Jim Mcgowan at the Quad shop in Rockford rebuilt mine several years ago and it acts like a tuned port injected ZZ-4, getting 20 MPG hwy with 3:55 gears through a 700R4. Jim's slow as molasses and not cheap but does superb work. He takes every carb to a flow bench in Chicago to test them.
http://www.thequadshop.net/html3.php
I put Hooker long tube headers on and black tape wrapped them, after a couple of weeks they look like crap. If I had it to do over again I would have had them Jet-Hot coated. The Hookers plumbed straight right back through the crossmember and over the axle with 2 90 deg pipes to make a 180 on each side over the axle then another 90 to the Walker Dyno-Max mufflers.
If you go to a 700R4, make sure it is a later model with the 30 spline input shaft. The older 27 spline trannys will not hold up (voice of experience). You will have to move your crossmember back 3" or get one purpose made from Bow Tie Overdrives;
Bow Tie Overdrives
and shorten your driveshaft by 3" also. It's kinda pricey but well worth it if you plan to drive it on the Interstate much. You will need to provide for a torrque converter lockup curcuit.
Speaking of torque converters you will be happiest with a 2000 RPM stall lockup converter.
When I had my 27 spline tranny replaced I let the shop talk me into a stock stall converter and my '78 now leaves the light in bog city.
Dave
Autom8r2009-10-02 09:31:19