First post! Anyway, my car has an Edelbrock Performer on it and its giving me hood and HEI clearance problems. Personally, I think this intake is some sort of defective junk. It doesnt have the oil fill boss, moves the Qjet up and back, and is strangely tall. Back in the mid-'80s my dad put an Edelbrock Performer on his '78 Monte Carlo and it fit just like the stock EGR intake. He was going to buy a new Performer on his '84 Z/28 when the 305 gets a rebuild (if it ever does) but this is making us rethink that. So I got to thinkin, Ive got an aluminum intake (14057053) that I can reuse for free. Its alot shorter than the Elderbrock and I was just wanting to massage the runners for a little better flow, closeup the holes in the plenum divider, and put a thicker 4-hole heat insulating base gasket on it. By separating the planes, Ive read that my power and MPG should get a decent increase from less dilution of the mixture from exhaust. Its too tight of an area to have it welded and Im not sure how well tapping the little metal thats there between the two planes and getting the right plug would work. Any thoughts? I can take pictures later. I dont wanna have to spend the money to buy another Edelbrock and pray I get a good one. My GMPP crate motor is mild, most likely the 260hp engine. All my other upgrades are dual 2-inch pipes, headers, a stand alone HEI, and '76 GMC Quadrajet. Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

 

I've used an RPM Airgap (IIRC part # 7501) and it fits with a drop base air cleaner. It barely clears the hood, I didn't need to, but I cut part of the inner metal away for clearance anyways.

I actually have a spacer (IIRC, 1/2") on mine as well, I needed the room for one of the vacuum ports. There was an interference issue with the Holly DP and the position of the port.

Never had a problem with the HEI either. Mine has new engine mounts as well in case the subject comes up.

 

Should be no surprise
GM stopped using the intake oil fill tube back in 1967

 

I meant on the Edelbrock Performer, most of them have a machinable boss for the oil fill tube.

 

I had a edelbrock performer on my 82 trans am and it fit fine with the stock 4bbl and air cleaner.

 

No, most of them don't have a machinable boss for the oil fill tube.

If the intake you have is causing hood clearance issues, either it's not a 2101 nor 3701 Performer intake or perhaps you have a lot of height to your carb / air cleaner setup.

As for welding up the EGR passage on a stock intake, that won't gain you power. You already lost mileage by elminating EGR.

So, post pics of your Performer intake and your air cleaner / carb setup. That will help clear things up.

 

How would I lose gas mileage by removing EGR? Wouldnt it make the engine less efficient by diluting the incoming mixture? The way I see it, its quite worth while to take it off, it seems to me that MPG goes up or stays the same.

 

What's the part number cast into it?

 

The GM intake is 14057053. I found nothing else on the Edelbrock. Im guessing Edelbrock casts them on the underside?

 

Here's the GM intake. It has a crossover between the two planes that was partially made to be an easy way to make your emissions go down, basically a scapegoat, I guess you'd say (not sure what it means but sounds like it fits). Following my school of thought, it defeats the purpose of having a divided dual plane intake and is degrading the MPG. But, it was free and it will fit. I want a way to fully divide it.

 

FWIW, I'd grab a pic of the Edelbrock so people can see it and possibly identify it for you.

 

Totally correct.

 

The Performer will fit under your hood, if the stock intake will. Blee dat.

No in fact I wouldn't... and in fact it has nothing directly to do with "make your emissions go down" anyway. It's a machining artifact left over from drilling the horiz passage involved with the EGR plumbing, just like the screw-in plug in the side of the plenum.

Then epoxy it in and see if it makes any detectable difference. I doubt that it will, but it won't hurt anything either, so it's worth a try.

Sure: and people used to "see" that the Earth was FLAT, too; until instead of listening ot the same tired DOGMA, they opened their minds and LEARNED SOMETHING. Same principle applies here. So less "see"ing of things you made up out of thin air, and more learning about HOW THINGS REALLY WORK, and you will find the results of your actions in this hobby become much more predictable and therefore enjoyable.

EGR, in the computer era, actually improves gas mileage, by allowing more timing to be added during cruising conditions. It's not the same as it was in the early emissions era, where it had absolutely no positive effects whatsoever on the actual operation of the vehicle. But it's a minor effect regardless. Again, I doubt you'd notice any difference... especially not if you didn't alter your driving habits in order to "prove" whichever point of view you were trying to make. Which is where most of the "improvements" in gas mileage come from, with the cow magnets and "Tornado" and other such junk: the people who get sucked into falling for the scam, want SO BAD to "prove" that they weren't just suckers falling for the shill's line, that they behave differently, and THAT'S where the "savings" in fact come from, NOT from the gadget. Same pronciple will apply here. Much like, ALOT of people who want to lose weight, you can actually SELL em a pill and tell em it will make em lose weight, and they'll be so intent on proving that they weren't duped, that they'll actually EAT RIGHT and maybe even EXERCISE, such that even if the pill contained nothing but a gram of corn starch, it'll "work". IOW the people (besides the paid ACTORS) you see as "testimonials" for all that trash on TV.

The oil fill boss was last used in 1969. In that ONE YEAR ONLY, it used a cap that actually SEALED, instead of that stupid "breather" type of thing that spewed oil all over the front of the motor and gave all those older cars that familiar nasty "old car" smell that we all used to hate so bad. The oil fill is in your valve covers anyway, so you don't need it, regardless.

The HEI fits fine. At least, is sure did in the Performer I have that was on my car for a while.

All the problems you're describing with this intake make it sound as though it's NOT a Performer AT ALL. As stated, pics will allow INSTANT identification.

 

14-inch drop base Moroso air cleaner no offset rubs distributor wires, would pull off boots when the distributor was turned at an angle.

If I put on the stock air cleaner I can't latch the hood, intake IS taller than stock by a good amount. Basically, it has no other distinguishing marks other than Edelbrock script behind water neck and Performer cast infront of the distributor.


I'm not saying I'm the sharpest tack in the box and not claiming to be. I was reading this EGR and intake divider tech crap somewhere on the internet. There is alot of people out there that sell "snake oil", I should be more careful in the future. But, I was thinking "Hey, crazier things seem to work, small stuff nobody thinks of can make a big difference." I realize how stupid that is now, needed someone to talk some sense into me.

 

May be a Performer RPM, which IS a good bit taller (and otherwise generally different) from a stock one. Can't tell from that pic.

Don't feel bad, I'm FAR from the sharpest knife in the drawer myself (some I'm sure would even label me the dullest); I only encourage you to USE your intelligence by way of observation and logic, rather than preconception or just blindly going along with what "everybody" "says" like the rest of the sheeple that we all love to humiliate at traffic lights.

I'm not surprised about the aftermarket air filter not fitting, but the stock one, that's a different matter. In my own car, the stock L69 one fit perfect with a Holley 6211 and the stock HEI, and a Performer; so I'm inclined to think that your intake isn't a "Performer" as such, even though it might be a member of the "Performer" "series".

 

Hope this helps you find the number or identify it. I went and looked up the 7501 (that I have) and the number is listed by the dizzy on the pass side. On a 2101 it's also by the dizzy but on the other side and farther forward and didn't see where one was for the 3701 mentioned. You could try checking that area, it looks like you might have to move some stuff around to be able to find it though and you may need a flashlight.

For reference to see where they put the part numbers, enlarge the pics if they aren't already.
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/EDL-7501/?rtype=10
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/EDL-2101/?rtype=10

Didn't see where there is a part number on the 3701.
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/EDL-3701/?rtype=10

The air cleaner is close on the 7501 as well, looks like it can touch the wire depending on where it's turned.

 

something that wasn't mentioned about the third picture, please do not drive your car again until you get rid of that glass fuel filter. those things have been the cause of many vehicles getting burned to the ground.

 

Agreed with DENN SHAH. Those glass housing fuel filters are a big no-no. Plus they don't flow worth a darn. I know because I used to use one and it wouldn't flow enough to run faster than mid 13s. If you want a cheap, safe and good flowing replacement buy a Fram G3 filter.

 

And of course get rid of that maypop rubber line on the pressure side of the fuel pump, for the same reason.

 

And there is something about that intake that is still bothering me. I can't put my finger on it. Does the thermostat housing look like it's futher back than I remember it being on a Performer intake??

Here's a picture of a Performer intake from an old 3rd gen I used to own. Notice how the thermostat housing is basically right out on the front of it?



It's gotta be me seeing it wrong or some trick of the camera angle that's throwing me off, right?

 

EGR dilutes the fuel/air mixture for combustion. If you have to fill 90% of a cylinder instead of 100%, there's savings right there.

It also cools the combustion chamber (yes, cools as in lowers the temperature.) That allows more timing advance which helps efficiency.

Under full throttle, EGR is not used. So it's a no-lose system.

Dad's and mechanical work done decades ago are a mixed blessing. They're great to share and have around. But sometimes they're just not up to speed on the technical details after all those years.

 

Dont worry. Lol. I bought the car a few months ago and its mostly just been sitting. I didnt do much of the mechanical work, just fixing errors slowly and nipping problems in the bud. I didnt pay much for it and the body and interior is in great condition. That was why its now mine.