The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Swap out electronic carb

I've taken a 305 from a 1984 chevy caprice to put into my 55 chevy. It is an electronic (computer) carb and distributor. Tooo complex for me to reinstall in the pickup. Can I simply get a quadrajet carburetor and a transitor distributor and swap them to make the 305 non computerized? Or is this more complicated than it sounds?

The carb will still work without the electronics hooked up.......I think? Otherwise, you shouldn't have any trouble finding a Non-ECM Q-Jet. People will give them away (because they just have to have a "polished" carb, like an Edelbrock or Holley). Try to find a 48-state model, it will have less emissions carp on it.

Thank you, I will begin the hunt.
What about the distrubutor situation??

Try to find an earlier HEI distributor. The one you have does not have an vacuum advance mechanism. They help with your MPG; they don't have anything to do with performance per se. They started making the HEI's in '75, I'm not sure when they stopped production; but they should be easy to find.

Hello, you need a distributor from any 305,350,
small block 400 from 75 through 80. Computers came on board in 81. It is no problem at all to do this, Hope this helps....Chb46

You do not want to run the Computer Carburetor. It was designed to run in a "rich mode" id the computer was unplugged. That would assure the car would run if something happened to the computer. All the computer did for this carb was to control an electronic metering rod to richen/lean the mixture in response to the oxygen sensor. If you want to run it, it will work, but you will do better with a non computer carb.

Distributor- any HEI with a vacuum advance will do. 1975-80.

As Curly said you really don't want to run that carb because of it being a computor model, also any Chevy V-8 non-computorized distributor (75-80) will work. Big block and small block are the same.

I contacted a Hot Rod Restorer and he thinks he can find me a quadrajet and distributor for a little bit of nothing. My appreciation to everyone.

Don't chuck that computerized Q-jet. Maybe it could be converted to non-computer operation. It still has a lot of good spare parts and sub-assemblies that'll fit earlier Q-jets. Don't turn it in as a core, because good unmolested Q-jet cores are hard to find. Mass rebuilders strip them down to component parts and build them into other Q-jets. Most of the time, factory carbs go in, and poorly reman units come out with generic and anemic calibration.

And the other guys are right, most early 80s computer-controlled HEIs had no spark advance in the distributor itself.

good luck

chip