Engine Masters - Season 5 (2020)

All else equal, which will make more power, an iron head or an aluminum one? That's what we're testing on this week's Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL. Aside from the obvious weight savings, there are some real things to consider. Does aluminum's ability to shed heat help it make more power, or does the iron head's heat retention promote cylinder pressure and therefore more power? There's only one way to find out, and that's right here on the dyno.

Changing the installed centerline of your camshaft will create a shift in when your valves open and close. On this episode of Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, we explore how a little advance or a little retard in cam timing can help you tune your power curve for the high-end performance or low-end power that you're after.

Got a solid cam? Well, have we got some free ponies for you. By experimenting with your lash adjustments, you can effectively tune a bit of duration and lift into or out of your camshaft. Looser lash creates a hair less of each; a tighter lash, on the other hand, can actually buy you a bit. Given your specific engine and cam combo, there may be some serious (and FREE!) power just waiting to be tuned in. Come see how to find it on this episode of Engine Masters, presented by Amsoil.

Once again, ladies and gentlemen, you asked and we delivered. The question was simple yet timeless: "Which makes more power, a dual 2.5-inch or a single 3.0-inch exhaust system?" To find out, we're swapping pipes on our run-of-the-mill 351 Ford, which makes about 400 hp, and to richen the pot we're also testing out turbo vs. straight-through mufflers and Y-pipe vs. a 90-degree merge. Come get all the data you can handle, right here on Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL.

This time on Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, we deliver on a question that fans have been asking for years: "Will a carb spacer make me more power?" The answer is yes, no, and maybe. It all depends on your engine and manifold combination. So come see what works, what doesn't, and how you might be able to get a couple extra ponies for some seriously minimal effort.

On this episode of Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, we put more power claims to the test. This time it's the belief that a simple swap of the standard 1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2 firing order can create more power in your 90-degree V-8. Whether it's changes in manifold pulsing patterns or crankshaft harmonics that make more power, the theories abound. So we're here to do a 4/7 swap on a big 572 to see if there's more power to be had or if the theories are just that: theories.

Ford fans, listen up. It's your turn to get schooled in the art of intake manifold selection. On this episode of Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, we've rounded up four of the most popular street-style, dual-plane intake manifolds on the market and strapped them to our test mule. Today, that engine is a something you'd find under many a Ford hood: a 351 Windsor with a stock bottom end, roller cam, about 430 horsepower, and an appetite for more. Oh, and Mustang fans, come find out how much power that hood clearance issue really costs you. You're not going to like it.

1,500 horsepower!!. Need we say more?. On this episode of Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, 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.

On this episode of Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, 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, presented by AMSOIL, explores the myriad gains that can be found for a sickly, low-compression 440. 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.

On this episode of Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, the guys guide you through the basics of bringing your motor to the dyno cell for the first time, including motor setup, how the dyno works and how to make the most of your money, time and motor.

On Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, the crew answers the high-voltage question of whether upgrading an ignition system is worth it. They load up a big-block Ford with junky leftover parts and replace them one-by-one to see how valuable each piece is.

The guys from Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, fit the COVID-350 with progressively shorter header collectors to see the effect of a little more piping. Power is just waiting to be collected with some cheap and effective trial-and-error tuning.

Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, follows the build of Freiburger's 582ci BBC in his 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.

Whether they're Zoomies, Lakes, Tri-Ys, or Fenderwell headers, some pipes are just gotta-haves. On this episode of Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, The crew investigates just how much power gets sacrificed in that quest for cool.

Everybody knows that a lighter car is a faster car, but will choosing lightweight parts for your rotating assembly actually help your engine make more power, too? Come find out on Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, as we give our full-bodied SBC a lot less weight to rotate.

The common knowledge is 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? We'll find out on Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL.

It's another battle of old-school cool here on Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, where the guys bolt tunnel-ram and cross-ram setups to the 383 Chevy and stagger jets until their gasoline-soaked hearts are content.

How do you go about choosing the right muffler for a 1,000-horsepower motor? We've assembled four of the best street-worthy mufflers - meaning they actually cut decibels, not just look the part - and will run them back to back on the 555ci of blown BBC that we've DETUNED to make about 1,000 HP. So which muffler does the trick?

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.

Engine Masters' first six-cylinder test. Will the Leaning Tower of Power live up to the name? Let's find out as Steve Dulcich puts his creation to the test. 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. Is this the Little Six that could?

The guys put claims about blower cams to the test with their new 363ci small-block Ford. They'll run similarly spec'd "street" and "blower" cams both NA and under boost to see if blower cams make more power across the board, just under boost, or not at all.

After years of willing dismissal and dinosaur-brained ignorance, the Engine Masters have decided to give the Gen III Hemi a fair shake. Can you swap it in cheaply? How tunable is it? How robust is the aftermarket support? We'll explore all of these questions AND find out what it does with a simple cam swap.