Iam looking to buy a set of new heads , Iam alittle confused with which ones to buy because , I do not fully understand all the mathamatics of lift , intake etc. My car is a 92 " Z28 TPI 350 , its internals are all stock except for the piston rings. Which heads would be best suitted for me ? , Id like them to be fully assembled , and I dont plan making anymore than 400hp in the near future. Any suggestions or info would be appreciated.

 

if you want direct bolt ins, i believe edelbrock has a set of aluminum centerbolt heads meant for TPI 'vettes. but if you really want the best bang for the buck, i'd suggest doing a little research. Hotrod.com has massive amounts of comparative information on any make or model head you can think of.

as for fully assembled, you really kind of need to match valvesprings to your camshaft, assuming that you will be upgrading to a more radical one. your cam will should suggest what valvespring will be best used for them. personally, i like the idea of those new "beehive" spirings like on the LS motors.

basically, youre gonna have to work for this one and decide for yourself what exactly youre gonna be doing with this motor. I would also advise taking a serious look at your bottom end. if you've already needed rings, chances are your bearings are not going to be in prisitine condition. you will probably want to consider a full rebuilt if youre gonna do anyhthing more serious than cruise around and look cool with this engine.

 

Thanks , well the rings were replaced as a precaution , there were no signs that suggested I needed them , but I installed them so that I wouldnt have to do it later. Yes I do plan on doing more than just driving around looking cool , I would like to have around 350+hp, and I also do intend on rebuilding the entire motor , Im just not building a race motor. Thank you for you information, I will go to that site. I'll keep you updated on how it goes.

 

Yeah, the Edelbrock Performer centerbolt heads look good.

 

Thanks for the input , I've been looking at those and they seem to be the best for my situation.

 

Simple "Vortec heads"

 

Vortec heads are nice, yes. Except for the fact that a TPI baseplate costs $400.

If you have the cash for 'tecs and a TPI intake, you certainly have the cash for a set of aftermarkets as the kind aforementioned. I would look into those (don't limit to just Edel, look at Dart, World, Trick Flow, etc). Compare everyones as far as price versus product, keeping in mind what you want out of the engine.

 

what's your budget?

 

No budget really , but I dont think I will pay anymore that 2k each , I'll buy whatever is the best. As long as it fits my criteria. I might go with vortecs , I think I read somewhere that Scoggin Dickey makes the TPI baseplate compatable with the vortec heads.

 

That SDPC baseplate that you heard of is the $400 piece that I mentioned. It may just be my opinion, but I'd rather put that $400 either to the heads and retain the factory baseplate setup, or put it towards a better overall intake setup.

 

these may be a bit out of your price range but are Very Cool!!!
http://www.araoengineering.com/Chevy/chevysmb.htm
for 2 G's apiece you "could" look into some 18* brodix SPX heads and have enough left over for the manifold and exhaust work you would need,with $$$ to spare.
good heads will need a good cam to really respond as well.
since you're only looking for 400 hp or so,how about the edelbrock rpm kit?heads,cam and kit,manifold and carb.all matched and good for 420 hp (they say) with 9.5:1 compression.
i would recommend a different cam than the rpm though,decide on heads,then think about the cam.
just a few thoughts.
Eric B

 

Thanks for all the input guys , I appreciate it. Now it seems I have alot more to consider. Although I do want to retain my TPI setup or atleast a similiar to TPI fuel injection setup ie. Holley Stealth Ram , TPIS miniram , etc...I dont mind keeping the TPI even though it falls right on its face after about 4k, its the torque , appearance , and original look that drives me to stay witht TPI.
But Im going to look into a new cam to go along with the heads to get the most out of them.

 

Home port your stock TPI heads. More than enough airflow is available from these heads in ported form. You'll end up with a TPI friendly sub 170cc port also (high velocity) and have no fitment issues. You can even upgrade to new 2.02 x 1.60 valves. You'll get all the power improvement you're looking for and keep it all GM.

 

Take a look on ebay. I picked up a set of brand new Pro topline torker heads on ebay for $300 shipped. These heads flow as good as vortecs if not better and can be ported and had with bigger valves. One night I seen a set of fully assembled barely used 200cc World heads go for $450. I also seen at least two sets of used holley aluminum systemax heads fully assembled which are around 185cc go for $500. If you can drink lots of coffee and do tons of searches sometimes I see crap go for practically nothing with low buy it now prices but those dont last long. Its kind of a luck shot on those if you see them and buy them.

 

Yea I gotta spend some time on ebay and see what it has to offer, I dont think I have enough experience to port heads yet , I was alittle concerned when I was just porting the TPI out.

 

just today i heard that GM is putting out a new version of the Vortecs called the Bow Tie vortecs. there is a big and small port version, but are both basically the same 64cc head. in factory form, the're supposed to support .530 lift, and have dual intake bolt patterns, which may be compatible with your current TPI baseplate. If these heads arent being sold now, they are supposed to be pretty soon. I am seriously considering a set of them myself.

 

wow that sounds pretty good. Im gonna have to look into those.

 

http://chevyhiperformance.com/techar...er/index1.html

Gm parts direct says for the 206cc version $457.14 complete and $280 bare each. Small port version is 185cc.

 

What is the port size on stock 1992 350 TPI heads ???

 

About 160cc