Lingenfelter Can Now Turn Your C8 Corvette’s LT2 V8 into a 704-Horse 427

When the C8 generation’s take on the track-ready Z06 formula officially broke cover with an exotic high-revving 670 horsepower V8, most Corvette fans were over the moon about the model’s return to its naturally aspirated roots. As always, though, there were those who weren’t thrilled about the new crankshaft layout. After seven decades, it was safe to say that a lot of Corvette fans had become more than a little attached to the traditional cross-plane crank pushrod setup of the legendary Small Block Chevy. To these diehards, the complex, unproven, and lacking-in-torque LT6 wasn’t worth the squeeze, no matter how many records it set.

Well, if you count yourself as someone with a similar line of thinking when it comes to the C8 Z06, the aftermarket – which we always count as one of the Corvette’s greatest strengths – has answered your call. With its most recent creation, Lingenfelter, perhaps the most famous and trustworthy name in the massive LS/LT tuning space, hasn’t just brought the 2020+ Stingray’s LT2 V8 up to Z06 levels of power; they’ve managed to significantly exceed the benchmark of GM’s renowned Gemini Project.

Getting the LT2 from 376 to 427 cubic inches

Lingenfelter has been juicing Corvettes as long as just about any name in the industry; give any of its engineers a stock LS1, and they can make it out-sing a modern supercar powerplant blindfolded. But here’s the rub: extracting extra displacement and grunt from the C8’s 6.2L LT2 wasn’t as easy as a simple copy-paste on a tried-and-true formula. As you might have guessed, the LT2’s move amidship came with some unique packaging requirements that simply weren’t there when ‘Vettes wore their eight-cylinders in their respective noses.

To reach the desired magic number of 427 cubes within the clearance parameters of the C8’s engine bay, with special care given to the motivator’s flush-mounted oil pan and the specs of the Dual-Clutch Transmission, Lingenfelter hit the computer-aided drafting table. And where better to start when building a modern take on the legendary LS7 than the genuine article? The exploration began with the LS7’s 4.125-inch bore and 4.00 stroke but quickly realized that the troublesome but necessary oil pan left no room for additional crank throw – the conventional road to 7.0-liters seemed closed until a collaboration with Callies Precession Engine Components brought forth a distinctive eight-counterweight crank that would feasibly clear.

With that sizable hurdle in the rearview, Lingenfelter set about upfitting the stock LT2 block, sourcing complementary parts, and testing other possible fixes and upgrades on an LT1 engine while their LT2 and its crank were under construction. Pistons and con-rods were sourced from Callies. Larger sleeves and lifter bushings were fitted, along with LS7 lifters. An ideal camshaft and intake manifold were selected, and the LT2’s Active Fuel Management (AFM) system was thrown in the scrap heap. Up top, the factory LT2 heads were CNC’d for improved airflow, LPE’s own valve guides were utilized along with improved valve springs, titanium retainers, and stock rockers with new CHE bushings. Another track from the LT Greatest Hits Album came in the form of LT4 fuel injectors fed by an upgraded high-pressure fuel pump; not a bad way to spend $10,000 – note that pricing for the 427 LT2 upgrade hasn’t been announced, but after muscling through all of the technical talk, it felt like the perfect time to drop a mindless Fast and Furious quote.

The Finished Product

When all was said and done, Lingenfelter’s glorious naturally aspirated creation belted out 704 horses and 600 lb-ft on 91-octane! For folks not keeping track at home, those are respective improvements of 34 and a whopping 140 when compared to the Z06’s LT6. Sure, a Stingray with this monster motivator will still struggle to corner with a widebody Z, and it won’t have the same “special sauce,” so to speak, but in a world where even the Dodge Charger has been relegated to six-cylinder purgatory, a good-old-fashioned cross-plane V8 has become a pretty singular experience, especially one that makes Hellcat power without a blower! Stay tuned; we’ll be watching the continued development of the LPE 427 LT2 like a pot of Hawks!

Source:
MotorTrend

Related:
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