HDN wrote: ↑Sat Sep 02, 2023 1:05 am
I wonder how much horsepower and torque the siren can handle...
I would imagine quite a bit of both horsepower and torque in seeing the way that the siren ,sans engine, was constructed back in the day. Keep in mind that those original Chrysler 331 C.I.D power plants where highly sought after by the guys building engines for the drag racing community once the siren was decommissioned and or taken out of service.
Since these are direct drive pieces i.e engine connected directly to the siren or in the automotive racing world, the engine is connected directly to the rear differential without the use of a transmission, the weakest link would be the coupler / in-out box / dog clutch what ever you want to call it between the engine and siren.
I would
not want to put a top fuel drag racing engine in the siren as the centrifugal force of the engine at full throttle( or even half throttle) would more than likely turn that siren into a 3 ton hand grenade. Your idea of the LS engines would be an almost perfect balance of H.P, torque and load (siren)...if you want to go old school Chevy , the 454 big block (think '70 Chevelle SS) or 427 (think Corvette) would pretty much be the limit I would safely go without out destroying the siren...plenty of torque, r.p.m range not too incredibly high unlike the top fuel drag racing engine. The small block Chevy's could surprise you as well ....the 350 with pre-smog heads, the 327, small block 400....all of these have quicker r.p.m's than the big blocks and would more closely be a match of the Chrysler 331 from the cold war era.
At least in my area it's easier to find 5.3L or 6.0L V8s than Chevy 350/5.7L Vortecs.
