For things to do:

1.IF YOU DO NOTHING ELSE, recurve the distributor. The stock curve is slow and a simple recurve will really wake the engine up with no other changes.

2. If you have a little more money, add a 4-barrel carb and intake. IT DOESN'T MATTER WHICH ONE! Anything is better than the stock 2-barrel. 273, 318, 340, 360? OK. Q-jet, Holley, AFB, AVS? OKAY!

3. If you have even a little bit more money, swap in a 360 2-barrel camshaft. It's brilliant, you use the stock timing chain, gears, valvesprings, pushrods, etc etc etc. Or any other cam with around 0.400" lift and around 190 - 204 degrees duration. That 318 cam is the wimpiest camshaft known to man. Yet, the 360 cam will work with all the other stock parts and give you a little bump. And the stock springs and low-lift cam will make break-in less risky.

4. To top it off, hook the stock exhaust manifolds up to duals. Again, IT DOESN'T MATTER WHIC! anything around 1 7/8 or larger will help uncork the exhaust.
I used to keep the stock single exhaust crossover, then TEE in to it somewhere under the driver's feet to run the second pipe back. Presto! Changeo! you have duals with an H-pipe!


Now, to accomplish all of this you need to grit your teeth, put in earplugs and put earmuffs on top of them, because it is ohsoeasy to tell someone else how to spend their cash. But my plan will work.

R.