3 Ways to Give Your 350 Chevy Engine a Boost

The small-block Chevy engine, sometimes referred to as the 350 Chevy engine, is already pretty powerful for the class of vehicles in which it comes. However, you might still want to kick things up a notch in the power department, especially if you use your vehicle for work purposes. That’s when you might need to get a little creative.

 

Riverton Chevrolet is the place to go if you want to get a Chevy vehicle with a 350 engine. If you’re ready to increase its power, though, here are some cost-effective ways to do it.

 

Change Out the Stock Heads

 

The first thing you can consider doing is changing out the engine’s stock heads. The pair you get with your vehicle is by no means unsuitable for producing substantial power, but there’s still only so much they are capable of before you run into their limit.

 

You can buy aftermarket stock heads at many specialty auto parts stores. Talk to an employee there about the best kind to boost your 350 Chevy engine’s power if you’re not certain which ones will work best for you.

 

What you’re looking for are ones that will increase its horsepower while still allowing you to retain precision control of the vehicle while you’re operating it. With high-performance heads, you want a pair that will give you a better fuel-to-air mixture.

 

They accomplish this by pulling in more air than the standard ones Chevy gives you. If you get the right pair, you should increase your horsepower by up to 20 over the listed amount you’ll get with the original ones.

 

Replace the Camshaft

 

If you need to get more horsepower out of your 350 Chevy engine, and you have already switched out the stock heads, the next logical place to look is usually the camshaft. Again, you can get a high-performance one at an auto parts store that should give you more power than the original one that came with the vehicle.

 

You definitely want one that offers more aggressive timing. This should improve your vehicle’s valve operation. In doing so, it will also boost your power across the RPM range.

 

Replace the Intake Manifold

 

Once you have done both of those things, if you are still not entirely satisfied with the power you’re getting from your 350 engine, the next thing you can do is to replace your intake manifold. If you switch out the current one for a high-performance model, that can give you a noticeable jolt in the power department.

What you’re looking for is an intake manifold that gives you maximum airflow to the engine. There are several options on the market that should work well with a Chevy 350 engine, but again, ask an auto parts store employee if you’re not sure of which one will serve this purpose best.

 

In addition to those three options, you might also go to a larger capacity carburetor. Installing headers that give you better exhaust flow is another option that’s on the table.