I am wondering what i could do to my 1971 pontiac t-37 for more power. i am thinking about rebuilding the original 350 and upgrading it or looking for a 400 and putting that in.

That's up to you, what do you plan to do with the car, and what is the size of your wallet? Be honest with yourself on what you want to do with the car. Is it going to be a cruiser? Drag car? Autocross? Show and shine? GTO tribute? What kind of shape is the car in? Is the interior solid? Is the car rusty?

Despite the plethora of 350s that Pontiac built, the Pontiac 350 is a bit of redheaded step child in the aftermarket in terms of piston and connecting rod availability. The demand for 326, 400, 421/428, and 455 overwhelms demand for Pontiac pistons and connecting roads that the 350 is left in the dust.That means they are expensive compared to other engines. Most people ditched the 350 for the 400 or better or simply bored and stroked the 350 to something larger. That said, manifolds, heads, water pumps, distributors, etc. all fit the 326-455. Pontiac never had a big block and small block program. The engines are externally the same size and differ in bore and stroke.

FIrst priority needs to be running, driving and safety items. So getting the car running, working, making sure the brakes work, and the front and rear suspension, headlights, turn signals, brake lights all work properly. That way you can drive the car safely on the street as is.

As time and money allows, you changes things up as you want. Wheels and tires, engine upgrades, transmission upgrades, suspension mods, interior mods, new radio/speakers, a console shifter, new paint, etc.

Another good thing/bad thing is it is a T-37. It is an Pontiac A-body, so there are a ton of reproduction parts for this car.The bad news is the T-37 was the base model for Pontiac and it is often regarded as a parts car for GTO. So it will never be considered very valuable compared to a GTO. So understand the money you put into it is because of your love of the car and not that it is particular rare or collectable.

Now that is out the way....you may have a 2bbl carb and manifold. Find a used stock 4 bbl manifold and a new 4bbl carb, switch to a dual exhaust, re-curve the distributor to get all your timing in as soon as possible (new lighter weights and springs), If you have the cash, a new cam/springs/lifters could wake up your motor. Port matching your heads to your intake/exhaust gaskets and manifolds. Switching from the log style exhaust manifolds to either headers or factory Ram Air IV/HO exhaust manifolds. Mandrel bent 2.5" exhaust.

Those are all the really cheap mods without getting into the engine too deep and build up the bottom end, getting new heads, a stroker crank. etc.

Does the car have a posi rear end or is it a one-legged wonder?

Edited July 21, 20205 yr by Frosty