Go right to the issue, if you want HP, drop in a 440, you can always add a 6pak later, if that floats your boat....I've had my share of smblk E bodies, they can be fun in 340/340-6/360 combos...but the 440 is where it's at for HP, the $$$ you start throwing at the smblk later on to up the HP could be spent on an intial install of a 440.....if a 4spd is your desire, save up/collect all the parts required, then when your ready, do the swap...