There's an old saying we remember that goes something like, "Horsepower sells cars, but torque wins races." Everyone brags about their humongous horsepower numbers, but when it comes to getting ...

Introduced in 1970, the Chevy 454 — affectionately known as the Rat Motor – was the largest displacement Chevrolet engine to enter the big-block engine showdown of the muscle car era. At 454 cubic ...

Few vehicle phrases roll off the tongue as beautifully as 'Chevy 454 big block.' This selection of words can and has put a smile on many a car enthusiast's face for decades, owing to how good the 454 ...

Chevy's 454 was part of the big-block's Mark IV generation, hitting the scene in 1970, right before the oil crisis, securing its status as one of the last great powerplants of the American muscle car ...

Chevrolet’s big-block V8s have never been subtle, and few pairings spark more debate than the 396 and the 454. Both are Mark IV “Rat Motor” legends, yet they deliver power, character, and practicality ...

One of the first modern performance trucks, the 454 SS was C1500 turned into a tire-shredding street weapon powered by a big-block V8 that was once available on muscle car legends such as the Chevelle ...

During the era when muscle cars reigned supreme, GM's Chevrolet division developed some of the greatest big-block V8s of all time. Since the early 1960s, American carmakers started offering more ...

Oooh, two General Motors V8s within a cubic inch of each other! They have to be nearly the same engine, right? After all, the Chevrolet 454 and Pontiac 455 come from the same corporate parent, and ...

In the '60s, America developed some cool, advanced engines, such as Pontiac's overhead cam inline-6 or the jet-turbine in the Chrysler Turbine Car. Still, when push comes to shove, our first love is a ...

Gilbert Smith is an automotive journalist with over five years of specialized research and writing experience. Before joining CarBuzz in 2024, he produced in-depth buyer’s guides and feature articles ...