[Chevy79RS]

I have had my 79 camaro rs for a little over a year now. I want to upgrade it. it has a 350 sb edlebrok 650 cfm carb on a performer intake original heads the cam came with the car I don't think its stock though but I plan on changing that out also. It has a stall converter, shift kit but original gears. I put an electric fan in it. From what I have learned a good route would be to change the intake to an air gap. Get a demon carb and change out the rocker rollers in the heads for later use on a new set of heads. I was reading that planning the parts all out before I buy them would be the best way but I use this car as a daily driver and don't want it to be out of commission for very long. Does that only apply to the heads and the cam shaft combination?combanation. if there is anything i left out please tell me and i will look into it.

[richard stewart 3rd]

Hi
Welcome to Hotrodders.com Glad to have you with us

What are you wanting to do? I know you said up-grade it, but that's wide open. Specifically what are you looking for. And what do you have for rear gears, tire size, what trans. you'll need to know all of this to put together a combination of parts/equipment that complement & work with each other.
IMO you should either get a beater to use as a DD until the camaro is finished, or get another 350 & build it in the garage then drop it in when complete.
Best of luck to you
Rich
Are you in the service? If so, I'd like to say Thank You!

[Chevy79RS]

i want it to be faster but not just for track use. 275 60r16 in the rear and normal tires in the front. i don't know the gears but i believe they are stock. the transmission is a 350turbo. i dont see my self being able to get another car. as for another 350 it might be possible i will start looking.

[va4cqd]

"stock" gears could mean anything. take off the rear end cover and on the ring gear there should be some numbers stamped on it

[75gmck25]

Its also good to figure out what kind of budget you have before you make any changes, and how much you plan to spend in the end. It will save money to do things yourself, but there will be more down time where the car is not available.

For example, if you have a long term plan with a fairly good budget I might start out with a switch to Vortec RHS heads, and a roller cam conversion, since that would provide a good basis for later changes. But if you just want quick increases in HP right now I would put my money into a more aggressive flat tappet cam, good headers and exhaust, and a well tuned carb and intake. The catch is that the money you put into the quick upgrades now might be lost later if you switch to better heads and a roller cam later on.

Bruce

[454C10]

You can tell would gear you have by givings us the engine rpms at 60mph in 3rd gear.

If you have a highway type gear (2.73 or 3.08), and you aren't willing to change gears then you need to make more low speed torque.

I would guess your car has a 3.08 gear plus those tires are tall which doesn't help gearing. If so, install some headers, compcam 260H, and a good set of 64cc heads (160 to 190cc ports). Power is all in the heads!

Later, consider adding more cubic inches (383 or 406).

You could also buy a used and "complete" vortec 350 engine from a 1996 to 2000 chevy truck. This engine makes a great starting point for a nice street engine (decent heads and a factory roller cam setup). Plus you could build the engine up while still driving the car. Check your local craig's list. But make sure to get a complete engine (fan to flexplate) as the little things will nickel and dime you to death.

I would not use an Air gap RPM intake on a street car because the intake is slow to warm up which makes the carb very unhappy in the cooler months. Plus it may not fit under the hood. Use a regular rpm intake and a holley 3310 750cfm, but check to see if it will fit first.

[Chevy79RS]

454c10 if i were to buy all the parts you recommended how much hp upgrade would i expect to see.

[454C10]

I would say 285-300hp with stock smogger gm heads or 340 to 350hp with a good set of heads. (vortec, afr, dart, edlebrock.....)

More Hp is not the most important thing here. More torque is what you should be after. (if you have a highway type gear).

The 260H cam is about the biggest you should use with a highway gear in a 350.

[Chevy79RS]

are 190CC ALUMINUM HEADS what you qualify as good heads yes your right torque is what i'm looking for.

[va4cqd]

depends who made them

[Chevy79RS]

Dart 200cc pro 1 platinum

[Chevy79RS]

With dart dual plane intake and as far as carbs i was thinkinh street avenger how much cfm should i go 670 750?

[454C10]

750 vacuum secondary.

get a 3310 holley

[Chevy79RS]

I have tried l looking it up but are aluminum heads worth the extra in my case?

[Chevy79RS]

Or 185cc pp vortec.