Welp, I fell off the 3rd gen bandwagon and picked up an '80 T/A, Black n Gold, for next to nothing. Awesome body, tired drivetrain. I love my sleek 3rd gen, but I have a special place in my heart for those beefy bandits. Anyhow, this one's not so beefy. It's got a tired 301ci non-turbo, (i know i know), with true dual exhaust coming out of the exhaust manifolds. It's a great cruiser, but, common it's no 400. Anyhow, the tranny has been rebuilt, but I think(?) they came with T-250's, which is NOT gonna handle my desired application. I am looking for 350 crank hp. with the same degree of torque, for pure daily-driven street use. I figure a poncho 400 will suit. BUT, seeing as how the tranny has got to go, perhaps a SBC with the chev. t-350 is the way to go? I know the poncho is a direct drop in, but man, they are getting hard to find around here. One guy wants 800 cdn peso's for the bare, unfreshened block! Where as 300hp long block 350's are going for the same price!

Anyway, bang for buck....? What route to take? I'm leaning towards the T-350/poncho 400 combo...

Thanks in advance,
Hype.

 

The 400 Ponchos from mid-70's on were really lame. Getting one to run would be many Yankee $'s, let alone cdn pesos. Heads first - you can guess the rest from there.

The SBC certainly wouldn't be "off the beaten path", but it will accomplish your performance objectives for a lot less.

Or, speaking of beefy, go 454. Or better yet, a Pontiac 455 - would bolt pretty much in (with headers, at least). The 455 would be more off that beaten path. A BOP TH350 or TH400 would back it nicely.

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82 Berlinetta, orig V-6 car, now w/86 LG4/TH700R. 2.93 limited slip. Cat-back from '91 GTA, Accel HEI SuperCoil. AMSOIL syn lubes bumper-to-bumper. Daily driver, work-in-progress (LG4 w/'87 LB9 block, ZZ3 cam and intake, World 305 heads, Hooker headers & y-pipe, 3" Catco cat).
57 Bel Air, my 1st car. 0.030 over 396, Weiand Action+, Edelbrock 1901 Q-Jet, Jacobs Omnipack, 1-3/4" Hedders, TH400 w/TCI Sat Night Special conv & Trans-Scat shift kit, 3.08 8.2" 10-bolt w/Powertrax, AMSOIL syn lubes bumper-to-bumper. Best 15.1 @ 5800' Bandimere w/open diff & slipping tranny. Daily driver while Camaro was being put together.

 

Yeah, the mid 70's+ 400's were really lame, but so were chev 350's... In doing this swap, I am fully prepared to change cams, intakes, carbs.... hmm... perhaps heads, those are (#$*& expensive, albeit I realize the key to HP. Which is why 350 hp is peanuts out of a 400, the heads hardly need a massaging if the other issues are taken care of. I used to have a 400 4-speed, stock with 225horse, I added a cam, intake, headers and it layed rubber right into 4th gear. Absolutely retarded for a 16 year old to have, I can't believe I'm still alive 6 years later. =P

On the other hand though, what needs to be replaced with the chev swap?
Come to think of it, an old bandit T/A with a chev powertrain makes me want to vomit.

Nevermind.

Later,
Hype.

 

A 400 poncho and a 2004R trans sounds nice.....real nice...

 

My advice: rip out that P.O.S 301 and beat it to death with a tire iron like the piece of garbage it is. I believe that the 301 is the worst V8 ever made.

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1983 Firebird
TH700R4 Auto
Small Block 400
LG4 ECM, Intake, Carb, Distributor, etc.
Soon to be non-computer.
Clarion Head Unit 45X4
2 Pioneer 400W 12" Subs
Third Gen Performance
"A four cylinder is half an engine."

 

My advice: rip out that P.O.S 301 and beat it to death with a tire iron like the piece of garbage it is. I believe that the 301 is the worst V8 ever made.

------------------
1983 Firebird
TH700R4 Auto
Small Block 400
LG4 ECM, Intake, Carb, Distributor, etc.
Soon to be non-computer.
Clarion Head Unit 45X4
2 Pioneer 400W 12" Subs
Third Gen Performance
"A four cylinder is half an engine."

 

Hey, performance wise I understand the 301 is a piece of garbage, but it's served its purpose as it's gone ~140,000 miles.

I think I am set on the poncho 400. They are still obtainable, where as 455's are like double the price of the 400's around here, if you even find one. A 350hp poncho mill sounds good to me.

What I'm stuck on is the transmission. T350's are dime a dozen, but no overdrive..?
What are the 2004R's capable of torque wise? These are the trannies that backed the '89 Turbo T/A's, are they not? Does it bolt in fairly easily? This is all going down in a limited space home garage, with a loosely assembled bunch of gearheads and a few cold ones. Then I could swap out those 3.08's.
Urk, the thought of 400+ ft/lbs right off the line with a set of 3.73's+ lets loose a small turd deposit in my shorts.

Later,
Hype.

 

keep your pontiac all pontiac

 

A fresh 2004R with a good rebuild will serve a long life behind the 400.

 

Be sure to build up the 400 or whichever engine you decide on before it is placed in the car.

I raced my friends stock 78 T/A (400 block) against my formerly stock 84 T/A. All I can say is the 400 is sooo sick in stock form.

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--Steve S--
1984 Trans Am 305 LG4, 5 speed
Daily Driver, Flowmaster 80 Series
Holley 600 cfm & vacuum advance

 

I just recently came upon a 76 poncho 400 with the auto trans for $167 at pick 'n pull. Its going into a 72 formula. I also have another (believed to be) 455 that is in dire need of a rebuild. Needless to say, I'm excited. before I had an engine for my 72, i was toying with the sbc route, but now that i have what i have, there's no way id drop a sbc in. It just wouldn't feel right. I'm a little worried about the no O/D tranny, but this isn't my daily driver, so Its all good. If I've heard correctly 200r4s came in a lot of old Buicks and Pontiacs in the late 70's early 80s. I think they were in grand nationals, but don't kill me guys if im wrong. Anyway, Id say go with the 200r4. Keep us posted! I wanna compare notes!

Tom

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I gotta get to work on my car!! Stupid school...