Whats up guys.....I have been part of the boards for awhile then feel off the map a bit since my new job....but finally am back on the ball. Well today I picked up a 350 from a guy who is the orginally owener of the 72 Camaro it came out of. He said it was in running condition and worked fine for him. Yet he need to get ride of it because his wife has been nagging him about getting that engine and 4 others out of the way. So he sold it to me for 50 bucks....now it needs some major rebuilding. The question I have right now is that it is my first engine build and first time I have broken down a engine. So where do I start? I know it needs to be cleaned and sonic wall tested to make sure it can still be used. If not still a good buy can use it for mock up build.

 

If its in good running condition why even rebuild? You could do a leak down test and just run it if it checks out ok. What are you planning on doing with it?

 

magnifluxing checks for cracks. Sonic testing just tells the thickness of the cylinder walls (primarily used when going with an overbore, like .060")

As for where to start, get rid of whatever it came with cam wise, if there is one. Depending on what you want to do with the engine, you can use the crank and whatnot.

https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...hreadid=256235

Read that thread, gives an idea for a budget engine. 305 heads can be bought in the classifieds easily.

If you want more out of the engine, well thats perfectly possible, too.

 

Well what I wanted to do is clean it up take off everything. Then rebuild from there....going from the ground up. I am looking for a good performance car. What My friend and I were talking about is putting 195cc AFR heads on it and maybe going with comp cam xtreme energy 268 for my cam I belive I could be wrong been long day for me.....what I am looking for really is anywhere in the neighborhood of about 300-375hp

 

Well what I wanted to do is clean it up take off everything. Then rebuild from there....going from the ground up. I am looking for a good performance car. What My friend and I were talking about is putting 195cc AFR heads on it and maybe going with comp cam xtreme energy 268 for my cam I belive I could be wrong been long day for me.....what I am looking for really is anywhere in the neighborhood of about 300-375hp

 

AFR 195's can take a MUCH MUCH bigger cam than the 268. ANd you will get far more power than what you are aiming for.

Try a search and you can see some of the cams used with AFR 195's.

 

ok thanks for the info.....This is my first build and I am really a beginner...Also I would want it to past smog in CA.....::shudders as he says the state::

 

If this is going in a 90 RS, then you can't really use a cam any bigger than a 268. In fact, that's about AS MUCH AS you'd want to take on.

You're in California. That means, you have to keep the WHOLE induction system your car came with; every "device", whatever it is, has to be hooked up and at least appear to be operating normally; and the car will have to submit to the IM240 dyno test, where they run it at a couple of different speeds and test for emissions.

Keep in mind, that's EVERY DEVICE; that includes the cat, the AIR (smog pump), the TBI, EGR, PCV, ..... every single piece. They WILL go over the car with a book that shows where every one is, and what wires and hoses connect, and they WILL check to see that they are there. They will start the car up, let it sit and idle for some amount of time, then run it on the dyno. They WILL watch the "Check Engine" light to make sure it comes on when it's supposed to (key on engine off), goes off when the engine starts up, and remains off for the duration of the test. They WILL fail you if the car can't successfully idle for the statutory period (10 minutes I think it is) and complete the dyno run, without lighting the "check Engine" light.


The only "legal" engine swap, is to put in an engine from NEWER vehicle; which must then have all of the emissions "devices" that the newer engine came with, installed and operating. You CANNOT "legally" put an older engine into a car.

That being said, they probably won't check the casting number on the block, and see that it's an older block with a larger bore. If the car looks stock and sounds stock and otherwise passes all the sniffer tests, it will probably make it right on through; and that's what you should aim for, is a car that looks believable as a "stock" car, and any piece they can see that isn't absolutely stone stock, have the CARB EO # either on it or handy, to verify that it's a "legal" part.

So use discretion, and pick parts that will have a high probability of passing; don't get all starry-eyed and go crazy on it, you'll discover that you rapidly create for yourself an expensive driveway ornament that you can't use for anything.

I'd suggest being realistic with your HP goals to begin with. 300 HP is about the ABSOLUTE MAX that you'll be able to get that TBI to produce, legally, and still pass smog. I'd recommend planning your engine build to get the best results IN THAT GENERAL POWER RANGE. AFR 195 heads are not consistent with that. Edlebrock Performer heads would be a better choice; and a XE262 cam, not a 268; and Edelbrock TES headers.

And yes, I used to live in CA, in an "enhanced" area; north SD County specifically, in Carlsbad; so I know exactly what it's like there. Same requirements as where you are I believe.

 

What heads are on that motor? Was the car a Z28? If it was, and its the original motor, it might have some nice stuff in it... good heads, forged crank, etc..

 

ok....that was a lot of stuff to take in there lol.....Damn...sounds like im a lil stuck....Well the one thing I may end up doing is this either staying around 300hp....or when it comes times to test it maybe even swap back to the 350 and orginal chip....but it is things that make ya go hmm I guess lol.....Enough said about the crappy state of CA.....I checked the casting on the block and it is a 3970010 and I found out that it is a 4 bolt main. Also I have a question so if I mod the car and use a different more efficent TBI would they fail me? I mean if I pass the sniffer would I be fine? I am sure I can pass the visual just the sniffer I would be worried about. Also thanks for all the info

 

Do you know of one with a CARB EO number? If it doesn't have one, it will fail. Period. They will tell you to take it off and put the factory one back on, and bring it back. They won't even bother to run it on the sniffer. That's what the "visual" is all about. And to top it all off, they will charge you their full inspection fee anyway.

The # of bolts in the 3 center main caps won't matter.

Remember..... they will open their little book, that shows where every "device" is; every wire, every hose, every sensor, every solenoid, etc. etc. etc. Every piece that the factory put there, HAS TO be present, hooked up, and appear to be operating. They WILL look for a cat, the smog pump, all of the control lines for the AIR, the pipe that goes from it down to the cat, the EGR, the evap canister and all of its lines, all of th ecomputer sensors such as O2, CTS, etc.; and so on. You WILL NOT PASS if they are absent, disconnected, or not in the right place. That means that any "mod" you install — intake, exhaust, air cleaner, etc. etc. etc. — MUST support the factory complement of "devices". The ONLY way around it is to either swap in another complete motor that was available the same year in the same chassis (TPI for TBI for example), with all of its devices and wiring and connections; a later motor, with the same requirements apllied; or go through the "referree" process. Which, you can be certain, the smog referree isn't going to just let you do whatever you feel like: it's not like that's some kind of way out of compliance with the law. His job is to certify things like motor transplants (like putting a LS1 in a Jaguar), not to give kids with hot rods that they want to hack the controls off of a free pass.

The procedure is, they give it the "visual"; if everything is in order, they then run it on the dyno. The schedule is something like, start out at idle; accelerate slowly to 15 mph, either in "drive" if it's an auto, or in a gear that will give an engine RPM of about 1500-2000; run it for 30 seconds; then accelerate slowly to 25 mph, I think the target RPM was 2500, and run it for 30 seconds more. The engine has to be "efficient" and clean in that particular RPM range, which pretty much rules out big cams.

So, plan carefully, and choose parts wisely; or you ABSOLUTELY WILL end up with a car you can't drive, or parts you can't use, or both. A colossal waste of time and money in either case.

 

ok.....so before I start building this guy back up what im going to end up doing is searching the boards for people that live in cali and see how their setups are and if they pass smog. So then I can get some ideas on how to do it. Thanks for explaing all that to me though man