Horsepower Combos - Horsepower Rules

What we especially like about Mike's small-block Nova is that it runs 10s and looks so unsuspecting. The well-thought-out combo is more that just an impressive engine build; it's a total vehicle system that puts the X-body deep into the bottom-10-second quarter-mile class. Gaining power from a 414-inch small-block with lots of compression and no squeeze, engine dyno-testing has recorded over 600 horses. Mike is also a regular at his nearby eighth-mile track, where he dials in his car's 60-foot times.

By car number nine we finally figured it out. Buy a reasonably priced '68-74 Nova and spend the rest of your budget on the motor and drivetrain. Pete's gameplan enlists a common 383 small-block, some very good-flowing Dart Iron Eagle Platinum cylinder heads, a five-speed trans, and a decent shot of NOS. The combo makes for a very low 12-second e.t. The combination is also well suited for long cruises with the overdrive trans and hydraulic flat-tappet camshaft. Better yet, it's his daily driver.

The key to Gil's power combo is how well the selected parts complement one another. The cylinder heads, camshaft, and rearend ratio have been chosen to provide good mid- to upper-rpm power from the 383 small-block. The cylinder heads are good-flowing AFR aluminum items and the camshaft a reasonably stout hydraulic roller unit with moderate duration. The rearend ratio is a steep cog, but with the overdrive automatic, freeway driving is accomplished at low rpm. The package with a shot of NOS (applied in High gear only) propels the Camaro to low 12-second e.t.'s--on DOT tires and through the mufflers.