it makes a great video to familiarize yourself with some of the basics of a great high performance motor and watch as a real pro assembles one hot piece of equipment!
Was that impressive or what?
Over the years, I have watched hundreds of people try to build their ultimate performance car. Way too often, they don't understand the vital importance of getting the correct combination of parts to reach their power goals. They end up with a hodge-podge of big name and powerful sounding parts that doesn't even begin to live up to it's potential.
That's why in this series, we want to focus on some of the basics of each part of a standard performance engine. You should come away from this page with a much better understanding of the purpose, function and operation of several of the more common modifications that we frequently hear about.
Let's start with the beginning. Where does the fuel enter the engine? What kind of fuel delivery system do you want? Here is a discussion by the guys at Summit Racing of the different types of carbs and fuel injection systems available today.
OK, we've got the fuel coming in. Now, once it is burned how do we get it out of our engine? Most people have heard of exhaust headers, but do you understand how they work and why they can increase your horsepower?
Check out these videos and see if you come away with some extra insights!
This young buck at the Engineering Explained YouTube channel has some really great insights into many different performance mods. I'm impressed with his level of understanding of the principles involved and would recommend that you check out his other videos on his YouTube Channel.
So if you are starting to grasp the fundamental premise behind increasing horsepower in your engine, it would have to that our main objective is to get the maximum volume of air flowing into and out of our engine. The more air (i.e. oxygen), that we can cram into our engine, the more fuel we can burn, therefore, the more power we can make! That is the most basic principle of horsepower production. Almost every modification that we perform works towards that objective.
Now, we have just heard about carbs (or injection) and headers, both of which are designed to increase that airflow as well as add some extra fuel, so what's next?
Well our next air flow restriction that is easily changeable is our intake manifold. This is one area that also has an added bonus! Most older V-8's have a cast iron manifold from the factory, and almost all performance manifolds are aluminum. Therefore... we save weight! Usually a considerable amount!
Let's see what the guys at Summit Racing have to tell us about intake manifolds!
OK, so now we have our carb with an appropriate manifold and a set of headers. Those are the main external mods that we can just bolt onto the outside of our engine for more horsepower. After that we either have to move inside the block or start spending some more significant money for some serious power-adders!
But before we do that, let's listen in to some discussion about a part that's right in the heart of our engine that has a tremendous impact on it's performance, the camshaft!
These four parts (carb, intake, cam, and headers) are at the core of any performance upgrade that you choose to start on your engine. You will only achieve the maximum potential of these parts if they are carefully coordinated for your specific engine and driving requirements. You can pick and choose and try to put together your own combination of parts and hope that they work well together. But why not get some expert help on it? Today's parts suppliers have put together some great package deals that are designed to work well together. It would be worth your time to check some of those out in order to avoid a costly mistake.
What next? Let's move on to the page on Power-Adders! What do we mean by that? How about Blowers? Super Chargers, Turbos and then Nitrous Oxide!
