Turbo setup for my 429 looking for a little more hp good or bad idea?

I am currently toying with the idea of putting a turbo setup on my 429 in my truck. Not sure if it is a good or bad idea but with my current heads i have on it. I think i might be able to get away with it because of the lower compression rating. First off i have a dove a block with d3ve a2a heads. I plan on running the engine in my truck until it needs a rebuild and putting all new bearings in it and ex. Do you think that a 429 such as mine would hold up to a turbo setup if it was properly done and tuned?. What kind of hp tq ratings should i expect?. Or is it just a dumb idea and should i have a 150 hp motor for a lot longer?.

you can get away with not much head with a turbo setup. as far as the horsepower expected that is dependent upon the turbo and/or power you are really looking for. this could be a very streetable/cool project. feel free to ask questions here or the power adder section as there are a few good turbo guys are on this board.

I am not really to sure what i wan't out of this motor. I want something that will put out decent power and run on pump gas and be reliable. I haven't got the truck running yet. And the last time the 429 ran was a couple of years ago and i can't really recall if it had decent power but i don't think it was anything spectacular. Maybe i will run the 429 in the mean time and rebuild a 400m. A buddy of mine has a 400m in his pulling truck that he built and that thing is a beast i really do believe it would put my 429 to shame lol.

IMO Dollar for Dollar and keeping it simple (Especialy if your 429 needs freshend anyway) It'd be much simpler to just build a stroker 545-557 and get some good heads. Making 600+ hp on pump gas and being totaly drivable is a no-brainer nowdays.

Building a good turbo set-up isn't cheap and does require alot of fabricating. But it can be totaly cool if you have the ability to do it.

I kind of want to keep it a 429. Is it possible to get descent power from a 429?. Or should i build a 400m and sell my engine or scrap it if it doesn't sell.

STROKE IT, its the reason to run a Big Block in the first place. Bigger is Better !!! Its where the Value comes in, stroker kits for a 429/460 based engine are inexpensive in compairision to the return on the investment.

400M's can make good power, but it will not make more power doller for doller than a 385 based engine.

IMO don't waste your time with a 400.

429f150 wrote:I am not really to sure what i wan't out of this motor. I want something that will put out decent power and run on pump gas and be reliable. I haven't got the truck running yet. And the last time the 429 ran was a couple of years ago and i can't really recall if it had decent power but i don't think it was anything spectacular. Maybe i will run the 429 in the mean time and rebuild a 400m. A buddy of mine has a 400m in his pulling truck that he built and that thing is a beast i really do believe it would put my 429 to shame lol.

You are comparing a hopped up 400m (and probably fresh) to a wore out 429. Not really fair in all reality. Dave nailed it with every post.

dfree383 wrote:STROKE IT, its the reason to run a Big Block in the first place. Bigger is Better !!! Its where the Value comes in, stroker kits for a 429/460 based engine are inexpensive in compairision to the return on the investment.

400M's can make good power, but it will not make more power doller for doller than a 385 based engine.

IMO don't waste your time with a 400.

I think it's probably my heads and cam setup that are hurting my performance. If i put a good set of dove heads on it or equivelant and a different cam i think i would be happy. And strokers are nice to have i just don't have the money to hop it up that much right now. But how much hp tq do you think i would be able to make from a base 429?. If i put different rebuilt heads on it and a better cam shaft and better exhaust?. It just sucks because this engine was a cj from the factory then it was rebuilt with differen't heads and pretty sure differen't camshaft also. Still has the cj bottom end though thats about the only thing on this engine that is worth something. The engine came out of a 1970 torino found out not that long ago.

What kind of budget are you considering?

If the budget is a issue,the stroker is a NO brainer imo.

You know, I agree about the strokers too, but you can have a blast on the cheap with a stock 429 and a junk yard turbo and set it up as a draw through, you just need to be in the ball park on the turbo and 10 lb of boost and it will fly.

Of coarse this takes more home work and time than money, and the hardest part is the headers for it, which aren't that hard to make.

Ford did a set up similar to this on the 78-80 mustang 2300 with draw through turbo. 6 lb of boost 150 hp , put a 500 Holley on it and pinch off the waste gate line (20 lb) and hang on................

I have three of these set ups.

Some times I like to do it different

i would like to try the remote turbo setup that goes in place of the muffler(s).

run a pipe and oil line from the intake back to the turbocharger.

add a wastegate and some fabricating.

really not much to it.

i will add a link when i am allowed. i am a new member here

horsepower and torque gains impressed me.

put a nitrous kit on it keep the power level down to the 100hp to 125hp it will wake that 429 up and is cheap hp. you only need to spray when your racing the rest of the time its off. nitrous can work find for years just dont step it up to hi hp numbers with a stock engine keep it around a 100hp.