Engine Masters

The crew tests the effects of running long vs. short rods on otherwise identical engines. They'll find out if long rods make more torque, if shorter rods' faster swipe makes a difference, or if rod length doesn't actually matter.

The guys find out which cheap carb produces the most expensive results. They pick a fight among remanufactured offerings from Edelbrock, Summit and Demon to see which will pump the most power into their 383 Chevrolet.

The guys flip things upside down to find out how much power might be left in the oil pan. A number of factors play a part in minimizing turbulence around the crank, but an $1,100 solution may not be worth the cost.

The guys try to shed light on whether iron or aluminum heads will deliver more power. Aside from weight savings, they'll look at heat retention and its effect on cylinder pressure, then settle things once and for all on the dyno.

Changing a camshaft's installed centerline creates a shift in when valves open and close, so the crew explores how changes to cam timing can help tune a power curve for high-end performance or low-end power.

The guys experiment with lash adjustments in an effort unleash some serious (and free) ponies. Specific engine and cam combos can benefit from loosening or tightening, leading to more power and better performance.

The guys determine whether a dual 2.5-inch or a single 3.0-inch exhaust system has more power. They swap pipes on a run-of-the mill 351 Ford, then they test turbo versus straight-through mufflers and Y-pipe versus a 90-degree merge.

The guys answer the question of whether a carb spacer produces more power. The answer is yes, no and maybe, depending on the engine and manifold combination. A couple extra ponies might be possible with some seriously minimal effort.

The guys test the belief that a simple swap of the standard firing order can create more power in a 90-degree v-8. They do a 4/7 swap on a big 572 to see if there's more power to be had, or if the the theories are just that: theories.

The guys take four of the most popular street-style, dual-plane intake manifolds on the market and strap them to the test mule. Also, they reveal how much power the hood clearance issue costs on a Mustang.

1,500 horsepower!!! Need we say more?! We take 555 BBC and the Blower Shop then test the difference in power between gas and e85, and how much more we can make when running each on nitrous.

We dive into one of the most commonly confusing elements of camshaft design: lobe separation angle. A cam's LSA dictates how far apart valve events are, how the engine will idle, where the peak power will live and where the rpm range ends.

Engine Masters explores the myriad gains that can be found for a sickly, low-compression 440 in three stages. The guys plumb up a turbo, add a set of too-trick-for-this cylinder heads, and finally push some turbo boost through those heads.

The guys guide you through the basics of bringing your motor to the dyno cell for the very first time, going over motor setup, how the dyno actually works, the process of hunting for power and how to make the most of your money, your time and your motor.

The crew sets out the answer the high-voltage question of whether it's worth it to upgrade an ignition system. They load up the 514 ci big-block Ford with some of the junkiest leftover parts and replace them one-by-one to see how valuable each piece is.

The guys fit the COVID-350 with progressively shorter header collectors to see the gains or losses that come from running just a little more piping. They see how much power is waiting to be collected with some cheap and effective trial-and-error tuning.

The guys follow the build of Freiburger's own 582ci BBC in his personal quest for 1,000 NA horsepower. An in-depth rundown of the parts that came together and why they were chosen shows the evolution of the build and the path to glory.

Guys choose headers all the time based on style. Whether they're Zoomies, Lakes, Tri-Ys, or Fenderwell headers, some pipes are just gotta-haves. The crew investigates just how much power gets sacrificed in that quest for cool!

Everybody knows that a lighter car is a faster car, so the guys see if choosing lightweight parts for the rotating assembly helps the engine make more power, too.

Common knowledge says that a boosted motor acts just like an oversized version of the NA motor. The curves stay the same shape, they just grow in numbers. But will the header that made the most NA power still make the most power boosted?

As far as dual-quad manifolds go, it's hard to beat the cool factor of the tunnel-ram and cross-ram setups. To see which makes more power, the guys bolt each to the 383 Chevy and stagger jets until their gasoline-soaked hearts are content.

So you wanna street-drive your 1,000 HP monster. You'll need a muffler for the street that will also wring every horsepower possible at the strip. The guys assemble the best street-worthy mufflers and run them back-to-back to see which does the trick.

On this episode of Engine Masters presented by AMSOIL, we break down two very different engines that both make very similar 500 hp. It's our 500-hp 372 small-block vs. our 500-hp big-block 454, it's a high-rpm screamfest vs. low-end grunt, it's high-strung efficiency vs. big-displacement ease, and it's all right here. 

Steve Dulcich puts his Leaning Tower of Power to the test to see if it lives up to its name. With a TorqStorm supercharger, 10.5:1 and a race-prepped head, his slant 6 is shooting for the moon to make factory-383 power numbers.