Team Chevelle banner

Anyone regret making the switch to EFI?

13K views 90 replies 38 participants last post by  ram396 
#1 ·
Sorry if this has been discussed , but has anyone made the switch to EFI and regretted it? It is next on my radar as far as things to do. I really like the concept if it obviously but worry about glitches and reliability. Have not considered which brand I would get, would probably mean towards Holley. I appreciate and real world experience you could share..thanks.
 
#2 ·
Nope. I may regret, or more accurately wish I had a different system, but I do not regret going EFI.

Need to make an AFR adjustment? No more draining fuel out the carb, changing jets, checking spark plugs in hopes you're close. If not, redo. Now I take 10 seconds and go through the handheld and done. Plus, it auto adjusts for changing weather.

Need to change timing? No more reaching in a hot engine bay, reving the engine to check timing with your light. Not to mention the hassle of changing a timing curve. Now I just go in the handheld, and adjust the timing at say cruise RPM, and maybe add a degree in the mid range. Or maybe I am idling for an extended period of time, well I can bump up the timing since idle timing isnt restricted to base timing.

A learning curve, and expensive, but it's the way to go IMO.
 
#3 ·
Not one bit, easily the best decision I’ve made for my car. Holley sniper is pretty good, it’s great with timing control. Easy adjustments and fine tuning is all done on a laptop sitting on the couch.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Pats70ss
#7 ·
With the cost of carbs lately there isn't a large difference in cost between EFI and a carb. I personally like the EFI over a carb. I even old enough to tune and jet a carb. The EFI is just a cleaner install. The throttle response if tuned correctly is far superior to a carb.
Just my $.02 but I find the fitech is almost fool proof. Holley is much more detailed. Any service or trouble shooting I found you have to go back to Holley. There answer in my case was send the ECM back to us for testing. Amazingly it needed a new computer. Then the download didn't work from the CD. I then had to call Holley and luckily I came into contact with someone who really knew how set the basics up. 1.5 hrs later on the phone with holley the vehicle fired up.
 
#9 ·
With the cost of carbs lately there isn't a large difference in cost between EFI and a carb.
Surely.....you can't be serious?

EFI is vastly superior in nearly every way....but the dollar cost and time cost difference is significant. Don't kid yourself.
 
#8 ·
I was an early user of EFI with the first Holley ProJection systems. It had to be the late 1980's. As simple as the system was, it performed better than any carb I ever had on the car.

My last carbed vehicle was a 1973 Impala I junked when I bought a 1989 GMC S15 Jimmy.
 
#14 ·
I don't regret it, but it is a fair investment and the fuel system is most of the work. Yes, it does run "better" than the out of the box, 30,000 mile AFB I had. Starts easier, uses a very small but noticeable amount less fuel, smells less. I did it on the cheap, and I think my total was $1150 for tank/lines/FiTech… And is it $1150 better, no, definitely not. Not to me. BUT to my wife (smells less). And to a noob at classic cars that have no clue about automatic chokes, or carbs that evaporate empty over weeks with the crank/pump, and how to not flood a car. It might make a car pleasant that is almost undrivable to them. I am also planning on controlled spark, and that is a lot of the reason I went with it as well, and that will not cost me any more.
Plus I am going to experiment with E85 which is dirt simple now, just type in a 430 CI instead of a 350, and try it out.
Also adding in A/C it will automatically bring the idle back up similar to a modern car when the compressor engages.
IF I bothered to tune the carb we had, and IF nobody buy me ever got near it, I probably would have regretted it just on the expense. I don't have any complaints, not one, about overall performance/drivability/or other issues. But I always would appreciate having that $1150 in my wallet again. I would assume most guys would not cheap out like I did, and would be closer to $1,800 or so.
 
#16 ·
my car with a qjet starts easily cold and hot. runs great during warm up and hot,has seamless throttle response at all throttle openings. being able to digitally map the timing curve would be nice and cold starts and warm ups may be slightly better but the carb will never break down and the hei can be repaired in 15 minutes with cheap parts.
 
#41 ·
Exactly! I have the 625 Street Demon on my car, Zero problems, starts and runs great. $300 👍

Thought about EFI, would be in the $2K range for everything (system, fuel and line updates, etc) and all the headaches, not worth it to me, so I’m not sure what whoever said cost of carb/efi is similar is thinking.
 
#18 ·
No regrets. I tried going back to carb after running TPI on my pickup.
One season with the carbed El and the engine is out and sold. 5.3 is being installed.
GM makes a nice ECM. Running a stock style fuel pump in the El Camino tank. Parts will be easy to locate if I'm on a long cruise somewhere.
 
#19 ·
That is why I did the Roadmaster tank swap. Stock pump, stock Vette filter/regulator, over the counter lines and fittings.
Plus I could swap back to the carb in about a ½ hour the way I did my lines, all with quick disconnects. (yes, I STILL have the mechanical pump on the side of the block, but I plan to remove it soon)
 
#20 ·
Pat, what is your reason for change? If current carb is dialed in and running right, I wouldn’t fool with it. That said, I’m efi and would not go back. I have around 2k in the conversion, did all the work myself. Took about 11 hours.

If you have never had efi, there is quite a steep learning curve. None that I know of learn everything, just the basics. You can tweek yourself to death and go no where. Thank god there is a reset procedure, lol. I read all I could on this and other forums and still had to improvise. Messed up more times than I can count.

First and foremost, your engine must have no vac leaks or exh leaks. This is paramount.
But…no more fooling under the hood.

Ps
Take everything you read or hear with a grain of salt. The setting that works for random guy may work with his engine combo, but maybe not so good for yours. That’s the key, tuning it to your engine. They’re all different.
 
#21 ·
Pat, what is your reason for change? If current carb is dialed in and running right, I wouldn’t fool with it. That said, I’m efi and would not go back. I have around 2k in the conversion, did all the work myself. Took about 11 hours.

If you have never had efi, there is quite a steep learning curve. None that I know of learn everything, just the basics. You can tweek yourself to death and go no where. Thank god there is a reset procedure, lol. I read all I could on this and other forums and still had to improvise. Messed up more times than I can count.

First and foremost, your engine must have no vac leaks or exh leaks. This is paramount.
But…no more fooling under the hood.

Ps
Take everything you read or hear with a grain of salt. The setting that works for random guy may work with his engine combo, but maybe not so good for yours. That’s the key, tuning it to your engine. They’re all different.

John,


Because I am a gluton for punishment :) My Quick Fuel 780 really causes me no issues but I am always looking to make things "better" maybe I just need to leave well enough alone for now.
 
#39 ·
I would say I have picked up time(not verified by track times though).
I had a buddy with a camaro that would always edge me out on top end. After the swap to the victor jr I would stay door to door with him, even with spot on fuel ratio of 12.8:1 WOT. EFI we are still door to door, but I pull on him down low a little harder. His car does weigh about 500 pounds less.

I have to say it was not EFI that made the difference, moreso the intake design.
 
#31 ·
Honestly, most of the “horror” stories of EFI are the people installing them not doing the wiring correctly or messing up the tunes. I know some snipers have some issues with the injectors becoming disconnected but that can be fixed. I haven’t had any mechanical issues other than looping the return spring one more then to get the secondaries to close all the way, which isn’t even a big problem.

I just datalog and have others help my tunes.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Pats70ss
#33 ·
I love how simple my 69 el Camino is. The dash has three lights, Amp, Oil and Temperature. I even listen to the AM radio, it's perfect, it doesn't drown out the nice tone the Turbo mufflers make behind the Big Block..

I have never had any issues with the Quadrajet or the HEI. My 454 fires right up without touching any pedals once it's been driven in a 24 hour period. When cold, I pump the gas twice, let off the pedal and it fires right up without any issues..
Why replace this with a bunch of complicated, off shore parts that could brake at a moments notice... What needs attention on these cars is the suspension. My 69 has an all modern suspension, the SC&C Stage III, Lee 14:1, Spohn Del Sphere rear control arms, it handles like a dream and on 15" tires on Chevrolet Rally wheels, don't want to ruin the look.
 
#36 ·
Spend the money and get MPFI instead of a wet throttle body, unless you are drag racing every dry weekend where either work damn good foot on the floor.

I have no regrets, and have installed and used both retrofit MPFI and a wet throttle body. It is a good conversation starter with people that like old cars when the hood is up.

If you have the itch, might as well scratch it. You'll learn more about EFI than you ever wanted to know.

Note: I have yet to have either the MPFI or wet throttle body setups I used fail electronically, but I do think about it, since what I have was designed as cheaply as possible and is manufactured overseas. I think most of the failures reported on the interweb for any of the systems are installer related.

Both the EFI setups I installed were FiTech products. Not recommending them or EFI if your carburetor works well right now. I would probably go 8 stacks if I ever do it again, and if FiTech comes out with an 8 stack manifold setup, I wouldn't buy it.

Edit: I rethunk this. I actually would not install EFI again on a Gen 1 motor. As mentioned above by one of the other posters, I do miss the simplicity of a well tuned carburetor.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 427L88
#37 ·
One thing I will add, and I dont like it, is that for most of our cars that arent the 1 in 300, LS6 etc, adding EFI and an LS makes resale about 7-10K more.

Still for now a new rat with a big old Qjet on top. I'll save my digital tuning skills for the 1996 -ish Firebird I'm looking for. Hair dryers, laptop programming, etc.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top