Jchrisd

Well guys...I have the solution for 1981 vettes, under 2grand to make them quick....

I just got mine done today, took me about 2 days work on the engine and under 2 grand, but this thing moves now. As a matter of fact, I just raced my neigbor ligth to lite a few times for fun, and he lost..ha ha
Funny thing is, he has a 96 vette...

Here it is(now remember I said 2 grand and I work at car dealer for the last 15 years, so I did everything myself labor wise.)

I pulled all the emission stuff off the engine. Ditched the computer, dist and carb and intake.

For $300 got a set of cast iron 64cc heads tha were done.
Gasket set for $79
Junk yard HIE for $10, and curved kitted it ($20) extra so $30
Got headers from summit for $119
At work fabricated to pipes under car that go back to the mufflers.Pipes cost $50
Got a performer intake $129
Friend gave me a holley 750 dual feed single pump(I rebuilt it with kit
) $25
A 4x4 cam from comp cams part number CSx4 250h-11
You can't even really tell thier is a cam in it(sorry,doesn't sound cool)
The specs are 206-214 @ .050
lift is 432-453 and lobe is 111
This cam and lift pack was $170
I put in 3.73 gears (saginal gears) and the kit w bearing was $210
That is about it, and tuned it my own goofy way, but this thing pulls like living hell to about 4 grand and is quick lite to lite.
This setup verses stock is unreal.
It still isn't a 12 sec car, but you can drive it all over town, ect. Doesn't load up at lights and is a total sleeper (for what it is)

I know someone will chime in an tell me I should have gone with AFR heads and a might deamon carb with hooker super comp headers and all the other bells and whistles, but for you guys who want a cheap way to make a smog vette pretty quick, here it is, and it has been tested...Hope it helps some of you out..

tramminc

good job, i have a 81 that i'm looking to upgrade, i'll be ordering parts later today.

how hard is it to install the cam? i know the rediator has to come out.

UKPaul

Am I reading this right? Is that $210 for everything needed to upgrade the 2.xx rear to 3.73????

CA-Legal-Vette

Nice job.

The cam is an interesting choice, but I suppose for low end torque, a 4 X 4 cam makes sense.

How hard was the rear end gear swap?

a1sensei

I would also like to know details about the $210 rear gear swap . God bless, Sensei

Glensgages

You probably wouldn't WANT to spin those L-48/L-81/L-83 much-more than 5500 RPM anyhow, so why put a big cam in them:

the existing short-block will never make much more than 9.5/9.7 compression, even-if you'd use some of the 58cc heads available, so they'll run on available pump-gas, too.


Low-14s (while not earth-shattering ) is a Helluva -lot better than low-16s, which is what many stock late-C3s run, and can be done 'on-the-cheap', too!


A good combination of 'smaller'-parts (low-lift / RV-type cam, small-valve 64cc heads, 'on-sale' headers, etc. ) is much-better than a poorly-chosen mish-mash of 'big' parts.....


$210.00 for the rear-gears isn't out-of-the-question, if he did the work himself, correct?

Kalway

He coulda spent half the money he spent on the cam by ordering a summit cam and lifter kit and gotten a bit more lift and duration.

stickboy

MsVetteMan

A lot of different options to wake up an '81.......here's a top end job for $1625.00.

Remove 'puter, smog, cats.......Free
Comp Cam XE-268H (CCA-CL12-242-2).......$ 97
GM Vortec Heads w/vlv's..........$532/pair
Hooker Compt. Headers........$ 150
Edelbrock 1406 Carb, 600cfm....$ 265.00
Edelbrock RPM AirGap Intake....$ 204
True Dual Exhaust Work.......$ 100
MSD Ready to Run Distrib......$ 277.00

Total Parts........$ 1625.00

Realisticly, you can take a 190HP motor, and wake it up to around 325HP with these simple inexpensive mod's........

Try it, you will love it!!

Shark Racer

The one thing I've noticed about cheap builds - they're cheap.

You won't be happy with what you've got forever. Once you've ridden/driven something faster, you will want more.

Odds are, you will NOT be able to pull the power out of those heads that you could with a nice aluminum casting.

The bottom end of our motors is a big weak link to major power - both in terms of durability and power capability. As said above, we can not make major league compression with the stock pistons. At this point, you will be spending big cash on a nice block and good pistons. At the very least about $1500. (700 for a ZZ4-style block, 300 for pistons, the rest for rods, bearings, etc).

If you decide to go big power in the future - that $300 you spent on heads or $500 on vortec heads is probably gone. The heads are the center of the motor, and usually the most expensive piece - they're usually near or above the cost of the block itself.

Just a thought.

Glensgages

but I believe the original post shows what CAN be done for fairly-little money down:
if there WAS area that I'd go over-board on, even for a low-compression 'budget'-build, would be a good set of cylinder heads, that could be used down the road for a more serious motor with squeeze, stroke, etc.

Shark Racer

Hence why I went with AFR 195s. My small block is probably around 8:1 compression ratio. 241 rwhp. Imagine what it would be like if I swapped pistons out and went to 10.5:1...

Kalway

My '81's engine was rebuilt and has slightly higher than stock compression hypereutetic pistons. So I've got a bit better bottom end to mine.

My grocery list:
Summit Long Tube headers: $86
Patriot sidepipes (which only like 1/4 of the kit ended up being used): $200
Exhaust work: $200 (san diego ain't cheap)
Edelbrock 1904: $200 used
ProComp HEI: $80
Summit Cam & Lifters: $85

I'm at just over $800 right now, but I had to overpay for labor I couldn't do myself. Some budget heads and I'm well under $2000. With 64cc heads I'll be around 9.5 - 9.8:1, since my current compression is 8.6 or 8.7:1.

By the way, my current setup gets about 20mpg on the freeway doing like 70mph. Not so great in town, though. quadrajet > *

Shark Racer

Stock pistons are cast aluminum I believe. Not sure when GM went to hypers.

SpyderD

But you always want more, even with an expensive build. And you forget the law of diminishing returns. The great thing about a 200 HP chevy small block is you CAN turn it into a 350HP engine for $2,000. After that it gets very expensive, not only for engine modifications but suspension, brakes, etc. that can take the increased horsepower. For another $2,000 he can get better heads and a cam and squeeze out another 50HP, for another $8,000 he can rebuild his smallblock, get some flat top pistons, forged internals, and get to 450HP with a car on the edge of streetability. Or for another $20,000 he can get a big block, full suspension upgrade, fuel system upgrade, ignition upgrade, tires, brakes, the works and have 550HP. (Please no price corrections, you understand my point).

I like the $2,000 cheap 350HP car.

tramminc

thank i will, how hard is it to install the cam?

Ezekiel Black

these modifications would also apply to a 77 small block right?

Shark Racer

Wondering what's included in the initial estimate of $2000?

I think the best plan is to do headers and exhaust - then when you're ready to build the motor, build the one you want, not the cheapest thing you can scrap together at the moment.

There is NO need to build a big block for a car that does not see the drag strip - unless you're really fond of telling people you own one. Torque monsters do not go very fast or drive very well on street tires. Nor will our rear ends hold up anyhow.

The benefits of aluminum cylinder heads (lighter motor, more efficient chambers, less likely to ping, better cooling, better performance far outweigh the additional cost in my opinion. For $300 on top of a set of Vortecs, you could bring home a set of Trick Flow heads. Better flow, lighter weight, less likely to ping, and better cooling. That's worth the $300 to me, when you consider how long these heads will be sitting on top of the motor.

You can argue all you want. Ultimately, people will want more no matter what they have - but I think one needs to do a gut check before they get tantalized by a "great, cheap, fast" motor. Before you drop $1500 making a "potentially 300 hp at the crank" engine, you should sit down and decide what you really want. The difference between a 300 hp motor and a 450 hp motor isn't that drastic in terms of investment. I could spec out a 450 hp motor, from scratch, pretty reliable, roller cam, new block, forged crank, hyperute pistons, AFR 195 heads, dual-plane intake, no carb, no dist, for about $4500.

Just keep in mind - every cheap part you buy will more than likely have to be replaced when you go on to the next step. With my current combination, I knowingly chose to waste money on a cam that will not be re-used ($85 for C+L), gaskets that won't be re-used (?? $50 or so).

This is $150 down the drain. But if I bought cheap rockers and cheap heads in the short term, that would have been an additional $600 down the drain.

This is my ultimate point - if you buy cheap, you will throw away parts. Yes, I'm aware some of these can be sold, especially the heads, but don't expect to get the $$ you put into them back.

Shark Racer

You don't need a distributor - rebuild it, unfreeze the shaft if it's frozen, get the timing spot on and an aggressive advance curve and you'll have every bit as good an igntion.

Also, go with an Edelbrock performer or performer RPM intake with a spread-bore pattern so you can fit your q-jet. Get the q-jet rebuilt and set up properly for your combo and you will have a car that moves AND gets decent gas mileage. (Notice I said decent, not good.)

Otherwise, yes, you can do the same to your 77.

dyanisis2

While we're on the topic of motors, my 80 has the complete original motor in it. But its obviously pretty much worn out. I ultimately want a motor that will pump out between 350 and 400 hp. So here's my question: Would it be worth it to get a new block, from Summit or the like, and custom build a completely new motor, or use the original block and build it from there? I've also seen on ebay some custom engine builders like: hammysh.r.engines, arracingunl, phoenixmusclecar, theenginestore. Anyone have any experience with these companies? I could get a long block or complete motor from one of them as well. As you can tell, im completely undecided on how to go about the motor. Just looking to get some advice on opinions on what you guys would do.