Carb swapping an 88 5.7 TBI, parts recommendations

[Slade88]

Hey everyone so I figured I might as well carb swap 350 and just pony up to buy another intake that will fit my TBI heads, then I can deal with a head swap and bigger cam later this summer.

So I’ve decided what carb I'm gonna run, a edelbrock thunder series AVS 2, mainly because they have it at the advance auto I work out and I can get a good discount on it

This carb has an electric choke which I’ve heard is good on a TBI engine?

Im looking to buy a cheap duel plane high rise intake (as cheap as I can get) that will fit my tbi heads

I’m also looking for a good quality but cheap HEI distributor, now I know with my stock distributor it connects to a coil or something like that, would I need to buy another one for the HEI or is it included on top of the distributor?

The only other thing I need advice on is the fuel pressure regulator and carb bracket, I have a 700R4 transmission and I’ve heard I’ll need a bracket to get on the edelbrock carb to connect to my throttle cable/ cruise cable/ TV cable

The fuel pressure regulator im looking at is called a Mallory 29387, I’m aware you must use a return style regulator

Just curious if anyone that’s done this before on a early model GMT400 with a 5.7 could give me a parts list for a carb swap

Thanks!

 

[Matt98]

I did it to mine. Honestly I swapped the entire engine but the principle is the same. Electric chokes are generally better (depending on who you ask) as they're as simple as pressing the gas pedal once to engage it and set the choke, then it pulls off automatically. Manual chokes will give you more control, though can be a bit finicky. MSD makes a decent distributor, however I went with the stock GM one. I ran into issues with making the spark advance work proper with my cam, to which I ended up making a lockout so the mechanical advance would only move so far. Some distributors will come with a coil some will not. I believe you will need an aftermarket throttle bracket, they are cheap and an adjustable one is probably a good idea. I never ran a regulator (though you should anyhow), because I just had a mechanical pump with a return line on it. I would also suggest an air fuel ratio gauge to put in the dash.

I ran it this way for about 5 years, and honestly it was garbage for a daily driver. I'll give it that it always got me from point A to B and never fully broke down. However, there was more maintenance that had to be done. Where I live the weather changes drastically, which meant constant adjustments to the choke and carb itself to keep it running proper (Measured with the AFR gauge). Carbs can run great when you set them up right but almost always lose their calibration with elevation and temperature changes, they are a mechanical device. They will run okay, but not as good as they could. I always ended up with problems hot starting, no matter what I did, the engine would run rich at times (better than it running lean but it does cause your oil to get dirty somewhat quick) and various other little quirks. They are a cheap way to get power, but you're also going to absolutely kill your fuel mileage to get any sort of power. Keep these things in mind before spending ~1000 on a decent carb setup.

I ended up finding lightly used an elelbrock pro flo 4 kit. It gives you modern fuel injection (8 MPFI) with the styling and design of a 4 barrel carb and intake to keep the old school look. It has an app you can monitor all your vitals on and do some tuning through there on the fly. I have multiple maps set, for cruising then if I wanted to get more power I can change the settings with the engine running. It also includes a distributor, and timing adjustments can also be made on the fly. I would say it is 1000x better than any carb you can buy, and while it is quite a bit more expensive I would look into that before jumping the gun on a carb setup.

 

[thatclappedsilverado]

I agree with what he said about efi. I’ve been tuning the avs 2 for quite some
Time now and still haven’t gotten it perfect. The Holley style carbs are a bit easier to use. All you need is an hei distributor, intake, carb, and fpr if it’s 88-95 96 up is a **** show. I did mine with the tbi heads and a cam and it ran like ass. I’d leave it how it is and rebuild it. Currently I have the avs2 and vortec heads, comp 270h cam, ls springs and retainers and a Jegs dual plane high rise intake. Much more pep and better running overall. Don’t spend time or money on the tbi stuff. It’s all junk unless your building an engine to pull. I can show you what you need and what wiring when I get home on the 27th if you’d like.

 

[thatclappedsilverado]

I agree with what he said about efi. I’ve been tuning the avs 2 for quite some
Time now and still haven’t gotten it perfect. The Holley style carbs are a bit easier to use. All you need is an hei distributor, intake, carb, and fpr if it’s 88-95 96 up is a **** show. I did mine with the tbi heads and a cam and it ran like ass. I’d leave it how it is and rebuild it. Currently I have the avs2 and vortec heads, comp 270h cam, ls springs and retainers and a Jegs dual plane high rise intake. Much more pep and better running overall. Don’t spend time or money on the tbi stuff. It’s all junk unless your building an engine to pull. I can show you what you need and what wiring when I get home on the 27th if you’d like.

I also have a tbi intake for these trucks that I’d sell for cheap been in my garage for a while.

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This is the original 350 I built for my truck.

 

[PlayingWithTBI]

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[evilunclegrimace]

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Kids these days,