For years almost any question I had about my 05 Sport, I could find answers here with a search, and somebody--usually 10 or 20 people--had already been there done that and came back with pictures and schematics. You guys are awesome. Thank you for being able to change my dash lights and find the right steel brake lines.

Now I've got a bigger problem. A couple of weeks ago, I got forced off the freeway while avoiding an accident during a big storm, and plowed into deep water at about 50 mph. The engine hydrolocked. I found pieces of one of the rods in the oil pan.

The correct engines I can find from places like LKQ are at around 120k miles, and are still running $2-3k, plus another two grand in parts and certified mechanic labor necessary to get a warranty. Seems like a lot for an engine with an unknown history.

I've looked at remanufactured engines, and after reading several pages of BBB complaints against nearly every company in that game, I've decided to bite the bullet and rebuild the engine from the ground up. Especially as I plan to keep my V8 Sport forever. It's a beast.

So I'm looking for ideas and recommendations on several of the key decisions on a rebuild: Compression, stroke, rods and pistons, cam, ecu, exhaust, peripherals.

I know there are endless areas of debate, so I'll frame my own decision with this objective:

I want to get the most power I can get from an NA engine (yeah, I know, but no, I'm not supercharging it), and still get 150k miles out of it. The question is, how much power can I get, and with what setup, with a budget of around $7k?


Main Build Questions

I get the impression that there's not a ton of room to bore 2uz cases, but there is a lot of room to stroke. Is that correct?

Assuming forged rods and pistons, can anyone point me in the right direction for figuring out the sweet spot of crank (if not stock), heads and cams to get a good balance of power and reliability?

I'll be putting on Thorley headers and new catback exhaust. I assumed dual all the way back, but the shop is saying that keeping the y-pipe won't have a big impact on power, other than sound. Any recommendations on exhaust?


I'm sure I'm just scratching the surface, but I appreciate any input on the build. I'm pulling the motor this weekend and shipping it off. Hoping to get my homework done to make some decisions.

BTW: I cross posted at Lextreme after reading through a lot of build threads there. If I get some good feedback, I'll post it back here. Thanks!