The front suspension can handle the additional weight of the big-block. One way to help this is to add a pair of aluminum heads to the oversized rodent. This will trim roughly 50 pounds of ugly weight right off the nose of the car. If you retain the iron heads, the smart move would be to add stiffer front coil springs. Several companies like Eaton Detroit Spring offer higher-rate springs. Consider a rate of something like 500 lb/in (stock is more like 300), meaning that to compress one spring 1 inch requires adding 500 pounds of weight to the top of the spring. These springs will improve handling without sacrificing ride quality. Better shocks such as dampers from Bilstein, Koni, or QA1 are also a good idea. Shocks can be pricey but make a huge difference in handling and ride quality. For brakes, I'd suggest sticking with the OE setup and upgrading the rotors and brake pads. There are dozens of pad companies such as Performance Friction, EB3 (the green pad people), Raybestos, Wilwood, and a bunch more. While it may not seem like a big deal, a simple swap to a performance brake pad can make a tremendous difference in braking efficiency. While larger rotors and trick calipers do help, it comes down to the friction between the pad and the rotor that really affects performance. With all that added weight you'll be carrying, front brakes should be an essential part of your conversion strategy. It sounds like fun.
More Info
Eaton Detroit Spring; Detroit, MI; 313/963-3839; eatonsprings.com
EBC Brakes; Northampton, England; ebcbrakes.com
Hedman Hedders; Whittier, CA; 562/921-0404; hedman.com
MagnaFlow Performance Exhaust; Rancho Santa Margarita, CA; 800/ 990-0905; magnaflow.com
Performance Friction; Clover, SC; 800/52-8874; performancefriction.com
Raybestos; McHenry, IL; 815/363-9000; raybestos.com
Wilwood; Camarillo, CA; 805/388-1188; wilwood.com
305 Tech
Kenny, 4th gen novanut, via CarCraft.com: I have some questions on 305ci motors. I have a '77 fourth-generation Nova with a 305 and want to know if this motor can be made more powerful and if it's worth dumping money into? Also, there is not much info on this engine, or rather, I haven't found it. I know a 350 is what everyone has. I just want something different.
What's the difference between a 305 and a 302? And what late-model automatic trans with overdrive will bolt in with this engine with the least cost and mods? This is going to be a low-buck project with lots of junkyard parts. So any help will be greatly welcomed.
Vortec heads continue to be a great selection for a mild small-block street engine, because they flow very well and are very affordable.>
Jeff Smith: The reason there is not much information on the 305ci small-block Chevy is that while it is a Mouse motor, it has little going for it. First off, it gives up 45 ci to its larger 350ci brother because of its puny 3.736-inch bore, which ranks among the smallest bores ever drilled into a small-block Chevy. This is combined with the 350's 3.48-inch stroke crank. The minuscule bore really limits airflow and also limits intake valve size to 1.94 inches, because anything larger will hit the cylinder wall! For some reason, these engines also have serious detonation problems.