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Upgrading 351 carb engine |
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Boody 
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Joined: April-08-2007 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 10 |
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 Topic: Upgrading 351 carb enginePosted: April-21-2007 at 5:47pm |
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I have a 1998 Ski Nautique with the 290 HP Ford 351. I have 815 hours on it now and wouldn't mind putting some money into it to improve performance. It runs good, but the cold starts are sometimes a pain, and I wouldn't mind having more power. I know very little about engines.
How easy is it to convert the carb to a throttle body or EFI? How much cost? Thanks. |
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1998 Ski Nautique - 800+ hours
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79nautique
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Joined: January-27-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 7872 |
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Posted: April-22-2007 at 7:20am |
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sounds like you need a tune-up and maybe a carb overhualed.
It should start easy, even with a carb |
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nuttyskier2002
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Joined: September-28-2005 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 669 |
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Posted: April-24-2007 at 12:54pm |
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Boody, The gain in performance of going with fuel injection is not worth the cost, especially if your knowledge of engines is very limited. A marine approved TBI unit with adequate fuel delivery for 300 HP will run you about $2000.00. That's just for the FI unit, wiring harness and ECU. You'll still need an electric fuel pump, fuses, and plumbing pieces to fabricate a return line (at the least). Port fuel injection (which is the way to go if you want FI) will run you around $3000.00. Installation requires a good background in both mechanics and electrical systems. If you have to farm this out prepare to spend some money. I did a conversion on a Chevy Blazer in '97. It turned out well but there were many unforeseen costs.
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95 Malibu Echelon w/Mercruiser 350 Magnum Skier
Former boats: 88 Ski Centurion Tru Trac II 59 Chris Craft Capri (woody) |
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GottaSki
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Joined: April-21-2005 Location: NE CT Status: Offline Points: 3327 |
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Posted: April-24-2007 at 1:03pm |
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ditto on everything said. just fix it.
A well setup carb starts and runs like FI, and no rocket science required. |
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"There is nothing, absolutely nothing, half so much worthwhile as messing around with boats...simply messing."
River Rat to Mole |
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TRBenj
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Joined: June-29-2005 Location: NWCT Status: Offline Points: 21109 |
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Posted: April-24-2007 at 1:08pm |
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Ive read that the easiest and most cost effective way to convert to EFI is to sell your boat and buy another one. Like Nutty said, there will be very little (if any) gain in performance with EFI, though the convenience (cold starting, etc) is nice. A carb can be dialed in to run very nicely, though.
If its power youre after, there are lots of options available for the small block Ford. With 290hp you should already have GT40 heads. An intake and a cam would be the first logical upgrades. Lots of info on this site to familiarize yourself with the specifics- try a search. |
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backfoot100
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Joined: January-03-2007 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 1897 |
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Posted: April-24-2007 at 3:24pm |
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I agree with everybody here. Don't mess with that upgrade. I have a buddy back home with a 86 BFN that tried installing a EFI system on it. This guy knows his stuff around engines too. He worked on that thing for months and could never get it to run. Finally took it to three different pro shops and they couldn't do anything with it either. In the end he put the carb back on with a 502 rebuild and this thing is a friggin' rocket now.
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bchesley
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Joined: October-29-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 188 |
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Posted: April-24-2007 at 10:32pm |
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I have the non marine holley projection on my 83 jeep, and its way to hard to get to run right. I am constantly having to retune it. I am buying a holley truck avenger soon. Its not worth the money or the time invested.....
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Boody
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Joined: April-08-2007 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 10 |
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Posted: April-26-2007 at 12:21am |
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Cool, I knew you guys would know. I wanted to make sure there wasn't something out there that I was missing.
My boat drives amazing and has a great slalom wake, so I probably won't be getting rid of it. Plus, it is paid for. I ski a lot of tournaments and I have heard from several people that the 1998-2001 had the best slalom wakes and after skiing behind all the new boats, I agree. Thanks for the advise. |
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1998 Ski Nautique - 800+ hours
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87BFN owner
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Joined: August-25-2006 Location: Ypsilanti, MI Status: Offline Points: 2194 |
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Posted: April-27-2007 at 8:28pm |
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bchesley I know all about the holley projections, guy in school put one on his firebird. It would run like a raped ape one minute then would barely idle the next. Highly tempermentle.
Backfoot I always was curious about putting EFI on the BFN not anymore after hearing about you friend. |
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backfoot100
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Joined: January-03-2007 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 1897 |
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Posted: April-27-2007 at 10:11pm |
Roger that! TrBenj stated it correctly. The best way to get a fuely is to buy one that was designed to be a fuely. A carb, when properly tuned should run just a good as EFI. You just might have to let her warm up a bit before you give her the coals and you would have a little tuning to do if you take it to other altitudes. |
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87BFN owner wrote: