Let's discuss the 493 stroker from Blueprint Engines

[JR]

What is the boards opinion of this 493 Stroker RB crate engine?

http://www.blueprintengines.com/index.php/products/bp-chrysler-crate-engines-landing/chrysler-493-main

HP & Torque: 525 HP / 590 FT LBS
Compression Ratio: 10.0:1
Aluminum Heads
Forged Pistons
Flat Tappet Cam
Forged Crank
Part #: BPC4931CT

Block:

Seasoned 440 block
Square and parallel decked
Align honed main bearing bore
Cylinders honed on computer controlled machine to within .0002 straightness and roundness
Cylinders are sonic tested for thickness

Rotating Assembly:

New forged steel crankshaft
Forged pistons
Forged rods
Hastings Moly rings
Balanced rotating assembly
Melling high volume oil pump
Flat tappet hydraulic lifter camshaft
Heavy duty double roller timing set

Cylinder Heads:

Aluminum cylinder heads, 80cc chamber

Cam Specs:

Cam Type: Flat Tappet
.545 Intake .545 Exhaust
241 Intake / 247 Exhaust duration
@ .050

Ignition Timing:

34 degrees at 3500 RPM

Also Includes:

Valve covers, oil pan and timing cover
Brass freeze plugs
Dyno test results shipped with engine

Cost is $7,529.





Now my questions are:

Dollar per dollar, is this a quality build?

Any downsides to this engine for my combination?

My car isn't a drag build, it's a pro touring/street driven car. It sees 90% street use, 10% autocross and maybe future track day use. I want aluminum heads/intake/water pump for less weight on the nose, run on 93 octane pump gas, to keep my FiTech EFI (with timing control), and to be compatible with my 727/3.23 combo. I also have Hedman shorty headers and full exhaust.

Again, I don't have a drag car, but I'd be very happy if I had a reliable, streetable engine that would run 12 flat 1/4 miles. (I realize that may require more gear for a 4000lb car.)

I'd also like to add a 150 shot of nitrous just for fun.

I'm not an engine expert. I can rebuild stock engines fine, but putting together a combination for maximum performance is out of my expertise, and there's no reputable engine builders near me I trust. So I'm considering going the crate engine route.

So, engine guys, what's the verdict here? Any thoughts on this build? Any other suggestions? I'm all ears.

[BDF]

I'm all ears here also as I have been debating pulling the original motor & having one/it built or just storing it and dropping in a crate motor to save time. Been looking at the Carolina Machine Engine strokers as well.
Blue Print's warranty seems good....

[Charger-Bodie]

I was in the market recently and ended up getting a Hughes engines 493 . I would have bitten the bullit on a Blue Print engines crate if the offered a roller cam, but they don't. Not that it's necessary,but that's what I wanted. I think Blue print builds very good stuff

[BSB67]

On paper it sounds good.

The devil is in the details.  What they say verses what they do, and how they do it makes a difference.  So with that, All I can say is research them, and talk with people that have used them, and have real performance data (i.e. track results).  My personal observation is that there is often times an unexplained difference between advertised hp numbers verses car performance, which may, or may not be due to the engine supplier.

I would want to know what specific piston and part number they are using, the final compression distance, what cylinder head, and from whom, and what work is done to them if any.

Picking fly sh** from the pepper, if it were mine and did not want to leave anything on the table, I would do a similar spec cam but solid flat tappet, and target the compression ratio for your elevation.  

[Challenger340]

IMO, It's really simple.... you GET what you PAY for ?

Some glaring examples for discussion from the posted Parts List:
* Whose "Forged" Connecting Rods and what fasteners are in them ?
* Whose Forged Pistons ? Pressed or Floating ? and the Pin retention ?
* If it is a BALANCED Rotating Assembly.... where is the Harmonic Balancer/Bolt/Washer ? I don't care if it is "internal" balance or not, the Crank should be balanced with the Harmonic Balancer and Flexplate/Flywheel that will be used on it when running, PERIOD !
* What Rockers Arms are being used.... with WHAT valve Spring pressure for the .545" Lift Comp Cam ? The stock stamped steel Rockers are a pushrod through the seat cup waiting to happen.
* What Pushrods are being used for the above ? Yeah right... I thought so.....
* What Head Bolts holding the Heads on ?
* What Head Gaskets were used on the Aluminum Heads ?
* Windage Tray ?
* 5 Quart Oil Pan ? What rpm and what Bearing Clearances are in the Engine ?
* What valve Springs ? Retainers ? Locks ?
* You think that if a Torque Plate was used during Honing they would say so ? I mean after all they are claiming "within .0002" straightness and roundness", why NOT add "with a T/Plate" ?

I could go on and on, but really the devil is in the details ?

Most of the parts can be found straight off the boat from China over here on this website: https://speedmaster79.com/engines-components/
NOT that many parts these days aren't from offshore, just that WHO Machined/Checked them is most important.

[Cam440]

Yeah it's a pretty hard call my friend has one and it seems ok so far i think it's got  those stealth heads on it the cam is awesome for a street brawler , Ron recommended the same cam for a mates 512 for the street , on the other hand another guy I know got a big block stroker Chevy  from blueprint and it broke a rocker at 6000 rpm wow what a mess it smashed the valve smashed the piston and the mess the rod made to the bore was bad the motors pretty much trash the metals gone everywhere I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw it poor guy it's only 3000 klm old , I'd rather build a engine yeah it can get alittle more expensive but it's peace of mind , I'm sure a lot of guys have had good luck with them but

[PRH]

I can only offer up anecdotal info on this topic....

I have a couple of friends who own a repair shop that has a chassis dyno, and they do quite a bit of work on older muscle cars.
Engine swaps, trans upgrades, suspension kits, blower/turbo installs, etc.

They have had several cars come through their shop that had blueprint motors.
Some were there to address problems, and on some others the customers were looking for more power.

I dont think they've ever had one on the chassis dyno where the wheel hp numbers corrosponded correctly with the advertised numbers.

The last one they worked on was a stroker Windsor ford.
I don't think there were any "problems" with it per se....... It was just way down on power.

They took it out, it got pulled apart...... Re-honed, new rings and bearings.
The cam seemed pretty small for the supposed hp claimed, so another one was installed.
I touched up the heads and did a mild bowl blend, and installed quite a bit stiffer valve springs on them.

As I recall the result was about a 60-70hp gain at the wheels.

Over the years, those guys have installed quite a few crate motors that the car owners have supplied.
The factory GM motors are usually real close to what they should be, and I don't think they've ever had a problem with one of those.
Of all the others, I can only think of two that were pretty close to what they should be.

[alfaitalia]

So are you implying that the dyno charts the supply with the motors are fake......? That's quite a serious bit of misleading (to say the least!) if that's the case. Maybe the figures they quote are at the crank rather than the wheels..bearing in mind they are not likely to fit the new engine to a car just to dyno it. So that's typically a 12 to 23 % loss on a rear wheel drive auto trans car.

[Cam440]

id say they would make the 525 hp with 590 ft lbs , that's not a crazy hp  number yes that's flywheel numbers , we did change the  valve springs because the ones on the stealth heads are only to 520 lift we were told and that cams got 545 lift , but yes the blueprint big block chevy engine was alittle down on the numbers for sure its junk now

[cdr]

 REAL 525 hp on the street is quite a hand full in a 50 year old car.

[PRH]

Personally, I have very little confidence in any chassis dyno numbers really being an accurate read on what the numbers would look like on an engine dyno.
There's just way too many variables in the car that can adversely affect the chassis dyno numbers.

Could it be that the cars that my friends are testing that happen to have blueprint motors in them arent set up as well to take advantage of what the motor has to offer? Absolutely.

If I want to know how much power an engine makes, I run it on an engine dyno.

On the ford stroker motor I mentioned previously......it was chassis dynoed before and after the rework.......and the numbers were noticeably better afterward....... as well as a much improved seat of the pants feel when driving the car.

[Cam440]

yes 525 hp on the street would be a handful , im building a 493 stroker atm , not going crazy but id be happy with 525hp at the flywheel and 590 ft ibs with a 4 speed should be fun, pretty easy to achieve what im told with a stroker 440 engine , nice 68 charger

[aerolith]

Wonderful topic indeed!

Problem areas for me are;

Seasoned block, what year etc.
Aluminum heads, thats a bit vague...

At that money I would want B1's lol...