Rhoads lifters work very well on the Pontiac motor. I have used them in the past with great results. Read some literature written by Jim Hand regarding these used in a street driven 4000 pound '71 Pontiac "GTO" station wagon that was used for testing many Pontiac parts. The car was consistently faster and much more streetable with the Rhoads lifters installed. They used the factory RAIV cam as a test base in a mildly modified 455. If you are not wanting to spend extra money to step up to a roller valvetrain, then the Rhoads would be a very good choice especially in a 400. They may have been designed 30 years ago, but they work just as well now as they did back in the day. I cant see why they wouldn't work in an autocross application. You want more throttle response and torque coming out of the corners. If you haven't spoke to a Pontiac expert, I would highly recommend calling SD Performance, Kaufmann Racing, or Butler Performance for all your options.
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