Best fuel injection for EFI Rookie???

[Project69]

Well im ordering my 383 soon and want to go with an EFI set-up instead of the carb. set-up because i will be doing alot of traveling so im looking to get the most Hp and better fuel economy while cruising.

So far im looking at the Edelbrock Set-up for $2300 the performer RPM system and the Holley versions. Im just looking for a bolt on kit that will need some if not very little tunning because i have no idea what im doing lol.

The engine is pushing 481hp with a 125-shot. Any suggestions?? I also dont want to spend an arm and a leg, on a budget since i decided to keep this car.

Thanks, Rob

[Ahhh21]

wat up man. i think i have a solution for you. my buddy got one of those new BossEFI units from RetroTek Speed and it works great. It installed in a couple of hours and it self learns so there really isn't any tuning needed great for a novice. check out their website www.urlremoved.com

[Hammered]

You are not going to save enough fuel to make it worthwhile and almost every kit including the Edelbrock one requires tuning. Even Retrotek only claims easier calibration. Further, you're going to need one that handles nitrous which I don't believe the Edelbrock does. If you're really sold on EFI, my suggestion is to get something that has good user support or that you have a local who's experienced at tuning one.

[camcojb]

wat up man. i think i have a solution for you. my buddy got one of those new BossEFI units from RetroTek Speed and it works great. It installed in a couple of hours and it self learns so there really isn't any tuning needed great for a novice. check out their website www.urlremoved.com

yeah right. A buddy, huh? Every post of yours has been peddling that system.

Just realize there's no such thing as a system like Retrotek that doesn't require tuning. That's pure bs. It may run and an amateur may think it's running fine, but I guarantee you cannot get the best tune for your car without the tuner and car being in the same place. And also realize that it may take him a few tries to get it real good, and if you swap cams, etc. you'll be sending it back for him to re-tune. The advantage of EFI is being able to tweak it until it's perfect; this system does not allow that.

Don't buy an EFI system that cannot be tuned by yourself or a local tuner. A guy sitting in an office in another state will NOT get you the ideal tune without your car sitting in front of him. Most systems can work well, but the tune is the key, and I'm not a fan of canned tuned systems like Retrotek. If their statement was true there'd be no need for all the tuning systems on the market for the factory maf systems.

Jody

[BB69]

Jody is giving good advice about the "self-tuning" injection systems. I am a big Megasquirt fan, and would recommend it to many people. It has a "self-tuning" feature, but you have to understand what exactly that means. For Megasquirt, that means the computer will change the VE table while you are driving to get the air/fuel ratio to match the ratios YOU have plugged in. What does that mean? 1) You need to know what air/fuel ratios you want or need to begin with. 2) You need a wideband O2 sensor so the computer knows what air/fuel ratio you are running. 3) Your initial fuel map has to be close because the computer is limited in how much it is allowed to change your map.

The Megasquirt system should do everything you need it to, but I wouldn't buy it until you spend some time on the Megasquirt forum asking questions. The price is right, you can tune it yourself, and the capabilities are there. The system is not plug and play though. You will have to read and learn what you are doing.

Ken

[parsonsj]

You didn't ask this, but my take is that learning how car things work is a lot of fun. So take this opportunity and learn how EFI works. Then pick a system, build a harness, install it, and tune it.

There are several that will do the job, not break the bank, and don't require a Master's Degree.

jp

[andy2175m4]

Major learning curve here for ANY EFI system. I went with the Holley commander 950 throttle body system. It's one of the simplest. You can get some big throttle bodies for this system, up to 900 CFM I think, but I am using the 650 for my Ford 390.

The system is well integrated, hardware included is complete, and software and documentation is good. Holley is very old school and very professional. Over 100 years in the business. But the down side is there is a significant learing curve if you want to do it all yourself. It is also one of the cheapest turn key system.

For a while I was considering the Megasquirt, but the learing curve on that one is HUGE. It's a complex kit, with 3 versions on the market, and lots of disparate options, add-ons, and a lot of software from various people.

I have been doing the EFI thing with the Holley for 6 months straight, and I still don't know if I am ready to take on the Megasquirt.

It takes at least a month to learn how to tune the Holley system if you are starting from zero.

[DeltaT]

I also really like the Holley 950 Commander Pro (spring for the wideband - you will never regret it) package. Now you could go TBI, MPFI with their very nicely designed single plane manifold, or Holley Stealth Ram, which looks like the GM RamJet setup.

In addition, I highly recommend Jeff Hartman's book 'Tuning and Modifying Engine Management Systems'. His chapter on EFI101 takes you through a full tune from a dead stop to a well-running machine and is worth every bit of the $20 for the book.

Jim

[megaladon6]

what about the mass-flo efi system? since it uses a mass air flow meter it requires very little tuning and can compensate for changes to the engine. at least according to their literature. i'm a newbie to tuning efi myself.

[68Formula]

what about the mass-flo efi system? since it uses a mass air flow meter it requires very little tuning and can compensate for changes to the engine. at least according to their literature. i'm a newbie to tuning efi myself.

The one thing I don't like about that system is the fact that the MAF sits directly over the throttle body. Having it so close to the TB can cause the MAF to get a fluctuating signal. Yes, GM did use a TB with an integrated MAF on their 3800 SC, but sometimes ideas are used because they save money and are "adequate" not because they are the best. Now, you find the OEMs putting the MAF right at the air filter housing to get it as far away as possible.

There was one magazine that did a write up on the mass-flo. They found using the same intake manifold but with a Demon Carb, the mass-flo version had a higher required idle speed, reduced idle quality, and higher rate of fuel consumption. There are a few factors that could have caused this, (for example the author blamed the injector targeting), but I still suspect the MAF placement was a main contributor.

[dannyho]

from what I looked at it seems a simple interface is much more important than the simple system. with technology it always seems the best starting point is the more advanced stuff, because no matter what you get its going to be outdated in 10 years anyway. of course a few things of importance are who is going to be doing the tuning and what they're comfortable with. I would chose one with more capabilities, if for no other reason than an input can usually be turned off, but say for isntance, if you decide you want to go wideband, and it doesnt have the feature, you're SOL. wiring isn't that hard, as long as you don't try to do too much too fast.there's 20-40 to run though. so plan plan plan, then measure twice cut once.