sweetride2go Posted February 14, 2007 Share Posted February 14, 2007 i have a GEN I 383 w/ vortec heads, and i would like to go to EFI... i was curious if anyone has built a EFI system, and what intake they used... i was wondering if you were to build ur own, would there be significant differences between using a TPI intake v/s a Victor Jr style, like the edelbrock pro flo system has... i am limited in intake choices due to the vortec heads. has anyone tried using a LT1 ecm in place of like a megasquirt??? this came to me when i was pricing individual items out for the EFi and realized i could build it for nearly the same price as some of the systems like holley and edelbrocks... but i dont know if i would get the flexability in programing... any thoughts??? suggestions??? questions??? lol thanks ryan~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lbhsbZ Posted February 14, 2007 Share Posted February 14, 2007 Google Megasquirt and see what you come up with. Its available as a kit or prebuilt ECM, and its pretty user friendly and the limits to what it can do are almost endless. I've got an assmebled V2.2 ECM and wiring harness, all brand new for sale (cheap) if you're interested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
280zwitha383 Posted February 14, 2007 Share Posted February 14, 2007 I think it would be generally accepted that you would have better performance with a modified single plane intake (like the victor or victor jr.) than most tpi systems. They are pretty notorious for not doing too much over 4500 or 5000 rpm. You would really just need to figure out the placement of the injectors. This has been done but I don't know who has done it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dustin280zx Posted February 14, 2007 Share Posted February 14, 2007 holley stealth ram. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pop N Wood Posted February 14, 2007 Share Posted February 14, 2007 Just strip a factory EFI unit off a truck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweetride2go Posted February 14, 2007 Author Share Posted February 14, 2007 isnt the factry truck unit a "spider" type injector setup inside of a plastic manifold??? and if its the one imthinking of, it doesnt seem like a super efficient manifold design... would it be possible to 'customize' a plastic manifold??? machining a aluminium manifold would be easy enough, but the plastice one would be interisting to say the least, lol... at least i think its a plastick manifold on the stock units....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wheelman Posted February 14, 2007 Share Posted February 14, 2007 I wouldn't try to use the LT1 PCM, it expects the timing signals produced by the opti-spark to determine when to trigger the injectors and the coils. Reproducing that signal train would not be worth the effort to use the PCM as it is not going to be as flexible as the Megasquirt system. You might look at using an LT1 or LT4 intake manfold though, they flow well and are built to accomodate the injectors. Not sure if they will bolt to Vortec heads without modification but it's worth doing some research. There is a company that mods them for use with an HEI distrbutor, don't have the link but it shouldn't be to hard to find. Wheelman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweetride2go Posted February 14, 2007 Author Share Posted February 14, 2007 ok, good info on the lt1 pcm, thanks... but ya, i would luv to use LT1 manifolds, specially with their low profile, but the LT1 manifolds dont come close to fitting on vortec heads, the vortec ports are just to high... they do sell a lower manifold for the Tuned Port Injection system that will bolt onto the vortec's... but then i would be in with the megasquirt ecm... any pro's/con's to megasquirt v/s a holley or edelborck system??? anyone have a hindsight issue where they wish they had done something differnet, like me and wishing i had spent all this money and just bought and tricked out a LS1, heh, ya ... lol.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quicker240 Posted February 15, 2007 Share Posted February 15, 2007 I have the proflo on my car and have been happy with it overall.Reasonably tunable and for what you get with it,pretty cost efficient.PCM,Harness,sensors,injectors(28lb),intake(basically a victor jr),throttle body(1000cfm),fuel pump,hoses,clamps,distributor conversion stuff.All BRAND NEW.Yes,you could get a used TPI for a less money,but it would be used stuff and likely incomplete and hard to adapt to your application.The instructions were easy to follow and straight forward.You dont get instructions with used stuff.Wont work with your Vortecs though.You'll probably have to buy the Edelbrock/Vortec 4bbl intake and modify it to add port injection.Do-able but some extra expense and effort.Maybe look at some different heads,I think the E-tek heads from Edelbrock use the Vortec style ports and chamber design.Downers for the proflo are small tuning maps(8 x 8),no wideband provision,limited to about 500hp(a lot for some,but not enough for others...).Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweetride2go Posted February 15, 2007 Author Share Posted February 15, 2007 ya, they sell the proflo for the vtec heads, granted they're gona get me for another few hundred dollars just because of the intake, lol... do u have the dualplane or the victor style intake on that setup, and did u end up porting that edelbrock manifold at all??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweetride2go Posted February 15, 2007 Author Share Posted February 15, 2007 wheelman, what about using an EDIS trigger wheel to simulate the opti-spark??? how specific does tthe signal to the PCM hav to be??? any cutt-aways of the opti-spark and the signal it produces?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
280zwitha383 Posted February 27, 2007 Share Posted February 27, 2007 I just found this and thought it was very appropriate: http://www.mez.co.uk/ms4.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wheelman Posted February 27, 2007 Share Posted February 27, 2007 Sweetride2go, Sorry I didn't respond sooner but I just saw this thread active again. Sometimes I wonder if the "New Posts" button actaully pulls up all the new posts. Anyway, using an EDIS trigger wheel to simulate the opti will not work either. The opti actually produces 2 pulse trains. The high resolution signal pulses every 1 degree of cam rotation, the other varies and is used to determine where in the rotation the engine is and is called the low resolution signal. Here is a link that describes the actual outputs: http://www.gmhightechperformance.com/tech/0310htp_lt1_ignition_system_understanding_modifying If you were to adapt an EDIS wheel to the LT1 pulley you might as well use the EDIS modules and coils and eliminate the opti all together, then run the whole system using MS-n-EDIS. I've actually considered doing this to mine just to see if I could get it to work. Wheelman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbk240z Posted February 27, 2007 Share Posted February 27, 2007 Check out this link, it shows some efi ideas, good info. http://www.lt1swap.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danno74Z Posted February 27, 2007 Share Posted February 27, 2007 Sweetride2go, Like Wheelman, I thought about eliminating the Opti years ago - very expensive and probably not really worth the effort and expense. One could remove the Opti and put a cover (GM use to make this) over where it was. GM also made a 4-barrel intake manifold to replace the fuel injection one. Very similar to what GMHP is doing today with the LX series engine for guys who don’t want a fuel injected engine. Anyway, there is a company http://www.lt1intake.com/services.htm that will drill a hole in your existing LT1 manifold to except a standard distributor like was used in prior years < 1995. Pretty cool. Instead of using a standard distributor, I thought about using a dual sync distributor that provides BOTH a cam and crankshaft position signal. Once you have both signals you can use a FAST computer system to control the engine – Ignition, sequential fuel injection and lots of other features that are built into the computer system. Total control over the engine but to do this required about $2k. Just thought this would be a fun project to try. Danno74Z Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strotter Posted February 28, 2007 Share Posted February 28, 2007 Is this a 1st generation V8 with vortec heads on it, conventional rear distributor and split oil seals? Or is it the "vortec" motor, a third (?) generation v8 from the mid/late 90's? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icewtr Posted February 28, 2007 Share Posted February 28, 2007 Almost all the newer intakes including the victor jr have bungs welded to them for fuel injection or ya can get them and have them welded in .. i have the zz383 with the gm intake and it has the bungs welded on it all i have to do it drill the hole and insert the injectors and run whatever computer i feel as in a f.a.s.t. system or something .. i had this done to a victor jr on my mustang before they sold the spider intake .. worked great and increased mileage.. power was about the same but did respond way better... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweetride2go Posted November 18, 2009 Author Share Posted November 18, 2009 Just to update on an old thread. I abandoned the thought of doing a home built EFI. It would be cheaper and probably easier to go megasquirt or some other engine management on a regular manifold for the Gen-1 chev. Also, through my research it seems that the LT1 manifold I wanted to use wasn't efficient for the kind of power that I was hoping to achieve (500hp/tq). So, in hindsight, if I had the money, I would have gone with the Holley Stealth Ram, but I couldn't afford it, so now I have a carburetor, lol... Cheers Ryan~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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