Racin_Jason Posted March 12, 2001 Share Posted March 12, 2001 Hi gang I have "mystery 350" that is low power and mild. It came with my Camaro and I have NO clue what cam, compression or HP it has. I DO know that it wasn't very quick in 3600+ lb. Camaro, it runs on 87 octane, I dont think it makes power past 5000 revs, it is SLOW to rev even in nuetral but its proven reliable. My racer instinct tells me to grab some Vortec heads and recam it, or 383 it!...but I really DONT know what to expect from the car with this 350 as it is. Truth be told my budget is very limited due to my other car being priority. Now I usually find a way to make some extra bucks and I 'could' do some inexpensive mods to the 350, but do i really need them? What do you recommend? This is what is known about the 350 now. 624 heads w/ 1.94's and 76cc chamber cam isnt stock..but is MILD Carter 625cfm Holley Dominator II dual plane mani' compression is low enough for 87 octane HEI dist/ignition power peaks around 4700-5000rpm It runs decent, has some torque, doesnt smoke , stays cool and is very reliable so far. It's going into a 71 240Z with a th350 tranny. I want the car to be quick enough to beat the newer pony's and 'maro's and the emphasis is on being an all around road car..but not great at anything due to the fact that this is gonna be done on a tight budget. I would appreciate any and all opinions on what would be a good route to take. I have no experience with V8Z's and hope those that do can help me decide. Thanks much, Jason ------------------ 71 240Z soon to be 350'd 73 Camaro street/strip car w/490BBC,10-point cage, "budget bully" 2000 F150 on 35's have a look at my toys at http://www.JasonsHobbyShowcase.homestead.com/homepage.html "If speed kills..Im a DANGEROUS GUY!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Racin_Jason Posted March 12, 2001 Author Share Posted March 12, 2001 bump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pauli Posted March 12, 2001 Share Posted March 12, 2001 well, remember that the z is about 1/3 lighter than the camaro... assuming the engine gets non horendous mileage, give it a shot as is. just to check, have you taken it in for a professional tuneup? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Racin_Jason Posted March 12, 2001 Author Share Posted March 12, 2001 No, the car has sat for over a year now (open headers+cops=sit for a year). Im sure its in need of a tuneup but I'd like to learn to do it myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Racin_Jason Posted March 13, 2001 Author Share Posted March 13, 2001 I have some new possible options. I might be able to get my hands on a set of camel-hump heads w/2.02's and 63cc chambers. Im not sure if my engine would still run on pumpgas with the compression bump..but i would imagine these heads with a cam swap would be into the 300's for HP. Opinions? I have another friend trying to sell me some 63cc heads that are either 1.94 or 2.02 (cant remember) valved and they have been ported all the way through the intake. Would a regular head with 63cc and a cam swap get me well up into the 300's on HP? My current heads being 74cc 624's. Im determined to learn how to get atleast close to 350HP or more..and do it on the CHEAP. I would really appreciate some help on this one! Jason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pauli Posted March 13, 2001 Share Posted March 13, 2001 if you can't run on pump gas, fun becomes a LOT more expensive... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Racin_Jason Posted March 13, 2001 Author Share Posted March 13, 2001 I agree. It has to run on 92..87 or 89 would be better but I dont have the money to design the engine to a specific compression here so I will take ANY compression that will get the power well into the 300's and run on ANY octane that flows from a Arco pump Jason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavyZ Posted March 14, 2001 Share Posted March 14, 2001 Your engine is probably like mine--a "stock" 350 from a 70's Camaro with 8.0:1 or 8.5:1 compression. The heads are worthless, so there is your biggest hangup regarding air/fuel flow. Some Vortex heads will wake that puppy up by bumping compression to near 10:1 and flowing excellently right out of the box--you're getting close to going beyond pump gas with the compression, but should still be ok. The intake manifold is a dual plane, which is good and should be geared for low to mid torque range. The cam is probably right for the car, but known specs are better then unknown. A cam with advertised 274 degrees is a best bet--especially a dual pattern cam with your present heads. Carb seems right, not too much for the present set up, but your HEI...is that with the stock coil? You could keep the HEI, but invest in an MSD HEI ignition kit it that takes the coil out of the distributor, gives you greater volts, and gives you a strong MSD ignition as well. Summit has pretty good prices on those. In summary, the heads are your problem--weak flow and low compression. Replacing them with Vortecs etc will help, and an MSD will help too. You don't need to rebuild the bottom end, yet, Jason. David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Racin_Jason Posted March 14, 2001 Author Share Posted March 14, 2001 Davy You are right about the heads. They are the main barrier for making power on tihs engine. Im still not sure that they WONT work tho. They decode as having 2.02's (1.94's are possible but it looks like tbey are 2.02's!)..I'd like to get an opinion on what a cam swap might do for this engine if i was to keep the heads. If it put me above 300HP I'd go that route. So it sounds like you have about the same engine that i do. Is it your Z..and if so how does it run??? Anyone else care to comment on what i should do? [This message has been edited by Racin_Jason (edited March 14, 2001).] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted March 14, 2001 Share Posted March 14, 2001 Ditch the heads... I'd also not spend a dime on anything that isn't aluminum, particularly since the Vortec head is so darned cheap, built and ready to go! I know budgets get tight, but I'd suck it up and get the Vortecs, and plan on getting a little more cam in that motor. Your heads aren't going to do much even with a decent cam. Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Shasteen Posted March 14, 2001 Share Posted March 14, 2001 Cylinder Heads are where the free power lays. Granted you may have to spend a little at first. Your intake runners will determine where your peak power comes in but you wont be able to maximize your cam/intake/exhuast/carb if you cyl.heads are not flowing properly! Tighten your budget & if you can-go for the better heads....you'll be glad you did! Kevin, (Yes,Still an Inliner) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted March 15, 2001 Share Posted March 15, 2001 when you say Vortec heads, are you refering to the heads used on the 350 trucks from the 1990's and up? Also, is not using 305 heads on a 350 a good way to gain HP and FTP? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavyZ Posted March 15, 2001 Share Posted March 15, 2001 Jason, the Camaro motor I have will make about 300hp (I have calculated) with the pathetic stock heads. HOWEVER, this does not diminish what the motor can do in such a light car even with those heads. I'll wait on the aluminum heads for now... And no, the car isn't set up quite yet, so I can't tell you how fast it is. Sorry, man. Tenth280ZX: yes, the Vortec heads are the "truck" heads you describe and flow something awesome right out of the box! And no, the 305 heads are not the hot ticket unless the smog heads Jason has are the only other alternative. They have something like 58cc chambers (almost too good for added compression) and have tiny runner and valves to match (good for torque but not good for high end), which doesn't promote big HP numbers. I'm really on a budget, but am building a nice car anyway and I have even thought about the 305 heads, since they are practically free and can bump the compression ...but a better way to go would be the Vortec heads due to their low cost. I'm not quite sure, but the heads from a Camaro TPI 350 I think are Vortecs(?)--could be way wrong, but at least they are better then 72cc, 74cc, or 76cc smoggy heads. Just my $.02 David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Racin_Jason Posted March 15, 2001 Author Share Posted March 15, 2001 Ok ok...it looks like Im going to have to work some overtime and spring for heads. I read an article in CarCraft last night on the TrickFlow 23 degree aluminum heads..VERY tempting! They are $850 complete..compared to the $439 complete for the Vortecs. I'm going to have to discuss the finances with my father-in-law (he's partner in this project) because being able to eventually run .5 more compression on pumpgas AND save 50Lbs of the front end wold be nice. I will probably end up with a set of Vortecs in the end. Now I just have to get some books and read up on how to build the damn engine! Anyone wanna help? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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