 The late-model LT1 uses a...  The late-model LT1 uses a one-piece rear main seal. Good and bad! Leaks are at a minimum, while replacing it requires pulling the flywheel assembly off. |  Another innovation of the...  Another innovation of the late-model mouse is the use of a one-piece oil pan gasket. No more monkeying with the end rubber pieces to get them to stay in place, and harder still, to not leak. This Fel Pro piece even goes on dry, leaving it essentially reusable. |  With all of the bottom end...  With all of the bottom end pieces in place, the Billet Fabrication pan was installed and bolted down. With a capacity of 7 quarts, our 383 LT1 shouldn't ever be without lubrication. |
 From the bottom side to the...  From the bottom side to the top, our next steps were to install the Arizona Speed and Marine modified intake manifold. Here's a look inside the well-massaged ports, both in the manifold and the matching caverns of the AFR cylinder heads. |  Although not a great shot,...  Although not a great shot, here you get an idea of how the Extrude-hone process smoothed out the inside of the intake manifold. |  Note the size of the throttle...  Note the size of the throttle holes, as well. |
 In order to run the stock-design...  In order to run the stock-design intake manifold on the dyno, we needed to block off all of the holes that usually hook up to emission control hardware. An assortment of pipe plugs and a couple of fabricated aluminum "block-off plates" did the job nicely. Of course, when the engine makes its way into the car, all of the correct components will have a place to hook up to. |  Before the intake manifold...  Before the intake manifold could be installed over the lifter valley, the oil pump driveshaft had to be installed. Titan supplies a precision-machined hex-drive chrome-moly unit. A pair of long needle-nose pliers were used to install the shaft into the pump's hex drive. |  Despite not having a rear-mount...  Despite not having a rear-mount distributor, the oil pump must still be driven off of a shaft that connects in the same fashion as a conventional small-block. This short shaft is from the factory and has a gear to interlock with the one on the camshaft and a slot to connect with the oil pump drive. It fastens in place with a single bolt to a pedestal cast into the lifter valley. |
 Here's an age-old process;...  Here's an age-old process; using silicone sealer at the ends of the intake mounting surface. The only difference here is that instead of throwing away the rubber or cork gaskets that were included in the gasket set that the silicone replaces, there are none in this set. |  With trick carbon-fiber valve...  With trick carbon-fiber valve covers adorning each side, the Arizona Speed and Marine intake was rested in place. Of course, ARP 12-point stainless steel fasteners were used to hold it down. |  A neat addition that the speed...  A neat addition that the speed demons at ASP did was to weld small nozzle ports to the outside edge of the intake manifold to allow direct port pluming of nitrous oxide. Since we weren't ready to add the laughing gas, we were forced to install tiny pipe plugs in the holes. |