My '81 267 has plenty of power for just driving around town but I think it lacks in it when your on the highway. Also, when you get on it a bit, it takes a second or two to really get going. What can I do to liven up the motor without totally rebuilding it and still keep its good mileage and every day drivability? I am planning to put true duals w/ dual cats and Flowmasters on it when I replace the exhaust. What else can I do?

Honestly, theres abolutely nothing you can do to a 267 to get power out of it. It's a boat anchor plain and simple! I tried it once, 4 bbl, headers, and 4.11 gears. It was still slower than dirt! The 267 is NOT worth dumping any money into performance wise. I know it's probably not what you want to hear but, it's the truth. Save your money and get at least a 305 with some decent heads. But, if you go that far, a 350 would be best. If you wanted to stay on the smaller end of SBC engines, find an old 327!

Other than making sure that it's properly tuned there is absolutely nothing you can do.

Yeah, I was doing to say Bore it out and get a 5 speed trans or a 4 speed automatic. the bore will give you more power and the trans will give you better passing on the highway (especialy if you have atleast 1 overdrive) and better launch. Sorry, didn't want to say that but they weren't built for power. Also anytime you add performance your mileage and some reliablity will decrease...It's practically a law.

8) replace it with a 350. 8O

8) Replace it with a 383. 8O

Reprensenting for the 400 sbc right here so ima have to say go with a 400 lol but then again never had a 350 so ummm go with somethin besides that 267

Landon

JATO-----jet assisted take off ---a little rocket pod they stick on the side of airplanes-------just kidding, sorry..........Dan

A big block powered tow vehicle would help!

I had a feeling that is what you guys would say. Oh well, since she's my daily driver for school I'm gonna have to leave the 267 in for a while. I'm not planning on selling the truck so i'll probably replace the motor sometime in the later future. I hope the duals will give me something but if a better soud is all I get i'll still be happy. Thanks for the info though.

You could install a good dual dual plain manifold (Weiand, Edelbrock, etc.)along with a good 600 cfm carb (Edelbrock, Holley, etc.). These modifications combined with your dual exhaust system WILL give you more power. You can pick up a good set for well under 3 bills on eBay or at a swap meet. Additionally, you can use them on your new 305/350/383 when you install it. Don't expect to pick off late model Z-28s & Mustang GTs (or even Hondas) with it though, but it would be a cool ride just the same. Life is not always about being the fastest, enjoy your ride and improve it as time & funds permit. Hey, I only have a mild 350 4 bbl/TH350 pushing my big 2 ton 4th generation Elky around! Who ever said big girls aren't fun to play with........never did!

Have fun

I'm not gonna do any huge performance mods right now because it runs great on straight 87. This is good cause 'round here anything above 92 octane costs over 2 bucks. Also, one of the reasons I love this car is thatyou can drive it every day, which is what i do with it. What I want to do it just make the car breath better. I know the power is there, I just wanna free some of it up. Also, I am planning to use either Flowmaster Super 40s or just the 40 series when I put the exhaust on but I was wondering if I should consider other mufflers. Any suggestions?

All kidding aside if you really want to keep your engine and still make your truck fun to drive go find yourself a good turbo 2004r overdrive tranny and stick a decent (3.42, 3.73) rear gear in it and you will be thrilled. the 2004r will fit in place of your current tranny the driveshaft won't have to be modified and the rear gears will get you moving while the overdrive in the tranny will keep your trucks gas milage up.......Its really the best thing you can do for the truck..............Dan

Sure everyone would love to put a new Big Block into their el camino, it seems like its always the answere to put a new engine in and loose this other one! He said he dosnt want to change his engine and i dont understand why you guys come up with these answeres. Same with saying new Tranny,Rear-end, how much does that figure, ALOT!

Hes probley looking for something that will help out his truck, make it just a little better than it is. Im the same way, i try to post a topic on hear and all i get is put a bigger motor in, dosnt make sense.

My 267 doesn't have much power either, and i'm not really trying to get much out of it, lol. All I suggest is make sure everything's running as good as it can. The tranny swap/rear end deal is expensive, but I think it is the best way without swapping the engine. I'm looking into doing the swap one day, probably not soon though.

Unreal drunk------how do you make a car run better without spending any money on it?????? I'm dying to hear this answer because I've spent a lot on mine----The only thing I know how to do for free is sit in the car and make" booden booden" sounds...................Dan

The reality of a 267 is that it offers almost no performance possibilities. If I were you I would just keep it tuned and save my money for an engine swap.

thats true, i don't plan on spending a lot on mine at all. I would like to see what a supercharger/turbo one would do.

the supercharger probably turn it into a bomb.
:-D :-D

probably lol. I'm figuring though, with small bore, it should have some thick cylinder walls, right?

Possibly but then you'd have to re slieve it and buy that time you could have had a 350 in it with twice the power potential.

Why reslieve it? couldn't you just leave as is?

depends how much your wanting to take off though. Any amount worth paying for would require a resleive if you want it to hold together.

could you just leave it at 267, keep the thicker walls to hold togehter, and just let the boost jam it in there, lol.

Sure, But to get any decent power you'd have to boost it over 7-8 psi and then you got to rebuild the bottom and top end or it's a bomb waiting to happen.

Trust me I've seen many a motor with a blower or turbo tear apart a well built engine because they over boost or under build. A buddie of mine had a new LS2, yes LS2, that he built all over with forged every thing and cromeolly push rods. 200 miles later he romped on it and the turbo sent 12 psi of boost and put 2 cylindars into the pan.

P.S. After responding I saw the "lol"; Sorry. :)

oh yeah, don't worry, i am not planning on anything like this. I just think it would be cool to see someone do it, and since someone else would be doing it, price doesn't matter, lol.

An internal combustion engine is not a balloon. Usuaually when a boosted engine fails it is caused by detonation and not because the cylinder walls were too thin.

best mods you can get for your 267 is gettinga 350. sorry to say but thast ur best bet for power, and 350s tuned properly get decent gas milage. i drive over 60 miles in 3 days and i will onyl use about 5-6 gallons or so. but im never sure cause my fuel gauge is broken lol AND i got 2 bad piston rings that burn oil :D

Well, from what you guys say, soupin up a 267 is pretty much a lost cause. In the summer i'll probably just put duals with Hooker Super Comp. Turbos on it. Course that will prolly be just for sound and looks. I figure that since the car only has 36K on it, the 267's got plenty of life left in it. It starts right up and purrs nice so i think i'll leave it alone. I plan to drop a 350/4bbl crate motor in with headers and do a 4 speed conversion w/ 3.55 gears, but thats all for when I stop usin in for a daily driver. Course I don't see that happenin anytime soon. Thanks for the help

Get a small 4 bbl. carb if not already so equipped on a stock intake or Edelbrock Performer, a 390 or 450cfm is plenty. The old Edelbrock SP2P from the late 70's actually wasn't too bad on a small motor like this, it wasn't a bad idea but most people stuck them on 350's and and 400's in pickups and vans with 3.73 gears trying to salvage some MPG's and they didn't work. On a 262 or 267 in a Monza or other light vehicle with 2 something gears they worked pretty good. If you can find one you can usually pick them up for pocket change or even pocket lint. Even a stock intake with the factory Q-Jet would help. A mild cam like the Comp Cams 252H or 260H with 110 Deg Lobe Seperation would work nicely, the 267 and 305 can tolerate tighter LSA's than 350's without hurting idle quality or vacuum. A set of 1-1/2" primary tube Tri-Y headers with full 2" (nothing larger!) dual exhaust, you don't need sewer pipe exhaust on a motor this small. It won't be a race car by any means but should greatly help highway performance AND you should see an increase in mileage if you keep your foot out of it. The 200-4R and 3.42's is also a great idea if your budget can handle it. Shop around for a Monte SS or similar G-body somebody is parting out you might stumble into a deal on the trans and rear end. The 267 isn't as hopeless as some seem to believe and with such low miles I certainly wouldn't ditch yours, it has a lot of miles left in it. True it will never be "fast" but for daily driver useage it can be a LOT better than it is.

you can do what ive done with mine. throw the stock 2bbl on it, gives great low end power, and put a 3.75 rear end on it or even posi. with those i run in the mid to high 16's at the track and for a 267 with 280000 miles on it thats awesome. Well thats all my info about it other than that id say go to a junkyard and pull a 305 or 350 and rebuild it and throw it in.
--Chris--

When you do drop a 350 or bigger in your elky, if you still want to keep your 267 and have fun with it, drop it in a Vega or Monza. That little motor will seem like a monster with that light a car to pull around. Years ago I had a 74 Vega GT hatchback with a 307 with a Hooker kit, stock 4 speed and rear. It would really light up those little B70-13s and if you snatched 2nd gear at full throttle it would jump up like a serious muscle car. I had more than one Trans-Am back off of it. Just a thought for some fairly cheap fun.

i was wondering what exaust system to get i want a loud deep sound and i mean loud any ideas

You should be able to get some Flowtech 1.5" primary headers for around $100-125, some Thrush Turbo Mufflers for about $20 each, and then $150-$200 (maybe less) to have someone bend up some 2.25" exhaust (price here depends on area and the shop).
Get a K&N air filter. This will help the engine get a little more air into it.
You can probably get a high output coil for around $50. Add a new set of plugs (start with the hottest range you can get for street use) and a good set of plug wires ($40).

All this will probably pep it up a bit and also give it a smidge better mpg. Being you're young, I tried to keep the costs as low as I could.

HTH

Sure everyone would love to put a new Big Block into their el camino, it seems like its always the answere to put a new engine in and loose this other one! He said he dosnt want to change his engine and i dont understand why you guys come up with these answeres. Same with saying new Tranny,Rear-end, how much does that figure, ALOT!

Hes probley looking for something that will help out his truck, make it just a little better than it is. Im the same way, i try to post a topic on hear and all i get is put a bigger motor in, dosnt make sense.
I hear those "tornado" thingies make HP
I'm just sayin
allanova