Just found out from mortec that my 79 L82 with 4 speed manual box has a 78 185hp 350 engine in it. Not very good news for power apparently.(as the guy from mortec said "1978 was NOT one of corvette's best years") Not fussed about originality so what will make the most gains in horse power, inlet manifold and carb, cam, headers, exhaust etc. or is it better to do a complete rebuild from scratch. Would like to do things whilst it is still in the car but not averse to removing the lump if necessary. Don't know what the heads are yet as I haven't taken the covers off, will do this at the weekend. From a previous post I did I will be removing the emissions equipment as a starting point. I plan to install a 3.08 rear end for top end but would like it to still leave the lights with some force. Only on the street not the strip. Any help greatfully received. Note based in the UK.

You have lots of possibilities to consider. Your only limits are how much you're able or willing to spend. You said your car won't see the strip, so extreme rebuilds don't seem necessary.

In my opinion, you want to build a car for best performance below the 4500-5000 rpm area since that's where you'll be driving it, so high horsepower numbers are not needed. You want good torque for driveability. Think about a somewhat warmer than stock camshaft and dual plane intake manifold, with either your Quadrajet or replacement carburetor tuned to match. There are a lot of possible cylinder heads if you want to replace yours. Just make sure your chosen components are matched for best performance.

You don't need a radical high lift cam or racing intake manifold. It won't run well on the street. There lots you can do without the need to sell the castle for excellent performance on the street.

One good suggestion is to contact through their websites companies like Edelbrock, Holley, or Summit Racing. Tell them what you want out of your car and they will give you solid, proven recommendations on how to accomplish it.

With your setup you best bang for the buck will be a cam. Call CraneCams.com and they will make a recommendation for a low-end torque cam. The motor,trans, and rear end need to work together. It will be hard to get any off-line power with that gear but your gas mileage should look pretty good (17-19mpg).

I may be wrong but I believe the 78 L82 was a 220 HP 350 ci. and the L48 was a 185 HP 350ci.

A mild cam, intake and if you dont know how to mess with a Q-jet, then a edelbrock or holley 600cfm carb is a good start. If you want to rebuild the motor then put in flat top pistons for a higher compression which makes better torque. Dont go over 9.7 to be safe for iron heads. They might detonate alot if you have inferior gas. (or petrol in your case.) If you got real money to sink in, then look into a high performance crate motor.