What is everybodys thought on 650 hp in a street car that will see a few trips to the strip? I have a 73 cuda that Im looking at getting a 472 hemi for. I want a fast street car that can put down good times at the track also, but not something that won't be any fun without running slicks all the time to get it to hook. Car is a 4 speed and currently 3.23 sure-grip 8 3/4 but will upgrade gears later. I plan on running 275/50 drag radials and either super stock springs or caltracs. What are your guys thoughts?

I got tired of a hairy engine, steep gears, and Texas heat. When I wanted more power I built a turbo engine so it would run around with nice street manners. When you got froggy it would spool up and run.

The monster street car sounds like fun but it can wear on you in short order.

A real 650hp is not fun in a car that is street driven. You'll need to upgrade the whole rear, not the gears, BTW. A stick, drag radials, and a fairly heavy car will break the 8 3/4 quickly. Things like a more radical idle, 4 miles to the gallon, loud exh, almost unsafe driving in the rain due to power and gear changes, heavy clutch to ride in traffic... IMO if you have the cash for the Hemi, stick a turbo'd smallblock in it and make the same or more overall power but much less brutal with much less racey crud associated with driving it.

a well built 472 can easily get you 600-650hp. well prepped heads is the key. a wide LSA cam (111-113) can give you a nice idle and give you a wide torque band, great for the street. i manage about 12mpg on the highway with mine if i don't lay into it, around town is 7-8, but also depends if i lay into it. tti exhaust with dynomax mufflers flow well and yet are quiet. a centerforce clutch handles it fine, and is not bad in traffic.

what some of the other posters said about turbos is true, but you can build a larger displacement engine with more mild specs and still get great horsepower out of it, and be very streetable.

and of course, if you want a hemi, there is no substitute.

i love mine. scatpk's 542 in his GTX dyno'd 542 at the rear wheels, before major carb adjustments, and it's a kitten to drive, until you lay into it. and it got 14mpg on the highway from san francisco to los angeles.

hard to beat.

if you want a hemi, this is all doable.

I'm wondering about that same thing myself. I want my car to be fun to drive, but not too much of a handful. I want my wife to not be afraid to drive my car.

How much power is fun to drive without being a problem? How much power is too much should you be caught out in less than ideal weather on a twisty road?

450hp?
550hp?

I don't know.

I want to hear more opinions.

I was so impressed with the street maners of a 605 Hemi car I had a ride in that I'm building one for my own '70 Barracuda now.

The car was a '72 Roadrunner with a Indy built 605 Hemi with twin F.A.S.T. throttle bodies, full manual auto & Dana 60.

The gas milage wasn't too bad as I filled my 383 at the same times on a trip & compared the difference.

My advice . . . Do It!

There are some people for whom 100 hp is too much. Cars have throttles for a reason. With the sixpack running on the center carb, it is very controllable, smooth, responsive and predictable, however when the outboards are tipped in; you better be sure about which way you have it pointed, because it goes off!

There is no question that 680 horsepower can make for a car that is intimidating to drive or ride in. I find it thrilling and satisfying, but not everyone is comfortable, experienced and/or responsible enough to safely manage that kind of power on the street, especially in wet weather.

If you have to be really careful with the throttle or be out of control, then I don't think that's what I'd consider a "great" car to drive.

No problem with a new car, lots of them can make 650hp with a bolt on supercharger or turbo and get 20 plus mpg and you can drive it daily. Ford will even let you keep the warranty on the new mustang if you use Ford motorsports parts.

My car makes just a little less 650 hp and I'm going to be honest with you: it can be exhausting to drive on the street. Don't get me wrong - I enjoy driving it, but with the cam required to get the ponies around 600 hp, 4.10 gears, a loose converter (I know yours isn't an auto), and a reverse manual valve body, I get worn out just driving the thing to the gas station (which I do a lot ).
...and don't think that you don't need to upgrade a lot of other stuff too when you get over the 500 hp mark. Feets has a good point when he suggests thinking about turbos.
As the San Angelo drag strip recently closed (see the thread in the race section), my car is now a "street only" car, and a really hard to drive one at that!

It's precisely because of things like this that I'm having trouble deciding between an all-aluminum 496 wedge and an all-aluminum 426 3G hemi. The hemi is so much more efficient and Bouchillon says it makes 600hp.

I think the wedge would be cooler and I'd have more of a sense of accomplishment because I'd have to build it.

The 426 weighs 50-100 lbs less, gets better mileage, and is likely to be plenty enough fun to drive. It just costs a bit more.

My old truck is equiped with a tunnelrammed 528 hemi, the cam is 272/274@.050, 8" convertor, 4.56 gears with a spool. You can't wipe the grin off my face when I'm behind the wheel. It will drive or idle in traffic all day long without a hitch. The mileage isn't bad either all things considered.
Two things come to mind though, you have to drive it according to the conditions, it can get away from you real quick if you act dumb. It WILL kill you if you let it. And if you're going to run it down the strip occasionally you WILL have to upgrade a few things. A Dana, better suspension, and some saftey equipment should be at the top of your list. If you're like me though after a couple weeks you'll get used to the power and NEED MORE. Dave

My .030 over 440 makes 643HP at 6300RPMs and 592lbs of torque at 4400RPMs.
If the motor is put together with the right parts,IE good cylinder heads and cam the motor can be very streetable but I would not want to drive my car in the rain.
If someone thinks they are going to build a 500ci 650HP BB with eddie RPM heads and it is going to be a nice street motor they are wrong, You would need lots of compression and a big cam and those two things do not work well in a nice street car.
The reason my motor makes the power it does is a lot of little things that adds at the end of the day, most of witch are stupid for a street car, but Iam a gear head and I kind of went over board with the motor.

My Cuda has a 500" wedge 263* solid cam, 1050 Dom, fully auto 727, and 3.91s in an 8 3/4. 520 RWHP which puts it somewhere in the low 600s at the flywheel. The car has ran 6.8s @ 104 in the 1/8 and gets 11 mpg on pump gas on the open road. It is quiet enough to hear the radio at 60mph thanks to electric cut-outs.

I drive it to the track and to car shows regularly. And yes, you need to be very aware of the road conditions with that much power on tap. You can't kick into passing gear without the rear getting loose.....and that is at 45 or 50 mph.

The car is not difficult to drive at all with the automatic. But it does lope good. You would have no problem with a stick.

A well thought out combo will do what you want. You will probably need to make some changes after you get it together to dial in the exact combo that you like the best. But you can do it.

Go for it!

I run a +/-550 HP 496 wedge + 5 speed in a '70 Challenger. 8.75 rear. I do drive it with "respect" but is it a handfull? Not at all. Its set up for handling with stickey high speed tires, significant upgrades of the stock style suspension and 13" disks up front. If I ever had ambitions of drag racing it, I would add a Dana 60 pronto. But I don't so I won't. Actually, I've never nailed it in 1'st. That gear is just to get rolling. 2'nd and higher, its seen meaningful full throttle time.

The 8.75 served well on the big oval tracks for many years so it should handle a Silver State Classic run if I can get there some day.

I don't drive it in the snow... the HS tires turn to rocks at about freezing plus the body doesn't need the salt - but I do drive it in all other conditions. Last summer I drove it through a cloudburst. No problem.

Both daughters have driven it, my father in law has driven it but my wife won't. Only problem is the duaghters grew up on a DOHC Neon 5 speed and feel they have to rev the BB like the little 4 cylinder... especially daughter #1. Its "exciting" to take a ride with her.

550 HP is a lot but I wouldn't mind more some day. Fully port and shave the heads? A bit more cam? The shortblock can handle 600-650 without problem. We'll see.

Fuel consumption is 14 MPG @ 75 MPH, low teens in town and ?? if I really ride it. EFI + manual trans + overdrive help.

Beyond careful driving, a "balanced" car helps a lot. Suspension upgrades, tire upgrades and brake upgrades help make it fun (and safe) with increased power. Plus D60 rear end if you are drag racing.

I am with the turbo guys here.less cam,less gear and when the turbo is spooled up its the same power.Yes you dont have the lumpy idle,but you get better drivabilty out of it.
Thats why i have a buick grand national and a mopar.
The little buicks V6 is quicker than my 499 stroker,i can cruise on the highway @ 80 all day,get good mileage,click off 7.3s in the 1/8 and 60 foots in the 1.5s.
And no niether are 600 horse but the difference between the 2 it isnt in the same league for driveabality.And any grandma could drive it with ease.