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What would a stock 350 run?


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A truly stock engine pulled out of a car that’s cheap enough to sacrifice for a swap – in other words, a 1970’s-1980’s clunker – will NOT be a “high performance†model and will probably be quite worn. Doesn’t matter if it’s a Chevy or a Ford or a Ferrari engine – it probably will not be all that “fastâ€. And it may not even run. The JTR book refers to stock engines in good mechanical condition – which may not have been such a rare find in the mid-1990’s, when the intro to that book was probably written. Not so anymore.

 

An engine swap by itself – into a 280Z that is itself otherwise stock – will not be a performance panacea. That would require modding the engine.

 

Which brings me to my point: modding the engine can and generally is a bigger project than doing the swap itself. It will cost more and will consume more time. Engine mounts, radiator mounts, fuel line routing, subframe connectors, custom shifter – these really aren’t that hard or that expensive, even if you have a custom installation. But building a custom engine can easily cost more than the rest of the swap put together – and can take longer!

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So the 200lbs wouldnt be enough to make you go SBF? I have a friend that just ran a 13.8 on a stock 302 in a 3500lb car. With his 75 shot, he is at 12.4. One of these in a 2700lb car would probably break mid 12's on motor alone.

ok...that doesnt seem right at all, but ok...never heard a 75jet knocking off damn near 1.5 seconds. or even running near that stock with a car that heavy. hell my old notchback didnt run 13's with a stock 302.

 

 

 

anyways, back on topic.... i think high 13's low 14's would probably be the ballpark for a bone stock 350 in a Z(probly an old truck motor like ive seen alot of people selling around here)

 

hell, im hoping just to hit low 13's with the setup i have now...(minus the nitrous)

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  • 2 weeks later...

What would it run price-wise? or speed-wise?

 

Price-wise, $1500 and up. The sky's the limit. If you want decent (or even GOOD) performance though, look to easily spend 4,000-6,000...or more.

 

Speed-wise? Depends on the source of your stock 350. MOST run-of-the-mill 350's of the 80's-90's were about 190-220bhp stock(don't forget to subtract 17-20% of that number for actual rwhp). Unless you KNOW it came from something a little hotter, then that's what you can pretty much plan on.

 

So, you can find an ET Calculator with Google, and plug in the numbers and you know what you've got...or want to shoot for.

 

MOST Z's are around the 2900lb mark, give or take a hundred here or there. So take that basic 2900 lbs, figured with about 190-200hp..you're looking at 14's...maybe 13's, depending on the weight.

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Myfirst pass after the swap was a 13.8. That was on a stock motor with flat top $40 pistons. This motor was so tired that I was floating valves at 1000' and still ran that time. The best thing I changed on my car was the rear end. I went with 3.90 and a phantom grip for a locker. After a new set of heads, holley 750, voodoo cam, and a 3500 stall I ran a 12.3 consistantly last night. Would have been faster, but I have to back off the gas at about 1100' because I did not go with a cam with a higher rpm range. Anything is better than the original engine though. Good luck.

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I ran consistent 12.9s with a stock 120,000 mile LT1 in my 2905 pound 280Z. 4L60E automatic allowing the trans to shift itself. 3:54 open rear gear, only engine modes are cold air intake and shorty headers.

 

I have a 78 280z and it weighs 3040. AFR alum. heads and a 700r tranny. But I have all the interior and the spair. Oh, plus the a/c. How is yours set up?

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