Fred Rawling Posted June 8, 2023 Share Posted June 8, 2023 It was suggested to me that I put a HEI and fuel injection on my 455. This is a driver. Can anyone comment on the benefits or problems by doing either of these? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted June 8, 2023 Share Posted June 8, 2023 (edited) Fred, depending on what year your car is, it MAY have electronic ignition. As one who switched to fuel injection a long time ago, my opinion is ANY problems will be far outweighed by the benefits. Never any "vapor lock" problems. No trying to make an antiquated carburetor work with gas that was not formulated for one. If the car is driven at all. not just shown, you will be happy. Ben Edited June 8, 2023 by Ben Bruce aka First Born (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC-car-guy Posted June 9, 2023 Share Posted June 9, 2023 I put Affordable Fuel Injection (like @Ben Bruce aka First Born) on my 57 with the original engine over 100k miles. I like it, easy cold starts, takes any grade gasoline, good throttle response, and better MPGs. Just make sure you put your electric pump as close to the tank as possible. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted June 9, 2023 Share Posted June 9, 2023 I could go either way WRT fuel injection. The real benefit depends upon how much the car is actually driven. A daily driver could benefit from FI, however, I have a hard time justifying the expense and effort required for installation of aftermarket FI on a hobby car that sees occasional use. That said, swapping the original breaker-point distributor for an OE 1975-up HEI distributor is quite simple and relatively inexpensive. The non-original appearance (for a 1971 Buick) is really the only downside. Benefits include no points to maintain, easier starts and hotter spark for marginally better mileage/performance. If you do this swap, be sure to reset the spark plug gap to 0.045" to take advantage of the higher available coil voltage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted June 9, 2023 Share Posted June 9, 2023 EmTee is correct on expense. If the car is just a show, cruise night, 500 mile a year car, that is. On the other hand, there are less expensive "hobbies". In my case, due to family health problems, I have only driven my car 25,000 miles , or so, with the EFI. Fuel milage is better. Per Matt, so many "good" points. At the price I paid for mine in 2012, the per mile cost has been around seven cents . A MAIN result has been absolutely NO fuel related problems. NADA! The only system problems have been self induced. Some of the newer systems are so well designed no one will notice. Only you when you listen to the folks having "vapor lock" or " percolation" problems and you can just sit back and smile. Ben 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old-tank Posted June 9, 2023 Share Posted June 9, 2023 1 hour ago, Ben Bruce aka First Born said: Only you when you listen to the folks having "vapor lock" or " percolation" problems and you can just sit back and smile. Quit laughing at me Ben! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted June 11, 2023 Share Posted June 11, 2023 Sure is hard to beat a properly tuned quadrajet. Just need the right builder. And it's WAYYYYY cheaper than retrofitting your whole fuel system and sticking on some electronic gizmo that could go tits up at any moment and leave you stranded in the Moab. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted June 11, 2023 Share Posted June 11, 2023 2 hours ago, Smartin said: Sure is hard to beat a properly tuned quadrajet. Just need the right builder. And it's WAYYYYY cheaper than retrofitting your whole fuel system and sticking on some electronic gizmo that could go tits up at any moment and leave you stranded in the Moab. LOL. Yep, those electronic "gizmos" will never make it, said a lot of folks back in the 80's. I wonder! Ben 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted June 11, 2023 Share Posted June 11, 2023 I've seen way too many people convert BACK to carburetor after their constant problems with those throttle body EFI conversions. And all of the ones I've experienced personally, none of them work as well as the old school stuff. Sorry, not sorry. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Rawling Posted June 12, 2023 Author Share Posted June 12, 2023 Thank you everyone for the replies. Fred 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted June 12, 2023 Share Posted June 12, 2023 21 hours ago, Smartin said: I've seen way too many people convert BACK to carburetor after their constant problems with those throttle body EFI conversions. And all of the ones I've experienced personally, none of them work as well as the old school stuff. Sorry, not sorry. Adam, are you going to Spokane? I will be there if the kids don't renege on "baby setting" their Mom. Of course, the Moab is on the way.😁 Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted June 12, 2023 Share Posted June 12, 2023 Yes sir! Driving a 70 GS Stage1 from Idaho. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NTX5467 Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 (edited) On 6/12/2023 at 12:56 PM, Smartin said: Yes sir! Driving a 70 GS Stage1 from Idaho. Hmmmmm, "electronic gizmos", like ignition points? Trying to justify EFI just on perceived cost savings alone is not a good financial plan. How much of a smile it might put on your face to not have the famous vapor lock issues, but with the better drivability, and slight improvement in cruise mpg . . . can be priceless. Most EFI systems require a new distributor of a particular spec anyway, so the system gets a good spark signal. If you let the system control the spark timing, the distributor can not have any advance mechanism in it. I will concur that a good Rochester carb can be great to have, BUT I also know how small the float bowl is on a QJet. Which makes me lean more toward a Street Demon, an Edelbrock AVS2, or one of Summit hybrid 4160-style 4bbls (with annular discharge venturis), unless class judging is a concern. There are other "in-the-cap" electronic ignition kit conversions, for that OEM look. No more "spitting out ignition points" or point gap/dwell not coinciding due to breaker block wear. Several points to ponder . . . NTX5467 Edited July 23, 2023 by NTX5467 (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 I would rather tinker with points on the side of the highway than have no recourse for a failed electronic system. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 🤧 Both have merit. Both have drawbacks. I carry a spare module. Have never needed it. One of the guys on the H.A.M.B. has two modules wired so he CAN just switch to the "spare" if needed. When asked how that worked, his answer was " don't know. Never needed in 15 years". So there is that. To each his own.😁 Ben 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NTX5467 Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 58 minutes ago, Smartin said: I would rather tinker with points on the side of the highway than have no recourse for a failed electronic system. Of course, not having to do that in the first place is desired! Why were they failing to start with? Just curious. One advantage for points is that they have NO minimum voltage to operate them. As long as the battery is strong enough to cause a spark as it turns the engine, the engine should start. With anything electronic, there is a minimum-required voltage for ANYTHING to happen. With any kind of EFI, the pump must make a minimum of about 50psi for the injectors to fire, too. One thing I liked about Ben's first EFI system was that it was GM OEM based components, not something by some other aftermarket company. KNOWN systems which more people have knowledge of than not, usually. YET . . . as deeply as Holley, Edelbrock, and others have jumped into the EFI lake, with available tutorials on troubleshooting and such, EFI is not nearly the bear it was 30 years ago, by observation. Add to that that those systems are usually laptop or tablet accessed, which younger techs can understand and navigate through, another plus. As much as WE might know, having something the young 'uns can understand and embrace can always be a big PLUS, too. Just depends upon which "game" you like to play, NTX5467 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 We believe it was a condenser that was causing the problem the whole time....at least that's the last thing we replaced, and it was ok after that. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted July 24, 2023 Share Posted July 24, 2023 4 hours ago, Smartin said: We believe it was a condenser that was causing the problem the whole time....at least that's the last thing we replaced, and it was ok after that. Most new ones are junk. 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now