Wake Up Call

As much as I have enjoyed my Firebird, these last few years have made one thing apparent.  While 240 horsepower and 310 foot pounds of torque may have been impressive, and downright fast in 1990, today’s technology has improved to the point where even minivans make 200 horsepower without breaking a sweat. And so it has been decided that the Firebird needs a bit of a waking up. But how much? That question I have asked myself many times, and after much thought, and talks with many people of a racing background, I have decided that roughly 350-400 horsepower is where I would like the car to be.

This number has left many people curious, because today a new Mustang or Camaro makes easily 420-500 horsepower. However, my car is old, and with age comes a definite lack of government involvement with it’s design. In 1990, cars were not forced to have heavy, pedestrian safe bumpers, huge crash structures, emissions control systems, or dozens of airbags. Because of these regulations, the new Mustangs and Camaros tip the scales at right around 3800-4000 pounds depending on what options they have. My car, although it admittedly gives up a little bit of safety to the new machines, only weighs approximately 3200 pounds. In essence, this means that I just don’t need as much power to make my car compete with any and all of the new kids in town.

How will this happen? Well, although it is not making the amount of power I would like, the car does already have a V8 engine displacing 5 liters, or 305 cubic inches. With that many “cubes” under the hood, 500 horsepower can be reached with merely bolt-on parts, and my desired 350-400 lies easily within reach. So to begin, I have a motor which is in excellent condition, and needs no fixing or rebuilding to be ready for more power. I have decided to leave the majority of the engine alone, and change the cylinder heads, camshaft, and the intake and exhaust manifolds. By doing this, the engine will be able to take in hundreds of cubic feet per minute (CFM) more air, as well as exhaust this air, in a much more efficient manner. I believe the stock electronic fuel injection will easily handle the little bit more fuel needed to move air along, due to my not adding “too much power.”

My decision to keep many of the stock parts, such as the electronic fuel injection, will also aid in making the car more driveable. You see, engines which are extremely highly modified have a tendency to run very rough, and gulp down fuel almost as fast as you can pour it in. Although I don’t drive the car as a daily driver, none of these drawbacks appeal to me at all. At the power level I am looking at, these drawbacks will be kept at bay. In essence, my “blacked out street brawler” will once again run with the fastest cars roaming the street or track, while remaining the tame streetable car it always has been.