For years, the LS has been the default choice for big power, but Late Model Engines (LME) is ensuring the Gen-V LT doesn’t get left behind. At PRI 2025, the Houston-based innovators drew massive crowds with the debut of their new Billet LT Blocks. Available in both standard and raised-deck heights, these blocks are engineered to handle the kind of cylinder pressure that splits factory castings in half.
The standout feature is the option for a water-jacketed billet design, allowing for 3,000-plus-horsepower street builds. LME achieves this through a complex fabrication process. “The block is cut and, then we have a full insert that is machined from billet that we press into the block,” LME co-founder Pecos Laughlin explains. “There are grooves going around the outside, and we inject epoxy to seal and hold, and then we put the sleeves in it afterwards.”
Whether you choose the water-jacketed version or the solid block for pure racing, the foundation is robust 6061-T6 aluminum. The main caps are billet steel, secured with 1/2-inch studs and side bolts, and doweled for perfect alignment. The raised-deck option pushes the deck height to 9.750 inches, opening the door for massive stroke combinations. “Both the LS and LT versions are offered with and without water in a 9.240- or 9.750-inch deck height,” Bryan Neelen, co-founder of LME, says.
LME is offering these billet LT Blocks with custom options for lifter bores (.842-, .903-, or .937-inch) and cam tunnels. For Neelen, the tall-deck is a game-changer for NA builds. “One thing that’s cool about this is there’s nothing else on the market that’s available in a tall-deck LT, so we’re looking forward to building some nice, naturally-aspirated 502s, 468s. We want to step up the game in the naturally-aspirated world with the LT,” Neelen said.
He added that the platform’s potential is proven. “In the LS world, we’ve been running 441 cubic-inch tall-deck turbocharged engines for a long time, and that works out really well, so 4.125 bore with 4.125 stroke, tall-deck, you can’t beat it for power and durability.”
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