Finish. You have pulled the trigger of that project car and dragged it home. Construction vehicles come in various shapes and sizes, so let's assume that you have found a car that can run, but there are almost none. Only your true hardcore hot rod partner can get it. Everyone thinks you are crazy. You will see that what non-believers cannot do is not a rusty junkyard survivor, but a cruiser that is about to become a cruiser. You can become a loyal daily driver with a little adjustment.

Building it is a moral imperative. It needs a hundred things, you want a thousand cool parts, but you can't afford all of them-oh, you can't afford any of them. You just put down most of your cash to get the right to write your name on your title. But you can still plan. This is what we designed for you: a plan. It will change and you can almost bet on it, but we have compiled a basic road map to point you in the right direction.

This is an annoying fact in life: making a hot car is not so much what you want as it is you can afford it. Most of the publicity in all TV shows and magazines is about the latest technical components and 1,000 horsepower. We are not sure how these people can afford all of this-most of the Autobots we know are barely making a living with limited cash, because annoying things like rent and food seem to be more important than buying new car parts. We think that you can pay your rent while still keeping your trash running(ish), so we will start with $50 and gradually increase it through a four-figure budget to provide us with suggestions on how to use your dough.

Because it has a lot to do with cars, we will limit our discussion to engine recommendations. Similar contours can be easily used for handling, braking and transmission, and we have heard that some people also like to make their riding look beautiful. Now, we will stick to horsepower and torque. When it comes to increasing it, what should you do with your next salary? By design, this outline will be a bit general and a bit biased towards Chevrolet/Ford, because these are the items we receive the most questions. Even if your project is Volkswagen or AMC, all theories apply-but the budget of the former is twice that of the former, and the latter needs to be tripled. sorry. let's start!

If your starting price is $50, you will be in a negative number when you change your newborn's oil and fill up the tank, but let's assume you have five Hamiltons in your wallet. Consider spending these guys on car assembly manuals or books so you can see how all the parts fit together.

People rarely mention when dealing with old cars that the electrical system is usually bad, so the colored wiring diagram of your car is a good starting point. Sooner or later you need to track down wiring problems, especially if the wire harnesses are taught by rodents to gnaw wires for a living. We found 11 x 17 inch color charts for many popular applications from ClassicCarWiring.com for only $17.95.

Another move that really benefits the electrical side and costs little is to upgrade the charging system with larger wires. It is not uncommon to find a significant voltage drop between the alternator and battery. The test is simple. With the engine running and electrical loads (for example, headlights on), check the voltage at the output of the alternator, and then check the voltage of the battery. If the meter reads 14.5 volts on the alternator and only 13.5 volts on the battery, there is a problem. This voltage drop should not exceed 0.40 to 0.50 volts. Clean all connections. If it continues to drop too much, increase the size of the charging cable from the alternator to the battery. A fully functional charging system is very important, at least your headlights will be brighter. So maybe this is the first time you spend something else, a multimeter. The cheaper ones will cost you 20 dollars more.

You have about $12 left on your $50, so take a quick look at your cooling system. Can your radiator cap hold pressure? Does the thermostat turn on when it should be turned on? Is the hose loose or leaking? You can’t solve all three problems for $12, but you can solve one of them.

Take some time to vigorously clean, degrease and detail the engine compartment. If you are really motivated, please buy some semi-gloss paint to cover the fenders and engine, and paint the engine compartment. This will not make the engine run better, but it will look good in your Instagram photos.

We assume that you have some basic hand tools, but you may need to borrow timing lights and compression testers in the next section. Remove all spark plugs and perform a compression check. If you want, you can check the startup compression of a specific engine, but if your engine has a lot of mileage, your results may be disappointing. Generally, a V-8 produced in the 1970s and 1980s will produce a starting compression of approximately 140 to 170 psi, depending on a large number of variables. The new engine should be higher, the old engine may be lower, but what we are looking for is not necessarily high readings, but consistency between cylinders.

Check with all spark plugs removed, ignition system disabled, engine warm-up, and throttle blades suddenly opened. A 10% change is normal. Assuming that the reading is good, you can continue to replace the spark plugs with ordinary hot-range, extended nose spark plugs, distributor caps and rotors. All these parts are building blocks for future upgrades.

Next, check the resistance of the plug wire. This is a good wire condition test-look for readings less than 10,000 ohm resistance. The smaller the number, the better. If the resistance of the entire plug is around 2,000 to 3,000 ohms, don't be nervous. The lower the resistance, the better, but avoid using 30,000 ohm or larger wires. Better plug cords are spiral wound cords from companies such as Accel, FAST, Moroso, MSD, and Taylor. We prefer a universal kit that allows custom wiring to make the engine look cleaner. Make sure to leave enough wire length around the dispenser cover so that you can move the dispenser to adjust the time and easily open and close the cover. It sounds simple, but we tripped over the beautiful wiring more than once, which prevented the free distributor from moving to set the ignition timing.

After the new part is in place, you can set the time. First clean and mark the harmonic balancer and disconnect the vacuum propulsion tank. Hang the timing lamp on the No. 1 plug wire and check the initial idle timing at 8 to 12 degrees before the top dead center (BTDC). This is called initial timing. When checking the total, you will need a timing tape to indicate the total time or to call back the timing light. The total shooting angle is about 36 degrees, which is a good starting point. Callback timing lights are the easiest to use, and some reasonably priced lights can also work well. The idea is to increase the engine speed to around 3,000 rpm and set the TDC mark on the balancer to 0 degrees by moving the dial on the light. The dial will indicate the total amount of timekeeping. If you are using a digital callback lamp, this is the same process. Remember to perform this operation with the vacuum boost hose disconnected. Otherwise, your number will be reduced by the advance payment added by the vacuum tank. If you don't have a dial-back light, you can use a standard timing light and install a simple timing belt. MSD sells cheap timing straps for each harmonic balancer diameter. It can be purchased as PN 8985 through any large online parts store for only $4.12.

Setting the time is an important step. Ask the guys at RK how they know.

It's time to look at the intake side of the engine. We will include the idea of ​​carburetor and EFI. For older cars, it is often tempting to make large-scale changes immediately—such as dismantling the old TBI system or stocking carbohydrates and replacing it with a new $500. If the EFI system requires thousands of dollars to repair, then maybe this is a good idea. But in most cases, it will be cheaper to rebuild what is already there. Usually, just restore everything to when it left the factory, and the performance will improve.

Let us take the carburetor GM application in the late 70s or early 80s as an example, such as the 82 Camaro with Quadrajet. Maybe all the feedback Q-jet needs is just a rebuild kit. We used RockAuto.com for research and Standard Motor Products provides a basic gasket kit for less than $30. A 34-year-old Q-jet may need the extra help of a new float, and may also need to rebuild the main throttle shaft with a new bushing. This will definitely cost extra, but you still won't exceed $200. Most driving performance problems can be traced to vacuum leaks, so make sure that all these miles of vacuum hoses are in good condition. This is not just a matter of General Motors. Dodge, Ford, Datsun, and any carburetor are likely to have some glued channels or leaky floats if they sit there all the time. Rebuild kits are cheaper than new carbohydrates.

In terms of injection, let's say you have a Mustang 5.0 with EFI in 1989, and it runs a bit wet. The problem may be as simple as a dirty or clogged fuel injector. Sometimes, just a shot of canned detergent can help, but the most common best way is to remove the syringe and send it for professional cleaning and flow. A company called ASNU makes a smooth vibration cleaner and ejector flow tester that can measure the flow of all eight ejectors. Our friend at Westech Performance owns one of the ASNU machines, which can clean a set of injectors and determine if there are any malfunctions or poor performance. The cost will vary, but it is usually less than $200. There are many companies that provide this service. We found a website called WitchHunter Performance, which can clean and flow a set of eight syringes for $177.

Depending on the year of your project car, you may perform early fuel injection on the throttle body EFI day. These systems are supplied by a throttle body that almost generally lacks fuel and airflow. These throttle body systems use a low pressure (13-15 psi) system, with a pair of injectors mounted on the top of the throttle body. The problem with GM's TBI is that its air and fuel flow are restricted. For engines that are close to stock, the system can run, but please note that planning improvements to exceed 275 hp will require the main TBI module. The flow rate of a typical 350ci small GM throttle body is less than 500 cfm, and the fuel flow rate of the injector is limited to 65 lb/hr. Therefore, unless you increase the fuel pressure, these pressures will be limited to around 275 horsepower. Any adjustment should be equipped with a new fuel filter.

Now that the car can start and idling on its own, we can start making changes to increase power. The forum sages will be insulted for not immediately recommending a prolific induction change, but our experience tells us that enhancing the exhaust side first will provide the best results.

Of all the blocked engines in the past, emission control cars from the late 1970s to the mid 1980s were the worst. With a simple catback exhaust system replacement, you can see some significant improvements. From the beginning of the exhaust, the induction improvement is allowed in the future. We will use the personal experience of the '93 Chevy TBI 350ci pickup as an example. We replaced the original catalytic converter and exhaust system with new Cat and DynoMax mandrel curved exhaust systems. Rear wheel power increased from 200 pound-feet of torque to 229 pound-feet, and increased from 140 horsepower to 168 horsepower. Those are honest 20% growth. Admittedly, the number is not big, but every time you step on the gas pedal, you will feel 20%. The 3.0-inch mandrel bending system with a high-flow silencer makes the exhaust tone pleasant, but not too loud.

For non-emission-controlled cars, even upgrading from a factory-compressed and bent 2.0-inch pipe to a 2.5-inch system with a bent mandrel means a sharp increase in flow. Compression bending can significantly reduce the inner diameter of the pipe. We measured the inner diameter of some 2.0-inch compression-bent exhaust pipes and found that compared with the same-sized mandrel bend pipe, the compression bend reduced the pipe diameter by 10% and the flow area by 17%. Now let's go one step further and increase the pipe diameter from 2.0 inches (1.840 inches inner diameter) to a true 2.5-inch mandrel bending system. This move increased the flow area from 2.3 square inches to 4.3 square inches. That is an 87% increase in the flow area, and no compression bending is considered to further reduce the area. Of course, the cost of the mandrel bending system is higher, but the power improvement justifies the cost. Remember, we are laying the foundation for a more powerful engine.

This is a comparison of the compression bending of a 2.0-inch tube at the top and a 2.5-inch tube with a bent mandrel at the bottom. This upgrade from a 2.0-inch to 2.5-inch spindle is worth a nearly 100% increase in flow. For the same reason, even OE now includes mandrel bending tubes.

Companies such as Borla, DynoMax, Flowmaster and MagnaFlow manufacture systems for specific vehicles. For example, DynoMax manufactures a stainless steel cat back kit for the 5.0L '88 Camaro (PN 38512) we found at a price of US$373.97. Another example is the Borla stainless steel 2.5-inch catback system used in the '90 5.0L Mustang (PN 14445). The price is slightly higher at $599.95, but it is fully within our budget.

When it comes to non-catalytic converters, things are easier. If you are willing to do some manufacturing work, Jegs can provide a header back cover kit for the most common 60s muscle car, the price is about 200 US dollars. Add the muffler and start welding. Or, if you don’t like your neighbor, don’t use a silencer.

Back to the front line after the smog, BBK made a set of beautiful ceramic coated short connectors for the Mustang 5.0L (PN 15150) in 1989, the price is 300 US dollars, if we combine it with the Flowmaster cat back system (PN 17106) , The price is 465 US dollars, we got almost brand new 2.5-inch exhaust system and header for less than 775 US dollars. This should be worth at least 20 horsepower than the inventory, while maintaining emission legality in the states that need to be tested.

How much is an ordinary long pipe joint worth? We performed precise tests on the basic 350ci small Chevrolet crate engine. Using iron and wood manifolds, the engine is exactly what Chevrolet said: 290 horsepower and 311 pound-feet of torque. Then we added headers and the power jumped to 320 horsepower and 348 pound-feet of torque. This is an improvement of 30 hp and 37 lb-ft of torque. This says it all.

It may be worth paying for a professional exhaust workshop to install your system, as it usually requires manufacturing and welding to install correctly.

Dang, great! Someone has been saving their pennies. As a reward, let's go to the competition. We admit that we are a bit conservative so far. Most people will ask you to replace the air intake and camshaft, but we have established a good engine baseline, appropriately adjusted and upgraded exhaust system. You should take some action now, so let's talk about better sensing systems.

If you have rebuilt carbohydrates, or even inventory carbohydrates, and it is working properly, it would be wiser to spend your limited money on better intake manifolds. It’s all about maximizing what you have and what fits your hood. Before buying that high air intake, be sure to measure the hood gap or plan to cut a hole.

Remember, the cost of each new part is higher than the component itself. Removal of the old air intake will require new air intakes and carbohydrate gaskets, and depending on whether you switch between FI and carbohydrates, it may also require a fuel pressure regulator. Usually, companies such as Jegs or Summit Racing will provide a combination of intake manifold, carburetor and gasket at a group purchase price. For example, this Edelbrock kit includes EPS biplane air intake, Edelbrock 600 cfm electric choke carburetor, and all washers required to connect with small Chevrolet bolts such as 305 or 350. The price is about $530.

Something wise enough. Suppose we have a reliable original 350ci engine with a 2.5-inch dual exhaust system with a bent spindle, a header, and a dual-plane air intake with a 600 cfm Holley carburetor. The god of horsepower comes down from Drag City, hands you $600, and tells you that you must spend it in your car immediately to make it run faster. One word can be used to meet this challenge: nitrous acid.

There are several nitrous acid companies, but we prefer the NOS cheating system. The basic price of this system we saw on the Internet is $569.66. There are cheaper kits out there, but the crook kit offers the greatest opportunity to increase power through simple spray changes; cheaper kits will require the purchase of additional parts to increase power. However, it is worth noting that the hidden costs of nitrous acid.

Due to the safety hazards of transporting pressurized containers, all kits come with an empty bottle. You must fill that bottle at approximately $5.00 per pound. That 10-pound bottle only added 50 dollars. Next you will learn how fast the bottle is emptied. You might run three quarter miles with a full 10-pound bottle.

Nitrogen-containing systems also rely on a reliable source of fuel pressure. A basic 100 horsepower system will not put a lot of load on a typical fuel delivery system, but when we reach 150 to 200 horsepower, the tuner needs to ensure that the fuel pressure is stable. Taking a line from the stock fuel pump supply line may not be enough to supply the 150-horsepower nitrous acid system. You need to build a reliable fuel delivery system to provide fuel and pressure to provide 600 horsepower.

A 350-horsepower naturally aspirated small-cylinder engine with a 200-horsepower nitrous acid package can produce 550 horsepower, but if the fuel pressure drops at the highest demand point, this is the cause of the piston melting. If you can't afford a high-quality fuel delivery system, then you may have to wait for the cheating gas.

Now we can delve into the engine. finally! So far, we have mainly dealt with bolted connections and external engine parts. In order for the naturally aspirated engine to produce more power, we must improve the breathing of the cylinder head and camshaft. Edelbrock is an early promoter of the dyno-tested packaged power concept. As early as the early 1980s, he simply created the Performer system. Of course, the first attempt was a small Chevrolet, and the company has since greatly expanded the system with multiple engine series. Edelbrock now offers a combination of Performer and Performer RPM, which includes cylinder heads, camshafts, intake manifolds and carburetors suitable for most popular engines.

The bright spot behind packaging the intake manifold, cylinder heads, cams and some valve train parts is that this makes it easier for entry-level enthusiasts to create fully integrated combinations. Of course, Edelbrock is not the only company offering packages. There are dozens of types suitable for carburetor and EFI applications. For the EFI 5.0L Ford, Trick Flow Specialties (TFS) created a Twisted Wedge assembly with a pair of heads, a TFS two-piece air intake, a hydraulic roller cam and valve train, and all gaskets. TFS claims that the system will generate 350 horsepower by twisting 370 lb-ft of torque with a 306ci short block. For such a small motor (1.17 lb-ft per cubic inch), this is a great torque. The kit is PN TFS-K514-360-350, priced at US$2,700, which exceeds our budget of US$2,000, so if you want it, you'd better work overtime.

One problem with older EFI engines (such as 5.0L Ford or Chevy TPI) is that the chips used in those OE computers must be "burned" every time there is a slight adjustment change. FAST provides the opportunity to apply the new self-learning fuel injection to the old system. This uses EZ-EFI 1.0 ECU and wiring harness. It only controls fuel and therefore requires a separate ignition system. The kit is less than $900 and can easily adjust these early EFI engines.

What's next? We can continue to use hundreds of thousands, but you can calculate these things from here. The theory behind replacing an LS engine or installing a turbocharger on a Mopar 360 is no different from rebuilding carbohydrates or upgrading wiring.​​ All this is to get the basic knowledge in place and prepare for sneaky costs. If you want to get high horsepower, you need to build a car around the engine. You need to upgrade the axles and third components, cooling system, drive shaft, fuel delivery, brakes, wheels and tires. Reading it all in one sitting is enough to make you panic, but just break it down and buy one piece at a time. You will get there.

By clicking register, you agree to the terms of use. Your information will be collected and used in accordance with our privacy policy

© 2021 MotorTrend | Motor Trend Group LLC.