I AM SICK AND TIRED OF LOW HP IN MY 1980 350 4spd.
I can rant all day on how underpowered I am. And I can rant all day on the California emission laws.
A lot of people tell me "you can do things to you motor and still meet emission" however when I say "Great! what can I do" I get the response "uhh............"

I was on my way to school a couple of weeks ago and a lady totaled my truck. The insurance company cut me $4k check for my truck and we are still working out a settlement. So now that I have a little money to play with I have a couple of questions.

Will my stock motor handle a supercharger? Will the supercharger pass Calif emission?
http://www.vortechsuperchargers.com/yourcar/univ_carb_sys.html
If you don't think a supercharger would be practical what can be done to get higher HP but wont raise the emissions?
I don't want a 8 sec 1/4 mile car, I just don't want the Acura TT's to overpower me anymore.

thanks a lot guys

Well, I know nothing about Calif. emission laws but I do know there was a '90 300 hp vette at a show this past weekend with a supercharger on it. He put it on a dyno and it hit 600 hp rear wheels. He claimed that he did nothing else to the engine. Those of you who are mechanics out there can comment on that. It was very flat hp and torque from about 3 to 6 K. Anyhow, after seeing that, a supercharger might seem the way to go......how much they cost...???

so many things that you could do .start with how much do you want to spend?do you care about factory correct numbers matching or resale?lot of crate motors out there to choose from.changing cam would help alot and still pass emissons, call cam makers or put in 3.55 to3.73 rearend gears.this can be a very expensive addition alot of us have it.

glenns: I found the link for the supercharger at corvetteforum.com. I started another topic about sprchgr and nobody really wanted to mess with the topic I guess because I got little response. I think somebody said it costs around $2.5k but I'M not sure.

Terry82: All the money I get from my accident will be going into a bag that says "Corvette" which will be around $5K. When I get out of school next week for summer I'M going to start working full time and still living at home I don't have bills so I'll probably put a lot more money into the CORVETTE bag. You said a mild cam? what are the #'s so I know what one to get. What about different pistons? will it make a performance gain and not change emissions? As far as matching #'s the motor isnt original. I read at the GM site that none of the crate motors are smog legal in calif, am I seeing things?

I have thought about selling the car and trying to find a old one that does not require smog but the Vette I have now is perfect/butifull car that has already been restored by my father (It holds sentimental value over me)

thanks a lot

I know the feeling of wanting more power. Fortunately I don't have to deal with CA emission laws. Just some ideas for you... I was looking into a Comp Cam XE262. I heard its a good cam. New gears would definitely be an improvement. 3.55 or 3.73 is what I plan to get when I get some money. And of course their is always NOS. It would be best to get some stronger engine parts if you go that way, but you'll have the Hp there when those little Acuras with the 3 wings, 12" exhaust tip, and horsepower adding stickers try to go by you, just press a button and show them that they should have invested in part of the American Dream, a Corvette!!!!

I suggest you go to the edelbrock website and look at their Performer or Performer RPM packages. Don't get a cam or manifold only, you have to think the whole thing thru. That is the beauty of the edelbrock packages, they do the engineering for you. Some of their packages are CARB exempt so it wouldn't be a problem passing CA emissions inspections. You might have to change pistons to get the recommended compression ratio for some of the higher power packages, but many will work with what you have (8 or 8.5 to 1?) $5000 should get you a pretty complete package - Carb, Manifold, Heads and Cam/Lifters/Springs.
While you are at it, you have to get the lower end rebuilt - new bearings and an oil pump are a must.
Joe

joe73vette, has the best idea because they can tell you 1 is it emisson legal 2 how much hp 3 how much its going to cost. gears do help alot if you like to run light to light.

I have been writing back and forth to Edelbrock for a while now. Chatting them up about the mods I plan to make. They are extremely responsive with e-mail and over the phone. They also have crate engines. Give them a call and ask if their crate engines are Calif legal. If they don't have what you want, they also recommend an engine builder that will do anything you need. I know you can buy 502/502 crates for between 4.5 to 7 k depending on whether you want a turnkey engine or something to finish yourself. Rebuilding an engine is something you may not want to undertake unless you are very knowledgeable ( fearless don't hurt either ). Just remember, if you do your own engine rebuild, start with the bottom and make sure it is sound...if not, you will be wasting your time and money in the long run. Good luck to ya

Pleez see my Nitous Oxide Post.....Not yet used to this forum posting and posted my response to your Q as New Post.......Sorry

Seems to me that it would take more than just a supercharger to get that much HP. It seems like it would need a cam, better heads,etc.etc