I almost bought a 1976 Corvette today. The price was right, but there was some extensive rust damage that I think went much deeper than meets the eye. The entire door hinge had pulled away from the frame and was split and rusted all down the weld seam. Anyways.....I took it for a ride and OMG what a SLUG the L48 is. My girlfriends base Chevy Cobalt has more pickup. My kid brother (not a gear head but knows enough about a car) almost didnt believe that my Camaro and this Vette had the same engine in it. I never thought I had a 'fast' 350 until I drove this boat anchor.

Heads, cam, carb, exhaust.....its like night and day. That base L48 is a joke.

 

you bet. even with a new carb, intake, and headers, theyre still slow. we have one for sale at the dealership i work at. i test drove it and was not impressed. my stock 305 had more power through the auto than that vette did, i think it was a 76 as well. it wouldnt even break loose in first gear

 

Govt rules had become more strict and auto companies had no idea how to respond so terrible heads, restrictive exhaust and intake were put into play.

You need to understand the times before bashing it. Heck, in 1986 Honda was heralding their new, larger engine with fuel injection for the Accord that made 102HP. I towed a boat with my 100HP Toyota pickup and many folks towed with the 120HP Chevy S10 Blazer.

 

So its the heads? Will heads (a set of standard heads, just not these heads) really make a difference. I just cant imagine a 350 being this sad. Its got a 4bbl....it cant get out of its own way. Im gonna go back just to see tomo......

 

I'm actually more into Vettes than Camaros, I've restored a few C3's. I sold a 79 last year, it had an aftermarket intake and an Edelbrock carb. The thing went along pretty good, and I'd say definitely better than my old 91 RS 305 did. The L48 is a low compression engine, with a more restrictive exhaust. I know my 69 Vette would be able to run circles around it. You can do plenty of things to free up some power on that 76. But I would stay away from that one. Once the steel birdcage starts rusting like that, it's in pretty bad shape. And I can pretty much guarantee that the windshield frame is shot too. And the frame, they tend to rust apart right in front of the rear wheels where the bend meets the straight.