Hi all, Im hopping over for a visit from the TPI board because I need some help doing a swap for a friend of mine.
We are going to swap out his 89 305 for a 350. He doesnt really want to try to max out his car, just to improve his everyday driveability and torque. He also doesnt want to spend a fortune doing this. His 305 is just getting a little tired and we use his car to tow our bikes around the country so we wanted to up the torque ante. His only current mods are a dynomax exhaust, thermostat, and open element air cleaner. We G-teched his car and it runs mid 16,s.
He will be coming into town from about 2 hours away to do the swap at my house on a weekend so I want to make sure I have everything we need. I also dont want to send him home with driveability problems, as he is not a real technical guy.
My tentative plan is to simply swap in a targetmaster and be done with it.
So heres my questions.
1. Other than a flexplate and an intake that will fit, what else do I need to have on hand to do this?
2. Is there an intake and TBI adapter that will fit under a stock firebird hood with the open element on top?
3. What kind of everyday driving performance increase can he expect from the targetmaster swap?
4. If he buys the $1800 Vortec headed motor instead, will he have tuning and driveability problems with the stock camshaft?
Any misc. advice appreciated.
Thanks,
Roy

 

to just swap out motors theres nothing to worry about. Make sure you seal your intake properly. Vacuum leaks are the TBI's typical drivability problems after a swap.

If your friend is just looking for an increase in HP, you'll get that from just the 350.

The cam shouldnt be a prob. But I dont know the specs on it. I do know that if you have more than 270 dur and dont pull 13lbs of vac the car will run like s****....

Just the stock intake and heads work fine for an everyday driver and "weekend floggings". ..

 

he will need a bigger TB or bigger injectors for the stock TB unit to supply the extra fuel that will be required for the new motor. Most carb intakes will work under the hood with a adapter/spacer and the open air element(gasket air cleaner) or go with a Holley projection intake but you will still need a spacer and mods to get the fuel lines to fit and the egr to not hit the TB. He needs to change the knock sensor to a 350 knock sensor and bump the timing to 8-10 degrees BTDC. Headers and a good exhaust will be needed to see the full potential of the motor you are talking about or any 350 for that matter.

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1988 TA 300+hp 350 w/ TBI and Holley TB unit, Holley projection intake,
WC T-5, 3.42 gears w/ Auburn posi. MSD 6A, edelbrock TES headers, dynomax 3" cat and cat-back system, ACCEL coil, polyurethane bushings all around, aluminum driveshaft, Mr. Gasket open air cleaner.

1993 S-10 w/ 4.3L V6 TBI, slightly bigger cam, Mild polish job and 3 angle valve job on heads, Edlebrock TES headers, Dynomax cat back, MSD 6A, ADS chip

2000 Kawasaki KX 125