I am going to be doing some remodeling on my 78 pretty soon to prep for the future spring-summer shows. Im redying everything on the interior along with fixing this stupid crack in my dash... my real concern is my engine compartment... it looks alright i suppose with a little bit of chrome in it but i am really looking to chrome it out and make it look nice. The real question... I have always run low profile valve covers and i was wondering what the effect would be if i put high profile covers on it for a nice beefy look... I am also looking to eventually do a fuel injection conversion... I was thinking about the holley stealth ram fuel injection kit ($2,300)... What would be the pros and cons of doing this... I know that i will maybe have some issues with clearance which i can eventually fix with a new hood and i already know that i will gian horsies. What else? Any suggestions on anything?

Why dont you try a polished tune port with a cool K&N and use a corvette computer and compatable cam at a fraction of the cost and use the other 2000 to buy another project car?????

whatever you do, buy the Valve Covers last.....some cool billet ones like I saw at my local speed shop. They've got em with engraved or embossed stuff like flames or logo or special order your own design(from 135-400$$)
They will incorporate the exterior body paint color into a scheme for a price....Chrome has become tacky because AutoZone and Pep-Boys sells all kind of cheap generic crap and everybody has it.....Billet Aluminum with some billet Pulleys and brackets and definitely braid them hoses.....You Will Be Cool 8-) 8) :cool:

you're right about the tacky chrome stuff... im definitely going to get the pulleys and braided hoses and i was thinking about the bowtie bolts for a nice little detail. Thanks for the suggestion.

March has a New Serpentine system if you can afford to spend 2500 on it. It comes with everything you need to convert including the Water Pump. I am not sure if it comes with the Alternator. or AC compressor.

Zoops ( http://www.zoops.com ) has some really nice Brackets and some pulleys that have the Bowtie cut into them. They are a little easier on cost over the March stuff. I bought two sets of the BowTie bolts. They are pretty cool but unless you look really hard they're invisible to most. People just don't look at the bolts used past the fact that they are shinny. One of my friends is always giving me the blues over not having all the little bowties lined up exactly the same.

Id suggest that you clean up the whole compartment. There are tons of wires under the hood and it makes it look busy or cramped. That is probably the single most attractive dress up item. Sort them out and rid yourself of as much as possible running across the top of the engine as well as those big black heater hoses lying on the engine and blocking the view.

There is a company that makes Stainless Steel Radiator Hoses and Heater Hoses, not braded but stainless steel flex hose. Really nice stuff. For now you can clean everything up and paint all the bracketing and what ever else you can get to. Electric fans will not only get that big ugly energy hog off the front of the engine they make the compartment look much cleaner.

AreoQuip mow makes Air Conditioning Hose fittings and new line of Braded hoses that are made for AC applications. Makes things very easy to do you self.

I already converted to the electric fan and i already got the flex lower radiator hose... my engine compartment is actually looking nice enough to where i would feel confident in a show but i just want to make it sparkle.... Sometimes the little details are what sets you apart from the crowd. Thanks for the suggestions and i will definitely check some of that stuff out.

Supergerbel and ElkyPete; you both converted to electric fans. Can you tell me what fans/shrouds/controls you used?

Sorry about that, I should have worded that differently. It was already converted when i bought my elky... i did not do the converting. Elkypete seems as though he can help you out though :cool: BTW that serpentine kit is amazing... if only i had the funds... of course that is half the fun, looking at all the stuff you would love to have but cant buy...

I installed a electric fan from a 87 IROC Camaro. It was easy to do & made a difference. I wired in a relay from the same car & bought one of these universal water temp controls. I have never had a problem with it & it keeps the temp cool.

Tommy I'm not familiar with the fan on an IROC Camaro. Did you remove the shroud on your Elky? Did the Camaro fan have a shroud and mounting brackets? Did you wire it to come on with the AC?

Supergerbel and ElkyPete; you both converted to electric fans. Can you tell me what fans/shrouds/controls you used?


I used a Flex-O-Lite Low profile puller with dual 12" Fans sucking up to 2500 CFM. THe fan comes with an adjustable thermostat or you can purchase a more expensive one for the fan that does other stuff besides controlling the fan.

http://www.jegs.com/photos/400M210.jpg

I picked the dual fans because on I can have one come on anytime I turn the AC on and have the other fan as a reserve or have it kick in when the temp reaches 190, or what ever temp you decide to have it come on at. This link at Jeg's says it good for engine up to 280 HP so I'll see if this ever gives me the blues. I am way over 280 ponies.

http://www.jegs.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/ProductDisplay?prrfnbr=1075&prmenbr=361

Thanks for the heads up Pete. I am somewhat familiar with aftermarket cooling fans and unfortunately the CFM ratings are usually as exaggerated as a teenage boys sexploits. I am interested in what factory cooling fans can be retrofited and how they perform. Let us know how the Flex-O-Lite system works on your Elky, especially this Summer.

Why dont you try a polished tune port with a cool K&N and use a corvette computer and compatable cam at a fraction of the cost and use the other 2000 to buy another project car?????

what's all this? where can u get all this stuff for so cheap?...im low on the dough.

If you want a tuned-port w/ computer I can find you one for way under $500, I bought my last set-up for $85 out of a Trader Post(it was a best offer thing so I met him to check out the stuff and that was my best offer 8-) ) and my local speedshop peddles nice cams for under $125, and the K&N is usually under 100 at Autozone or Pep-Boys....you would have to polish yourself though..............

Don't go looking for a tp on ebay, you will get raped

Tommy I'm not familiar with the fan on an IROC Camaro. Did you remove the shroud on your Elky? Did the Camaro fan have a shroud and mounting brackets? Did you wire it to come on with the AC? Yes, the Camaro fan comes with everything you need. The only thing you have to do is drill new holes in the rad support to mount it. I don't need a AC.

Lincoln MarkVIII cooling fans pull around 4800 CFM I believe. They require a peak amperage pull of over 90 amps, so make sure your electrical is up to date. Also make sure you provide some fuse protection and run relays.

90 amps! Are you sure?Thats almost as much as a starter motor.