As of right now I am just chillin on a huge lot of tpi parts and trying to find the best combo for my setup. I currently have a cop car 350 tbi engine that's been modded quite a bit with bolt ons like headers, exhaust, trans shift kit, aftermarket torque converter, open element, etc. I'm swapping over to tpi and have some questions on my parts that I currently have. Mods, I've posted some questions on the engine swap board, but this is more parts specific, so please don't move me (plus my other post has only 4 views and 1 reply, doh!). Anyways, here goes:

I have an immaculately clean fuel rail but the connector lines that go from one side to the other are loose. Is this a simple fix? I've tried tightening the torx screws down but I don't wanna overtighten them. I can shake the fuel rail and it rattles and twists like it's not tight enough.

I have 305 injectors on this fuel rail. What's the best size to go with for my 5.7? I know slp had the 24lb injectors which I really want cause they're cheap too, but alas, they are sold out. Any ideas for any online deals?

I also have the 305 eprom chip. Where's the best place to get a custom 350 chip? Or should I pay someone to burn it?

What's the best way to clean off the black carbon gunk on the inside of the plenum? I've tried carb cleaner and a toothbrush but it's caked all over the toothbrush and it doesn't do jack (not to mention getting in a huge argument because it was my gf's toothbrush). A guy mentioned that easy bake oven off junk. Does that work?

I am hoping to have this swap done in a 3 day span along with the new fuel pump setup from racetronix and a new posi rear install. Does this sound reasonable? My buddy is a mechanic and he'll be helping me out but he's never done this before and neither have I. Frankly, I'm very nervous. Something always seems to go wrong with these types of things. I appreciate all the help you guys can give. Thanks!

Pat from NJ

 

As long as you plan on working on it 3 days straight w/o stopping and no sleep. Really , the swap isn't that bad, most of it is easy to do UNTIL you start to run into issues. I took my set up off of a donor car which was an 89', most of the the stuff was easy but ran into issues such as the speed sensor, VATS was a PITA to work around, i didn't use the dual fans and the harness i got did. Computer chip i bought was junk and i didn't know it, so i messed around with trying to figure that out, tracing wires , running tests for about a week. Fuel pump alone is about a 5 hour job and i had a bay lift to work with, funny thing was 4 1/2 hrs to get the tank out .....like 20 minutes to install new pump and have it all buttoned back up. You're supposed to be able to roll the tank forward and out , didn't work that way for me, had to remove exhaust and drop the whole rear end to get mine out. All in all i had a freind help me with general mechanical skills (he has a garage but mostly deals w/ tranny's and rear ends) we put about 40 to 50 some hours in the whole deal. It's not all that hard just alot of work.

 

Yeah 3-4 days without sleep is about right. It is pretty easy,but work in moderation. Work in phases. Fuel pump. Intake parts. Accessory brackets. Fuel lines. Cooling hoses. Wiring. Recheck wiring.

Your fuel pipes within the rails are loose,normal. Injectors are all over ebay 24lbs are pretty universal for slightly modded motors. Depending on the ecm you plan to use, you will need some sort of prom, possibly custom (VATS removed). You need different serp belt brackets that locate accessories lower to clear air inlet. Check street & performance, they make a unit to convert a TBI to TPI ecm.

 

There's really not THAT much to the swap... Any mechanically competent person with some electrical skills can pull it off.

In regard to the carbon, I had my entire TPI setup hot tanked. Cost me a grand sum of 12 dollars for plenum, runners, and lower intake manifold. My EGR can rot in the depths of hell for all I care, so it won't be getting gunked back up again.