F.A.Q.

Q: Heads for 350 2-bbl converted to 4-bbl

A: With regard to the original post about cam selection for a 350 2-bbl converted to 4-bbl, I would suggest the Pontiac 067 or Summit 204/214 cam which was offered by someone on the list. I would go NO HIGHER than the 204/214 for your application, since you specifically wanted low end torque and gas milage. In fact I think the Summit 204/214 is probably a great bet for your needs.

A: Well put. Pontiac engines like a wide lobe center, in the region of 110 to 114 degrees. This will give you better idle characteristics compared to a cam with simular lift and duration, but with a tighter lobe center.

In addition, the port design in Pontiac heads favor low lift figures, which is why you see the factory cams with lift figures of .406″ (the exceptions are the “44” cam with .410″ and “041′ with .518”). Adding more lift is waste of time since the port design doesn’t flow any better at higher lifts.

It is said that Malcolm McKellar, an engineer at Pontiac in the 50s and 60s believed that higher lifts reduced the reliability of the engines with higher stresses on the valve train. He felt that lower lifts, along with port designs that favored efficiency at low speeds woul still make good power, but not at the price of valve train failure.

That, and the restricive exhaust ports demanded a balance between the intake and exhaust side.

As Steve suggests, either go with a Pontiac high performance grind, or an aftermarket cam that is very close. And read the Jim Hand information. He is the guru of Pontiacs, and he’s done all of the testing and experimentation for us.

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Q: 350 2bbl Build-up

I am trying to figure out the best way to get performance out of my 350 2bbl.

1. Whant is the best Intake
2. what would ba a good carb.
3. What would e the Biggest cam I could use with a stock valve train
4. How much can I mill the heads

The reason for this is to keep the stock motor and for the Sleeper look with April gold paint and Ivy gold Interior!!

A: The 350 2 bbl buildup has been discussed at length both here and on www.classicalpontiac.com, I suggest getting a cold one and do some reading. Just go to www.classicalpontiac.com, click on QandA, then try BOTH archive #6 and the current QandA and search the title for “350”.

Also, I reccomend going to http://www.classicfirebird.com/hand/hand.html and reading the complete series of articles by Jim Hand.

The best “peformance” from you engine varies depending on your goals for the car, so it would be best to give more detail about what you want to do with it, from a quiet easy to drive and mild mannered street machine to a lumpy idle, no low end torque, race engine.

Also, I’m always an advocate of following this sequence when building up a car.

1. Decide on some general goals for the car. Why? Because your car will have the best “performance” when all components are matched up well and working in harmony.

2. Tune, Tune, Tune. Why? Because you’ll need to learn how to do that well anyway when you’ve built your “ultimate” engine, and you can often squeek a lot more performance out of your current engine, for almost no money.

3. Start with everything EXCEPT the engine. Why? Because to make the most of your car you will need to do this anyway, and sometimes this may be all you want/need. Start with rear end gears (remember, matched to your goals), tires, and transmission/torque converter.

4. Now do your engine stuff…….

Finally, here is the very, very short version of answers to your questions…assuming a “normal” streetable car.

* 1967-72 Intake
* Quadrajet
* Duration wise no physical limitation. Lift around .450 General consensus is no more duration than 214/224 at .050 but I have no personal experience with cams this big in a 350, and some people run bigger ones and are happy.
* If virgin, .060 is all you can go. This will take 12 cc from the chambers.

There are caveats to almost all of these answers. Again, a good search of the QandA on classicalpontiac.com will expose all of the details.

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Q: “Numbers Matching”

How do you know if you have a numbers matching car.

A: People still call cars “numbers matching” if all of the Part Numbers and Casting Codes are correct and pre-date the car by the correct 1-3 months (in general).

A:
Use the following web pages on the First Generation Firebird web site as a guide:
1967: https://FirstGenFirebird.org/1967-info/1967-technical-information/1967-drivetrain-id-number-information/
1968: https://FirstGenFirebird.org/1968-info/1968-technical-information/1968-drivetrain-id-number-information/
1969: https://FirstGenFirebird.org/1969-info/1969-technical-information/1969-drivetrain-id-number-information/

Any proposed updates, changes, pictures, and/or corrections, please use our comment section below (may need to click on permalink to access comments feature). Information is subject to change and offered as is without any warranties or guarantees. Please review our Term's Of Use for more information.