. Looking to have a fun car that I will drive around the street during the 6 or so months that the weather permits (but it won't be my daily driver). Will also do some drag racing a couple times a year and possibly some auto cross. So it will get hammered on.
There's the rub;
As a streeter you need to decide right now how much gear you can run. Because this decision, with a manual trans, will pretty much dictate your cam selection, which will dictate at about what rpm the power will peak, and that will to a large extent dictate the power number. Now if that ain't enough, then it's back to the drawing board. If the engine is already built, with an optimized Scr for a particular camshaft, then it gets expensive to redo. Far cheaper it is to then just change the rear gear, and suffer the consequences.
What I mean to say is this; I ran a 292/292/108 Mopar cam in my 367 equipped 68 Barracuda with a regular 2.66low 4 speed and 3.55s. That beast made lots and lots of power beginning at 5000... which was 42mph, and pulled hard to 7000@60mph. All in first gear. Ok but the power didn't begin until ~40mph...... in first gear. So cruising along at 30 mph in second was 2600rpm, and if you have an 8/1 compression engine,the horses are in the barn at that rpm. So if you need to move out, you are forced to downshift, hit 3600, and wait for the power to hit....... and wait and wait, until 40mph. Yeah so that would suck.
But I had 11.3scr/aluminum heads, and it still kindof sucked.
But, with iron heads you pretty much need that
[email protected] cam to hit your numbers.
But, now if that 292cam ends up a PITA for you, as it did me, then if your cylinder pressure was optimized to run it, then you may not be able to run a smaller camshaft, because the pressure may put your iron-headed monster straight into detonation.
Ok so that was with 3.55s and a 2.66low 4-gear.
But that optimized combo wants 4.30s with that 2.66low, so that the 5000 rpm power hit comes at 34mph in first gear, now yer cooking!
Or if you run a 3.09low Commando box, then you can run 3.73s for 5000=also 34mph. But when you hit second gear with this box, your engine better have some grunt......
The problem, if you can call it that, is the high-rpm power peak.
Better it will be to put some money into good heads and run a smaller cam, and make more power in the midrange, to still make the power you crave. This makes a fun streeter. Then at the track, just let it be what it will be. With a street suspension, you are gonna be about a second slow anyway for your trapspeed, so either grin and bear it, or build a dedicated track car.
I ended up with an optimized combo with a 230*cam, that is a sweetheart of a street combo with 3.55s and a Commando box. I don't have to wait for the power-hit, cuz it spins 295s from off-idle in first, to initiating a spin at 50/55 mph in second gear, so she's always ready to blast. That's my kindof fun. How much power? IDK. and I don't care. For me, it's all about the fun-factor.
That's my 2cents worth.
