What Should We Do With The Old 502?

I posted this as a blog a few weeks ago, and it go so much attention that I thought I'd post it here:

Last year when we rolled out the newest iteration of Project X—our iconic ’57 Chevy—it had only been five years since its last mechanical transformation. Back in 2003, Project X had served duty as the development mule for GM Performance Parts then-new Ramjet 502 big-block crate motor. Then, as now, the 502 Ramjet put out 502 hp and 565 lb-ft of torque from a port fuel-injected 502 cubic inches. When GMPP took Project X back under its wing in 2007 for its most recent makeover, the 502 was stripped down to its short-block, and mocked up with a carbureted intake. Standing in for GMPP’s 427-inch ZL1 crate motor, the 502 helped GM Performance Division with chassis and firewall mods until the ZL1 was ready for its curtain call.

With its role as Project X power plant finished, we now have an opportunity to build up the 502 short-block with an all-new top end, but we need your help deciding what to do. Here’s the short-block specs: 4.47-inch bore x 4.00-inch stroke, four-bolt main caps, forged steel crank, forged steel shot-peened rods, forged 9.6:1 pistons, and hydraulic roller cam (.527/.544-inch lift, 224/234 duration at .050). We’d like to keep the original rotating assembly and freshen up the rings and bearings. Other priorities are to run 91 octane pump gas (the best we can get in California), modest cost for bolt-on parts, and use a carburetor.

The heads, intake, carb, and camshaft are all open for suggestion. What would you like us to do to the motor, and what would you like us to drop it in?  

I have two ideas. And the car is a Chevelle any year is acceptable up to 72

1.)Build it with a complete Holley systemax system.
Dont they make a kit with everything you described? Lets see what kind of power it can make? This will take the guess work out for the entry level engine builder and will be followed by many if it happens to be successful.

2.) build it with Dart cylinder heads, a roller cam and add in a supercharger, nitrous, and stick it in a 70 chevelle and see what the rear wheel horse power is?  

you guys can do what ever you want to the motor when your done you can put it in my 63 nova  

^This guy's usin' his head^

I want a blower or twin turbo setup, and after that you can shoehorn it into my '57 Buick Special.  C'mon!  Dare to be different!  

Twice now, I've seen this car rebuilt in your magazine...and both times, the last builder of the car was ridiculed.  The engineering of the suspension was called into question, both times.  If a pro shop screws up a car with that much exposure... well, we'll see years from now, what the writer at that time has to say about how the car was rebuilt.

If you want to keep the reciprocating assembly, and the 502 has been done to death, then the only choice availible is power adders.  Compare nitrous, a Roots style blower, a centrifugal, and one turbo versus two turbos.

Of course, there will be a need to make it apples-to-apples, but maybe just to show people where these power adders make their power in the RPM range, what a customer really gets for their money, etc.  Either we'll repeat the old arguments of blower versus nitrous versus turbos...or we'll find something new, like one makes too much heat for small engine compartments, etc.