We call it project Pile Driver, because we’re hoping this 509-ci big-block Chevy will pound the ground for miles around. After building our 468-ci Iron Man big-block with a hydraulic roller cam, then our 496-ci Howitzer big-block with a bigger hydraulic roller cam, readers told us they wanted to see even bigger power numbers from a solid roller cam. You also asked for something streetable that runs on pump gas. We finally got that opportunity when we got our old 502 RamJet block back from Project X.
We decided to recycle the Gen VI block and forged crank with some longer 6.385-inch Eagle rods, and some forged SRP pistons. We teamed these with new induction parts from Trick Flow Specialties (TFS). The included TFS’s new PowerPort 320cc head and single-plane intake. With a 122cc combustion chamber, compression is around 10.5:1. For the cam, we chose a stout solid roller from COMP (.661/.668-inch lift, 254/260 degrees duration (at .050) and a 105 degree lobe separation). Topping it off is Holley’s new Ultra Dominator, which features all-aluminum construction, billet metering plates, site glasses, an external secondary linkage, adjustable air bleeds and emulsion jets, and a polished main body and venturis. It’s one bad ass carburetor, and we plan on doing a stand-alone story on Holley’s new Ultra, so stay tuned.
So how did the Pile Driver fair in today’s dyno session? With a set of 2 1/4-inch dyno headers, power peaked at 717 hp at 6,300 rpm, and 651 lb-ft of torque at 5,000 rpm, and the whole thing runs on 91 octane pump gas. Look for the complete story in our November issue. Up next, we plan to drop the Pile Driver into a Nova and see if we can poke it into the nines.