ok guys Im new to the site and have read about the swaps my question is this. I have a 1984 Z 28 HO 5 spd the motor has the carb can I swap to a 350 carb motor and hook up to the 5 spd thats in the car without major work? I do plan to rebuild the trans

 

Not a lot of work. The details involve exactly what 350 you put in.

 

Thanks for the reply Not sure which way to go looking to build this with my son he 14 and we have 2 years to work on it. Nothing real heavy in the HP department say 300 hp would be plenty the car was from California so the body is in good shape would like to keep the 5spd thats in it with a rebuild any suggestions would be great. Also had a Question dealing with exhaust in my day we could run headers to mufflers to the tail pipe doesnt look like that can be done with this type of car or can it ??

 

First, we need to determine something - do you have to conform to emissions testing and/or inspection? The answer to that question makes a lot of difference in what you can do.

If this really is an '84 HO, you've got a good base for good power without changing the engine. As-delivered, it was rated at 190 net flywheel HP, which is around 230-240 gross flywheel HP. With headers (I'm a big fan of Hooker 2055HKR's), high-flow cat and cat-back, and cam, you can get 300 GFWHP out of the 305. With the T5, it will still have good street manners.

If you do the following, you'll have a good father/son project with good results (assuming the engine is in decent shape, doesn't need rings or bearings - which it probably doesn't): Remove the cam and replace it with a Comp XE268. Pull the heads and have 1.94"/1.60" valves put in them. This will require some machine shop work. While they're apart, do a home-porting job on them, blending the bowls and smoothing the short-side radii (do a seach on "porting" on this Board, or Google "Standard Abrasives Do-It-Yourself Porting Guide"). Have new valve springs and retainers installed to match the cam. Replace the intake with an Edelbrock Performer (or Performer RPM if you don't need to pass emissions). Install the aforementioned Hooker 2055HKR headers and y-pipe, a Catco 9118 cat (if you need to pass emissions, a piece of 3" pipe if you don't), and a cat-back that is made for the '86-'90 TPI single-cat application (this will be 3" - the best that easily fits our chassis). A fresh oil pump would be a good idea while you're at it. The stock carb will be fine, an aftermarket/upgrade ignition control module and coil would be a wise investment. This combo will easily pass emissions requirements if you have to meet them, while producing about 350 GFWHP, or about 300 net FWHP. More than enough to get a 16-year-old in trouble (or have plenty of fun at the track). It will all also easily transfer over to a 350 shortblock.

Or, you could replace the longblock with a Goodwrench 290 horse 350. Pretty much bolts in.

 

Wow
Thanks for the Info, Dont have to worry about emissions so that should help!
I have been going thru the numbers and all checks out that its an HO motor. It will puff smoke at start up from time to time so valve job and head work should take care of that, does have rear main leak but that also can be fixed, have had some trouble between shifts at high rpms thought the trans should be looked at 2nd and 3rd gear the body is great but the guy i bought the car from painted it himself and it looks like it. other than that i love the car just a shame the dont seem to hold any value here in Michigan so with that in mind i think i will look at what you have suggested thanks for your help this web site is great!!!!

 

The puff of smoke is probably just hardened & cracked valve stem seals - very common. They can be replaced without doing a complete valve job. But, if you're doing the heads anyway, have the guides cut for positive-type seals - not only do they work better and last longer than the factory type seals, they also allow for more valve travel.

Since you don't have to pass emissions, it would be a good idea with the manual transmission to get a double pumper type carb such as a Holley. Make no mistake, the stock carb is a very good street performance carb, but with the manual transmission, it's not the best choice. Holley makes a spreadbore type double pumper, the 6210, that allows you to retain the benefits of the small primaries of the q-jet, while getting the benefits for the transmission of the double pumper. The only issue is it is a divorced-type choke, so you either need to get an intake that accommodates the divorced choke thermostat, or hook up a manual choke cable.

What kind of trouble have you had between shifts?

 

Thanks for the info we are looking forward to the project. Shift problems happen at high rpms during shifts either im not pushing in the clutch all the way or something is wrong. If I let up on the gas then shift then hit the gas again no problem.

 

You can get a carb off an ex cop car of that era and keep the smog stuff.

 

It would be the same carb he has now. Simple tuning would let it support more power easily.

Your shifting problems could be a clutch and/or pilot bearing problem. At any rate, a T5 shouldn't be powershifted (which is why the double pumper helps even more).