From drag racing to standing-mile speed runs to wild, hopped-up street cars, the team at Late Model Engines in Houston, Texas builds some of the most powerful GM LS engines in the world, and not only do they have plenty of grunt on the inside, but their bullets look like pieces of mechanical art on the soutside, as well.

One such powerplant recently churned out by the Late Model Engines team that caught our attention is a piece destined for X275 doorslammer racing, and if the spec list is any indication, it should make plenty of noise (no pun intended) wherever it races.

Built for customer Carlos Cancino, the engine you see here in all its polished and billet glory is a 440 cubic inch LSX, beginning with a GM Performance Parts LSX Tall Deck block that the LME staff has performed their solid deck machine work to, also adding 1/2-inch head studs before assembly. Built with what the team says is “the best of the best,” you’ll find a Bryant crankshaft, Dyres piston rods, and Diamond pistons forming the basis for the short block. The engine is topped with GM’s stout LSX-DR aluminum cylinder heads, with a Holley EFI system controlling the fueling. As you can see, LME has fitted the heads with their own billet aluminum valve covers that make the whole package look like a million bucks.

Cancino has opted for a nitrous oxide combination, and as such, you’ll find a complete, two-kit Induction Solutions nozzle setup plumbed into the intake to create the 1,00-plus horsepower that will be needed to run in the tough X275 class.

In addition to this piece, you’ll find an array of LS powerplants on the company’s website and Facebook page just as impressive inside and out as this one, all built in their fully equipped machine shop stocked with three-axis CNC block machines, honing systems, electronic balancers, and Superflow flowbenches and EFI engine dyno. To learn more about Late Model Engines, be sure to visit them at their home on the web at latemodelengines.com.