Well I'm in college and I work part-time at a McJob so my funds are pretty limited. However, the fact that top of the line minivans can rock my little LG4 has me a little down and I don't feel like waiting four years for a full time job to build a monster 350 or get the almighty LS1.

So here's my question: what's the most cost effective way to get around 250- 300 hp that will be able to pull hard into the high RPM's and still do well on the street?

I'm not sure if I should just get a good cam, intake, heads, and exhaust for my LG4 or if I should just go all out and look for a 350 or 400. I know the larger bore motors give more bang for the buck and would be more durable if built right, but I don't think I have the money, time, or the equipment to purchase and completely overhaul an engine.

I'm open to pretty much any suggestions.

 

Heads would be your best friend.

 

For high rpm power your going wanna shoot for an LS1, but why do you want high rpm for your power range? You will need low-mid range power most of the time so go for something like an lt1 or an good 400/406. Thats if you want to stick with the engine for quite an while then i would do it atleast mostly right the first time (what i mentioned above)

Or if you just want to get an bit more OOMPH for just now, then go with h/c/i, possibly tpi, and milder lift cam, and some decent iron heads, plus exhuast, cai, and the other little things. But again thats getting an bit into it, maybe just weight reductions, cai, and exhuast?

Good luck!

 

Very bad idea. He said budget why waste money on TPI when his CCC qjet is good? And LSx for a 300hp goal on a budget?

Build it steps at a time. The first and most restricting part is the exhaust from the heads to the tail-pipe. This makes a huge difference on a LG4 car. Get headers and exhaust for a single cat TPI 350 (bigger pipes). Once you get a taste of this you will want more so start saving. Speaking from experience with this exhaust upgrade you should also convert to a heated Oxygen sensor on a LG4 CCC setup. It will be bouncing in and out of closed loop when it shouldn't be if you do not because the sensor is heated by exhaust gasses but now too far away to stay hot enough.

Install a open element air cleaner.

Then on from there it's a toss-up which is worse the heads or the cam. They are both pretty bad. To reach your goal both will need upgraded. Stock heads can be ported with larger valves installed. You can buy heads, vortecs or just about any aftermarket would reach your goal. Once you have figured out what heads and cam you want you can also pick the right intake manifold.

Buying a '87 L69 ECM is a good idea. You may need a couple sensor though but the timing would be well worth it. Tuning will be a must if you get this far you will need a Auto Analyzer/Dwell to set the MCS.

 

Thanks...
By high RPM I just mean I want to be able to pull hard all the way up to redline, unlike the way the 305 dies out after 4000 rpm and redlines at 5. I don't know how well the 305 bottom end would hold up but ideally I'd like to be able to shift at 5.5 or 6k. I want to retain most of the streetability of my car (I don't want a huge stall converter or lopey idle) but I want more power from the midrange on up for the circuit and the strip. I don't know what cam would be best for this, and I know 305's are notorious for having sharp power curves because of the small bore which also puts me at a disadvantage.


Thanks... Sounds like a plan. Which Vortecs do you reccommend? The aluminum fast burns sound nice because they'd reduce some weight but I've heard good things about some of the other ones too.

 

Dont mod your car. biggest mistake I ever made lol

I saved for 5 paychecks (10 weeks) to get my intake. Saving is a bitch but well worth it. Do it right the first time.

 

The "right" Vortec heads come from 96-02 5.7 chevy trucks. They will need milled by a machine shop to get the combustion chamber down. After market Vortec heads may be a better value in the end. Though most I've seen are 185cc and that's a bit big for a street 305 IMO, it would really want to breath up top. Stock Vortec heads are 170cc and that's about perfect for a hot little 305. 185cc would work but don't get carried away with the cam or you will end up with a motor that peaks at +7000RPM easy.

What year is your LG4?

 

Replacing the exhaust system is the best low-buck change you can make. Even a good cat-back system will be a major improvement. On my 1st Z28, I put on a Dynomax cat-back and the engine did exactly what you are looking to do. It revved to 5,000 RPM like crazy instead of giving up at 4,000.

Yep, an open element air cleaner is cheap and won't hurt.

The next thing to do would be an intake manifold. If you have the money and the time, you could consider replacing the cam at the same time. (you have to remove the intake manifold to replace the cam, anyway) It sounds like you know enough to be conservative. Don't go crazy, just get something a little better than stock. A cam that wants to rev to 6,000 RPM isn't going to help if you have stock valve springs. If you are replacing the cam, put in a new timing chain and gears while you're at it.

You didn't mention how many miles are on the engine. If the engine has high miles (like over 100,000), don't do anything more than the intake and exhaust. If you try to get more power out of a high mileage engine, you will break something! Trust someone who's been there. If you have a high mileage engine and you want to get a better cam or new heads, it would probably be best to wait until you can afford a new or rebuilt 350.

 

Another thing to consider would be gears. Putting in something like 3.73's will make a difference.

 

The only reason I didn't mention the intake until last is because the cam in the motor is low RPM and the intake is plenty good for it. If you are going to do intake do the cam too, match it to your cam/heads for sure to get the most out of the combo.

You could probably make 250hp at the flywheel with the stock heads, cam swap, intake and tune. (along with the full exhaust of course)

 

There is a thread in the FAQ forum on getting more power out of a 305, and here we are basically saying again what it says...

For the record, there is no way to get more power out of an LG4 without spending money. If you want to go faster, take stuff off of/out of the car. That's free.

Everything else costs money, starting with the most expensive, the exhaust system - which you should do before you do anything else. That alone with cost you a month's worth of flippin' burgers (gross pay, assuming you don't have any taxes withheld and don't spend any money on anything else).

Next, air cleaner. Don't put on an open element, the CC q-jet won't like you if you do. Just get another air cleaner from a junkyard, pull the snorkel off of it, and graft the snorkel onto your existing air cleaner. There's a tech article linked from the thirdgen.org homepage on that topic. Hopefully you can make friends with someone who can help you get that done.

Then get yourself a $90 cam/lifter kit from Summit. And some $25 valve springs from Competition Products. Since you have to remove the intake manifold to do the cam, you may consider an eBay or craigslist Performer intake manifold, but it won't really make that much difference, and certainly not enough to justify buying a brand new intake. Again, choose your friends wisely so you can get this done without paying for labor.

That will take care of the minivans until you are a productive member of society and can afford to do it right. Vortec heads, intake manifold, gears, LS1 - forget it, too involved for a Mickey D's budget.

 

this is what i did to wake up my '82 LG4:
-headers and 3"super single.
-mild aftermarket cam,was just slightly hotter than L69.
-modified air cleaner with factory hood modified for
air induction.
-had to add electric fuel pump as stockers would not
keep up for some reason.
-rejetted carb.
With otherwise stock LG4,these mods woke it right up
power rose to around 220-230 hp i recon with no
noticable loss of low end torque or milage
Lots of latent HP in that LG4 waiting to be unleashed...

Btw seen an LG4 buildup once(was done in '82 or 83)
-speed parts were bolted onto a stock shortblock,
got it up to around 380hp until a stock cast piston
blew at around 6800rpm

 

What am I missing out on using a open element the last 7-8 years on my CCC qjet? It hasn't given me one problem that I know of which is why I recommend it. The thing was drove rain, sleet, or snow, on a daily basis.