Engine Masters Episode Rating Graph

Exploring the effects of different sized water tanks and their ability to keep the intake charge colder longer; air-to-water intercoolers make power by absorbing the heat of the intake air into the cool of the IC's water.

The guys explore the cooling benefits of water-methanol injection. They'll be looking at any added tolerance to detonation, intake air temps, how much to inject at what rpm, and the optimal ratio of water to methanol. There's plenty to explore with a little experimentation on the dyno.

The guys study the fueling demands, horsepower, and the pros and cons of running 116 octane gasoline, E85, methanol and oxygenated gas. They all have different oxygen contents, air/fuel ratio demands, and ultimately, different abilities to cool the cylinder and create power. What does that all mean, and which is right for you?

It's a battle between the iconic 440 Six Pack and the legendary 426 Hemi, and we're settling age-old bets on this one. Do they live up to lore of 440 grunt and 426 top end? Can the Six Pack cool outgun the famed Hemi heads?

The guys run tests with 87, 91, 110, 116 and even E85 to see if higher octane makes more power, and if an engine's optimal timing even changes with different octane. See what happens as we pump up the gas on Engine Masters.

This time on Engine Masters presented by AMSOIL, it’s a horsepower battle with the world’s most popular classic V-8s: the Chevy small-block versus the Ford Windsor. Using rebuilt short-blocks and parts packages from SummitRacing.com, the Engine Masters team built two engines as equally as possible, using a Chevy 350 and a Ford 351 with Holley carburetors, Edelbrock RPM Air Gap intakes, Air Flow Research 195 heads, Comp Cams hydraulic roller cams, and 13/4-inch-tube headers. Will one small-block make more power than the other based on inherent design superiority? The dyno is here to find out. Engine Masters is supported by Mr. Gasket, Earl’s Vapor Guard, Auto Meter, Summit Racing, and Permatex.

This time on Engine Masters presented by Amsoil, we go head-to-head-to-head-to-head to find the best dual-plane for your buck. Using our longtime test mule 372 small-block Chevy, we bolt up the four most popular Air-Gap–style dual-planes to compare power and cost, to help you make the best choice for your engine and budget.

In the modern world of bulletproof bottom ends, boost has become the go-to for bolt-on power. But is it really the best way to get where you want to be? On this episode of Engine Masters presented by AMSOIL, David Freiburger, Steve Dulcich and Steve Brulé take a bone-stock 5.3 truck LS and test four different combos of built and boosted. Building off the baseline of the naturally aspirated motor, they pull big numbers with just an intercooled turbo setup. Next, they pull the turbo to build it N/A with heads, a cam, and an intake, and then finally hang the turbo back onto the newly built mill. The choice is up to you (and your budget), but the guys will give you all the data to decide where to spend your dough.

A junkyard Chevy LS engine with a turbo—it’s a dime-a-dozen concept these days, but how big can it go? To find out, Engine Masters went to the originator of the “Big Bang Theory” dyno test: Richard Holdener, who delivered the world a 1,200hp boosted 4.8L way back in 2011 in the pages of HOT ROD magazine. Holdener has brought many junkyard engines to a power-adder-assisted demise since then, and has found the connecting rods to be the weak spot. The Gen IV engines have better rods, so this time the victim is a 6.0L with a pair of BorgWarners on the way to 30 psi. Will it go or will it blow? Find out in jaw-dropping fashion on this episode of Engine Masters presented by AMSOIL.

Our testing has repeatedly shown that carbs make more peak power than EFI, and our explanation is based on the fuel's ability to cool the incoming air on its way to the head. Multipoint injection just can't do that. Or can it? We move fuel injectors up the intake manifold runners to see if the extra distance of suspended fuel makes extra power.

Hot intake air temps are bad, and cold IATs are good, right? But how bad is bad, and how good is good, especially in a boosted application? To find out, the guys explore the benefits of an air-to-air intercooler in terms of power and detonation resistance. They also test out external CO2 foggers that keep the intercooler extra cool.

On Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, the crew dives into how cylinder head flow and boost affect horsepower. They run their 363 Windsor once with 195cc and 225cc heads, and declare once and for all if cylinder heads actually matter under boost.

On this episode of Engine Masters presented by Amsoil, David and the Steves flip things upside down to find out how much power you might be leaving in your oil pan. Pan shape, windage, and oil control features all play a part in minimizing turbulence around the crank, but is a $1,100 oil pan really worth the cost? Come find out as we test and tune our way to some pretty impressive results.

Boost is good. Forced induction makes huge power, and you want it cheap and easy. This time on Engine Masters presented by AMSOIL, we look at the two most affordable implements of boost from SummitRacing.com.

You're sitting around with your typical street/strip V-8 and wondering, should I get 2.5-inch-diameter exhaust pipes and mufflers, or should I go 3-inch? In this episode of Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, we will help you decide.

Cast-iron manifolds versus mid-length headers versus long-tube headers: Which one is best for you? In this episode of Engine Masters presented by AMSOIL, we again look to our loyal fan base to feed us ideas of power tests they want to see.

This episode of Engine Masters presented by AMSOIL delivers the goods many viewers have asked for as we test the power of straight dual exhaust with no crossover pipe versus using an H-pipe versus an X-pipe. Will the old bench-racing stories come true, or is it all hocus-pocus? We find out using a basic 5.3L GM LS3 engine then precisely spell out the effect these exhaust-system modifications have on horsepower and torque. Engine Masters is supported by Mr. Gasket, Earl’s Vapor Guard hose, and now Permatex!

How much effort have you put into tuning your carb and ignition? We’re always talking about ignition timing and air/fuel ratios, but never about their direct impact on your power production. This time on Engine Masters presented by AMSOIL, we show you how much power you could be throwing away with a subpar tune-up.

Budget mufflers. What do you get for $40? How do they sound and how much power do they kill? On this episode of Engine Masters presented by AMSOIL, we run our 408 Cleveland with 12 different muffler options, including no muffler, straight through, chambered, and turbo style. Which one is best for you is up to you, but here’s all the info you’ll need to make the decision.

Well, maybe. This time on Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL, we dive into what effect changes to your intake manifold's plenum volume will have on your motor. We want to know if all of the Internet's theories about big boost, big cubes, and/or big rpm needing bigger plenum volume really hold water. Will all of that increased volume really turn into increased power production or are you just creating hood clearance headaches? Watch as we go from straight out-of-the-box to out-of-the-bounds-of-sanity with this plenum volume comparison.

Call it a velocity stack, a radiused entry, or even a salad bowl, the bellmouth is designed to direct and smooth the airflow into the throttle body, creating a more efficient airflow. But does it make power? We'll answer that very question for both N/A and supercharged versions of our 363ci small-block Ford.

Should you run a carburetor, or should you try the new and easy self-learning EFI setups? We'll dish up answers in this episode of Engine Masters, presented by AMSOIL. Host David Freiburger, Steve Dulcich, and Steve Brule strap a 5.3L LM7 engine to the engine dyno and look at the price, installation, and power of a Holley 750-cfm double-pumper versus Holley's Terminator throttle-body EFI. The guys come up with a big part-mismatch nightmare along the way-one you should also watch out for. As you're watching the episode, keep in mind that most of the carb-vs-throttle-body info applies to any engine, not just the LS-style test mule. However, Holley does provide very simple, plug-in kits to power the LS platform. In fact, if you have a complete junkyard LS that still has the intake manifold, throttle body, and injectors, you can get a much cheaper LS controller that plugs right in.

Topping your engine with a set of aftermarket cylinder heads is a near-certain method for making more horsepower and torque-but is the extra power really worth the money? In this episode of Engine Masters, presented by Amsoil, we answer that question.

It's our first head-to-head shootout with two engines: a Blueprint Engines crate Chevy 383 small-block versus a hand-built Mopar 383 by Engine Masters host Steve Dulcich. To make this a fair test, we equalized as many variables as possible

This time on Engine Masters, presented by Amsoil, you'll learn a good combo for 470-plus horsepower from a stock-bottom-end 5.7L Dodge Hemi, and then see us add a Paxton supercharger in the hunt for 707 horsepower just like one of the new Dodge Hellcats.

Dual quads! Three deuces! Eight barrels! Six jugs! The lore of multiple carburetors runs deep in the hot rodding world, and in the muscle car era it was common for the OE manufacturers to up their cars' performance