Fast355

iTrader: (2)

I am going to disagree. If you are after gains later from a head/cam swap/intake/chip buring go for 1 7/8" headers. On my 305 they were worth over 20 HP at the tires and torque gains from off-idle and up. The 305 may be a small engine, but it still likes to breathe.

rx7speed

geez man my little 1.3L has 2 inch primaries


still say go with the 350 though.

Doom86

this guy is entertainment..

to give everyone an idea of who we're "helping" check out this thread; https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/theo...ml#post2804140

appearently in the linked thread (20 days ago) he's wanting to know if he could beat a vette with his modded IROC.. lol.. then proceeds to insult the help and tells everyone what he thinks of the outcome of the mythical race. i'm seeing a pattern here.

Lo-tec

I tried to post 350, but it wouldn't let me!!

urbanhunter44

iTrader: (3)

haha thanks for finding that doom. forgot all about that thread! It gave me a good laugh

Yeah.. Ethan you're an idiot.

JB97C5

Great post Joe!

I think when folks look at a late 80s-VERY early 90s F-Body they have to look for something more than just racing Hondas and Toyotas in a bone-stock car. What makes the f-body the best is the RWD, massive aftermarket support, and the fact they are just plain cool. There are trade offs, but the POTENTIAL in a Camaro or Firebird is so much greater than in a Civic or Camry.

If you want a rocket with no work required- save up for an 06 ZO6.

rx7speed

oh my my I forgot all about that post with the vette. that was some funny stuff made me want to post more but I have to be nice

joe350

Bigger tube headers = higher flow top end but less air velocity (hence less torque) low end. Its all a matter of personal opinion which is worth more really but in the end if you are putting 1 7/8 headers on a 305 it would be more economical to just swap to a 350 block.

Fast355

iTrader: (2)

In theory the smaller header should make more torque, but often times engines do not follow a specific trend. Just because it is bigger does not mean that it will kil off torque. You never know until you try a set.

I don't see needing to go to a 350 block, if you have a 305 that is running fine. I see no need arguing that point. I will agree that once you start trying to get more than 400 hp it is much easier to just get a 350. Up to about 350 FWHP the 305 doesn't even struggle. Hell it can make 300 FWHP with a pair of stock 601s, a comp Xtreme energy 274 cam, edelbrock performer rpm spreadbore intake, Q-Jet carb, and 1 7/8" primary headers, setup a HEI to give 34* total advance by 2,800 with around 16-18* initial timing, use a 2,800 stall (if an automatic) and some gears around 3.23 or 3.42 and it will be a rocket.. Follow the post on porting 601s and you could be making 350 FWHP with the above setup.

EthanH

Yeah, ill admit that was kind of a stupid post once i did some research, but my chances would still be good against a stock never rebuilt vette of the lower years. Doom86, get a life. Can anyone say i told you so. I said no argueing anymore and get back on topic, but doom must not understand english. Yeah lets take adive from the 2 people that cant even comprehend a post ( urbanhunter and doom), NEVER said i was right, just that i dont agree. laugh all you want, enjoy it, i dont care.

joe350

It works this way because of Bernoulli's principile. Faster air flow = lower pressure which means the air gets out faster. This works up until the point where you are trying to push too much air in which case pressure builds. It always works this way on all engines with exhaust primaries of equal diameter. The only time having a smaller tube header will decrease low end torque is if the rest of your engine is set up for high RPM. You want all of your engine components to work best at the same RPM, be that high or low.

cheppibear

OK had to say something here.

My 355 is like night and day compared to the LG4 that came with the car. Dropping the hammer into second gear and then revving it to 5750rpm (250rpm past the peak HP point) compares to almost one thing in life.

That thing GM put in these cars (the LG4) was the beginning of the end for the F body. All the car did was look good.

My best gas mileage was about 20mpg with the Holley 3310. Swap out the carb if you are going to the track for the Holley 4777 and away we go. Car ran consistent high 13s on street tires. Ran out of money before I could get faster, but with the right tires and suspension would have been fun.

Anyway, boggles the mind as to how an engine with 200+ more HP than the engine that came with the car got about 15-20% more mpg (when you could stay out of it). It was just more efficient at the work it did, nothing to complicated.

355 hands down. Did I mention they are like cheaper too.

sully91rs

The thing i dislike most about my cars performance is the first to second shift (auto). First is so exciting, but it gets my hopes up. As soon as it hits second, all acceleration is gone (along with most the fun). Friends think my car is so fast because of first, and when it shifts to second, they just think I took my foot of the gas (though i still hav it floored) . Not a trans problem, there is just no pull around 3500 rpm. This is the LO3 305.

Crusin' 1980's

I was reading some of this post and just wondering...shouldn't the real focus be on what year/type/color car you're looking for?...and finding one with a straight body with little to no rust?...and how about wheather you want Manual or Auto?...those should be the real concern for someone looking...mods and engine work can be done later, but you can't always fix the basic structure of the car (at least not without a LOT of work in some cases) and if you did end up with a 305, you could still do exaust/incudion mods, and rear end mods that will be there for a bigger engine (if you want a bigger engine)...it doesn't seem much more complicated beyond that....unless i missed something, then let me know

Fast355

iTrader: (2)

It is alot cheaper to install a crate engine than do alot of body work!

Doom86

thats one bad thing about the th700 transmission sully91rs, it has a very nice short 1st gear and second gear is very long. Team that with the very weak stock cam, which would have torque going well downhill at that point, and its very disapointing.

that cam fast355 was recomending for the 305 would have you making peak torque at around 3500-4000rpm, which would feal like a kick in the pants at the 1-2 shift compared to the stock cam.

I totaly agree. The 305 in my 86z gave me a chance to get my hands dirty and have fun at the same time. But as soon as it started knocking it got pulled for the 350 im building now. 50$ for 45 more cubes is a steal at that point.

lsylvain

Buy the car that makes you feel good. Get the car that you will make you want to take the long way to work. And a Camaro isn't a Camaro unless there is nothing but sky over your head, go for the T-tops, or better yet find a vert. As far the motor goes I wouldn't even care about what is in it, because you will eventually be replaceing the motor anyway and then you can put whatever your heart desires in her.

pandemic_ratio

my opinion would be to get a 350 car pull the motor out....bore it out to a 392 and make a stroker out of it...then put your car on a serious diet....lighten up the load and your in business...that car will eat any ***** *** import and anything with a ***** wipped 5.0 L. course your gonna want to put some money into the motor so find somthing with a nice body at least. then do headers, TPI, ya know the works. if you really wanna get into you could make a nice blower motor out of a 350, but it would take some money. the only reason i say that is i watched my brother do it to a mustang the car looks bone stock but pulls wheel stands off the line...and the stang he used i do believe is a heavier car...though i could be wrong about that. just figured id throw the idea out have fun guys, stay cool cause its hotter than hell here in florida!

ad356

all of these cars you mention are alot lighter than a third gen, and they also have much newer technology. my 87 pontiac 6000 with its iron duke 4 cylinder ran forever but it was a complete and total dog. my 96 corsica with a 3.1 is as quick if not quicker than my camaro rs 305. but my camaro will outhandle it any day of the week. third gens are better handling cars than straight off the line. they handle better than most cars. i want to see a honda civic handle like that, stock not a chance. get better sway bars, wonder bar, panhard bar, and a strut tower brace you have a real performer in the handling dept. if i ever did a engine swap with my camaro i would find an LT1, great power and good millage. but i will run my 305 until she is good and tired, which is a very long way off. the 305 is very durable. right now i'm going to do a 3" exhuast, and maybe a cam. the biggest things that hold back performance with the TBI is the cam, exhuast, heads, and rear end(im keep that, highway gears save gas). its not that its a bad engine its that the RS 5.0 is cripled from the factory.

rx7speed

honestly depending on the course a honda can outhandle a thirdgen. most thirdgens stock for stock are a little better then most hondas but the problem is the slolam. thirdgens slolam speeds aren' that great and unless you are on a high speed track with fairly constant radius turns and no turns where you have to worry about transisions your fine. honda's usually put about 2-3 mph over the thridgen though on slolam speeds which would have much more of an effect in dynamic situations.

anesthes

iTrader: (12)

Why are you guys arguing with a little kid?

Doesn't matter what car he gets. It's his first car. He'll crack it up in a few months, and hopefully resign here and go join importuners.org

-- Joe

rx7speed

hey man first cause nothing better to do. and second are my kind really that bad?

always being put down by the domestic man we imports must stand up and rise against and fight for equality here. I have a dream that one day us import guys can stand next to you domestic guys and stand not as our kind and your kind not as seperate but equal but stand together in unison as one group without bounds upon our car of choice. but untill that time that the people and the moderators can come to that I will fight for equality.






except for that kid he can go to www.imnotevenworthyofshoppingatautozone.com

anesthes

iTrader: (12)

Nothing wrong with some imports brother. Rx7, some nissan, eclipse turbo, ferrari, lambo, etc.

But honda civic? hehe.

-- Joe

rx7speed

read my info I have an accord so close enough

stroked350jimmy

im new and i dont know what to do

ezysk

“With enough time and enough money anything is possible”.

I figured I would open with this statement, since it seems to fit.
Both a 305 and 350 can be fun to drive. If both are bone stock and in equal condition, the 350 will beat the 305. Assuming they are both in the same engine generation.

Can a 305 be fun to drive, yes.
People like to make them out like they take 10 minutes to hit 60 mph, but they don’t.
I have had 305s in my 3rd gens that could roast my tires from a stand still going straight without using breaks. I have had 305s beat more Honda’s than I can count, but then again I never roll race. To be honest I have never had a stock Honda beat me, but I am sure there may be some that could, especially with some of the 305s I have had.
It’s a hit or misses with them, depends on the condition they are in.

I believe your goal is to have fun and enjoy the car you have and you probably want to get some respect while you are at it. If you get a 305, don’t expect a lot of 3rd gen guys to show you much respect. I would, but then again, I am a realist, and know it’s more about what you enjoy and what you can afford than the pure numbers at the track, but there are a lot of 3rd gen owners that think its 350 or nothing.

As for end result, no matter what you get, 305, 350, LS1, LS7,etc sooner or later someone will race you that will blow your doors off. It just happens less often the higher you move up the performance chain.

If I were you, I would look for a car that you think looks the way you want, then go for a test drive. If it feels really fun to drive and you enjoy it, then get it and don’t let anyone after that convince you of what you should enjoy.

I agree with everyone else, a 350 is a better base to start with, but a 305 can be a fun motor to beat up on, and then drop a 350 or better in it once it is dead.

Let us know what you eventually get.

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

This thread is 2 years old. There is absolutely no need to keep it going.