396 BBC or LT1???

[CamaroJesse]

I have 2 motors sitting in my garage. One is a 396 with a spun bearing. This is the motor i had in the car so i have all parts to throw it back in and get running. so i could just do new bearings and rings on that motor. I also have a 94 LT1 with 80k on it. It needs gaskets pretty much. but this motor will obviously need more work and money to get in and running.

Pretty much im looking for opinions on what motor would be a better choice. Its a street car. might see the road coarse once a year. I like the look of the bigblock in there but i just want a fun, streetable, and reliable motor. either one will have a six speed.
What would you guys do?

[Randy67]

396, even though I do like LT1's. You could always later put fuel injection on the 396 for the best of both worlds.

[funbnme]

Nothing looks better than a big block in a Camaro.

Get the biggest radiator you can find to keep it cool and it should be very streetable.

[Yelcamino]

396 hands down. Sell the LT1 and you'll have some more money to throw at the 396 while giving yourself some more room in the garage. Win/win.

[CamaroJesse]

Yeah I was leaning towards the 396 too. im trying to think of something neat to do to it. right now its got a big solid cam in it and stock closed chamber heads.

[1969CamaroRS]

Why go 396 when you can get a 454 block for pretty cheap and bore (060 over) and stoke (.250) the sucker to 496? You could build a nice mild streetable 496 and have hp and torque for days.

If you are buying a set of pistons and a crank there is very little cost difference between a 396 and a 496.

[CamaroJesse]

Why go 396 when you can get a 454 block for pretty cheap and bore (060 over) and stoke (.250) the sucker to 496? You could build a nice mild streetable 496 and have hp and torque for days.

If you are buying a set of pistons and a crank there is very little cost difference between a 396 and a 496.

Yeah i was thinking about that too. Couldnt i run 9 or 10:1 compression and still make tons of power? I would also like to stay away from anything that will give me under 9 or 10 MPG's. One guy told me he had a 496 that got 11 MPG's and made 650. Not bad. Are any of my 396 parts innerchangable?

[MonzaRacer]

My 402 with a set of 10.5 to 1s, 561lift 282 duration 108 cl Chet Herbert roller and small valve close chamber heads it made well over 500 lb ft of torque and could cruise at about 14 mpg in a 70 Monte Carlo (4000lb) with 3.55 gears. You just have to tune the heck out of it.

[CamaroJesse]

Thats some nice gas milage for a big block! I like the sounds of that. Im thinking i will rebuild the 396, lower the compression to 10 or 10.5 and maybe do aluminum heads. Not sure what cam to go with yet.