Z-28 1/4 Mile Times

[70CitrusZ]

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Camshaft, for one thing...

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That is it, there is no other advantage, if in fact it is an advantage.
The bigger cam would be required to support the higher revs a 302 would need to attain to produce the power required (vs. the 350.)
The lt-1 has screw in studs and guideplates ,smaller cam,
and more cubes.
The reason the factory rated the 302 at a lower RPM was to keep the advertised HP number down. You will note the Boss 302 is also rated at 290hp. Its a simple matter of deciding what advertised HP level needs to be, and pick the RPM point at which that happens and use it.
I do not believe the 302 has any "special" advantage over any other similarly equipped small block,other than perhaps a better rod stroke ratio, and had the engineers at GM been able to use a 327 or a 350 for that matter, I'm sure they would have.
The size choice was only to keep within the SCCA 5.0L limit at the time.
The LT-1 has it over the 302 owing to the cubic inch difference, and all if not more performance pieces.
The LT-1 was unfortunately saddled with a crappy retarded ignition from stock, and a leaner than optimal carb jetting, but a "super tuned" LT-1 is an engine to be reckoned with, and with a much better cam in any of the aftermarket grinds,(even keeping conservative) will show a pretty impressive HP and Torque.