im looking to make more power with what i have. i have an 85 firebird (was a v6, it blew up now im with an 87 305 tpi i picked up for real cheap). im not lookin for a power house or to make an outrageous quarter mile, just to make about 250 or so horses to mess with. the guy to had it before me put 350 heads on it, i guess he thought he could get more airflow. im looking to spend as little as possible cuz at 7.50 an hour you dont have much wiggle room. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanx in advance

 

Well, the head swap lost you a significant bit of compression. Selling those for a pair of 416 or 081 heads will be more help than hurt. And while the heads are off, you can see if your pistons are dished or flat-top. If dished, get the "new" heads milled. 0.030" is safe.
How will you be using it? Where will you be driving it? What speeds?
I hesitate to post more until I see how you answer those.

 

i only plan on racing stoplight to stoplight and occasionally down the interstate. i would say if my new transmission shifts into overdrive at full throttle then a little past 120. i would like to take it to the track just for something to do on the weekends but nothing too serious. would i be able to get a little more flow with lt1 heads from a junkyard? or what heads would i be able to find in a junkyard i would be able to rebuild to look for?

 

If im not mistaken you can put LT1 heads on that motor. The best junkyard heads would probably be vortecs.

 

im pretty new at this mod stuff. what vehicle would the vortec heads be on?

 

96-99 and some 2000 tahoes, silverados, etc.

 

thats great thank you. would it all work with my tpi setup? im also trying to find an lt1 intake (for less maintenance as tpi) if u have any info on it i would like to swap it out and use the same computer and injectors. i know where i could get one for cheap but i dont want to waste my money if i know it wont work

 

I completely forgot to mention that vortec heads require a vortec specific intake. Im a carb guy so I dont know if people have been able to use a TPI with vortec heads. Do a search in the TPI forum and you can probably find that out.

 

thanx. any other power solutions would be great as well. im hoping to get a set of 1.6 roller rockers soon

 

You could do Vortecs, but you'll have to mill them about 0.050" to save any compression.
If you just want 120 MPH at the top of OD, then swap in a 4.10:1 rear gear.

 

Open her up with 4:10 or 4:11 rear, work on your intake and exhaust. Get a mini ram larger runners, port and polish it along with your heads. Throw some hooker shorties on and do a mild cam. You will have a true stop light to stop light racer. The trick really is in the gearing we just through 4:10 rear gears in my buddy's DD 4th gen 3.8 mustang and it really gave the car a kick in the ***. Paired with some wide tires and a posi rear it'll be real hard to beat from a dig.

 

so i could use my tpi setup with vortecs? i wont be getting these parts all at once. maybe one upgrade a month if im lucky. i have enough money saved up for a cc503 cam valvesprings and a tuned chip from grad money. right now i want a mean rumble and i like that cam cuz i dont have to do any work to the heads

 

Wrong cam. With an HSR, that's pull well to 6500 rpm! TPI is all done well before 5500. Plus too much lift for Vortecs, and the intake closing is so late that you'd need flat top pistons and milled heads. Then it'd need a 2400-stall converter. But that might be fun anyway.
To use Vortecs with TPI will require a very costly intake base. Cheaper to just do the HSR.
If you want to keep it TPI, pick a shorter cam.

 

i think im gonna stick with my l98 heads and have them milled like you said but if i could put an lt1 intake on it that would be great. there easier to maintain and i know they flow a little better. is that possible? or would i need some kind of blocking plate?

and sorry for so many questions lol

 

Attaching the LT1 intake to Vortec heads is a serious undertaking. Trying it with those heads you have is even more so.
And with the heads you have, you still need to get them milled, even if you have flat tops. If your pistons are dished, you'll still need a shorter cam.

 

ok cool. i have a rough idea of what i want to do. i have stock v6 exhaust also. what full exhaust mod could i do or what brand would anyone recommend? ive always been a fan of the flowmasters but i heard they restrict power

 

anyone have any suggestions?

 

this is really in the wrong section but i'll but in

you cannot use your stock TPI Base on Vortec heads, you need a specific TPI base for Vortec heads, something like this: http://www.summitracing.com/parts/EDL-3817/

in my opinion one of the best mods you can do is a ring and pinion out back. with an automatic that you plan on driving every day i would go with a 3.73:1 ratio, 4.11:1 is a little steep, if you racing someone your not going to need OD unless your doing a standing mile, and a 4.11:1 will put you in OD by the end of the 1/4 mile

i do have a set of 081 heads for a 305 i would be willing to part with but it's not worth it to ship

 

is there any car (g body, small truck, older car etc.) that i would be able to swap into my bird? i can also do some fab work