Increasing your horsepower that much requires a new block and completely forged interior parts, but it means a potential horsepower increase of 400 percent. A good blower, such as superchargers used on diesel engines, can give boosts of 40 to 50 pounds per square inch. You may want to invest in new forged pistons that can handle far greater pressure. The average stock 350 with cast iron pistons can handle seven pounds per square inch, which results in about 50 percent more horsepower. With the proper setup, you can count on a 6 to 8 percent increase in horsepower per pound of boost.

Both push more air and fuel into the combustion chamber. There are after market controllers that do the same thing but they're expensive and complicated. Chevrolet began installing computer chips in non-removable cases in 1997. It isn't economical or convenient to change the chips that control the Chevy 350. The cost is typically under $200.Ĭomputer chips can be changed in most cars. This fix will immediately add 100 horsepower. A new cylinder head comes with bigger valves, intake and exhaust runners with smoother sides for better airflow. It holds the valves, valve springs and the intake and exhaust runners. The cylinder head is the piece of metal that sits above the combustion chamber. A better camshaft may add up to 20 horsepower and costs under $150. Radical cams affect the engine at idle as well as the behavior of the engine in low speed situations. A cam which keeps the valves open longer means the combustion chamber can be filled and emptied better. Cams open and close the valves inside the combustion chamber. The cost is less than $200 for the manifold and under $400 for a reconditioned carburetor. Horsepower increases for carburetor and manifold are dependent on the rest of the engine however, gains from 20 to 50 horsepower and the same number in foot-pounds of torque is reasonable. After-market carburetors and manifolds offer bigger pathways for the fuel-air mixture with smoother surfaces and faster air flow. If you push more fuel/air mixture into the engine, more horsepower comes out.

The new headers allow for a bigger carburetor and manifold. Headers cost under $200 and an afternoon in the garage.īuy a new carburetor and intake manifold. Headers bolt onto the block and attach to the stock exhaust pipes and catalytic converter. Chevy High Performance Magazine installed a set of Hooker headers onto a stock engine and saw an immediate increase of 16 horsepower and a more dramatic increase of 53 foot-pounds of torque. Adding headers simply brings that part of the system up to par with the rest of the parts. The performance suffers because of the small exhaust setup. The carburetor, manifold and valves are big enough to start with. The easiest performance enhancer on the Chevy 350 is a new exhaust system because it's the weak point in the stock setup.

Best cam for stock 350