Performance advice?

[Caman96]

^^^There’s only one way to settle this.

 

[letitsnow]

We like pics, and live illegal race videos!

 

[PlayingWithTBI]

Air intake, headers and a tune did a hell of alot more than gears and converter. I then added a cam and 1.6 rockers. I gained over 100 hp at the tires.

^^^ It's all about better breathing - inhale, big bang, exhale. Then optimizing your power range to the pavement, i.e. tires, TC and gears.

 

[L31MaxExpress]

We like pics, and live illegal race videos!

LOL

This was when I had just added power. 4L85E with the stock converter and a factory 3.73 9.5 14 bolt. I later swapped from the tiny 196/206 @ 0.050 cam to a Lunati Bare Bones Hotcam with 218/228 @ 0.050. The bigger cam made just as much torque, stalling the converter the same ~2,500 rpm but had ~1,000 rpm more top-end pull.

350, Canadian 906s with 2.02/1.60 valves inatalled with 0.016" steel shim head gaskets, 395' Marine cam, 1.7 rockers, tri-y thorley headers, high flow 3" cats, stock 3" dual pipes to the muffler, 4" tail pipe. This was on gasoline, made 257 hp @ 5,100 and 310 tq @ 3,200 at the ground. On E85 the small cam made 272 rwhp @ 4,900 and 330 tq @ 2,900. Bigger cam made 290 rwhp @ 5,700 and 330 tq @ 3,500 on gas and 316 rwhp @ 5,400 and 347 rwtq @ 3,200 on E85. 350 loved the corn syrup and made the best power with 34° of timing at 2,400 rpm. It wanted ALL the timing by the stall speed on E85, where 91-93 octane would spark kbock/detonate without less timing. The torque difference was night and day and it was cheaper to run on E85.

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[PlayingWithTBI]

It wanted ALL the timing by the stall speed on E85, where 91-93 octane would spark kbock/detonate without less timing.

Makes sense, E85 helps cool the chamber facilitating more spark, and thus, more HPs.

 

[RDF1]

A time slip would be good, if you go, post one up. Dragy is known to be pretty accurate compared against a time slip.

We use the Draggy on some race cars for no prep racing.
At the track the things are crazy accurate. Withing .01 sec on 60', .1 sec and .5mph in the 1/8 and .05 sec and 1mph in the 1/4 every time we compared data to slips. Thats on turbo cars and nitrous cars.

 

[Vikingdude]

You definitely have the most badass van I know of. Thanks for posting your dyno numbers, that's extremely helpful. I would kill to get my hands on a set of those headers if they ever made them again.

 

[L31MaxExpress]

You definitely have the most badass van I know of. Thanks for posting your dyno numbers, that's extremely helpful. I would kill to get my hands on a set of those headers if they ever made them again.

I love the 97, but my old 83 was way lighter and alot of fun. When it had a near stock TBI 350 with a Weiand 177 it would not hookup even pedaling it. Loved that 177 whine too. That was like 1/2 pedal from a stop and I had to let almost all the way out of the throttle to get the tires to actually bite at 45 mph.. To negate the need for deep gearing/big converter build massive low speed torque. Even a stockish TBI 350 is fun with 7-10 psi of boost.

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[PWC Repair]

Keep in mind, in CA, you have to have documented CARB (Ca Air Resources Board) approved Cat. That makes them pretty much more expensive than in the rest of the USA.

Oh ya.......that makes it $300 then!

 

[Schurkey]

Oh ya.......that makes it $300 then!

Keep going...I'd have said $500, maybe more for a CARB-approved catalyst system.