I'm going to be ordering a motor in a couple months and am a bit torn on what to choose. Plans for the car are 80% street 20% track. Even though it's mostly a street car I still want to be somewhat considerate of weight.
The car is a 69 Nova with full dse suspension, T56 magnum, and 9" rear. Looking to make mid 500s rwhp but I'm more interested in getting the torque numbers up there. I know all of these engine selections will need some changes to get me there but I think all those changes are within my budget.
I'm sure opinion threads are probably annoying... but any suggestions are very much appreciated. I'm sticking to LS family only as that is what the car is built around.
Out of everything you mentioned, I would choose the LSA. For one, it's impossible to argue with the torque delivery of a positive displacement blower. Secondly, it's good enough for the Cadillac CTS-V. And third, you can always stoke it to 408ci with a 4" crank if it's not enough "as is".
To me there is too much of an LS7 tax to really consider one at this time. I went with a TSP 418 LS3 that I'm very happy with and did not include any parts I couldn't use (ie no changing pans or front drives and the ecu and harness are complete and turn key). Makes 630 fwhp and has great street manners. An LSA is also a great option but I felt the initial price is significantly higher than an equal powered stroker once all was done.
I was thinking that you could probably get a LSA pull-out from a CTS-V for cheaper than any of the other options. And that gives you the oem supercharger right off the bat.
If you are buying new, or have the budget to buy new, then I would go with a stroked LS3. If you can achieve your power goals with a naturally aspirated engine, you should probably do that.