Hey Fellas,

I have a 1979 Vette that is all original with the exception of a new interior. As far as I can tell, the car is not any special model Vette, just basic 350 under the hood w/auto transmission. It has 44,000 miles on it and still runs fairly well. I know the regular Vettes did not come w/a ton of power back in 1979. And, the 29 year old engine is obviously not going to run the same way it did decades ago. Having said that, it starts and drives okay for the most part, but, the motor is a snail. The car feels like it may have 120 HP. Slow as dust.
Mechanically, the car needs the following:

A long overdue tuneup including fuel filter, spark plugs, wires, etc.
The car has a vaccuum leak far as I can tell since the headlights are slow to come up. It also needs a front suspension rebuild, bought the kit for that. It also has some grinding noise comm from the rear end during turns. Someone mentioned that it could be the side yokes????

My intentions are to keep the car for 5 - 6 years then sell it for a another Vette. I do want the car to be fun to drive and it is not at the moment.
I have two options with this car:
1. I can just do the tune up and hope for big improvements.

2. I can rebuild the engine and increase the hp output in the process.

My questions are:

1. Would the tune up make a big difference in output?

2. What would need to be done to the motor during the rebuilding process to increase the horsepower of the motor? How much would it cost. What can I expect? What type or brand of parts to buy and where is a good place to buy them from? I wouldn't want to pass the 300 HP mark.

I have searched around and I really haven't seen any good advice yet. Any feedback you provide will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Very first think I would do is to check the compression of the engine. I would rather use a leak-down tester rather than a compression needle type gauge.
Once I have an engine that is well under 7% leak with your mileage, it is really 1% away from a rebuild. You figure a well running N/A is at least 2% tight if not 1% leak at the ring grooves is a nice strong engine.
Getting back to the compression, we are going to chase our tail, waste money if we do not invest in that one leak at the 8 variables.

Now for HP gain, you think, "air speed," or what Smokey use to say is, "fill the cylinders at a higher and higher rpm'... 'It is just that simple."
So with that basic knowledge you have a clog at both ends of the normal aspire ratings being the intake air cleaner gauze, and the packing of the muffler are two simple air systems you can make the air move in and out of the engine a little faster is all you do for increased HP that was already in the engine. You rebuilt nothing but checked how fresh the cylinders are to make heat in the percentages.

Again, you really do not want to pour all that muffler and air cleaner mod in a low compression engine trying to alter the N/A it used to have, meaning, check compression before you open your wallet and waste your money for the next 5 or so years.

as far as the noise from the rear.. Check the U joints, My 81 had noise from the rear and that is what fixed it.

as far as the noise from the rear.. Check the U joints, My 81 had noise from the rear and that is what fixed it.

Common sound. Listen to JMS. If it is a U-J that failed, then you need to do all of them from the pumpkin to the other 4 out from the pumpkin to the wheel hubs. You will hear a noise a few months down the road you keep jacking up the car or paying for the same work a few more 10th's of time on the clock would have cleared your mind none will break and leave you stranded.

Option 1: For a low budget kick in the pants-Check out Blains in Dallas. You can get a rebuilt 350/350 for 2k ,a long block might be a better option, then the rest is do it yourself weekend project with a friend- probably 2800 range with all the gaskets,new fuel pump and carb rebuild. Amortized out over 5 yrs thats $50/mo to enjoy a peppy car for the next 5 yrs. Option 2: Even with the best tune-up on your present set-up you will still have a dog motor unless you put a 150 NO fogger on it. Option 3 - a good tune up and save the extra for the down payment on a fast used late model C5 z06 in a few years. Your call - expect to spend $10/hp for upgrades/mods