http://www.affordable-fuel-injection.com/ixxocart/products/Chevrolet_TBI_Complete_System-5-9.html What it boils down too is, a good distributor with the edelbrock 1406 carb is not a huge price jump to this system. And for a daily driver which I do not have to flog to get going in the winter when my teeth are rattling out of my skull, it seems great. However has anyone bought anything from these guys? They seem straight forward, don't hide what's remanufactured and what isn't. They make no claims of huge power or fuel economy boosts, they just tell you like it is, and that is, all you'll get is something that is smoother and holds a tune better than a carb. Also, is this the best kit of this kind of the money? Again, I know I'm not getting more power or much more if any fuel economy, just driveability and maybe some bragging rights that my car has TBI for whatever cooky reason I can make the end users believe.
I have heard that some of these bolt on kits can be worse than a pain in the @$$ to make work. I know a couple of people ripped them back off and went to a carburetor again. On that note, if a carburetor is set up right, there should be no problem starting the car, no matter what the weather. Just remember to set the choke by pumping the gas ONCE, then leaving the throttle alone. If the temperature is nearing -20, it is a good idea to give it 2 shots of gas. I've never had problems getting my old cars to start, even at -40, and all of them have had carburetors. In fact, my carbureted cars are normally the ones that start first, then boost all the fuel injected cars around me!
I really hope you're speaking in Celsius, 'cause if it gets anywhere near 0F here, I don't go outside. I do not agree with the cold, and it does not agree with me. Anyway, I know that, if set right, the carb will hold a tune, and honestly I like the sound of a four barrel opening quite a lot. I'm more likely to go with a carb than a kit like this, I just wanted to know if this kit was worth looking at.
This was the system I was considering for the 351C in my Torino sedan, assuming I didn't piece it together myself from an early 90s GM truck or van. Basically the idea I had was to install an electric fuel pump along the left rear frame rail, pulled from a late 80s F250 with 351W EFI engine. Then I was going to get a 350 TBI unit and ECU, pull a complete wiring harness, then splice in everything I would need, get a block off plate for the mechanical fuel pump, and add a vapor return line to the tank and a charcoal canister under the hood somewhere (the original was gone but the bracket was still there so I was thinking of relocating it higher up to avoid rocks/gravel damage). I think it's cheaper to go with piecemeal, but you get a more complete, easier to install, and better supported kit by spending the big bucks. At least it's not a $2000-$3000 kit like some other brands. And I was also considering just doing a 6.0L/4L80E swap and being done with it forever since that would be the next swap idea if I didn't regress to an Essex V6 and 4R70W from a late 90s Mustang. I have that engine now in the Windstar and I like the powerband. Windstar weighs 3890 (LX, 4-door, 2001 model, bench seats) and the Torino was more like 4180. Geared right it would be a good fit I think. Anyway, back to the TBI swap, if you're putting in a 350 crate engine, why not just get the Vortec version and use the sequential EFI on those mid to late 90s trucks? Intake, plenum, injectors, rails, regulator, lines, fuel pump, ECU, harness all pulled from a yard would cost about the same and it'd be easy enough to install.
Budget, that's the main reason, vortec version costs over a grand more, and the power gain isn't much, maybe 30-40 horses. I can get that much out through other means like an electric fan, properly tuned carb, and a good intake. I've weighted the options, don't see TBI as a benefit on my current engine, though when I get my hands on a Cutlass I'm going with a Vortec / TBI build. Thanks a lot for the info, but after realizing a few mechanical changes I'd have to make, I'd rather stick with old school for now. Though I am looking to see if piecing a bare block with vortec heads and a good cam is cheaper, or roughly the same, but I doubt it.
I don't have any first hand experience with Affordable, but you might want to do a search of the net. I know on a couple other forums I'm on, guys have had issues with that company.
That's all I really needed to hear, although, I suspected this to begin with. I have tried searching them, it's a bit hard when affordable fuel injection pulls up all kinds of kits, none of them affordable.
I was talking Celcius when talking -20. Mind you, -40 is -40, on either scale. And yes, my carbureted cars start and run just fine, thank you, at those temps as well. I just use Castrol Syntech 5W50 full synthetic motor oil so I get pressure quickly. On my old Fords, I normally have heat in about 3 minutes. If I remember to plug in the block heater, there is heat as soon as the engine starts.
Man if it ever got that cold here, I'd be packing my car and leaving. That's TOO cold, I like the heat. Though it's usually so humid you take an hour to dry off after showering here, that I do NOT like. Anyway, I've decided against the kit after reading a bit on it, just back to the ole' Edelbrock 1406 and Edelbrock EPS Performer intake. Besides, how can you beat the sound of a four barrel opening wide, using twice the fuel needed, feeding twice the cylinders needed, dumping into twice the pipes needed, all powering three times the car needed, all to pass some history seeking tourist lost and confused on one of the highways here.
