fl327 Posted April 15, 2002 Share Posted April 15, 2002 hey i searched around and could not find a concise answer, heres my issue. i have a 87 tp firebird that i drive around for now, im selling the chassis with motor and trans for cheap to help my buddy do a v8z, but for simplicities sake were gonna go carbed with it, and out of the deal i get a couple bucks, and the tpi setup complete will this manifold work with older generation small blocks, ive heard that i would have to swap heads, that it will bolt right up, but i cant find anything concrete on this. during the summer im gonna enroll in a summer class for paint/body, and a class for GM efi, guess what my homework gets to be??? but i want to know if it will bolt up or not, or else i may have to look around for a different manifold, also, does anyone know if the lower plenums from the tpi setup that will work with an older chevy bolts to the uppers from an 87-up, sorry so long post, but man dan judays tpi and the thoughts of a powdercoated red tpi manifold are getting so tempty! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fl327 Posted April 15, 2002 Author Share Posted April 15, 2002 ok i suck, i found, for reference i think it was 85-86 bolt up, 87-up you have to drill four middle holes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted April 16, 2002 Share Posted April 16, 2002 Yeah I think you got it right, 85 & 86 direct bolt on, the 87 I'm not sure the bolt holes are'nt there so much as the angle of the bolt hole is wrong. Its my understanding that you just need to ream the drill through and oblong out the hole a bit. At least thats what I'm understanding to be the case. I'd like to know for sure too, as it would open up some posibilities in TPI years that would fit the old small block. The price for complete used systems is getting cheap enough to really make the TPI a good street manifold/EFI swap, at least for a driver/highway car. A turbo or two puffing into one still looks like a great idea to me for a solid 425+ hp (with very modest boost and no intercooler, add those, and 500 is no problem) with great reliability provided you don't spin it crazy fast, get it lean or to much timing lead. Oh well, if you find anything out for sure about the bolt holes, let me know. Regards, Lone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fl327 Posted April 16, 2002 Author Share Posted April 16, 2002 what i meant was that 85-86 will bolt straight up, but with later style you have to modify those four middle bolt holes for it to work, not worth, just grab up on an 85-86, or maybe just the lower manifold, i just gotta find out whether or not the lowers will bolt to the upper intake plenum on 87-up, that way i would just need to find the bottom baseplate. i like the looks of tpi more than anything, once i found you can get around 300-325 very drivable hp out of it, i was sold, plus you can always spray it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted April 16, 2002 Share Posted April 16, 2002 Very true, I hadn't considered nitrous in one, thats a pretty good idea. Regards, Lone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fl327 Posted April 17, 2002 Author Share Posted April 17, 2002 you know i would go lt1 over it in a heartbeat, but my 327 has proved to be a very loyal friend to me, and that tell me he's more than earned his keep in the engine bay in the bay area. ive heard you have to go roller cam to have the knock sensor not tweak out on you and throw a code? anyways im just gonna do a couple mild tweaks and convert it over, right now im daily driven a tpi car and i really do like it, the salt and pepper shaker wot sound would sound even better with no cats..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLKMGK Posted April 17, 2002 Share Posted April 17, 2002 I think you'll find that the stock TPI intake will STRANGLE your motor. You would be better off looking into the new Holley RAM intake that recently came out. It's supposed to be a bit like the TPIS Miniram with an affordable pricetag - but I've honestly not priced them out. Be sure and look at th enew NOS nozzles - they're little sprayers that attach under the fuel injectors for instant port nawz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest super280z Posted April 17, 2002 Share Posted April 17, 2002 well I usually tend to side with BLKMGK on the tpi being a choke hold on any motor.even the 305's struggled. but the idea of putting a blower or a turbo on it certianly appeals to me. i've seen a few vids of some callaway TT vettes tearing it up at ~180mph. rediculous i tell ya. i know that you can retrofit them to fit just about all the SBC's SDPC is making a vortec specific one now and i've even seen a guy put one on a 378 (400 block). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fl327 Posted April 17, 2002 Author Share Posted April 17, 2002 yeah i know, i have a 305 firebird and it doesnt seem to like 5k even, but on the other hand ive seen tpi 350 camaros run 13's with the tpi mildly modified shifting at 5600-right around where i like to shift, im not going to buy a tpis miniram, it costs too much. but yeah i can see that it may be restrictive, i may hold off on swapping it on for a while, until i can talk to more iroc owners that have got them to flow at least in the 5-6k range, which i have seen done and 300hp by 5500 kicks ass on the street. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Juday Posted April 17, 2002 Share Posted April 17, 2002 You guys talking about nitrous and turbos on a tpi have got my wallet wimpering. Ok, where does it bolt up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted April 18, 2002 Share Posted April 18, 2002 you can get a plate over the tb, or you can can drill into the runners, or go super stealth and drill into lower baseplate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fl327 Posted April 18, 2002 Author Share Posted April 18, 2002 dan, youre one of the reasons im gonna go ahead and dump the tpi on my homie 327, that install looks freakin nice. im gonna try and run it with as many components as i can salvage for now, once we rip the motor and trans out of this firebird, if we rip the motor and trans out the bird that is. what year is your motor anyway, i see youre running a speed density system there? this talk really is making me want to do the swap even more!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Juday Posted April 18, 2002 Share Posted April 18, 2002 Mine is a '91. Only three years,'90 through '92 GM used speed density. Simpler intake routing with no MAF. But hey, no big deal. There are other advantages to the mass air flow systems. Go for it Len. I'm close enough to lend some help if you get stuck with the wiring. Get everything off the bird. Don't forget the VATS. I had to go back to the yard and dig it out of the dash. You would not believe where they hid that thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.