We get questions all of the time where someone will ask; "How much power can I get from one of your small blocks?" Or; "How much power can I get from one of your blown small blocks (or big block)?"

Let's put this into perspective because you can't ask a question like that and get a straight, honest answer because there are simply too many variables. Let's just say you can get more power than the engine can handle, and it'll most likely blow-up in a very short amount of time if you don't take things into consideration. This is especially true with blown and/or nitrous engines.

Let's look at 2 main variables of why this isn't a very good question to ask.

1) Are you talking about using a stock block, or a $2,500 - $5,500 after market race block? That makes a HUGE difference in the price and how much power that engine will handle. This is also true for pistons, rods, cranks, etc. It isn't about how much "can" it make..., it's more of a question of how much WILL it handle?

2) Making power is easy. It can also be cheap to make when something like nitrous oxide is used. It's a no brainer for a seasoned engine builder to put a healthy shot of nitrous on an engine, (or a supercharger), and have it make tons of power. What costs you money are the components to make that engine strong enough to HANDLE the kind of power it's going to make (or is capable of making). I've said it all over this site; A) You get what you pay for. B) Horsepower is cheap - strength and quality cost money. Just like tools. Cheap tools break. Strong, high quality tools are expensive. It's the strength and quality you're paying for, not the size of the wrench. A cheap 1/2" wrench is the same size as a high quality 1/2" wrench. The big difference in price is the quality of the material and the strength and longevity of that wrench. Engines are no different. It's all about the quality & strength of the materials, and the fit 'n finish of the components.

So, how much CAN we get out of an engine? More than what it can handle if you are talking about using stock / factory components. A stock block can handle upwards of 500 HP pretty reliably. Some will do 600 pretty reliably. Can someone build an engine making more than 600 HP using a stock block and have it last? Of course, (within limitations of fuel, streetability, etc.), but that's also like saying someone you know crosses the street without ever looking both ways first and hasn't been hit by a car (yet). Well, it's BOUND to happen sooner or later. You are just ASKING for it to happen, so why even start off like that?.

Some Sprint Cars run what's called a "360 class" that make in the neighborhood of 600 HP using stock 350 blocks, and they split & crack them pretty often, but I have built and seen many stock 350 blocks make 700 - 800HP that last quite a while. The reason for this comes down to variables again. Sprint Cars run at 8,000 RPM lap after lap and have big tires that in some parts of the track get VERY good traction so the full load of 600 HP can be put on that engine. Street driven cars however do NOT run around at 8,000 RPM all day, and 95% o the time can't plant all that power to the ground without smoking the tires, so the engine never gets "loaded" as much as it would if it was in a race car with slicks and 100% taction. If the engine can't see the load of 700- 800HP, then it will last a bit longer than one that could see that kind of load. Now keep in mind, a 360 Sprint car engine also runs on race fuel (or alcohol) and has a compression ratio MUCH higher than you could possibly run with pump gas, not to mention those "race" engines ONLY make power IN their power band. Below their power band they are complete turds. They HAVE to run between 6,500 - 8,300 RPM to make the kind of power they make or they fall on their face. Do you think you are going to be driving around in a steet car at 6,500 - 8,000 RPM all the time? Nope. You need a broader power curve that comes-in at much lower RPMs so you can actually drive it. This doesn't even get into the longevity of parts, such as valve springs, valve locks, valve guides, cams, lifters, bearings, piston rings, etc. of an engine like that. Do you think you'll get 25,000 - 100,000 miles out of a 600  HP Sprint Car 360, or a drag race engine of the same caliber? LOL, Hell no! Not without breaking a bunch of parts along the way. You simply can't run the kinds of parts engines like those use on the street. Not for very long anyway. This doesn't get into the fact that most really high power race engines use dry sump oil systems and belt driven vacuum pumps to evacuate the crank case from pressure. Engines like those are set-up "loose", so they have more blow-by as a result. Not something you really want with a street engine unless you like to see smoke coming out your tail pipes and out your valve cover breathers.

It's not a question of how much power CAN you get, it's a matter of how much will it handle if we build it to make a given amount of power, AND how much will the components used to build that engine handle under the circumstances of how it'll be used?  Of course there are limitations with naturally aspirated engines running pump gas. You can't get 600HP out of a 350 running standard pump gas. If you increase the cubic inches, then of course, the power will go up as the cubic inches increase. Obviously a 383 sroker will make a little more power than a 350 will because it is taking a bigger gulp of fuel and air, just as a 427 small block or a 454 small block will do exactly the same thing. The difference is; with a stock 350 block you are pretty much limited to only getting up to 383 - 389 cubic inches out of it. It requires an expensive after market "race block" to get 427, 434, or 454 cubes out of a small block "Chevy". That just ran you a minimum of $2,500 right from the get-go for the bare block. Is that in your budget? If you want to make more than 500 or so HP, or if you want any more than 383 to 389 cubic inches, an additional $2,500 - $3,000 had better be in your budget just for the bare block.

Just a quick FYI; With Ford small block's, using the 351W block, we can easily make 408 cubic inches and they'll handle upwards of 500 HP, and upwards of 600 HP reliably when a billet main support is installed. Some people will even get them out to 427 cubic inches, but we don't recommend doing that because that additional .100" of stroke is just too much for the stock blocks to reliably handle for long periods of time. It usually causes cracked main webs. For the little 289 / 302 blocks, 400 HP or so is about as far as you want to go unless you install a billet main support, which will raise the "reliable" handling capability up to about 550 HP. The only way you're going to get that kind of power out of a streetable 289/302 based Ford small block though is with a power adder such as nitrous or a supercharger, period... unless it's a race trim engine running race fuel.

Horsepower is a no brainer. It's all about filling the cylinders with more fuel and air and burning it to increase cylinder pressure. There is no magic wand or any magic person that can make an engine produce a lot more power than any other talented and seasoned professional engine builder. You are dealing with laws of physics and limitations of fuel. You can only do just SO much before those laws and physics and fuel limitations say you can't go anymore.

Now, if you're talking about a nitrous engine or a forced induction engine, then the answer is obvious that it has the potential to make more power than the components can possibly handle. The ONLY difference between a 750 HP $40,000 NASCAR engine and a 750 HP $3,000 stock engine with a big shot of nitrous on it is the strength and quality of the parts that are in it, period! 750HP is 750HP. That NASCAR engine is designed to handle 9,000 RPM and the 750 HP it makes all day, day-in and day-out. That's why it's a $40,000 engine. I can build a $3,000 small block with a 400HP shot of nitrous that will make 750 HP too, and guess how long it's going to last? Yah, not very long. So how much of your money are you willing to throw away on trying to get as much power as you can out of a small block? You need to invest in the strength and quality of the parts or it will simply fail, and all of your money that you spent on it is gone.

So let's get down to the root answer of the question of how much power can be made with a given engine. And remember... we're talking about REAL and REASONABLE power, not the over inflated, BS power ratings many companies boast about in bogus magazine ads. Using stock components (block, crank, rods, pistons, bolts, etc.) a typical 350 Chevy can make upwards of 350 or so HP and handle upwards of about 375-400 HP before you exceed the reliability of the components. For a big block with the same stock components it can make in the area of about 400 to 475 or so HP and handle upwards of about 500 HP before you exceed the reliability of teh stock cast pistons. This would also ring true for similar cubic inch sized engines of Ford, Chrysler, Olds, Buick, Pontiac, etc. It's all relavent to what it is, not what brand it is.

With a stock block, using after market crank, rods, pistons, bolts, heads, etc., you could expect a small block 350 to make upwards of 450 HP and for it to reliably handle upwards of 550 - 600 HP, and a big block with the same aftermarket components to make power in the 500 to 600+ HP area, and be able to handle upwards of 750 - 800+ HP.  With aftermarket race blocks, you can expect a small block to handle upwards of 1,500 or so HP, and big blocks to be able to handle several thousand HP, as many "race" engines make in the more hard core classes.

Now, if you plan on using a power adder, such as nitrous or a supercharger, then it's pretty obvious you're not going to be able to use stock internal components or you'll exceed the handling capability of those parts right from the get-go, but with stronger after market parts (forged crank, rods, pistons, etc.) on a stock block, you can go right on out to the power handling capabilities of the parts and the block. It's a no brainer to make 600 HP in a streetable blown or nitrous injected small block, and it's a no brainer to make 750 - 850+ HP with the same initrous or blower in a streetable big block. CAN we make more power out of one? Of course, but now you are asking for reliability issues with the stock block and you'll need to drop another $2,500 - $5,500 for an after market race block. We won't build an unreliable engine unless it's an all out racing engine where reliability isn't an issue. These are just some of the reasons why we keep our HP ratings within reason, besides not just lying about it by over inflating HP numbers, or blowing smoke up your ass just to make a sale like many other places do. We won't do that. Keep in mind, we've NEVER seen a car equipped with a generic "560+ HP" crate engine beat one of our "500 HP" rated engines at the track, period. Quarter mile ETs and top speed in MPH tell the real story of who's telling the truth and who's fibbing about how much power their engine makes. Which engine do you want in YOUR car, and which company do YOU want to put your trust in?

Now keep in mind, things like pump gas also limit how much power you can make. You can't run high compression or lots of blower boost with pump gas or you'll have detonation problems and you WILL destroy that engine no matter what components are in it, or what kind of block you have. You are limited with pump gas. if you want to run race gas, you can figure on adding another 75 - 100 HP (or more) to any of the power making capabilities listed above, BUT also keep in mind, that would be a race only engine with a VERY peaky / high RPM power curve. Just because an engine may make 750 to 800+HP (or more) doesn't mean it will be streetable or reliable.

As far as what will something cost to make a given amount of power? Whether it's a small block Ford or Chevy, expect to pay a minimum of $8,500 or so as a starting point if you want upwards of 500HP or so, and more than that as the power level or cubic inches go up. It's easy to get into the $9,500 or so area real fast. Add an aftermarket race block and you just added an instant $2,500 - $3,000 to the price. Typical "magazine ad" 550 - 600 HP small block Chevy strokers, (such as a 427 or 434) cost upwards of $12,000 - $13,000, and that's a mass produced engine that wasn't custom built specifically for your car or driving needs. It's generic built by someone working for that company that you'll never know or ever get to talk to like you will when I build you a custom engine. You can't expect pro engine builders like ourselves to build anything better for less money. As far as a blown engine, take the cost of what was listed above and add about $5,000 - $6,000 to it. You figure a high quality blower, (like a BDS), is going to run $4,000, plus a good pair of carbs at $600+ each, plus the linkages, etc. is all going to add to whatever price the base engine is going to cost. You can NOT build a blower engine with anything BUT good / strong components in it, nor with cast iron heads. This is why a good quality blown engine can easily run between $13,000 - $20,000+ pretty easily. Even an inexpensive "hot rod" blown engine, where looks are more than the power it makes, you are looking at a minimum of $10,000 or so. There are plenty of places out there that'll be glad to build you a "cheap" blown engine, we've seen planty of them out there (and have had to rebuild and/or repair plenty of them too). Just remember, you get what you pay for, AND... if this stuff was cheap and easy, EVERYONE would have killer engines in their cars, and that just isn't the case.