I've looking at threads for days on swapping older 350's into third gen f-body cars and i feel like i know a lot more than when i started and thanks for that.one thing i haven't learned is what to expect with a digital dash when adapting to a carbed engine.does the computer operate the display?I thought at first i would just put the tpi back on the older engine so the wiring would be roughly the same but it looks like that would choke the 350 badly.do i have to give up the cool dash?

 

Computer has no connection to the gauges on your car
All the gauge sender units get transferred from your old engine to your new one

What you do have to sort out when going from computer to carb is how to operate the fuel pump , convertor lockup (and possibly fan) that where operated by the computer

 

thanks for the quick reply and with good news too.i am certainly glad i don't have to spend a small fortune on gauges and stuff. I am sure i"ll have more questions as I get into this but that had been buggin me for days.thanks again!

 

ok,on the fuel pump issue,some of the threads say a fpr is all u need with the tpi pump and some talk about going a completely different route.I don't want to drop the tank if its not necessary but what is the best way to go?

 

Regulator with the factory return line, Simple.....

 

which regulator(s)should i look at?this is new territory for me,so any help getting the right stuff the first time would be greatly appreciated.something that would be right for the application and be reasonably priced.

 

This one would work just fine; http://www.summitracing.com/parts/mrg-2015

Along with any one of these that will go with which ever type fuel line you decide to use be it rubber hose-braided line or steel; http://www.summitracing.com/search?k...0fitting&dds=1

So one of these can be installed between the regulator and carb so you can see to adjust fuel pressure to the proper spec recommended by the carb maker; http://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-800115

Pay attention to the gauge port size of the fitting and gauge to get the same thread size......

 

now that is an answer!I thank you for the info and going to the trouble of finding this stuff and putting it together like that.I looked at fpr's 3 or 4 different places and the cheapest one I saw that i thought would work for sure was $100.This is awesome.you saved me money and time I would have spent trying to figure it out on my own.thank you very much.

 

Your welcome !

Parts look-up is my job (in another field) so it only took a couple minutes....

Good luck with your build....

 

ok, the next issue you mentioned was lock up for the torque converter and according to anther thread i can do that by splicing in at the aldl and adding a switch.that i can do.the whole idea behind this is not to burn up the 3-4 clutches,if i read and understand correctly,right?my question is when to turn the switch on.I would assume that trying to make it operate like it would if it was still hooked up to the ecm would be correct,but I've also read about drag strip use,making "it"chirp in second gear......etc.so,if you would run me through what is good and what isn't for the tranny(700r4)please.

 

all the TCC does is lock the turbines in the tq converter together giving you a full manual connection between the engine and transmission (just like a clutch in a manual car. its only used at higher cruising speeds to help keep the trans fluid temps down and lower wear and tear on the internals.

i can see where having it locked at the track could be an advantage since theres no slippage in the tq converter on launch, but im sure it also increases the loads on the clutches and other internal parts. im no drag expert though

you can rig a manual switch for TCC lock up. but with it being a manual switch, its up to you to turn it off and on at the appropriate times. like cruising on the highway.

the other alternative is to get a lock up kit from the aftermarket that does everything on its own. this is however the more expensive route. ive seen the kits run anywhere from $80 to $200. and it requires dropping the tranny pan to install. but it removes the need for you to flip a switch (were all human and sometimes forget things right?) and makes for a cleaner install since you dont have to add a switch anywhere.

 

yeah that's a good point especially since I may have to run a switch operating the cooling fans as well.I haven't looked into that area much but if i'm stuck with a switch and the job of making sure i don't let it overheat that would be bad enough by itself,let alone both of them.i guess its a small price to pay finally get to drive this project.is there an alternative to the fan switch out there that's reasonable? thanks btw

 

There is a temp switch in the block between 6 and 8 (passenger side) you can use to turn the fan on and off. There is already one there standard. Get one for your desired temperature. Mine is on at 195 off at 180 from memory.

 

i wish it were that simple,but the carbed built 350 i am swapping into the car is from 1968 and the heads are from the same era and it dosen't have the sensor or the port to put it in. I didn't give this information yet,so i apologize.up to now it hasn't come up or made a difference.In addition to that i am swapping to a carbed setup so the computer and wiring it powers and reads won't be used on the car.i guess i could find the wiring related to the fans and relays and use them but i wondered if there was anything other than a manual toggle to operate them without the computer.the only two i seen run the fans all the time,which doesn't seem like a good idea,or run a old style clutch fan.the latter seems good but i think for that to work well i'd have to find a shroud for it.i had the dual fan sitting here and thought it would work fine even with just a toggle switch.i thought it would probably work better if I could remove "me" from the situation! thank you just the same.

 

they make fan controllers that use a probe that go into the radiator fins. no need to actually tap into a water port.

 

awesome!i'll start looking around for one.sounds kinda simple so hopefully they're not too pricey.thank you and thanks again to the others who helped me out here.a few days ago i was overwhelmed by the issues with this swap and now i feel like I've got a pretty good handle on things.if i ever figure out how to post pics i'll try update pics and posts.

 

ok i get what a thermostatic fan control is now. I read at length today about them but the whole time i was reading about them i wasn't getting the point that they operate independently.since i got the info on the radiator probe type from 401 and looked at what he was talking about,I was finally able to put 2 and 2 together.they operate the fans automatically with a simple 12v power supply.no ecm involved.the first place i looked had several brands and types and many of them were under $50,including the radiator probe type and had adjustable temp. settings. thanks again!

 

I've ran into another snag on this build.I'm having trouble finding a water pump with the older style(like the 87 and older)accessory mounting towers and tab for the passenger side alternator placement that also has counterclockwise pump rotation.So far all the ccw pumps I've seen have no acc. mounting holes at all and all the pumps with them run cw.I 'm deleting the a/c and smog pump,so if I have to put the alt. on top of p/s pump like stock the belt will be running around the outside of a slightly out of shape square.even if I could put a tensioner in this setup somewhere,it seems like it would slip somewhere if not everywhere.
has anyone seen or used an old style water pump with ccw rotation? I'm beginning to think a pump like this isn't available.I've checked at parts stores,junkyards and websites and the closest one i've found so far had the two mounts cast in and had ccw rotation but when i went to put it on,it was too wide to mount up to the block! help!

 

update on water pump issue!I found one on ebay motors.It is reasonably priced even with the $10 for shipping and comes in as cast(raw aluminum)or for $22 more it comes polished.I don't know why I didn't go there sooner,but man am i happy i found this thing! thanks again for all the help.Maybe this info will help someone else.

 

As far as the fan relay goes, you can put the stock sender in the cooling port on the intake SO LONG AS IT IS BEFORE THE THERMOSTAT. Preferred place is in the head, but mine is in the intake and never breaks 200. Run a solenoid to the fan because it draws a lot of amps, sender either sends ground to the solenoid or can send a hot to activate it. I personally dont like a radiator probe, rather have activation from the engine itself, since that is what you really want to regulate temp on.

 

Why would you need a reverse rotation water pump on your engine? The only reason would be if you have a serpentine belt and it comes from crank around pump on the passenger side. Engine rotates clockwise, alt does the same, ps pump too. If you are running an older setup on an older engine, this will not work.

 

I haven't quite got where i can post a pic or drawing yet so hopefully this will be a good enough explanation.The p/s pump and of course the crank and waterpump will be in their normal 1987 position.the alternator will be mounted in front of the passenger side valve cover(top left).if I run the alt on top of the p/s pump the belt would be catching the outside of the four pulleys and not contacting much of the water pump at all.i thought this would be prone to slip.If I'm thinking right(big if)going around the right(driver)side of the water pump,up to alt,back to p/s pump to crank would provide much better contact on each pulley,but would require a reverse rotation pump and pulley.the rest of the pulleys line up already are the serpentine type