In addition to producing consumer vehicles and backing racing programs, the Big Three automakers also design and manufacture an assortment of engines for sale through their performance divisions. They offer both small blocks and big blocks to fit the needs of just about every build on the planet from a stock restoration to daily cruiser, weekend quarter mile car to street warrior, and kit car to a road racer.
And even though I'm a die hard Ford and Honda man, I must confess that the Chevrolet Performance engine portfolio is truly impressive, offering just about any engine for any and every combination. This latest crate motor is one of my favoritse and based on the venerable LS based small block engine that swings well above its weight. Up for today is the Chevy LSX 454, part # 19355573 with over 600 hp on tap. Let's check out what goes into this Mighty Mouse to make it more like a King Rat.
The LSX 454
Chevy starts with an LSX-Series Gen-IV Small-Block V-8 with a bore of 4.185" and a stroke of 4.125". The block is a six-bolt cast-iron unit with cross-bolted main caps, a 4340 forged steel crank with eight-bolt flange, 4340 forged steel rods, and forged aluminum 11:1 slugs.
And Don't Forget
It has a hydraulic roller cam with 0.648" intake lift and 0.648" exhaust lift and tons of duration with 236° on the intake side and 246° on the exhaust. The heads are Aluminum LSX-LS7 style with "as cast" 70-cc chambers, 2.200" titanium intake valves, 1.610" hollow, sodium-filled exhaust valves, and 1.8:1 rocker arms. It has a 58x reluctor wheel, internally balancing and runs on premium gas so it's good for street use. Max rpm is listed at 6,300 rpm but I'm sure it can go much higher than that with the beefy forged bottom end.
Big Power In A Small Package
Chevy advertised about 630 hp on the crank but that seems a bit low and sure enough it is. The above dyno sheet shows an impressive 597 hp at 6,200 rpm at the rear wheels. With an estimated 15% drivetrain power loss that equals about 700 hp at the crank. Wow! Maybe Chevy isn't so bad after all! Buckle up.
Source: Chevrolet