Looking for some power in that worn out small block?

whether it be ford or chevy or dodge, engines from the muscle car era are outdated compared to the newer fuel injected motors.  if you have a hunk of junk sitting in your engine bay there are alot of things you can do to turn it into a mildly built engine for cheap!



take an engine like this for example.  from the factory maybe 200 horsepower max.  and since its not exactly in tip top condition i would knock a god deal of that power off.   But! fear not, for around a $1000 you can reach well past the factory horsepower and have a great looking (and running engine).

                                                                        The Basic Power Package
The first thing that I would recommend is a new air intake.  brand new you can pick one up for 150-300$ dollars


next on your list should be to replace that old 2 barrel carburetor with a new 4 barrel.  this will increase performance throttle response and gas mileage and add to the performance of the new intake manifold. these can be found for about the same price as a manifold, be carefull though a 650 carb is more than enough for a mild engine like this one, going to big can waste money and performance. 

A high performance camshaft should be next on the list.  For a low budget build i would recommend a flat tappet because they are cheaper but do make less power.  cams come in many stlyes and perform differently so take some time picking yours out.

The cam, carb, and intake should get you to around 310 horsepower easily.  and make your engine run a million times better so i would start with these.

match all this with a decent set of heads and you can be easily at 350-450 horsepower depending on how much you are willing to spend.