Thread: My Malibu

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I have a grand to play with and i have a 1980 malibu classic that i want to get started on this summer. Its got the 267 4.4lt in it my dream is to throw a 350 in it but my wife wont let me. So i have to improvise. What do you think i should do to the engine to get more off the line horse power. Dont really give a shit about how fast it goes i got one to many tickets so i cant speed i just want the low end power to really get up and go.

Find out what type of gears are in the car,
if you got something like 2.73 gears, dtich them, and get some 3.73's, this will give you more torque off the line, but you'll have to sacrifice a little top speed. you can either buy a new Ring and Pinion set, or u can look for another G-body axle to use that already has the good gears.. After doing that... get a pair of headers with dual exhaust, and then a cam. if your going for low end torque dont get a high duration cam. i believe that lower the duration the more low end power you make, but then you might have to sarcrifice a little top end power, so try and get a cam to even things out. and its a good idea to get a double roller timing chain, just cuz it'll be convenient since the timing cover will already be off during the cam swap. Not familiar with 267 Heads
but you can maybe even try a pair of 305 heads?
i know most of them have 1.84/1.5 valves in them, dont know if they're bigger than the 267 heads. but its worth looking into...

I think you should get the 350. It's not the kind of decision you should leave to the wife. You don't tell her what kind of dish soap to use. Buy her some nice flowers.
AL

P.S. I'm no longer married.

Unless you wanta go the Al route, and DX(direct exchange) your wife for a 350, I'd say definitely go with gears first. Considering you have a grand to spend, if you're not in a big hurry, and don't mind spending some time in the salvage yards, you could look for a transmission, driveshaft, and rearend out of a 84-87 Monte SS (200-4R, 8.5" 3.73 limited slip rear). Unfortunately, the chances of finding them are slim and none, so you're best bet would be to just get a 200-4R, or a 700 -R4 out of anything in the yard that came with a V-8, and pay a shop to shorten your driveshaft. Then you'll have an overdrive gear, so you won't have too worry about your highway mileage, AND the first gear in either overdrive tranny is lower (numerically higher) than in a TH-350/400. All this should easily eat up your grand, but if it doesn't, I'd go with exhaust first, since you're not really looking to race, go with headers, and true duals. All this will give you a car that sounds great, and does great burn-outs. You probably won't hook up and accelerate very good from a stop, though, until you add suspension mods, and larger, stickier tires.

I like al's thread, forget the wife, its all about the muscle. You can get a wife anywhere this is your chance to go fast!!!!!!

p.s. not married

I know that this thread might be a little old, but I though that I would add my two cents. I think that a wisely spent 1K would be on preparing the car for the 350 that this guy wants. Like it has been suggested for exhaust and a rear end. Wait untill you can do it right with a real motor or make that 268 into a 350 your self to put the money into the motor. Oh and also get permission from the warden.

I had a 267 4.4 liter in a 1981 Chevy Impala I bought for the motor and tranny for 75 bucks ( car was compleatly toatled but motor and tranny were fiine ), I wanted to use it for a repower on my '83 MB 240D and, I researched these engines. I researched that they cannot practicly be turned into a 350 ( if at all ). In stock form they make 115 HP. I junked the car soon after I gave up on the Chevy V8 to MB conversion, this was 1 of the main reasons I gave up, I will compleate that project in a year or so with a Ford 302 for a daily driver ( not worth much else with 252,000 miles on it ).

I guess that makes the decision a little easier don't put the money into the motor put it into the supporting cast of your car.