Engine Update: 396 to 454

Finally an engine update! For starters, the original 396 engine was sold on Craigslist. In its place was a rebuilt shortblock 396 that I found in Dallas. After much thought I decided the 396 was not going to be enough so it was also sold on Craigslist. I then picked up a very nice rebuilt shortblock 454. This block came bored .030 over with Speed-Pro pistons and Comp Cams 292H camshaft.

Rebuilt 396 on the left and 454 on the right.

From Engine and Tranny

For cylinder heads I chose Edelbrock's Aluminum Performer RPM Marine heads. They come with large 2.25 intake valves and 1.89 exhaust valves. The heads came bare and were later fitted with Comp Cam 924-16 valve springs. All work was performed by Austin Performance.

The head/piston combo gives me a compression ratio of 10:1 which was my target. Next step was checking piston/valve clearance.