I'm getting ready to pull my tbi 350 out of my 91 K1500, and putting in a '79 355, carb'd. So far, I'm getting told about throttle linkage issues, heater hose problems, fuel pressure regulators, and possible issues with some of my dash gauges? Anyone got some advice? I can't stay with the stock tbi unit, because I don't think it's gonna deliver the fuel I'll need. Any advice?
you will need a fuel pressure regulator, a carb only needs 5-9 psi and tbi uses a lot more so you gotta cut the pressure the carb is gonna see. throttle wise you should just have a cable so just buy a new bracket and adjust it to where it needs to be. if your gonna run the 700r4 make sure you get the tv cable on that right or get ready to replace the tranny, heater lines just hook up what you need and remove the rest, your dash guages depend on what you got, but most i've seen are just ground style so just hook them up to the new motor and they'll still work... i've done this kinda swap with tbi camaro's and firebirds a lot, so if ya have any more questions just ask
Minor issues, no big deal. Just some horsin around like on anything else and then itll be runnin. If I can put one of these in a Mustang, Isuzu, VW bug, and a few others Id like to forget, Im pretty sure we can get it runnin in a chevy truck ;D best to use the mechanical pump if possible and eliminate the high dollar in-tank pump. Use the sending units from the tbi so the dash reads correctly - mite have to get some brass fittings to adapt them, the rest is pretty much tweekin to get things just right.. Again, no big deal. It would be alot harder if you were goin the other way with it, makin it into tbi. Makin tbi into carb is OLD SCHOOL modification loll
i switched my truck from carb to tbi, and all my gauges worked before and they all work now after the swap. i got a 91 chevy, all they did on mine is unhook the relay and fuse for the fuel pump in the tank then cut the lines going to the motor and installed the correct pressure pump for the carb. and theres a 2 prong plug in the engine compartment by or under the steering column with a tan, and a black wire, ground the black wire and then your fuel pressure gauge should work right. and if your truck gots a tach in it the wire for mine was the same. the trottle cable was the same just had to use different brackets. and mine had the 700r4 trans and i bought a b&m box to control the converter lockup.
if you have any questions let me know
Thanks, guys. This is a huge step for me. Never done anything like this before. I just hate jumping into something blind.
As for tranny issues, no issues at all. I have the 5spd manual. I think i'll run with the stock fuel pump, and just put in a simple regulator. Where can you buy the throttle bracket, O'Reilly or something like that? As soon as I figure out where and when I'm doing this, I'll let ya'll know. Thanks again, guys!!!!
yeah you can get the bracket at o'rileys or autozone or advance auto, i used this regulator on my firebird, and it worked great for years with no hastle or adjustments once it was set, and that was easy too... http://www.summitracing.com/parts/MAA-4309/?rtype=10 (http://www.summitracing.com/parts/MAA-4309/?rtype=10)
the biggest thing is with the swap is to take your time when ya do it! and make sure ya save urself a vacum port for the brake booster ;D brakes are nice to have!