jcloving

I had Bosch plugs before and I could thread them in but there was not much room left for the plug boot.

jcloving

I put the power steering pump back on with the studs and the small shield on top of the pump. Anyone know what that shield on the p/s pump really does?

The Z-bar is back in too. About 0.5" clearance between that tube and the rearmost header tube.

I also tried to mount the starter motor today. I had to unbolt the pass. side header to do it. I also had added a heat shield to the starter and it hits the header. A couple of quick trims with the cutoff wheel took care of the big interference. I think there is still a small one at the bottom of the shield. Getting there though.

daanbc

I don't have that shield, but my guss is, its for the belt. Maybe from getting hit or it hitting something if it's not tight enough.

Tim H

What in the heck kind of headers do you have???
I put mine on without as much as a light under the car it was so easy!
I put those Summit headers on everything that they make them for that I own!!!

jcloving

They are from Josh Powers at Custom Image Corvettes.

jcloving

Ok. Lots of pics of the project.

Parts:




While I was at it, I rebuilt the steering system to fix various leaks:











Back to the exhaust:










Muffler, they are mirror polished. The "rust looking" stain is actually a reflection of the floor.



tightly packed, I am pointing at the tip:


from the rear:


Video of the finished product:




This has been my goal for a long time: ACHIEVED!

jcloving

I've driven it several times in the last few days and the difference between this system and the stock system is impressive. The stock was manifolds to a y-pipe into a cat and then back out to dual mufflers. This system is 2.5" stainless, long tube headers with no cat.

I can now chirp the tires in the 1-2 upshift. I could not do that before. I will try some more aggressive launches after the clutch is fully worn in...say 500 miles.

The car now has a throaty sound and more power. I would say that the estimates from this forum of a 20hp increase are correct. Wow..that puts me in the 200hp range!

riggs 74

Great job on the clean up and installs, I see you got bitten buy the, While I'm at it bug, We all do, it's really the only way to go about repairing these old cars.

Whats your next project?


Riggs

jb78L-82

Based on my experience with my internally stock 78 L-82 4 speed, I would say 20 HP increase is way too conservative! There have been other threads as well on the forum that describe up to 50 HP with headers and duals versus a single exhaust on SBC V8's. Your 2-1-2 exhaust is essentially a single exhaust with the Y pipe with a single 2.5 inch pipe dictating the exhaust flow (physics here).

On my internally stock L-82, I dynoed the engine last October 2011 and with Shorty headers (McJacks), 2.5 inch duals, and Monza turbo mufflers, the engine produced 233 RWHP versus the 220 NET HP when new. 220 Net HP is about 180-185 RWHP on these cars which roughly translates into about a 45 HP gain with essentially an efficient dual exhaust. The only other changes on my engine were a out of the box (no modifications) Holley 4175 Q-jet replacement (650 CFM vacuum secondaries) and comp cams roller tipped (not true roller rockers) 1.5 ratio, same as stock.

It will take more than an additional 20 HP to get those tires chirping. Just something to think about.

Grumpy 427

That looked like a very straight forward install. Nice job.

Rebelrob

That looks great. You did a lot of clean up and installed a nice clean looking exhaust system. If you have not done so, rebuild your front suspension if you have not done so. Its an improvement you will notice.

jcloving

Thanks guys. Yes, I cleaned the floorpans and frame rails when I did the tranny/clutch work. It is very clean down there now.

So, somewhere between 20-50hp gain with a true dual exhaust..sounds great. I can say this car has never had this much power.

Riggs, my next small project is to replace the a/c compressor. It died on the way to Bowling Green on Sunday. It was windows down from Knoxville to BG. Also, I have a skip/misfire between 60-80mph. I need to pull the cap and rotor and check them.

Also, my best mileage on the trip was 18.5mpg!

John