# intake swap



## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

some of you already know that i'm dropping on an edelbrock performer intake and holley carb, but i'm hoping for a bit of assistance with the proper proceedure to make the swap.

Can anyone scan the pages of a chiltons regarding the removal of the intake. here's what i know so far:

1. disconnect carburator vaccuum/fuel lines and the throttle arm
2. remove the valve covers
3. remove the 10 bolts holding the intake in place
(here's where i start to get a bit washy)
4. remove the top-most water pump bolt. (can the intake be changed without removing the entire pump assy?)
5. remove the stock intake

that's the basic version that i understand. Hoping for a bit more detail unless i've got it down.


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## chin (Jan 5, 2011)

I'm putting on a performer intake tonite if all goes well, I'll post pics of the install before and after, also any issues that come up. Had to buy a square bore adaptor plate for my carb, not sure if you need one with a holley but its a edelbrock pn#2732 for reference. You might check your throttle linkage for the correct end, mine doesn't have the ball type that snaps on its a ring/washer/pin.


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## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

xcmac26 said:


> some of you already know that i'm dropping on an edelbrock performer intake and holley carb, but i'm hoping for a bit of assistance with the proper proceedure to make the swap.
> 
> Can anyone scan the pages of a chiltons regarding the removal of the intake. here's what i know so far:
> 
> ...


Add 2a. drain cooling system (otherwise you're going to get a big mess when you remove that top-most bolt and the front two bolts on the intake)

4. Yes --- the bolt it's talking about is the long skinny one that goes through the 'notch' in the top of the water pump/timing cover and connects into the intake manifold coolant crossover.

Bear


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

Just install it, I sold it to you in August!! The Holley is probably dry rotted by now.. 
Good luck with the install. Once you take the old one off, it's pretty straight forward. Make sure you block off the heat riser-middle port in the intake or it will cook your paint/powdercoat off. Be carefull with the front bolt on the intake, don't overtighten or you will be helicoiling it, fine line between a water leak and stripping it out. Also, make sure your heat riser is closed off by the gasket/intake. I've done a couple with older intakes it doesn't cover it entirelly, or the gasket is wrong and you get an exhaust leak.


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

It shouldn't be necessary to remove the valve covers ...:confused Maybe one side at most for the intake to come up. Follow the install directions in chin's thread so you don't have the same leak issue. If you didn't get a new donut rubber for the water pump to intake port with the Edelbrock, buy a new one before starting. The old one's get hard and won't re-seal.


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## chin (Jan 5, 2011)

Too_Many_Project's right, you don't need to remove the valve covers. I pulled the manifold off last night and it was a piece of cake. The intake gasket set came with the rubber washer on the front of the manifold, and also block offs for the heat riser too. My gaskets have a water hole on each end, rear sides will get trimmed off. But yea it was super easy to pull off. One thing I noticed were the intake bolts weren't really that tight, probably was part of my problem as far as the car running bad. I've got some rtv black I was going to smear a real thin film on to hold the gasket in place on the head side and around water ports and the front water pump seal. I took a bunch of pictures as I went, I think I need a photobucket account or something to link pictures to show you guys.


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

jetstang said:


> Just install it, I sold it to you in August!! The Holley is probably dry rotted by now..
> Good luck with the install. Once you take the old one off, it's pretty straight forward. Make sure you block off the heat riser-middle port in the intake or it will cook your paint/powdercoat off. Be carefull with the front bolt on the intake, don't overtighten or you will be helicoiling it, fine line between a water leak and stripping it out. Also, make sure your heat riser is closed off by the gasket/intake. I've done a couple with older intakes it doesn't cover it entirelly, or the gasket is wrong and you get an exhaust leak.


Woulda done it earlier but i wasn't even home in houston until November, plus it took this long for my 2bbl to feck up :lol:

Planning to get to this saturday afternoon provided i can still walk after my training ride for the MS150 here in TX.

Now the issue of the heat riser...i know what it is, but not where. Chin, did you get a shot of it? Also, was the gasket kit all you needed to complete the install? I'm finding that nobody carries this and i'm going to have to have it sent rush delivery.


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## chin (Jan 5, 2011)

xcmac26, the heat riser ports are on the center of each side of the manifold. My gasket set came with two options for dealing with it-you can block it off completely with the included inserts or you can keep it open with another set of inserts. The inserts look like rectangular pieces made out of the same stuff that exhaust manifold gaskets use. I'm going to block mine off. I took pictures of everything that I'll get on here tonite with a link or an album, might make a bit more sense.


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

sounds good, i'll look forward to seeing the pics. did you use the edelbrock 7280 gasket set?


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## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

xcmac26 said:


> Now the issue of the heat riser...i know what it is, but not where.


Take a look at this photo. See the intake ports in the passenger side head? Now see that square shaped opening that's smack in the middle (or what would be an opening --- on my heads the passages in both heads are plugged with melted aluminum). That's the heat riser passage. There's one on each head. They come up from the center two exhaust ports and mate to a corresponding passage in the intake manifold that runs underneath the center of the carburetor. Their purpose is to help keep fuel in suspension during cold engine operation by warming the mixture. Once the engine is up to operating temperature, they can cost you power by making the intake charge too warm and therefore less dense.

Bear


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Sounds like you have it figured out, chin. 
Yeah, a photo account works the best for posting. I use webshots but there are other host sites.


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

BearGFR said:


> Take a look at this photo. See the intake ports in the passenger side head? Now see that square shaped opening that's smack in the middle (or what would be an opening --- on my heads the passages in both heads are plugged with melted aluminum). That's the heat riser passage. There's one on each head. They come up from the center two exhaust ports and mate to a corresponding passage in the intake manifold that runs underneath the center of the carburetor. Their purpose is to help keep fuel in suspension during cold engine operation by warming the mixture. Once the engine is up to operating temperature, they can cost you power by making the intake charge too warm and therefore less dense.
> 
> Bear


Hookey crap Bear, you got like .750 lift on that cam ??


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## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

Too Many Projects said:


> Hookey crap Bear, you got like .750 lift on that cam ??


Nah, it's not that severe. It's a moderate solid roller. With the 1.65:1 rockers, lift at the valves works out to be .622/.629 

Bear


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

good stuff bear, thanks :cheers


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## chin (Jan 5, 2011)

Pictures by 69lemans1 - Photobucket

Link shows some pics of the intake dissasembly. I'll post more pics as I go. xcmac26, I'm using fel-pro gaskets pn#1233.


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

very cool chin, thanks for posting as you go.


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

Might want to think about replacing the PCV grommet in the valley pan while you are in there, most of the time they are rock hard or cracked. I couldn't find the exact grommet for mine. Also, you could pull the valley pan and take a look at your cam and clean out any gunk. The gasket for the valley pan is called a pushrod cover gasket, it's under $10. You can also paint it while it's off.


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## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

Even with the block off plates I've see the intake paint burn.


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## chin (Jan 5, 2011)

Just got her fired up with the new setup! Throttle response is a ton better and it runs about 10 degrees cooler, right at 160 degees. There were a few issues though related to air cleaner fitup, sits too low and hits the throttle cable bracket and fuel inlet. With a spacer it sits too high and I think will hit the hood insulation. See pics and descriptions in the link below:

http://i1219.photobucket.com/albums/dd421/69lemans1/DSCN1693.jpg


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## chin (Jan 5, 2011)

chin said:


> Just got her fired up with the new setup! Throttle response is a ton better and it runs about 10 degrees cooler, right at 160 degees. There were a few issues though related to air cleaner fitup, sits too low and hits the throttle cable bracket and fuel inlet. With a spacer it sits too high and I think will hit the hood insulation. See pics and descriptions in the link below:
> 
> http://i1219.photobucket.com/albums/dd421/69lemans1/DSCN1693.jpg


Link above only shows one pic, use the link below:

Pictures by 69lemans1 - Photobucket


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

just rode 80 miles on my bicycle with a brutal headwind through about 70% of it and still maintained 18.1 mph. it's 85 degrees out. i can hardly walk up the stairs without panting and breaking a sweat. :willy: call me a pu$$y if you'd like, but that was fecking hard.

i think my plans for this weekend were a bit too aggressive. might wait till monday night to tackle this project. the holley looks good sitting on the intake though, the powder coat i got is the perfect match for the carb.

will let you guys know how i get along today if i get along today :cheers

EDIT: yea, gave it a go, not getting any love out of my cheap wrenches...time to buy an impact driver. any of the electric ones worth it? i'm fond of dewalt and makita products but it's been a long time since i've had to buy anything. any validated opinions? 

i can borrow a compressor and pneumatic one, but don't want to go that route every time i need one


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

Intake went on last night. right about 3 hours to do it. Semi-smooth operation. makes the engine look nice. holley's getting bolted up tonight. then the fun part of figuring out all the vaccuum lines :willy:


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

Congrats!!
Tranny vac line gets hooked to a non ported, like on the base of the carb. Distributor gets hooked to the metering block on the side of the carb. PCV goes to big hole on base of carb. Power brake booster you are going to have to figure out, you may be able to T into the base where the PCV hooked up. I think you can reuse the T off your old manifold for vac connections.


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

So the Throttle cable bracket/condenser bracket doesn't mount up on the new intake. Suggestions? Cut it back and run it with just 1 bolt? May lead to misalignment and perpetual tightening of the bolt holding it in place unless i go with red loctite. I attached a pic for demonstration purposes...


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

I take it you had a 2bbl before ? The brackets are different. You need to buy a 4 bbl bracket. Got any bone yards around that you might scrounge one from ?


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## chin (Jan 5, 2011)

Same deal on mine. I bought that 8015 edelbrock mounting bracket that bolts onto the manifold and then took the existing bracket, took a hammer, and flattened out the leg that is angled down and the holes lined up fine with the 8015 bracket. Then it wouldn't fit under the air cleaner so I chopped a 3/4" section out vertical and then moved the section a half inch forward and welded it all back together so that the cable's feature would still fit in the slot on the bracket.


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## 68greengoat (Sep 15, 2005)

xcmac26 said:


> just rode 80 miles on my bicycle with a brutal headwind through about 70% of it and still maintained 18.1 mph. it's 85 degrees out. i can hardly walk up the stairs without panting and breaking a sweat. :willy: call me a pu$$y if you'd like, but that was fecking hard.
> 
> i can borrow a compressor and pneumatic one, but don't want to go that route every time i need one


Your making me sweat just reading your post! Good job on the bike Steve! I think you need to break down and buy yourself a compressor. Then you can start purchasing all the fun attachments for it too.

Sounds like your 2 barrel is biting you a little now. Making progress on the intake. Lookin' good!


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## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

xcmac26 said:


> EDIT: yea, gave it a go, not getting any love out of my cheap wrenches...time to buy an impact driver. any of the electric ones worth it? i'm fond of dewalt and makita products but it's been a long time since i've had to buy anything. any validated opinions?


I've been buying a lot of DeWalt in the last couple years, so far I'm happy --- BUT --- pneumatic/impact tools are really more for speed and convenience than anything. You'd be better served buying yourself some reasonably good wrenches, including a good torque wrench, instead. I've got a big Ingersoll-Rand compressor in my garage that's beefy enough to run just about anything, but I still use hand tools 90% of the time or better.

Bear


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

xcmac26 said:


> So the Throttle cable bracket/condenser bracket doesn't mount up on the new intake. Suggestions? Cut it back and run it with just 1 bolt? May lead to misalignment and perpetual tightening of the bolt holding it in place unless i go with red loctite. I attached a pic for demonstration purposes...


You can run it with 1 bolt, it won't loosen, as it pulls straight back, not an issue. But, as stated, it may not clear the air filter.


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

it's been a long process, but I FINALLY fired up the car for the first time in about a month or more last night. first thoughts...really should have checked my heater return line...that sucker blew off and showered my garage with coolant. lucily the bottom of the hood kept most of it contained but man oh man, looked like slimer went to town in there. 

secondly, upon closer inspection of my throttle bracket, i was able to use the 2bbl bracket without modification, just had to use an alternative mounting method.

car's running flat out...only, but she sure as $hit runs strong and sounds great. figure a little more wrench time will have everything nicely sorted. keeping my fingers crossed.


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

been a while since i posted in here, but to those who care...car runs like a champ. Been enjoying the sunny weather here in Houston while I can. getting lots of looks and nods of approval. i think it's going to be a good summer until the temps break 100. when that happens, it's off to the operating room to get the suspension worked over.

thanks to everyone who backed me up with this. many internet beers to you all.:cheers


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Glad to hear it turned out well for you. Try to get over to see Koppster before it gets too hot. You both could take a short run up near Austin and see MaL's project. I wish I lived down there. Our spring has been crummy. It was cold and rainy for over a week and then the temp shot up to 82° with 92% humidity in one day.....us northerners were all dying....:willy: Did get the Harley out for a short ride though....:cool


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

Congrats!! Virtual beers on you!
So, how much better does it feel when you kick the 4 barrel in compared to the 2 barrel. No car should have a 2 barrel, lol. Engine probably was thinking WTF is that!!!


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

well koppster is in SA, where my girlfriend goes to school, so a meetup is a simple affair.

car runs like a beast stang. planted it at about 30 and broke em free. feels like a whole new motor. and yea, by comparison, i'm pretty damn disappointed in myself for waiting so long to bolt it all up.


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## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

Too Many Projects said:


> It shouldn't be necessary to remove the valve covers ...:confused Maybe one side at most for the intake to come up. Follow the install directions in chin's thread so you don't have the same leak issue. If you didn't get a new donut rubber for the water pump to intake port with the Edelbrock, buy a new one before starting. The old one's get hard and won't re-seal.


:agreeAnd when installing said donut (mmmmmmm, donuts) snug the long skinny bolt before torquing the manifold, and don't SNAP it! HI Mitch!,,,Eric


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