hey guys, i just bought my first project car recently, it's a 1979 camaro z28 with the 350 in it and the 350 turbo trans, as far as the gearing goes i have no idea, it's not posi if that helps, i'm kinda learning while doing this project so any tips would help a lot. as for the engine i was wondering what would be a good setup? it has a 4 barrel holley carb, edelbrock performer aluminum intake and filter, along with moroso valve covers. i'm planning on putting this on the street but i want it to have more hp than the stock 175 i beleive it is, any ideas as far as engine mods go that could give me what i'm loking for? once again i'm fairly new to this so any tips would be appreciated, thanks a lot

 

i would start with heads and exhaust

 

How much do you have to spend? You say 175hp so I'm assuming it's the stock engine. What kind of Holley 4bbl is on it? Does it havevacuum or mechanical secondaries and what is the CFM if you know? Is it the 2101 Edelbrock Performer or is it the RPM performer?

Also, do you want to make good low end torque that you'll see on the street from stop light to stop light or high end horsepower that you'll never see unless you're highway driving or racing? Get the wrong type of heads and exhaust you'll be stuck going either one way or another and it may not be a direction you want to go in.

 

alright, well to start off bear with me because like i said before i don't know a ton about engines and engine work but i'd like to learn some while doing this project, anyways i'm not sure about the carb other than it being a 4bbl, the previous owner had it put on and i never asked him about it, the intake is the 2101 edelbrock performer, and if it makes a difference it has an electronic fuel pump(i didnt think it would but just in case you wanted to know), i've been talking to some guys at work and they recommended putting in a bigger cam, they prefferred the VooDoo cams by Lunati with hydraulic roller lifters, as for duration and lift i have no idea what to go with, the main thing is that i want to get more hp out of my car but i'm basically just going to be driving it on the streets, i won't be dragging it, so low end torque would be preferrable, also the axle ratio in the rear is 3.42, would putting in the 3.73 posi make a difference torque-wise? any kind of help or ideas are appreciated, thanks a lot guys

 

Going to a 3.73 will improve your launch but you'll lose some of your top end speed. If you're wanting to go with more low end torque then keep the intake small and low. The more volume the plenum (intake) has the more it will be better for top end. Also keep a tight, low duration cam and get lift through raising the ratio of your rockers. Duration helps at higher RPMs, not lower and lowers your DCR (Dynamic Compression Ratio). Also make sure your cam has a low ABDC (At Before Dead Center) number as this keeps your DCR pretty constant and solid in the low end. Small runners in your cylinder heads will help also as larger runners are for higher RPM power building. Shorty headers will also help with low end torque.

You can run a higher duration cam if you like the sound but you have to put a lot of timing forward to get it to make up for the low end DCR that's shot to poop. I know a lot of people that "stick" there timing to where there's no curve and they start up with 30+ degrees of timing and it doesn't change throughout the RPM range. They run some monster cams though and even I start at around 19 degrees advanced and end at around 35 at around 3500 RPM.

With that TH350 trans you have in there you can upgrade the stall a little to help with the launches also if it's stock one. But I would choose that after the engine build up.

 

Well you are limited with what you can do by the stock compression so what ever you do has to be on the mild side.
A big cam in a stock compression motor is a waste,same goes for too big a carb etc.
Heads are a good mod but again without a bump in compression you can only go so far without doing a complete rebuild of all the internals.
The bottom end in stock form can only support so much hp as well so if you boosted compression by shaving the heads and did other stuff to really get some ponies going on you'd be risking a lower end failure.
You need a performance package of parts that compliment each other,basically stuff all on the same level and with a stock lower end and stock pistons it will need to be mild.
That said the right components even on the mild side all working togetner can make a good deal more power than stock,enough for a good seat of the pants feel.
The gears you're looking at aren't really a big enough change to make a lot of difference so save you money on that or go more aggressive with a bigger change like 4.10's, if you don't do much highway driving that would make a big difference off the line but be forewarned you'll be screaming on the freeway if you do.
You already have a start with the bolt ons,do you have headers?
Good exhaust helps a bunch,since you already have an intake and carb a mild performance cam and getting a street port on the heads or perhaps a better set of heads would be the next step.
Don't over cam it,most common mistake made and besides with an auto you'll need something that idles at a reasonable rpm or you'll need to change the torque converter for one with a higher stall,one thing leads to another.