Who was the gentleman doing the TPI conversion??

[Deuce]

I bought a 87 IROC with a re-built 350 TPI/ 700R4 and was hoping to get started on it soon.
Can you PM me as I'd like to keep in touch(re:many questions) while doing the conversion.
Thanks.

[71swb4x4]

I am finishing mine now. BobbyK has done it, I think Russel is working on it, red71cheyenne has done it, and I think Meathead95 is working on one as well. I am sure there are many others too.

[Custom 68]

I am working on one. I got it running on the frame but have not finished the wiring since I sat the cab on. That is still on the list to do. I will be using the 400 turbo for a while.

[Russell]

I'm putting one on my 80 GMC 3/4 ton, I'm still waiting on parts to arrive / I gotta find a couple more sensors...

[Deuce]

Thanks Guys. I hope you don't mind if I keep in contact with you all. I've added you to my buddy list.

[RON WOODGEARD]

Here's another great source of information.

Here

[71swb4x4]

Deuce
The Helms manual is the one I was trying to think of, not the Haynes manual.

[Deuce]

Yea. That is the one that the JTR manual highly recommends. I'll give them a call and order one up.
Thanks.

[chassispro]

I've already done one TPI install in a car. I've done a LT1 install in a truck. I'll be doing a TPI/twin turbo in my truck this winter/spring.

[Deuce]

I was thinking a single turbo would be cool,but a twin would be even better!! Keep me posted chassispro.

[tpi72blazer]

I have an 88 IROC setup converted to speed density in my 72 Blazer.

[Deuce]

How hard was it to do??

[tpi72blazer]

Originally Posted by Deuce

How hard was it to do??

What took me the longest was the planning phase. I wanted to make sure that I did everything right the first time around. I rebuilt a new engine when I did my install, and everything was straightforward and easy. The most troublesome thing was the fuel tank swap. I opted to use the factory TPI in-tank pump over an in-line unit. Because my Blazer is a 4x4, I wanted to convert it to speed density for relibility - I didn't want the mass air flow sensor going out somewhere deep in the mountains on a trail. I built the engine for torque and pulling, so I was not concerned with running an aggressive cam.

I think that getting a plan together as far as what you want to do with your truck, and what you expect to get out of it performance-wise is the best starting point. Once you have that in place, you can plan everything else around it.

[GreyHoundSteve]

I have a question about MAF vs SD;

Everyone says that the maf is more forgiving and is a better choice for "mild mods" but if you modify your engine too much you have to get your prom reprogrammed anyway right? So my question is, if you dont mind having your chip reprogrammed everytime you change your motor is speed density better?

The reason i ask is because i am planning a tpi set up but plan to add many pieces to the engine as i go so i was thinking about going with a speed density set up and just having my prom reprogrammed eveytime i modified the engine. I guess my question is, can i run a more aggresive cam with sd if i get my prom redone?

Also, how much does it generally cost to get your prom reprogrammed and can you buy a programmer and do it yourself if you plan to make several stages of performace mods to the engine?

[tpi72blazer]

Speed density systems, because they lack a MAF sensor, rely on the Manifold Absolute Pressure (MAP) sensor to calculate the amount of air entering the plenum. Essentially it relies on engine vacuum to keep the correct air-fuel ratio. Aggressive cams will drastically reduce your engine vacuum, making it difficult for the MAP sensor to do its calculations - unless you have it reprogrammed to compensate for the lowered vacuum. As far as cost to burn a new chip, that will probably vary greatly, but I would think you can expect to pay somewhere around $100 for a custom chip.

A MAF system can directly measure incoming air so the system is not concerned with vacuum, which makes engine modifications more easy to do. The advantage to a MAF system is the MAF sensor - which is also its drawback. It must be mounted in the air intake in front of the throttle body, usually requiring a custom air intake be made. These sensors are prone to failure, and are somewhat expensive to replace.

One thing to keep in mind is that a TPI unit can be changed to run as either system fairly readily. Along with a different ECM, the correct knock sensor must be used with either the MAF sensor or the MAP sensor, depending on what type of system you use.

[71swb4x4]

I got my chip burned at tpichips.com
I think it's $100 per chip. I sent my old chip in and Brian burned it for $50, so you may want to see if you can do that.

[72 3/4 ton]

Chip programming is not too hard to do on your own. At the least you'll want to do data logging on a lap top to see what the ECM is doing. I use Diacom but here are better ones availible. Basically it's a cable that plugs into your cars ECM and a program allows you to read live or record every thing the ECM reads and controls. You can also play back the recorded info and put in on a graph. This helped me see that I was falling on my face at the top end because I didn't have enough fuel above 5000k.

Check this page out for chip burning info
http://www.thirdgen.org/newdesign/tech/promintro.shtml