440 redline??

[70burntorangeT/A]

anyone know what is the highest RPM that you can safely rev a stock 440 up to??

[wagesofsin]

6500-7000

if you aint making power by then, something is terribly wrong.

[70burntorangeT/A]

6500-7000

THAT HIGH!!!!

I was thinking like 5500, i hit about 5700 the other day on accadent and i was scared that i might have hurt something

[wagesofsin]

you said max.   
you can make great power at 5500 max
grunty mill. great torque.
should serve you well.

[bb71challenger]

I am just venturing a guess but I think its more like 5500-6000 max before valve float starts to occur.

[Chryco Psycho]

really it depends on the valve springs once they float you are done , , I had my 440 up to 7200 RPM for 9 seasons racing it , it was balanced with good oiling , new rod bolts etc but it was heavy by todays stds , I had the TRW 6 Pack pistons , factory 6 pack rods & steel crank , if I remember right bob weight was over  2400 grams

[moparmaniac59]

I wouldn't think there would be any reason to run a bone stock 440 over 6000 rpm. As been said, you're pretty much out of your power band by then. Running it to 5700 rpm shouldn't hurt it.



                                                  Matt B.

[bordin34]

Ive had my 73 400 up to about 6000rpm it makes great power from about 3500-5700 then falls flat on its face. Today my car saw at least 5000rpm 5 or 6 times.

[70burntorangeT/A]

Ive had my 73 400 up to about 6000rpm it makes great power from about 3500-5700 then falls flat on its face. Today my car saw at least 5000rpm 5 or 6 times.

I definatly agree about making great power from 3500 up, when im doing around 2000 rpm in top gear and just hammer it not much really happens, I can be doing 3500 rpm in top gear and smoke the tires, it doesnt want to speed up much untill it hits about 3300 and then it wants to take off like a rocket. Even when i really get on it i usually shift around 5200.


The reason i was wondering about the redline is i am planning on taking it to the drag strip friday night, they have an open class night where people can bring anything they have and its mostly just street cars, and i want to run as good a time as i can but i dont want to hurt anything,  when shifting at 5200 in 2nd into 3rd (i have a slapstick automatic) it is only at around 2800 rpm, id really like to be at about 3100 or 3200 when i shift into top gear.

[71chally416]

Don't mistake the lurching forward of the car when you shift for the motor making power. It's just making a bunch more power at the RPM it dropped to on the gear exchange then the it was at the RPM you shifted at  A 440 needs alot more head flow than it was born with to make power over 5,500rpm. If you shift it any higher than about 6K (depending on the cam you use) you'll just go slower than you would shifting it lower. A shifting loop test at the track will verify that. If it has stock exhaust I'd start the loop at 5,000.

[70burntorangeT/A]

Don't mistake the lurching forward of the car when you shift for the motor making power. It's just making a bunch more power at the RPM it dropped to on the gear exchange then the it was at the RPM you shifted at  A 440 needs alot more head flow than it was born with to make power over 5,500rpm. If you shift it any higher than about 6K (depending on the cam you use) you'll just go slower than you would shifting it lower. A shifting loop test at the track will verify that. If it has stock exhaust I'd start the loop at 5,000.

I have headers, 3inch exhaust, and some low restriction flowmaster street/strip mufflers

[Oldschool]

You need some seat time at a track during Test & tune.  That way, you can make several passes under the same conditions.  Make  the first pass shifting at 5000 rpm and go up a couple of hundred rpm's on each consecutive pass.  Make sure you leave the line at the same rpm on each pass, etc...  What you are looking for is consistency on the launch in order to make your info from the changed shift points meaningful.  After each pass look at your time slip and check ET AND mph. Keep upping the shift points 200 rpm until the car slows down and drop back to the previous shift point. 

Here is a great little tool to check on what your car is doing on the track.  Enter your cars race weight (with you in the car). Next enter your fastest ET and your fastest MPH.  What this chart does is show you the HP needed for each, ET and MPH.  The beauty of this little chart is that it allows you to see where you need to work on the car.

Example:

Say the MPH shows 400 HP and the ET shows 350 HP.  You are making the HP to run the mph.  Now you need to work on getting the car to leave harder and get the ET down.  The goal is to get the ET and MPH horsepower levels as close as possible.  When you get them down to around 5-10 HP difference, you are getting all you can get out of the car with the horsepower you are making. It is a VERY useful tool.

http://www.boostcontroller.com/hpcalculator.html

 

[moper]

I think your tach is messed up. What gears and tire size do you have on the car?

[71chally416]

You need some seat time at a track during Test & tune.  That way, you can make several passes under the same conditions.  Make  the first pass shifting at 5000 rpm and go up a couple of hundred rpm's on each consecutive pass.  Make sure you leave the line at the same rpm on each pass, etc...  What you are looking for is consistency on the launch in order to make your info from the changed shift points meaningful.  After each pass look at your time slip and check ET AND mph. Keep upping the shift points 200 rpm until the car slows down and drop back to the previous shift point. 

   A shift loop is the ONLY way you'll ever know. 

[dutch]

I think your tach is messed up. What gears and tire size do you have on the car?

I`d say after shifting 2nd to 3rd at 5200 rpm, you should end up around 3300-3500 rpm in third...