Blower How-To

This is the engine compartment...        read full caption This is the engine compartment of the 1991. On the driver fender you&8217ll see the washer-fluid reservoir. Kiss it goodbye, because a new smaller jug for window spritz is supplied and mounted in a different location along with the evaporative canister and alternator. The fresh-air intake duct, auxiliary fuel pump, and fuel management unit (FMU) belong in this location. By the time everything was installed, it looked like a box of snakes. Also notice the bracket for the Hotchkis strut-tower brace on the driver-side strut tower; it doesn&8217t fit anymore.

This was the funky part. The...        read full caption This was the funky part. The supercharger is lubricated with engine oil that is fed with a high-pressure line from the oil-pressure sender port above the oil filter.

Both a 45- and a 90-degree...        read full caption Both a 45- and a 90-degree fitting were supplied and mated to an oil-feed line that we ran along the side of the oil pan to the compressor. There is a tiny orifice in the feed line so slopping on Teflon thread pâté was a no-no, and we barely tightened it so it leaked. Do yourself a favor: Pull the exhaust and do it right the first time, instead of pulling the headers twice to tighten the fittings correctly and stop the leak as we did.

The return line from the compressor...        read full caption The return line from the compressor carried oil back to the pan after we punched a hole in the side and threaded it with a 3/8-NPT-pipe-thread tap. This part was a little scary, but after hitting the oil pan a couple of times with a big hammer and a punch, the experience became cathartic. We thought we had a 3/8 tap in the ol’ tap and die set, but guess what? We didn&8217t. NPT stands for National Pipe Thread, not the same as the stuff in a standard set. Obvious to some, but not to us at the time. The result was a two-day delay because all the oddball-tool stores had closed by the time we learned the score. With the hole tapped, we screwed in the return-line fitting and attached the return hose. No leaks yet.

The stock fuel pump put out...        read full caption The stock fuel pump put out about 40 psi, not enough to hang with big boost numbers, so Vortech supplied an auxiliary pump with the kit. The Vortech pump is rated at 155 gph and mounted inline between the hard line that goes to the tank and the fitting before the fuel rail. For some reason, the fuel line in the kit was 5/16 inch instead of 3/8 inch. So, we went to the parts store for the hose that fits between the pump and the hard line from the fuel rail that is joined by the 3/8-hose mender.

Even with the auxiliary fuel...        read full caption Even with the auxiliary fuel pump boosting the fuel pressure to about 50 psi at idle, the fuel regulator needed some assistance when the manifold reached positive pressure. A fuel management unit supplied in the kit blocks off the return line to the tank to temporarily boost fuel pressure feeding the engine at full boost. A vacuum line was supplied that we ran to the manifold near the MAP sensor on the passenger side of the intake using a vacuum tee we already had.

The FMU mounted on the inner...        read full caption The FMU mounted on the inner fender near the horns on the driver side of the car. Our model was an 8 to 1 unit (there are others available), meaning for every 1 pound of boost, the FMU adds 8 pounds of fuel pressure. Do the math: At 10 pounds of boost, that’s 80 psi of fuel pressure! Zoinks! Not believing this could be possible, we ran the Camaro down the nearby international raceway boulevard, watched the big Auto Meter fuel gauge (in a glorious hood-mounted locale), and geeked when the needle passed 100 psi. According to Vortech Engineer Mike Regan, the huge number is produced when the FMU pressure is added to about 50 percent of the static pressure (20 psi). This essentially shut the injectors off after they maxed out at 90 psi and caused problems. We&8217ll fix this later.

We pulled the radiator to...        read full caption We pulled the radiator to make photography easier and decided that the entire job was easier because of it. After the radiator was out, the alternator, the power-steering pump, and the bracket that holds the two needed to be removed as well. Vortech provides the new bracket that attaches to the block and a big plate that holds the supercharger compressor. Our 305 had two studs in the head and the block, so we used a 1/4-inch socket to twist them out.

This is the bracket provided...        read full caption This is the bracket provided by Vortech. We needed to buy a 7/16-Allen-head socket to attach it to the main bolt. With it tight, we could bend the fuel lines out of the way between the valve cover and the bracket. Notice the design of the bracket requires that the studs are removed from the block and head to make way for the two 5-1/2-inch mounting bolts.

The power-steering pulley...        read full caption The power-steering pulley needed to be removed, and it won’t budge without a puller (we tried). Instead of breaking it, we went to Auto Zone (a local parts house) and rented one for free with a $40 deposit. The Vortech manual recommends Snap-on puller (PN CJ117B2), but when was the last time the Snap-on guy came to the alley where you&8217re working? The Auto Zone puller was made by OEM (PN 002075-27031). The plate was bare metal, so we painted it black after we shot this photo. Then we mounted the steering pump to the supercharger plate using three original bolts from the pump and one bolt from the kit.

The supercharger plate bolted...        read full caption The supercharger plate bolted into position, and the alternator was relocated under the power-steering pump. The alternator weather-pack connector wires must be extended about 12 inches to reach the new location. The main power wire can be run from the battery below the water pump without being modified.

With the alternator on and...        read full caption With the alternator on and the supercharger plate painted and in position, we reinstalled the power-steering pulley. With the radiator out of the way, there is plenty of room to attach the installation collar. You can barely see it in the photo, but the driver-side header needs to be installed before installing the supercharger plate. We also needed to buy an extra 8 inches of 3/8-inch return hose for the power-steering pump to avoid a 90-degree turn due to the new bracket location and bend the pressure line out of the way.

This is the path of the main...        read full caption This is the path of the main serpentine belt that was in the kit. The part number is 2A046-988 for the main belt and 2A046-605 for the supercharger belt. For roadside emergencies, we now carry a 1/2-inch breaker bar to release the tensioner on the main belt system. The supercharger belt requires an 11/16-open-end wrench for the two primary-adjusting plate bolts and a slim, 5/8-inch open end for the bolt that is behind the idler pulley. This photo also came in handy when the idler pulley came loose and tossed the belt in the middle of nowhere.

The crank pulley that turns...        read full caption The crank pulley that turns the supercharger is the same part number as the factory pulley. There is a spacer that aligns the additional crank pulley with the compressor pulley and four bolts, which are extra long to compensate. The only problem we had was the center pulley bolt was a 7/16-20x4 and the Camaro needed a 3/8-20x4, so we added that to the list of stuff we needed.

The crankcase ventilation...        read full caption The crankcase ventilation hose was rerouted from the valve cover to the elbow on the inlet duct of the compressor. We used 12 inches of 1/2-inch heater hose and coupled it to the hose provided in the kit. Normally, the existing crankcase ventilation hose would be cut and connected, but we tried to save as many of the expensive-looking factory pieces as we could.

The intake duct on the V-1...        read full caption The intake duct on the V-1 mounted where the factory evaporative canister sat in the driver-side fender well. The canister was relocated to the splash pan underneath the fender in the same approximate location. Two feet of 1/2-inch and 2 feet of 5/16-inch vacuum hose were required to extend the hoses to the new location. Included in the kit was 12 inches of wire to extend to the canister solenoid.

The final step was the ignition...        read full caption The final step was the ignition upgrade. The Vortech ignition/boost controller was supplied with the kit, but we didn&8217t use it because it did not contain a spark amplifier, which we wanted.

Instead, we used the MSD 6...        read full caption Instead, we used the MSD 6 BTM (PN 6462) to replace the existing 6 AL. The 6 BTM combines the functions of boost referenced timing control and multiple spark, allowing us to install only one box. Since the evaporative canister had been moved under the car, the 6 BTM bolted in its place without interfering with the inlet ducting on the supercharger.

The V-1 makes neato supercharger-type...        read full caption The V-1 makes neato supercharger-type noises and produces a whopping 10 pounds in First gear.

At the strip, the car behaved...        read full caption At the strip, the car behaved poorly and we didn’t know why. Changing timing and tire pressures just didn’t help, so we went to math class and learned that the injectors were too small and the replacements were totally wrong. Next month, we will all visit math class again, and the Camaro will step into the 13s (we hope) with the right amount of boost retard, fuel pressure, initial timing, a chip from Vortech, and the correct injectors.

Bolting on a supercharger can be either an adventure of a lifetime or a long series of nightmares. We’ve seen both. Whichever card fortune deals you, the result is the same: big power and the ultimate speed part singing a tune only the experienced ear can recognize. This yarn is about the V-1 centrifugal supercharger from Vortech and how much fun it was to install one on our 305-powered 1991 Camaro.

The V-1 is the Vortech supercharger for domestic machines that will see street duty. The base model is the S-Trim that produces around 6 psi right out of the box (depending on engine displacement). The beauty of the V-1 is its versatility and upgrade capability. In the past, the next step up was the R-Trim, a fairly heavy-duty piece that was more race than street. Now the T-Trim is available, filling the gap between the S and the R. We didn&8217t even try to talk Vortech into sending a T-Trim for the Camaro because it is simply too much for a stock 305. Instead we used the V-1S-Trim; it is a real-world, anyone-can-do-it, bolt-on kit. It comes with everything but tools, and the instructions are simple to read. There were a couple of minor surprises and the standard bonehead maneuvers on our part, but otherwise the project went well with minimum chopping.