427CI TWIN-TURBO LS ENGINE
> MPW PERFORMANCE, DANDENONG
ACTIONS speak louder than words in the performance scene. Adam Rogash from MPW Performance knows this better than most, which is why he’s built his own seven-second street machine, an HSV VT Clubsport called NOSHOW. And here’s the engine.
At the heart of the package is a Dart LS Next block that they’ve built with the help of Johnny Pilla at Powerhouse Engines. Adam likes the LS Next with its thicker bores, priority oiling and splayed main cap design, rather than trying to contain all that grunt within a factory block. It measures up at 427ci thanks to a bulletproof combo featuring a Lunati Signature Series crank, Callies Ultra H-beam rods and JE pistons, and the whole shebang is topped by a pair of Johnny’s own LS Power Heads. They’re six-bolt items based on an LS3 rectangular-port design; they start as blanks and then Johnny ports and machines them to his own specifications. Filling the gap between them is a Holley Hi-ram EFI intake with a 90mm throttlebody.
It’s a solid package, but as with any engine it’s all about airflow, and the twin Turbonetics 69mm turbos provide plenty of that. They hang off a pair of custom four-into-one steampipe manifolds, which were fabricated in-house at MPW, and there’s a pair of Turbosmart 45mm wastegates to keep the boost under control.
At just under 24psi, the engine maxed out its injectors and produced 1615hp on Powerhouse’s engine dyno, running pump E85 and a Haltech Elite ECU.
It’s a stout combination by anyone’s measure, and surprisingly streetable. The guys finished third overall at Street Machine Drag Challenge 2015 without a problem, and managed a 7.99@171mph on the last day of competition.
“We’re going to switch to methanol for the strip and turn this thing up,” Adam reckons. “The aim is to get it into the mid-sevensecond zone. Eventually we’ll look at stepping up the turbos, but essentially it’s still a street car, so for what we’re doing, it’s perfect.”