The big-block 454 V8 was designated the LS5. Chevy rated it at 360 HP and a whopping 500 lb-ft of torque, making it the highest-horsepower big-block available on the Chevelle Super Sport.

At the height of the muscle car craze, the engineering wizards at Oldsmobile created a "Frankensteinesque" big-block V8 with four valves ... main bearing caps. Hot Rod magazine gained access ...

Once a staple of the hot rod and modification scenes, the era of the big block V8 engines has largely ended thanks to technological advances in the 1980s and 1990s. The result was 340 horsepower ...