my friend just scored an '87 bird thats pretty clean and runs decent for what it is. We were discussing getting a little better performance out of it by swapping the old q-jet for like a 650 holley DP, aluminum intake manifold and disconnect the computer source from the distributor so we can "manually" tune it. Will this affect anything other than the SES light will be on?

 

Yes, it will negatively affect his wallet and will not increase performance one iota.

The carb isn't the performance problem. Check out this thread https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...hreadid=261488 .

This is oft discussed on the Carb forum. The cc q-jet is a very capable street performance piece.

(If you're building an all-out track-only car, we'll talk. Otherwise, get it out of your head that "manual tuning" is going to help this car.)

 

I guess what we are running from is the tuning nightmare of the q-jet...I think the holley is FAR more user friendly. From what i'm understanding by your reply five7 is that the swap I mentioned above would not be a good bang for the buck considering he has a dead stock motor right? would cam, hedders, exhaust and possibly heads make a huge difference with going the way I suggested?

 

I did cam & headers, plus heads & block - and changing the carb still didn't make any sense. Intake - maybe.

It really is a good self-adjusting carb. Secondary rods & hanger are about the only "tuning" needed. And, that is a lot easier to do on a q-jet than tuning a Holley.

 

You can easily suck 800+ SCFM through a Q-Jet. Going to something from the other side of Detroit, that is fickle, has poor part throttle metering, and doesn't flow as well doesn't make a lot of sense. Holley was/is popular because they were once a cheap alternative to an inadequate factory fuel delivery system. When Rochester introduced the QuadraJet, that disparity was erased, and probably swung back in the direction of the factory carb. Ever wonder why Holley is selling more hard parts and accessories than carburetors these days?

Don't take our word for it:

http://www.carcraft.com/howto/57178/

 

The Q-Jet is the best all around carb out there! With the CCC system it is more like a TBI setup than not.

Take a look at these sites if you don't believe in the CCC Q-Jet.

http://home.wi.rr.com/montecarloss/

http://www.chevyasylum.com/85monte/85monte.html

http://www.monte-list.nu/tech/gd383.shtml

http://www.hioutput.com/tech/290hp/290hp.html

https://www.thirdgen.org/newdesign/tech/quadrajet.shtml

http://www.darklair.com/monte/howto/...dle_screw.html

http://dyeager535.topcities.com/CCCqjetdiagram.html