How much is too much HP
 

Just wondering what everyones thoughts are on a street car that will maybe see the 1/4 once a year and 2 auto x events, maybe. Right now I am trying to decide how much power I will want in my 66 chevelle. It will have a 6.0 LS engine in it. What are your thoughts. I always know more is better..lol...My problem is I see all these cars coming from he factory now with 5-700 and think thats just what I need. Even though I know it won't hook up.

Robert

No, it will never have enough power until I can spin the wheels at the end of the straightaway in high gear. Too much power is never enough.
Mark Donohue

600 is the new 400.

The reality is that 500 horsepower is enough to get you into felony level speeding with the quickness. It's not hard to make that number in 2018 so strive for that and spend the rest of the money elsewhere.

I'm 500 at the wheel now, I want 6 next time I mess with the engine, but 700 would probably appease me a little longer and get me to the Hawaiian shirt Sunday brunch in style though.

Yeah, 701 thats my too much number for the grocery getter today.

The problem I see is when we chase 50 hp for BIG BUCKS. It just doesn't make that big a difference unless you are looking for every last drop of performance in a race setting. I went from 597 to 666 in my car for about 15k HA. It was an aluminum block and much more reliable, but I think you need 100+ to make it worth any real money spent.

For me, I couldn't use that kind of power on the street effectively anyway. I had to go on the track to really ring it out.

If you have a 6.0 LS, I think 425ish rwhp will be a happy medium. If you start going radical with a cam, and making significantly more power, I think you're going to sacrifice so much torque through the low end and into the mid range that its going to feel slower than a more mild engine.

I also agree with Todd that once you start getting around 650-700 plus, especially in a big cube engine, there simply isn't enough space to really open it up on public roads. I drove my Camaro like a granny around town.

Yep, 500-600. Which isn't hard at all to get from a 6.0 LS.

Isn't this like asking how much money or how much beauty in a wife is too much?

Something to think about is, with the advent of computer controlled engines, throttle by wire, etc. it would be easy to dial back on the output of the engine until desired.

That said, (as the old adage goes) speed costs - how fast do you want to go (or do you want to spend)?

:G-Dub:

:cheers:

400-450rwhp and a broad torque curve in a car the weight of a Chevelle will be plenty of power to enjoy. That's well within the reach of a 6.0 LS. The key will be to build a broad power band so that the car is enjoyable to drive in all the various conditions it will see as a street car.

I've built a number of different cars with different engine configurations. The most fun was from the engines making low 400s at the wheels with broad power bands. The two cars that made over 500 rwhp were too much. Basically, the fun was over before you knew it had begun.

For the record, my TA makes 400ish rwhp and tq through a T56 and 3.90 gears. With good tires, though not 200 tread wear, I can still shred the tires from a 35mph roll. That's plenty of power for me.

I’ve been thinking if I built an LS for my car I’d aim for as much torque as possible via cubic inches. I know my car will be a street car primarily so the joy of 3k-5.5k rpm pulls is where I’m focused. HP will be what it will be.