value

[jiveass]

so i got an "81 vette, and im sure most of you know is a terd on power. im not exactly sure what this year model would be worth if all origional, which it pretty much is at this time, but i would like to do away with all of the pollution control garbage under the hood and beef up the engine. would this be a dumb move if i wanted to sell it later on? i know these arent exactly fetching a high price on the resale, thats why im leaning towards this decision. please give me opinions on this subject.

[Too Fast]

Well, "all of the pollution control garbage under the hood" isn't really what holds the engine back on power. The main low power contributors for this engine are low compression, the exhaust, camshaft, probably intake, ignition. So, that's all you gotta change! LOL. If you want to have it for possible resale, just build another 350 and save the original for resale later.

Was 1981 the first year for cross-fire injection?

[jiveass]

Well, "all of the pollution control garbage under the hood" isn't really what holds the engine back on power. The main low power contributors for this engine are low compression, the exhaust, camshaft, probably intake, ignition. So, that's all you gotta change! LOL. If you want to have it for possible resale, just build another 350 and save the original for resale later.

Was 1981 the first year for cross-fire injection?

nah its stilll carbureted......i believe crossfire was 82 or 83.....but my main desire to remove the smog setup is for accessibility to belts and other things that i may need to access...plus i just wanna clean up the engine bay a little....i dont really like having un-necessary clutter under the hood. the engine was recently rebuilt 2 years ago and it has been sitting for that 2 years until 2 months ago...the odometer is reading around 13,000 miles, but since the odometer only goes to 100,000 i can only assume it has already turned over. the car runs great and i plan on upgrading the cam and intake and exhaust. im not really lookin for a beast but a little more power would be nice.

[geoffl]

What are your state inspection requirements for emissions? Removing them might be an issue for inspection unless you know someone.

[Too Fast]

Like geoffl says, removing this stuff depends on local inspections. Some states don't bother, tho, if cars are over 25 years old.

So, as you probably know, if you don't have to worry about inspections, a nice full length set of headers and no convertor in the exhaust, along with a cam, would really wake it up. You could probably put a high flow convertor on if you had to, anything would be way better than the pellet style they used back then.

[Mr. Hyde]

Or drop a crate engine in it, I think that a new LS6 goes for about $3000.00, slip in a different cam, LT's and a new intake that'll accomodate a big ol carb and you should be looking at around 450-475hp, all with a 12 month, 12k warranty.

[Zinergy]

Hell WI only tests OBDII cars now, so anything 95 and earlier emissions is out the window.

[jiveass]

yea ive heard some people tell me that even though it came with pollution control they still wont worry about it on a car like this. ls6 would be nasty in there, but i dont think the drivetrain will handle somethin like that...yet

[Too Fast]

You could always put that LS6 in there, then fix the drivetrain parts that break! Especially if you're gonna upgrade the drivetrain anyway.

[Mr. Hyde]

I did this mod (LS6) to my 2001 SS Camaro, including the cam etc...
It put down 356 RWHP on a Mustang dyno, so it was probably at the 450-460hp level at the crank. I did throw a SpecII clutch in it to handle the extra ponies, and was going to replace the weak 10 bolt, but wound up selling the car to buy the Z06 instead.
The car was quick!

[jiveass]

where can i find this ls6 for 3000?

[Mr. Hyde]

www.crateenginedepot.com
If you get serious about it, I'll drag out my receipt and give you the product number you'll need to use to get the one for about $3000.00, I paid $2999.99 2 years ago, it may have gone up a bit.
The one you'll see on their website goes for over $4k, but like I said, if you get serious, then I'll look up the number for you.
By the way it is a REAL LS6 with all the goodies. i.e. valvetrain stuff etc...

[dklowrider]

nah its stilll carbureted......i believe crossfire was 82 or 83.....but my main desire to remove the smog setup is for accessibility to belts and other things that i may need to access...plus i just wanna clean up the engine bay a little....i dont really like having un-necessary clutter under the hood. the engine was recently rebuilt 2 years ago and it has been sitting for that 2 years until 2 months ago...the odometer is reading around 13,000 miles, but since the odometer only goes to 100,000 i can only assume it has already turned over. the car runs great and i plan on upgrading the cam and intake and exhaust. im not really lookin for a beast but a little more power would be nice.

'81 was the computer carb, '82 was crossfire injection.

there is no such thing as a 1983 corvette.

[Zinergy]

www.crateenginedepot.com
If you get serious about it, I'll drag out my receipt and give you the product number you'll need to use to get the one for about $3000.00, I paid $2999.99 2 years ago, it may have gone up a bit.
The one you'll see on their website goes for over $4k, but like I said, if you get serious, then I'll look up the number for you.
By the way it is a REAL LS6 with all the goodies. i.e. valvetrain stuff etc...

Most c5 z06s put down 350ishwhp on a mustang dyno and make 405-415 crank hp. The ls6 on the site says 5300 for it. You must have a sweet ass customer discount.

[Too Fast]

Most c5 z06s put down 350ishwhp on a mustang dyno and make 405-415 crank hp. The ls6 on the site says 5300 for it. You must have a sweet ass customer discount.

So, the 1981 Corvette made what, 170 RWHP stock? Those were some very bogus days!

[jiveass]

So, the 1981 Corvette made what, 170 RWHP stock? Those were some very bogus days!

190hp according to what ive read. yea ..it sucks

[geoffl]

190hp according to what ive read. yea ..it sucks

But it is still a SBC and easy to get it to make power. Get one of the Edelbrock or similar kits with heads, cam, and intake and you have cheap, reliable power. Or like others have said get a GMPP crate motor. You are in a great situation with the value of the car not that high but it can be a really fun driver.

[jiveass]

But it is still a SBC and easy to get it to make power. Get one of the Edelbrock or similar kits with heads, cam, and intake and you have cheap, reliable power. Or like others have said get a GMPP crate motor. You are in a great situation with the value of the car not that high but it can be a really fun driver.

yea, ive been driving this car every day, and it runs great even in houston traffic. the temp stays around 180 and oil pressure is around 70 at driving speeds, 40 at idle. on cool mornings the car can actually seem pretty tough for 190hp engine. its a very dependable car running wise, but do you think adding performance parts would effect the reliability? im actually leaning towards just adding a cam and intake to the existing engine and see what happens since it would be the cheaper way to go. and would i need to upgrade the carb? right now it has a holley that looks like a factory quadrajet.

[0rion]

throw some heads/cam and intake at it.....should be a nice noticeable jump in power.

[Zinergy]

Yes you will most likely need to upgrade the carb. If it makes you feel any better the first engine i ever built was a 350 out of a 76 impala is what the guy at the junk yard told me anyway. Probably made 200-225hp and after i rebuilt the bottom end put some cheap but decent heads, a cam, intake manifold new carb, headers to side pipes i got my 79 malibu at full weight(3800lb) to run consistent 12.2-12.5s @ 110-113mph with a turbo 350 trans and a 3000rpm stall. I really only spent 3,000 on that whole setup. The turbo 350 was a gift for my 16th birthday. I bought the car from a friend with a nice posi rear end newer suspension and a 6 cylinder in it.

An ls6 swap would be bad ass in that car but is gonna cost alot. Those crate engines are only 1 small part of that swap, alot of parts would still be needed and thats after you spent 4k on the engine alone.