Mike C

I just re-did wires on my L6. I buy the Taylor universal V8 set in black with straight spark plug boots. I then ponied up an additional $6.95 for Taylor's straight distributor boot and terminal set. This is the best setup IMO, and it gives you two spare wires to keep in the tool box.

Is it the boots where they touch the tubes, or is it the wires themselves on the header? You have to get the wires off the header. I really like Taylor wires, and I but pre-made ones usually. Get the 71-72 Chevy truck with 350 ci motor if you run a socket cap or 75-81 Corvette wires with HEI cap. Use the stock routing which is down the back of the block, along the oil pan rail, and UP to each plug. These wires are designed for rams horns manifolds which are over the plug and not under like the log manifolds.

If you are going to run a GM HEI, you need the vacuum advance to get sufficient total advance without running excessive initital advance. If you want to dive in, you can modify the advance mechanism to get more mechanical advance and lock-out the vacuum canister. This is a trial and error process. Do a google search on modifying distributor for more mechanical advance. As far as total advance, you will have to experiment for your motor. With GM iron heads, I would expect to see low 40's optimum. I run 41 on mine now, and it just picks up power the more you turn it up. I have 16 initital. I run MSD small cap distributors which have adjustable mechanical advance and on a performance app, lock out the vacuum. The only Holley to get is the 750 double pumper IMO. This is the carb most start with when modifying for more flow. The HP version has choke tower already removed and four corner idle which would be my recommendation. BG is Barry Grant.

Looks great. The Z is about the only thing I can think of that doesn't have any less space in the hatch AFTER it's tubbed!

I have two filters on mine. A little K&N on the valve cover and a shielded crankcase K&N filter on the pipe out of the block. One of the filters like you see on a SBC roundy round valve cover.

Great power! What tremendous mile an hour. But your 60' sux... Next thing has to be a limited slip. You should be able to trim nearly 2 tenths off your 60' alone with both tires pushin'. Then the drag radials and 1.6s could be in your future!

Don't get too caught up in brand names. Blue or red either one good. 120v is nice if you want portability and don't plan on structural welding (roll cage) but 230v pretty much mandatory for 3/16" and up with any sort of duty cycle. Look at the features. I have a Century welder which gets a bad rap from some, but I have been pleased. Mine is a 250 which has a 100% duty cycle at 160 amps. It has infinite wire feed and amperage control. For the price, it was the best features for its output. Century is now owned by Lincoln, so who knows what sort of changes that means in the future. Whatever you decide, don't get a cheapie just to have one.

You are first going to have to identify what rear is in the car. Is it a '67? Most likely it is the 8.2 BOP axle. Google will be your friend here. You will also need a limited slip. If you have one currently, It is most likely the two piece case. These are explosion prone. Replace with an Eaton. Tom's Differentials has best prices on Eaton's and should be able to hook you up with gears, bearings, seals, etc. Gears numerically higher than 3.23 are pretty uncommon from the factory, and considering your signature, not commonly available period.

If all you want to do is resize, Microsoft Powertoys can do bulk resize with the click of a button. Get it from Microsofts website. The Powertoys are written by Microsoft employees and not supported, but are pretty cool.

600 is a waste of your time IMO. Better to have spent the $ on a book on Holleys. I have a stage III BG 750 that flows 1040 cfm on my mild 355 and it idles perfectly at 700 rpm. Even if theoretical cfm of a 600 is sufficient, real world tests prove over and over more power is made with a bigger carb (up to the point of diminishing returns, obviously) If you want to spend some money, get a Holley or Proform 750 cfm replacement body with removed choke horn, replaceable air bleeds, and convert to 4 corner idle. What is your idle set at? If you are in the 1000 rpm range, you mave have started to uncover the transition slots which can flow fuel from the main circuit. If this is the case, remove the carburetor from the engine, flip it over, and increase the air flow through the secondary throttle blades at idle by screwing in the set screw on the rear throttle shaft. Then re-install the carb and close the primary throttle blades by the same amount you opened the rear. This will increase airflow without affecting the main circuit. Re-set idle mixture screws and this should help dramatically. You can experiment with a 45 power valve as well. What shooter and pump cam are you using? What position? Does it bog when you hammer it off idle? Seriously consider purchasing a book that explains how to tune Holleys, it's well worth the $.

I am SO tempted to get involved with this argument on unions. But it will lead to health care, corporate fraud, lawsuits, the ultra-wealthy trying to squash the proleteriat and so on. So never mind. But this will still probably be a thread hijack forcing it closed. Part of Dana's problem is I bought stock in them 6 months ago. THAT can be a death sentence for a company by itself... FWIW, Dana is also the supplier for the Viper rear and they did the C5 'vette stuff as well. If blame needs to be laid for GM, lets lay it where it deserves to go. GM corporate execs. Paying $55,000 a year to a worker is NOT a bad thing. WIthout the unions they would make $32,000 a year further enrichening the execs and the share holders while squeezing the middle/lower middle class even further, leaving the majority of workers unable to buy the products they build. I don't know if you've noticed, but inflation is taking a HUGE bite out of most people's check, while real wages continue to fall for 80% of Americans. GM management put ALL of their eggs in one truck basket, and fuel costs knocked the bottom out of it. It was short term focus on maximum profitablitly with no attempt to control cost and streamline while things were good. The writing was on the wall as early as '96 when they bailed on the big car market and then it was underlined when they squashed the F-body. Look at the buzz surrounding the new Camaro. If they weren't such a large bureacracy and could get a reasonable development time on new product, they could fill these niches and move sales around within the company. Instead they are losing sales to their competition. Why GM can't build a 3 series BMW I don't know. But that type of model that is evolutionary and multi-functional is what they need. Coupe, convertible, sedan. A sporty car with a functional backseat ala the Mustang. The Beemer is a Factory hot rod and police car, they have a mileage version, an entry level version, all wheel drive and even taxi cab. 4 cylinder, 6 cylinder, V8, and in Europe, a turbo-diesel. GM management is short sighted is the primary problem IMO.

REDICULOUS Tim? Or are you just having fun with us again?

I'm kinda' anal with communication, at least in official type correspondence, but internet boards are not that type of venue. BUT with that said, if you want to get some sort of intelligent and intelligible response, you should at least attempt to make your post intelligent and intelligible as well. Personally, I just skip over that kinda' stuff rather than respond at all. I'd like to think the poster was missing out on what is good, solid, reliable output from me. Then again, maybe the poster is coming out ahead...

Yeah, Mine came from the Sears closeout. I was the one that posted the sale on the board. When I found it, I tried to buy it right then, and our internet connection crashed! I was freakin' out! I jacked around with it for about an hour before I got the order in. Once I received shipping confirmation on mine, I posted the clearance here to share the wealth! Sorry you missed out. I had budgeted $2000 tops, and the $3500 average delivered cost was more than I could stomach, (Sears was $3999 + tax + shipping. No wonder they couldn't move them....) On clearance for $1599, mine was delivered to my door for $2049.

I hear ya'. I have the PT275 and it's a dream. I've done brackets on a couple of aluminum radiators, but I still need more practice. That AC is a whole different animal... Like yours, it sticks steel together unbelievably! I really like the PT185 that you got. Before I found mine on clearance that was the way I had decided to go features/$.

Actually, many of them have manual trans in pickups. It is just not appropriate for installation in a car, too big, too tall, shifter in wrong spot. Which is my point above, that if you can get a complete LT1 with trans, that is the way to go, at least for me. But if you are buying the trans separately and having to piecemeal the whole thing together, the later model motor is much more intriguing IMO.

I'd do new plugs and wires for sure. ANything over 5 years old probably needs replacing. Also make sure it has an odd-fire cap and rotor... I'm not sure if they are interchangeable, but a crossfire could spark the plug when there was no cylinder pressure, but fail to fire under load.

Hey John, Maybe time for a snowmobile hybrid? Something that could really put down the power when density altitude is working for you! Great post BTW.

Up until 1971 engines were rated at the flywheel with NO accessories or exhaust. In 71 ratings were changed to reflect "as installed" and they have continued to tweak them, but same holds true. My mom's G35 doesn't seem that fast to me, not 260 hp fast at least. My Impala SS would pound it with its 265 hp.

I think the 5.3 would be a great swap for a Z. I am also a fan of the LT1 and have both an iron head an aluminum head version. My first choice would be the LT1/T56 combo from a Z/28 or Trans AM/Formula. I would buy the whole car wrecked and then dump what was left when I was finished. But if I had to buy motor and trans separate, I would do the 5.3. It has the same mounts as an LS1. A cam and rocker swap should get you more power than the LT1 with significanltly more mods. The 5.3 should be cheap compared to an LS1, probably compareable in price to the LT1, but you should be able to find a low mileage one from a pickup wreck much easier than getting a low mileage LT1.

This is areally complicated subject, but my nuthsell understanding is this: I6 is a naturally balanced intuitive design. V6 is not. Remeber the old odd-fire Buick V6? When they switched to even fire they had to offset grind some of the journals. The rods don't share a common crank pin! The really fast Buicks have to switch back to odd fire for crank durability. Some V6's run balance shafts in order to smooth things out. This adds a lot of complication, not simplifies. Packaging is probably the primary reason for switch to V6, especially the narrow crank angles (60 degree vs. 90). But torque output is a function of design and application. Using the jeep as an example, it is a large displacement long stroke motor designed for torque with small ports and an RPM range to match. A 3.5 liter BMW six is not, and the power curve shows it.

All factory LT1 in B-bodies were auto trans. 94-96 Caprice with 5.7 should be LT1. As noted it is an iron head model. Note that TONS of people have argued for and against the iron head. IME, the iron head is equal to if not better than the AL head. Google it. For comparisons sake, two friends had modded Impalas. First was a 94 with pocket ported iron heads and a Crane cam. It had stock manifolds and a Flowmaster cat back. Put down 297 at the wheels. Second was a 96 which had AFR aluminum heads and SLP headers with a Borla cat back. It put down 265 at the wheels. At least on a stock motor the heads are not what's holding it back but the cam, or the exhaust manifolds for that matter. I have (2) LT1s. One copy car motor and one from a '96 SS that has CNC ported AL heads, but only enough of the electonics to FI one of them. The iron head motor with a carburetor and a single shorty belt rigged up to an alternator seems to be an ideal swap motor for a Z. Pocket port the heads and put the $525 LT4 conversion package in the motor and put 300+ ponies to the wheels.

Nothing but plain jane 327 in '69. Used in cars up through January of 69 when it was replaced with the 307. Same with trucks. All two barrel motors and were big journal 68 and later. Doesn't really matter if you are going to build it. Just don't expect a really good set of heads if they are the originals. If motor is a 68 they still had a 350hp motor available in the Corvette, and a 275 hp Camaro 327.

Do you mean no Z has the brushed ones? It's a great looking wheel. I almost bought those for mine 5 years ago but went with these. They'll look great on yours!

Usually when the master goes bad, fluid leaks past the rear. IME, you can remove the master from the booster without disconnecting the lines and check for leakage. And yes, out of adjustment rears on a Z can make the pedal seem mushy and give it increased travel. I have had little trouble with fronts over the years, but rears can be a hassle. I gave up trying to rebuild wheel cylinders and just buy new ones. Calipers rebuild quite well, however.