Not another fuel injection question

[Awjunkies]

Yes this is my second thread in 10 minutes!! Yes I did a search but I'm looking for personal experience with kits and what not.

Here is my dilemma, the project I'm picking up is a 70 k10, AC barn door burb. It has a newer rebuild on it so I feel it would be a waste money wise to pull the 350 out of it. Downside is that it has a 3spd column shift and I ultimately want a 4spd. I'm not looking for a high horsepower vehicle just one that gets "better" gas mileage. Now don't scoff, but if I can get 15mpg it's a lot better than 10...

Looking at the price of current efi kits and the price of buying a "good" 700r4 it makes sense to find a used LS/4L60 combo? My whole thing with that is the gamble of putting in a tired motor just to have spend time and money on an untested motor.

Thoughts and opinions are greatly appreciated. Take the plunge and drop in an LS or go with the 700 and fuel injection kit. If it's the FI kit what do you recommend, I see them go from $500-3000. Understandably the lower prices ones will need everything to go with it and I'm looking to purchase a plug and play system.

Before the quadrajet guys chime in I need to add that I need a get in and go vehicle. Can't really expand more on that unless you want to message me.

Thanks in advance!

[Bigdav160]

A well tuned carburetor can give similar fuel economy and reliability as fuel injection.

That being said, I have a little tech bug still in me, so my Suburban is fuel injected. And since I had fresh 350/700R4 I decided not to go the LS route.

I am running a Holley Stealth Ram with 30lb injectors, small diameter HEI and controlled by a microsquirt controller.

The motor has flat tops, 64cc/185cc aluminum heads and a comp xfi roller cam.

Runs strong. Transmission works great. I decided on 3.73:1 gears with lockers front and rear. I really need to replace the tires and so I haven't driven regularly enough to check fuel economy.

[Awjunkies]

This is the input I'm looking for!!

How much did that kit send you back and what mpg are you looking at after all your mods?

I have nothing against carbs, ran them in all my classic vehicles but this will be my daily and I'm moving to a new duty station where I will have a very short recall leash and will need to startup and go.

[Csrock82]

I recently purchased a Fitech TBI system and am so far very pleased with the quality and ease of installation. I went with a Holly red pump to supply the Fitech fuel command center instead of just a single low to high pressure inline pump or running a mechanical pump to feed the command center. Total cost with new PTFE braided lines and AN fittings was about $2000.00.

[Awjunkies]

Damn that's expensive, that's moving into LS swap territory.

Was the cost worth the improved drive ability/mpg?

Also did you need to get a new tank that had a return fitting?

I only ask cause the one I'm picking up doesn't have a tank so I'm planning on getting a later model burb 40gal tank and they have the regular and FI options.

[Csrock82]

Just remember that any fuel system you install is going to require that you take into account the whole system. An ls swap is not just an engine but the fuel management, the fuel system, the wiring harness, the engine mounts, the exhaust system, the cooling system, etc....
I can't comment on mpg yet as I haven't driven it yet due to other things but it starts right up and controls flawless.

[Awjunkies]

What's the diff between your $2k FI tech vs the $795 on summit? Is it that incomplete you needed that much in additional parts?

[Csrock82]

Command center and go efi 4 together is $1400. Low pressure fuel pump for 4-7psi was $80-90. Fuel lines and fittings was about $450. If you are usong your existing fuel supply you will obviously save some money, but you do want to upgrade your return to be able to handle the higher fuel injection pressure and corrosion caused by fuel atomization from the higher pressure return pressures. If you are using any regular pump gas now a days, you will be dealing with ethanol and the corrosive and destructive things that come with it which is why I upgraded my fuel supply and return to ptfe hose which will outlive the car and hold up to any amount of ethanol that is in the gas blends.

[Bigdav160]

On my setup, I went with a 40 gallon square body tank with an in-tank fuel pump. I also ran new lines.

My setup was not a kit. I bought the intake manifold from amazon. Injectors, fuel rails, throttle body, distributor and controller off eBay.

I did have some issues getting the GM style distributor to talk to my controller. The instructions didn't work for my application but by looking at the circuit in the controller I was able to apply a work around with the wiring.

Tuning for the microsquirt/megasquirt is done by software (tuner studio) on a laptop. They do have a self-learn feature included.

If you look at the lower cost FITech throttle body systems, it does not control ignition, only fuel. More expensive units have ignition timing controls.

The surge tank Csrck82 is using allow him to keep his original gas tank. The high pressure pump is in the "command center"

[Csrock82]

Bigdav160, roughly what would you say your system cost?

The Fitech throttle body that I purchased will allow for timing control and Bigdav160 mentioned the lower priced unit does not.

[Bigdav160]

Adding in the fuel pump and lines.... around $1200-$1300. I am using an autometer wide band and gauge. That was probably close to $200.

The injectors were used, throttle body was a trade show display unit and the distributor cheap chinese.

[Awjunkies]

Is this the tank you went with?
http://www.classicindustries.com/pro...s/ft5016a.html

They have one for FI which just has a return fitting already on it.

I plan to do a larger tank regardless and wanted to know how you secured yours.

[Bigdav160]

No, I used this one. I am not sure what the difference is other than it's baffled and accepts the fuel injection sending unit.

I did, for ease of connection, relocate the fill neck to the corner. I could have gotten away with heating up the solder and just spinning the filler neck around. Some people just mount the tank backwards. The taper is barely noticeable.

I used stock strap kit (cheap on RockAuto) to mount the tank to two cross members.

One cross member I removed and moved back to the rear. Right arrow



and I purchased another off the parts board and mounted it in front of the tank.

The pic is not my truck but used for demonstration purposes.