Right now I have a 90 Trans Am. LB9, 700r4, and 165,000 miles. Later this summer ill pick up exhaust for around $350(slp headers and y-pipe, dynomax 3" and a flowmaster 80). Ill also do a basic tune up and an air intake. After that where should I go?? I would like to do camshaft, heads, valvetrain and intake. I like the Miniram and have heard good things about. I really dont want to spend $1000+ on heads...I could spend maybe $600-$700 there for assembled heads. I also am looking at Pro Magnum roller rockers and possibly the TPIS ZZ-9 camshaft. If I get those done Ill move on to suspension, 3.42s, and a higher stall TC. How does this sound? Am I on the right track?? Thanks!!

 

I'd do gears, TC and suspension work BEFORE the heads/cam. That power is useless if you don't have the stall for it, the gear for it and you can't put it to the ground. I'd check out the HSR before the miniram.

IMO flowmaster is one of the worst flowing (and sounding) mufflers on the market.. after you do heads/cam I'd suggest getting a cutout for the track.

 

I know a lot of people dont like flowmaster, but I have one on now and I really like the sound. Also, I would like to keep as much fuel efficiency as posssible, as this will be a daily driver. Forgot to mention that somewhere in there Ill be reprogramming the PROM, too. I hate to be ignorant, but what exactly will a higher stall converter offer? In terms of suspension, panhard bar,weld-in sfc's, and what else??

 

Before spending money on an intake system and other such, I'd recommend a block upgrade.

Cubic inches is the cheapest power money can buy.

 

used I take it ? Can;t even get the SLP's alone for that price .

 

if going fast is the first priority, i'd say put a 4" bore kit in it.

 

yeah, exhaust is used. Half the reason im buying it is because the slp's are so expensive. What would be more beneficial? A block upgrade or a newer 350?

 

Yes. Absolutely. That's the way to go.

 

And while doing the block upgrade, do a crank upgrade (3.75 inch), along with head/cam/intake upgrade.

 

a block upgrade IS a 350..... or atleast a 350... i suppose you could go find a 327, but that would be a waste for both you, and the person looking for a 327.. lol.



so you want to go fast, and be smart about it?
you need to stop right now and lay out your goals.
then, you need to make plans to meet thoes goals..
ONLY THEN should you spend your first dime on parts.


i know, it sounds simple, but alot of people dont do it.


so my questions to you are:
how fast do you want to go?
how do you measure "fast"? (low ETs, dyno HP, street "feel" ect..)




as far as the parts you named:
headers... you NEED longtubes. if you dont, then you're not flowing enough air to be fast anyway.
exhaust... flowmasters suck for airflow. i prefer cutouts for power... and quiet mufflers for cruising... but if you're choosing the catback route.... get one for a 4thgen and have it hacked on by a exhaust shop. this sounds counter productive at first... i mean, you're paying for a preformed exhaust, then paying to have someone modify it..... but no-one to my knowlege makes a nice true 3" mandrel bend exhaust for thirdgens... if you do find one, go for it..
my exhaust reccomendations in a nutshell:
longtubes, 2.5 to 3" behind headers into a 3"min I pipe with a cutout in it and a quiet muffler.

if you want to keep ground clearance, get a trans crossmember with cutouts built into it to clear the exhaust.


now the actual motor.... well 305s suck. ditch it.
i prefer to ditch the SBC all together and move to the genIII and genIV motors... but if you want to keep the SBC, thats understandable... id jump to some great heads... anything less and you're handicaping yourself. of course, great heads dont fit on 305s, because of their tiny bore... so once more, first thing is to ditch the 305.

really, i could with my opinion on thirdgens all day.. but 90% of it is.... replace everything if you want to go fast, reliably. replace almost everything if you just want to be fast. build on the car if you just want to be fastER....

 

ok, I realize that the 305 is virtually worthless, but an entire engine swap would be quite extensive for me and I really dont want to go there if I dont have to. Its not that I'm refusing everyones advice, its that I dont think I'm capable of that now. I really would rather build up the 305 now, and later with more experience i might go 350,383,etc. In order to make the 305 faster, after gears,tc, and suspension, then what?

 

Your motor has alot of miles. It won't last long with real power to it. Really consider buying a 350 block and building it in your garage or something. An engine swap in one of these cars really isn't difficult at all, and can be done in a weekend.

Since you have a TPI car, don't go big on the stall or gears. I'd suggest a 2500-2800 stall with a 3.42 posi.

If you're serious about pulling times out of that at the strip get a good set of tires. Nitto 555Rs are best if you're on the street, imo. Then look into suspension - LCAs and relocation brackets will help ALOT. You can even get shocks/springs if you wanted to.

With just these mods you should be in the low-mid 14s if you nail the 60 foot.

Add some headers (i recommend long tubes) back exhaust and you'll be close to 13s.

You can mod the TPI if you want, i recommend saving the money for a real induction system. Or go the cheap way and just get a carb.

 

Ok, this may a dumb question I dont know, but is it possible to just trade blocks with a 350? I know other things would need to be changed too, injectors and stuff, but is that possible or would I need a whole new engine?

 

i dont understand what U mean by "trade blocks with a 350" But anyways, if ur on a budget you should definitely build around the 305. Dont even touch or replace the motor until it blows up. Do the torque converter and gears first. Those 2 mods should make Ur car launch like a motherfuzzer! Get some subframe connectors,lca's,and a stronger torque arm. Exhaust is a good idea too! You basically wanna put parts in that will make your car faster and will benefit a larger motor(350) after u blow up the 305. Dont waste your time putting heads and cam and stuff like that in a small,high mileage motor.

 

Yes, everything on the 305 (except the rotating assembly) will swap right over. All you need is a new 350 shortblock.

 

I agree except i think the exhaust your gonna buy used will do fine except that muffler. Since your building a 305 for now until you can get a 350 id say get some aluminum vette heads, l98 or lt-1 cam w/ 1.6 rr, afpr, a new induction system would be alittle too much for the 305 so id say get some slp runners, port the plenum, and get a tpis base or go carb, and do the free mods along with a air foil or underdrive pulleys just for the hell of it. Also all the performance parts you buy for your 305 will work on a 350.

 

Alright, thanks guys. That helps a lot! Now I know where to start now i just need a ton of One more, I'll be going to college soon so I'll want to retain as much fuel efficiency as possible (about 25mpg now), but with new gears, say 3.42s, and higher stall converter how much will it decrease? Thanks again!!