red89camaroRS

HI I have a 305 TBI in an 89 Camaro. I want to do a 350 Carbed swap. How much is this going to cost and how difficult is it? I'm trying to do away with as much electrical as possible So i will more than likely go with an MSD. Also, as far as the gauges go, are they manual or no? what else will i need to change?

Thanks.

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

Go to the thirdgen.org homepage, click on the link on the left called "Tech Articles". Look for one that discusses swapping from EFI to carb. Look at the parts listed, check summitracing.com or jegs.com or similar sources for prices. The article pretty well describes the process, the difficulty will depend entirely upon your abilities.

The gages are electrical. No, they don't go through the computer.

With a TH700R-4, you'll have to provide for proper geometry for the throttle valve cable (corrector bracket attached to the carb throttle arm), and provide means for the torque converter lock-up. Failure to do either of these properly will result in a burned-up transmission.

red89camaroRS

Thanks.

doc221978

I agree about the TV cable, but as for converter lock-up..... It's electronic lock-up, and will decrease gas mileage. It has had no other affect on my car in about 23,000 miles. It's a 1-2 MPG difference, so it is worth hooking up.

As a side note.... remember the ground wire on the back of the passenger side head. It caused me a lot of headaches, cause of a bad ground for the speedo. I did the same swap in a 91 firebird.

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

TCC lock-up is more than fuel economy - without it, you'll burn up your 3-4 clutch pack. Might not notice it during "normal" driving, but when the tranny won't shift 2-3 WOT, you'll wish you would have listened.

M1tch

I'm in the process right now of building a smallblock 350. I have a 350 4 bolt main bored .060 over with vortec heads reaching 400 horsepower. Will it affect the steering at all with less vaccum at low rpms? The cams powerband starts at 2000 rpms so how will that affect the brakes? Are their any interior compenents that wont work? Will the car feel loose?

And how much power will the 700r4 hold with a TC lockup kit? where can i get one?

The motor is almost completely built, i should have it ready to swap in a week or two.

jdhogg86

iTrader: (1)

I've got a built LT1 that only pulls about 10-12" of vacuum at idle. Brakes fine when you stop, can creep a little at a light.

For the TCC, my friend and I pulled the crossfire inj off his trans am (went to a carb w/o computer). Disconnected everything but power to the ecm, wiring to trans and took out the check engine bulb-trans worked great.
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Steering isn't based on engine vacuum, just brakes.

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

TH700R-4 (1983), or TH200C (1982 or 1983)?

The TH200C won't care. The TH700R-4 will.

M1tch

I thought the torque converter was locked when manually shifting from 1-2-D. So can't you do that instead of buying a TCC? and where can you get one?

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

The TCC lock-up is electrical, not mechanical. Controlled by the computer (non-computer Canadian I'm not sure about).

doc221978

You can get a TCC from summit racing. I was looking into all of this.... my car has never went from 2-3 at WOT. five7kid is right about it burning the clutch packs. Mine were just already toast. (Thank you for the info)

As for the vortec engine, steering should be fine. brakes will depend a lot on the cam. I have a comp cams xr 282 hr, and i pull about 15 in on a 355. The car should feel the same, except more power.

http://store.summitracing.com/partde...5&autoview=sku

camaronewbie

You can also get alot more brake by adjusting timing some, and then adjusting carb for the timing - I did this on my 350 swap with a mild cam. In addition, you can rig a vacuum canister into the system that will hold vacuum to asist with low vacuum brake issues.

I've seen where alot of folks rig the TCC lockup function to a manual switch - I'm guessing that they leave power to the ECM, leave wiring to the 700R4 intact, and they utilize a switch wired off the diag port under the steering wheel. I had to rebuild my tranny anyway (it was slipping, but couldn't tell until the 350 power was in front of it), so I just installed a vacuum-controlled TCC lockup kit in the tranny.

The really important part is correcting the geometry at the throttle cable/TV cable assembly - an improper geometry of the TV cable will fry the tranny quick!

M1tch

Will the stock radiator keep my 350 bored .60 over cool enough to drive around on a hot summer day? What about the temperature fan switch and all the other switches? Do they run off the ecm?

And does anybody make a bracket for the throttle valve cable?