Moderators Travis In Austin Posted July 9, 2016 Moderators Share Posted July 9, 2016 The HP ratings of all domestic cars tanked in 1971. The 454 in 1970 was rated with 390 or 465 HP options and those numbers were underrated. The 1972 454 was rated at a meager 270 HP. Food for thought.Yeah, I have thought of this. The car I actually end up with will likely have a modded 350. Not concerned about having a numbers matching machine. That car pictured was just for reference. Key requirements: side pipes, 4 speed manual, T-tops, rally wheels. I have a lot of time to think about this and am confident the right car will present itselfHow about a 1969.5 ZL-1 Corvette instead?LOL - YES!!! ...a little outside of my budget though, Roger. $100K+ Not only that but the added weight takes a rather decent handling sports car and turns it in to a nose heavy pig.Hadn't thought of the adverse effects of the added weight of the 454 BB. I just like the hood. Matt ♪ ♫ ♪ Do you need, want AC? LT1 is pretty rare with AC in 72, makes them pretty pricey. But they were designed for unleaded so that's a bonus. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MookieStl Posted July 9, 2016 Share Posted July 9, 2016 Try this on for size. 350 stroker (383 ci now) is a great motor. it has the 4 speed you want, it's yellow, convertible instead of T top, right hood, side pipes. Call and see if you can send him you nickels and dimes on a payment plan. May even take La Scalas as down payment. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Chevrolet-Corvette-/272295025621?forcerrptr=true&hash=item3f660c5bd5:g:ac8AAOSwOVpXeNFN&item=272295025621 hope the link works, never posted a link before. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJkizak Posted July 9, 2016 Share Posted July 9, 2016 When I ordered my 1968 435 HP Corvette I asked the salesman about the aluminum ZL-1 and he said forget it and I said why and he said the insurance companies won't touch it with a 10 foot pole. He did say it was warranted if you didn't race it. I guess that's why only 2 of them were sold. So I ordered the L-88 short block for $575.00 and aluminum heads #500.00 which worked out well. JJK 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthews Posted July 9, 2016 Author Share Posted July 9, 2016 Try this on for size. 350 stroker (383 ci now) is a great motor. it has the 4 speed you want, it's yellow, convertible instead of T top, right hood, side pipes. Call and see if you can send him you nickels and dimes on a payment plan. May even take La Scalas as down payment. http://www.ebay.com/...em=272295025621 hope the link works, never posted a link before. Yup, link worked. Good job Mookie A little early in the game to start shopping. Nice car though! Not much for the drop top however. Must be T-tops! Like the stroker motor too, a friend built one for his short bed Chevy (my old Hot Rod). 700 ponies 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MookieStl Posted July 9, 2016 Share Posted July 9, 2016 Try this on for size. 350 stroker (383 ci now) is a great motor. it has the 4 speed you want, it's yellow, convertible instead of T top, right hood, side pipes. Call and see if you can send him you nickels and dimes on a payment plan. May even take La Scalas as down payment. http://www.ebay.com/...em=272295025621 hope the link works, never posted a link before. Yup, link worked. Good job Mookie A little early in the game to start shopping. Nice car though! Not much for the drop top however. Must be T-tops! Like the stroker motor too, a friend built one for his short bed Chevy (my old Hot Rod). 700 ponies At least you get an idea of how many nickels to start saving. The price on that one seems fair compared to others I have seen and it would be one you wouldn't be afraid to drive. The drop top is only if you get caught in the rain. It comes with a removable hard top. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivervalleymgb Posted July 9, 2016 Share Posted July 9, 2016 I used to smoke Corvettes in my '74 Trans Am. Not so much out of the gate, but on the highway all the Vettes had to back off at about 100 mph. The nose started to lift off the pavement due to the aerodynamics. The Trans Am air dams actually pushed the car down giving you more tire at higher speeds. Miss that car!I am saving to do the V8 conversion on Judy's '86 Fiero. Update the suspension. Just not much you can do with that '80's boxy dash, though. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JL Sargent Posted July 9, 2016 Share Posted July 9, 2016 Modern engines are sooo much better than the engines of yesteryear. When talking GM products, anything 350 based is 50s technology. Go with an LS based powerplant and it opens up much more potential for HP. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungkiman Posted July 9, 2016 Share Posted July 9, 2016 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthews Posted July 9, 2016 Author Share Posted July 9, 2016 license_20160709112253_90265.jpg DUDE! - this is awesome love it - love it - love it Already packing the nickels away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivervalleymgb Posted July 9, 2016 Share Posted July 9, 2016 (edited) The Fiero will definitely get a crate engine. My last hot rod was a '74 MGB with a '99 Pontiac Grand Am V6, S-10 bell housing mated to a '91 Camaro T5, with aftermarket ECM. Wonderful to tune your car with a laptop in the passenger's seat. Edited July 9, 2016 by Rivervalleymgb 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twk123 Posted July 9, 2016 Share Posted July 9, 2016 The Fiero will definitely get a crate engine. My last hot rod was a '74 MGB with a '99 Pontiac Grand Am V6, S-10 bell housing mated to a '91 Camaro T5, with aftermarket ECM. Wonderful to tune your car with a laptop in the passenger's seat. The other bonus to having a laptop to tune is you can check your manifold status when your racing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustang guy Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 (edited) I used to smoke Corvettes in my '74 Trans Am. Not so much out of the gate, but on the highway all the Vettes had to back off at about 100 mph. The nose started to lift off the pavement due to the aerodynamics. The Trans Am air dams actually pushed the car down giving you more tire at higher speeds. Miss that car! I am saving to do the V8 conversion on Judy's '86 Fiero. Update the suspension. Just not much you can do with that '80's boxy dash, though. T/A's are cool cars. It's sad that Pontiac was shut down. I understand closing Oldsmobile, it's just a Buick with a different badge. It seems to me like GM has decided to have Chevy and Cadillac absorb the pony and muscle markets. The CTV-V is one bad a$$ car. It is essentially a luxury sedan Z06. Send it to Hennessey, and they will boost it to 1,000 HP. LOL, it's a frickin Cadillac people. Edited July 10, 2016 by mustang guy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustang guy Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Not to be outdone, Hennessey does the Z06 upgrade to 1,008 HP. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DizRotus Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 (edited) Matthews, "A little early in the game to start shopping." Yes it's way too soon to start shopping. On the other hand, if you're planning to get a driver, rather than a numbers matching investment that looks like the photo, you could get a motor now and start building it for future use. Buying a salvageable 68 - 73 without a motor might cost you fewer pennies and dimes. It all depends upon your DIY sweat equity motivation and skills. I love the looks of most Corvettes. The only years I would avoid are the early 80s, especially 82. My wife and I dated at MSU then lost touch for 8 years. For our first encore date in 1980, I arrived in a silver 65 roadster with 365 hp, 4 speed, knock-offs and factory sidepipes. Of course, she could not have cared less about the car. Edited July 10, 2016 by DizRotus 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthews Posted July 10, 2016 Author Share Posted July 10, 2016 Yes it's way too soon to start shopping. On the other hand, if you're planning to get a driver, rather than a numbers matching investment that looks like the photo, you could get a motor now and start building it for future use. Buying a salvageable 68 - 73 without a motor might cost you fewer pennies and dimes. It all depends upon your DIY sweat equity motivation and skills. Hi "Diz", I have the skills just not the facilities to build my own creation. The car will actually be stored in a rented garage, at my work until I build my own shop/garage. Not a daily driver but will be taken out often. Will be looking at 70, 71 & 72 model years. The 68 & 69 will likely prove to be too costly and the 73 is an odd year with chrome strip bumper on back and all fiberglass nose up front. My goal is to save $25K +/- by mid 2018, then I will start shopping. After adding the numbers up, I may reach my goal even earlier. For our first encore date in 1980, I arrived in a silver 65 roadster with 365 hp, 4 speed, knock-offs and factory side pipes. Of course, she could not have cared less about the car. ...typical, women Matt ♪ ♫ ♪ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJkizak Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 I did have a 1979 Vette that was bumped in the rear by a big Pontiac (huge front bumper) and when I checked for damage I could find nothing wrong. The absorbing pistons took all the shock and everything remained in place. That was impressive. The older Vette bumpers were for show only. JJK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthews Posted July 10, 2016 Author Share Posted July 10, 2016 The older Vette bumpers were for show only. JJK yes, and they look AWESOME. The '73 model with the chrome strip bumper out back and naked up front looks silly. What were they thinking? Matt ♪ ♫ ♪ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtimer Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 A lot of laws (regulations) were changing at the time. Alfa Romeo did not export their spider in 1970 to the US because they did not meet changing standards. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason str Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Modern engines are sooo much better than the engines of yesteryear. When talking GM products, anything 350 based is 50s technology. Go with an LS based powerplant and it opens up much more potential for HP. I disagree. Modern engines are nothing but cheap lightweight versions of what they once were. Modern electronics maybe, it depends but its going to cost you. You can easily get 500+ horsepower on a 350 block with a carburetor and electronic ignition, if i were on a budget the money saved would be used to update the suspension, trans and rear end to accommodate higher horsepower and RPM. If money were no option i would go with a inter-cooled turbo but i don't think for a street machine it would be warranted. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DizRotus Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 (edited) IMO, the 1982 Vette was the Nadir (pun intended) of Corvettes. The "Cross Fire" fuel injection had more in common with a Chevy Cavalier than with TPI system that was to follow. The car on the right has sidepipes and a T-top, is that what you're looking for? :-) As in audio, one person's "upgrade" is another person's heresy. Edited July 10, 2016 by DizRotus 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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