In talking with Tony & Kevin at FI, I can safely go to 600 hp without having to touch the internals of the VQ motor. Not that I need that much power, it's nice to know I could go that high if I wanted to.
I've built my share of GM pushrod motors (old school stuff with carbs & cams, no fuel injection) and even on cars with blowers, making any kind of boost on the old motors required internal work. Yes, the manufacturing process has gotten better, car engines are much better now than they were in the 60s & 70s, and we've learned a lot technology wise in the last 40 odd years. We'd take cars running 13:1 compression, stuff a GMC 6-71 blower on top and then wonder why the engine grenaded on the starting line...or halfway down the track...
It's nice to take basically a stock vehicle, make some relatively minor adjustments and make good power, without having to tear it down and rebuild it.
