90 454SS vs 94 Lightning - TrucksTV

[1BadAction]

Originally Posted by 90Z71Stepside

Finally at least one show on the power block doesn't suck.

LOL! I like the muscle car, but havent watched it in awhile.

[hornsfan10609]

Originally Posted by GreaseDog

weaksauce? the BBC in a truck was never intended for high HP, come on, its a truck motor, and that means torque. 195hp is probably about twice what your little 4.3 puts to the ground.

I never said anything about my truck, but less than 200 HP is ridiculous, the 351 in the Ford put out more, and the 302 in my Ford puts out a LOT more.

[1989K1500]

Originally Posted by 454ss

Keep it up and you'll be getting a visit from 6' guy named Matty

[young blood]

i know that the 95 350 tbi made 210 hp and 300lbs torque. that is oretty sad that the 454 made so little power and torque gm must have reall restricted them

[GreaseDog]

Originally Posted by hornsfan10609

I never said anything about my truck, but less than 200 HP is ridiculous, the 351 in the Ford put out more, and the 302 in my Ford puts out a LOT more.

200hp is not ridiculous for wheel hp, out of either a stock big block, or a stock small block with MPFI. also consider that the drivetrain that the 454 is puttingr its power down through is considerably beefier than the Lightning. TH400/14SF vs an AOD and an 8.8. should even the playing field out a little right there, just by reducing the amount of effort it takes to spin the drivetrain.

[GreaseDog]

Originally Posted by young blood

i know that the 95 350 tbi made 210 hp and 300lbs torque. that is oretty sad that the 454 made so little power and torque gm must have reall restricted them

you're comparing flywheel HP to wheel HP, apples and oranges.

[Red94Chev]

Keep in mind that the hp data are from the rear wheels and take into account a 20-22% drivetrain loss from an automatic transmission. Corrected hp levels at the engine for the 454SS and the Lightning would be ~250hp and ~290hp, respectively. They are both running better as is than their stock engine rating.

[90Z71Stepside]

Originally Posted by GreaseDog

you're comparing flywheel HP to wheel HP, apples and oranges.

Apples & oranges, don't you mean Chevy & f##d?

[CKTA]

Should be a good build-up. However, I'm not sure why they picked a 90 and also why there is a 56K milage differance,

[Busted Knuckles]

I'm hoping they'll pull engines and rebuild 'em for performance, but other than HorsePower, those shows are more about bolt-ons than complete engine rebuilds.
Junk the heads, intake and cam, get a set of big ovals that'll get compression to 9.5:1, put a cam in 'er and hand that Ford's it's ass. Of course, the Ford guy gets to play with boost and bigger/better heads as well.

[oldred95]

Originally Posted by CKTA

Should be a good build-up. However, I'm not sure why they picked a 90 and also why there is a 56K milage differance,

90k miles on a Ford is like 900k miles on a Chevy. My bet is on the Ford having way more wear and tear on it then the Chevy.


It really doesn't matter what year, the 454SS was a disgrace to the SS logo. Sure it paved the way to better things but GM really had their heads up their butts on this one. They could have put the little 4.3 turbo engine from the cyclone in the same SWB truck and made it faster then what the 454 could have ever done stock.

That pisses me off. They should have used a 91-93 SS. The 90 is a joke in stock form.

[GreaseDog]

Originally Posted by Busted Knuckles

Of course, the Ford guy gets to play with boost and bigger/better heads as well.

uh... no he doesnt. early Lightnings were NA 351s with GT40 heads and uppers.

[Joe]

Those 454SS trucks should have been sooo much quicker. Only GM could make a slow BBC RCSB 2wd pickup

[Gran Patron]

I wish the 90's 454ss's were plain out brutal like the BBC era was. Should've stuffed a 454 LS6 in that bad boy.

[Koots]

Originally Posted by oldred95

90k miles on a Ford is like 900k miles on a Chevy. My bet is on the Ford having way more wear and tear on it then the Chevy.


It really doesn't matter what year, the 454SS was a disgrace to the SS logo. Sure it paved the way to better things but GM really had their heads up their butts on this one. They could have put the little 4.3 turbo engine from the cyclone in the same SWB truck and made it faster then what the 454 could have ever done stock.

You got to remember that performance wasn't as good for most vehicles at that point in time. the only car actually ahead of it's time with speed and power was the Mclaren F1. Even ferrari's barely dipped under the 5 second 0-60 time.

It was considered fast to go below the 6 second 0-60 time, now we have 4 and 6 cylinders doing it like it's childs play.

my neighbor has a 454SS. not really that much of a difference between that and my 350. just uses more gas, and has a speedo that goes further. my needle just stops turning

[TruedualDD32]

The 454SS was a big deal in its day. This was the era of 305's with quadrajets and Electronic Spark Control. The first TBI 350's came out in 87?, 88 for sure. I was driving an 84 RCLB with 305 and TH350C transmission. that truck couldn't even spin the tires from a dead stop, with headers, true duals, and recurved HEI. When I bought it, you couldn't get a 350. I think it was about 140 hp stock. The truck did get 20-21 MPG. TPI camaros (88) with 350 would run about 14 flat at 98-99 mph in the 1/4 (had one, very fun car)
If my memory hasn't failed me too much, the first 4L80's were fairly troublesome, so the TH400 in the TruckTV SS may be a help rather than a hindrance. Trans-go Stage 2 shift kit was about all you needed for those trans. Big oval port heads, headers, cam, true duals, and keep some form of fuel injection are what I am hoping to see on the build.

[GreaseDog]

Originally Posted by TruedualDD32

The 454SS was a big deal in its day. This was the era of 305's with quadrajets and Electronic Spark Control. The first TBI 350's came out in 87?, 88 for sure.

TBI debuted in 82 with the Cross Ram in the Vettes, and followed suit in the F Bodies in 83. in 87 it became the norm on all trucks, with only the 454 remaining as the only option for a carbed engine, it was also available with TBI on top of it. Ford's MPFI debuted in 1986, so GM had the jump on them by a couple years with use and experience with their system.

If my memory hasn't failed me too much, the first 4L80's were fairly troublesome, so the TH400 in the TruckTV SS may be a help rather than a hindrance.

in 1990 the 4L80E simply didnt exist in 1990, it debuted in 1991. your memory must be failing you, the 4L80E has always been a rock solid trans. ever look at the gear spacing on a 4L80E compared to a TH400? they're identical, except the 80E has a 4th .75:1 OD that the TH400 doesnt have, all other gears are the same. the 4L80E is based off of the TH400 purely for its strength purposes.

[TruedualDD32]

Yep, my brother had an 86 with a 350 and a quadrajet. That truck also had a TH400 and 3.42 posi.

My memory is not failing me, I never said the 4L80 was available in the 1990 truck. You are 100% correct, it debuted in 1991. I have looked around the internet a bit and have found that the 4L80 had problems related to the electronic controls more-so than the actual mechanical portion of the trans.

Edit: Please see

http://www.454ss.com/Articles/include2.asp?id=79