Hey guys, havent been on in awhile. had this idea running through my head earlier today since im gonna be putting together my 445 stroker short block from barry soon. any idea if the system off a 460 might work with some modification? i remember seeing a picture someone posted close to a year ago on here of a system they where building from scratched that looked awesome but i cant find it, and i dont see having the $4000+ any time soon to get the edelbrock system.

 

If you are looking for a cheap setup try searching the forums on EECtuning.org for "Ford FE", some great ideas on there for piecing together sequential multi-port EFI from late 80s mustangs, which is much more tuner friendly than the electronics you would find in any 460 equipped vehicle.

I looked into this quite a bit and the two biggest costs for the setup would be the intake (new Edelbrock multi-port or pay for modifications to a carb intake) and buying or adapting an FE distributor to be TFI friendly to work with the EEC-IV.

 

I will have to check out that site. I already have the edelbrock performer rpm intake that i could drill and weld in bungs for the injectors. I was mainly thinking about the 460 parts because they have the same firing order as the FE and the fuel rails would probably be closer to the right length and spacing than a small block one. I would have to look for it again but i think i saw a TFI distributor for the FE block somewhere.

 

Check out mass-floefi.com, they use the late 80s mustang brain but their kit is expensive. I believe you can also buy a TFI equipped distributor from them but it is pricey. If I ever make the switch I plan to use a stock mustang (A9L if memory serves me correct) computer with a TwEECer RT chip so that I can modify it with my laptop to match injectors, throttle body, and easily make changes for fuel (E85 switch, flex fuel) or forced air, you can find details on such ideas on the EECtuning site.

 

I started doing some reading last night on EECtuning.org. Lots of information but sounds a little greek to me since i have always worked with carbs. Mallory makes a distributor that works with aftermarket efi (its the one that comes with the $4000 edelbrock kit) but its $443. Would the fuel rails be something i would have to build from scratch or is there some ouyt there about the right size?

 

Edelbrock makes fuel rails to go with their EFI intake for the 390, I'm sure they would adapt. You can find them on Summit. I know some people also make their own, you can google more info on that.

You can download the software that the TwEECer uses for free and play with it on your computer, may find it easier than you think. I recommend Binary Editor for this, check out eecanalyzer.net, they also have outstanding tech support.

 

Awesome info man, I really appreciate it all. It really started out as just a theoretical idea, but if I could put together a system that would support 500+ hp on my new 445 for under a grand then I will probably do it. The thing that got me thinking about was that a carb engine sucks fuel even on the purge stroke. So I started thinking, the 13 mpg I get from my 390 could theoretically be doubled if I could build a multi port system that only sprays gas on the combustion stroke. 26 mpg from a 46 year old big block is a very appealing thought.

 

There is a new Edelbrock victor EFI manifold on EBay right now for 419. It is already machined for injectors.
New Edelbrock Victor EFI Intake Manifold Ford 390-428 | eBay
Sell your other manifold; performer RPM's seem to sell well on EBay. For a few more dollars you wouldn't have to deal with machining the one you have. I think fuel rails are only a hundred dollars for that manifold. That is as far as I have gotten on my own project. Good luck with yours. I would love to hear how it turns out.

 

Too bad my performer rpm is what my daily driver is breathing through right now or else I would be all over that.

 

Not true, I think you are getting your cycles confused. A 4 cycle engine never draws fuel that is not combusted in a "purge" stroke.

Regardless, a well tuned carburetor actually does almost as well as fuel injection. You may gain as little as 1-2 mpg or as much as 3-5 mpg over your carb, depending on how well you have it set up now (but the 13 mpg you are getting now is quite good). The biggest benefits are adaptability and tuneability, and low maintenance.

Good luck with your build, glad I could help.

 

Dangit, your right, i was thinking about it wrong Oh well, i can live with 13 in town and 17 on the highway. and im sure i dont have my carb tuned perfect, i have always sucked at tuning.

 

Just stumbled upon this looking for other info... but have some thoughts so I figured I'd pitch in.

MPFI is a more complicated (and expensive) fuel injection conversion. If you went with with a throttle body injection conversion it would be much more cost effective... You might gain a MPG or 2, maybe more depending on how well tuned your carb is now. You could utilize a fully tunable ECM system like MegaSquirt. GM throttle bodies can be had at junk yards all day long... if you're lucky enough to find a 88-95 GM 454 TBI unit, you can probably get everything for $150 and they flow around 800-850 CFM. A $50 adapter bolts it down to your existing intake manifold. To get to 500 horse you might need more flow, so you could look around for someone scrapping a 4 barrel holley TBI that flows around 1000CFM. If you had a dual plenum intake you could run two TBI units... either way MS can be configured to run it all. Plan on spending another 500-700 on the computer, relays, sensors, wiring, etc...

The MS systems are fully tunable and adaptable to any kind of sensors, but ready to work with GM sensors out of the box. Your main advantages will be better reliability, slightly better mileage and better drivability (better cold starts, etc..). The biggest advantage is tuneability. Once you understand the system, it does tune easier than carbs IMHO, and whats more is that it'll tell you when its tuned perfect.

Food for thought if you're serious about this, but there is a learning curve involved. I'm in the middle of mega squirting my 81 turbo 301 pontiac right now.

 

ive used megasquirt on about 7 projects
it is very versital and very programable
once you get the electronics figured out and setup, tuning is a fun task
take your time and go easy on it. get a good wideband a/f meter and keep it in the 13-1 a/f for a while and tune it up to 14.5 max. (only go above that when you are REAL good at tuning)
i was thinking about using the gm tb on my buddys 66 f100 because its pretty easy to get it onto the stock intake.
im tempted to run dual 454 tbi units on the 390 in my mustang

its been a while since i ran one of my ms project, but if you have any questions ill be more then happy to pass along my experiances

 

Just thought i would throw this out

I had a Performer RPM 2x4 intake converted to EFI still in the box never bolted on and a set of Brand new in the box Edelbrock heads i will let go for a reasonable price..Cheap

It is a project i no longer have the need to complete

Lonnie

 

How cheap is cheap... ( gotta pm about it, moderators get cranky)

I have 428cj heads ported and stuff but I'd love to reduce weight. And I've wanted efi forever. I just couldn't hack up my original 2x4 427 intake.

I'm curious about the progress the op had. Is the motor complete and running yet or is he still on hold with efi.