Twin turbocharged 350 Chevy project

25-03-2005 Carb Hat

Carb hat was made from a 51/2" OD aluminium tube with a piece of 1/4" plate welded on top. Then 14 Gauge 2" OD tube was cut and welded either side and then all blended together.

Oil Drains and returns

Sump removed to fit two JIC12 Weld-on fittings. I welded them from inside to give a neater appearance outside, unfortunately I didn't hold the fitting tight against the thin steel, to there's a small gap. I have read about people drilling holes in sumps without removing them, look at the amount of swarf in my sump and make your own mind up on that one. The drain pipe is 3/4" (19mm) ID.

Synthetic Turbo Oil

I will be using Silkolene Pro R 15w-50, this is a fully synthetic Oil that's both suitable for old-school chevy engine, with a pair of modern turbo's fitted. The oil came from Opie Oils - who supply a wide range of oils for all applications - Contact them for oil recommendations for any vehicle.

Engine bay tidy

The engine bay needed a tidy up to remove the now defunct carb fuel feed, returns and filter. Also the new brake pipes were made that go around the front of the engine bay, trying to avoid the hot turbos as much as possible. The wiring around the starter motor was insulated with heat resistant coverings.

Final plumbing and startup

1/4/05 After spending most of the bank holiday and this week also, I have finally got it on the road. This photo show's how it was before I moved the air filters under the inner wings. Don’t even waste your time putting your air intake here apart from just a start up. With only a 1 or 2 psi my intake temperatures were reaching 90 degrees CENTIGRADE! (i.e. the same temp as behind the rad where its pulling the air from), the carb hat was too hot to even touch.

Manifolds were sprayed with POR15 manifold paint. They look great here, but despite carefully wirebrushing and thoroughly degreasing the pipes, the paint has already started flaking off in big chunks. (Update; no more chunks have fell off, must of been bad adhesion - will try to touch up) The paint seems to cope with the temperature ok, but doesn't stick to the smooth steel. My advice if using this stuff (or similar) is to get the pipes sand blasted to provide a good key for the paint. Also, dont bother hand painting them if you want a decent finish.

One the road at last!

Couple of shots of the completed car; Notice that the air inlets are now under the inner wings.