Engine building is about problem solving, right? You want to make more power so you solve that problem with better heads, a better camshaft, a better block, maybe you add some boost. What happens when you do all that and then perhaps create another problem? The crew at Prestige Motorsports knows all about problem solving and we actually see them tweak an engine package design to overcome and issue that they are having when testing the engine in this video and it is one lots of guy have experienced over the years, lifting the heads.
The Vortec V-7 YSI blower on this 427ci Windsor style small block makes loads of boost, enough to eventually see this smallish engine making more than 1,200hp on the dyno but all that boost presented a problem once this thing was built. The massive cylinder pressure was causing the heads to lose their seal, despite the use of O-rings. So what do they combat this with? A set of “top fuel hoops”. Unlike the small wire o-rings, the top fuel hoops are far more robust with deeper grooves in the heads and .020 worth of ring protruding from the block to really bite into the heads and create a nearly unbreakable seal. The result? Success.
Watch the whole build of this engine alone with the dyno session and a great explainer on the hoops. This rules.
