I want to make my 1977 L48 4 speed faster!! The car is completely stock and I want to make some changes. What modifications should I do first? I was thinking of getting headers and a true dual exhaust first, but I'm not sure if that will make much of a difference in horsepower. My car has a stock 3:36 rear and I was thinking of getting a 3:70. What mods would increase horsepower the most.

 

Hmmm... Personally, I like keeping the original lump (engine) in one piece,
preferrably on a pallet if you have room. Rather than bolting on alot of
stuff and taking a chance at getting the balance of the engine (balance as
in fuel-air-combustion-timing-crank), I like dropping in crate engines.
There are some *great* small block options in the 300-400 hp range
with 300-400 ft-lbs of torque to be had for around $2k to $4k.

I was just considering a GM performance crate lump for my 81. The
6.0 liter GTO engines are nice, as are the Hummer gen-iii and the
c5 corvette engines. A carbeureted "more original" lump from one
of the speed shops that deals with edelbrock or GM performance is a
great place to start looking.

If that doesn't tickle your fancy, and you'd rather go pieces and parts
a bit at a time, Edelbrock is a great place to start. They will tell you
which pieces to replace in what order to gain XX horsepower and YY
torque. They are great to work with!

bill.
(81 C3, all original with 219k miles and counting)

 

YOU ARE GOING TO GET A LOT OF ADVICE ON THIS TOPIC.ME I WOULD START WITH THE HEADS, A GOOD SET OF ALUMINUM HEADS,THEN SOME ROLLER ROCKERS,THEN A INTAKE MANIFOLD,[AIR GAP],THEN A MILD CAM ,THEN I WOULD GET RID OF THAT QUADRAJET CARB AND GET A HOLLY,650 DUBBLE PUMPER,SET OF HOOKER SUPERCOMP HEADERS,AND SOME 3 CHAMBER FLOWMASTERS. AND SOME 373 GEARS ,AND THAT WILL GIVE YOU SOMTHING TO SMILE AT.,

HOPE THIS HELPS...PS I WOULD RUN TRICK FLOW R SERIES HEADS

[IMG]local://upfiles/1664/747459D565084665B3377C28D6A46241.jpg[/IMG]

 

The air gap and carb woke my 76 up, roller rockers and exhaust would be nice. PS just went south so thats next on my list.

 

YA I LOVE THE AIR GAP INTAKE WHAT SIZE CARB DID YOU GO WITH,JUST WONDERING. ROCKERS ARE NICE TO GO WITH SOME 1.6 AND IT WILL BRING YOUR LIFT UP A LITTLE BIT.AND SOME ..NOS. YA I LOVE SPRAY.[sm=nxsmile.gif]

 

My power steering went out, was in need of help for some time now. Ready to get back into the vette, it has been sitting garaged for two years. Thats another thread. Hey! I just remembered when I installed the air gap the stock air filter sit to high to close the hood. Now it has a small one on it looks OK but not what I was after.

 

ya i had the same clearance problem. my air cleaner hit the hood to.so i found one in jegs catalog.it is a 15 inch and low profile.the air cleaner is only 2 inches tall and the top is a air cleaner toand the base is the kind that sits below the carb for clerance.if you are interested in it i can send you a pic of it.

 

Yes! send the pic, would like to see that very much.

 

What is an air gap? Where did you get it? Is it an open element air cleaner? What type of carb did you use?

 

Manifold by edelbrock, have a look at their web site. www.edelbrock.com