ive got a 5.3 in my 69. z06 243 heads milled .030 thinner headgaskets , custom compcams camshaft with holley terminator efi. not a torque monster but its ran 13.20 at 109 with terrible 2.0 60ft. with a stall or t56 it could run high 12s easy. they are good little motors that you can wind the pi$$ out of.

How do you like that dual plane Edelbrock? I have the single plane Vic Jr with an accufab 4150 TB on it and it loves to wind up!

I did a 5.3 iron block motor with mildly ported LS6 heads, LS6 intake, headers, ported TB, and a small cam. Sounded good, idled nicely, and made 350/350 at the wheels through a tremec 5 speed. Torque curve was ridiculously flat and pulled to 6200. Car/engine had a lot spunk and was fun. Started as a complete pull out minus trans for like $600. Swapped/sold parts around with other platforms in order to get the correct oil pan, intake, and brackets etc. Modified the harness myself. Total outlay was around 2000 as I had the trans already.

In short, they are a good motor to choose capable of great power and enjoyment. A little more gets you a 6.0 though and a whole lot more power. Just have to decide how best to balance your goals and bank account.

Unless the prices have come down on the 6.0's in the past few months, complete LQ4's were going for $1600-2000 and LQ9's were around $1800-2200 when I bought mine.

A 5.3 for $600 sounds like a good bargain. But if you want to make bigger power, then yes, a 6.0 is the way to go. It all comes down to budget.

It has a lot better throttle response. More bottom end torque too. It will still wind out also. Good intake for street use

I agree on the 6.0L. I currently have a 5.3 in my 69 camaro and it runs great but I'm ready for more. If you do a 6.0 motor then you can run the LS3 heads which flow much better than a set of 243s.