61Dustin

Hello, new member here with a quick question. I have a 1990 Dodge Power Ram W150 with a 318 cu in V8. The little 318 has a TBI set up and I was curious if the stock TBI system is capable of being modded/adjusted to handle upgrades to the engine?

I plan to install a pair 360 heads with pistons to recover the lost compression, headers and hopefully a stroked crankshaft and cam to match.

Will the TBI system and computer be capable to adjust to this or am I better off just switching to a carburetor and electronic ignition? What other options may there be that won't destroy my wallet?

Thanks for reading and I hope to read your replies

DDodger

One way to do it is investigate Megasquirt

TVLynn

If that is all you are doing it should work. Megasquirt is not cheap. Why the 360 heads ? Keep the smaller 318 heads better with a heavy truck ?

DDodger

In this case not sure I agree. A brand new Holley carb probably costs more than the basic MS computer. In this case you can integrate it with some of your existing hardware. Might have to change some of the sensors

I agree on the heads. Here's the thing. With a short stroke small cube combo, IN A HEAVY VEHICLE it's very easy to come up with something that is pipey and a low end dog. Things like trucks need torque. Big heads, big cam, hurt that torque. Be careful and don't go nuts on the cam.

61Dustin

So the stock 318 heads should be fine for a truck application? Okay. And yeah, I wasn't planning to go crazy with the cam. The truck will be a daily driver for the rainy/snowy seasons here in Oregon and my hunting rig. Nothing extreme, but something that sounds nice and gets my where I want to go with little effort.

So keep the 318 heads, mid-mild cam, aluminum (dual-plain) intake, headers, and a stroked crankshaft. The hardware from the stock TBI system should still work and swap out sensors as needed.

So my questions are what are the best means to upgrade the fuel system? I read the Megasquirt comment, but are there any other suppliers out that cover my particular set up? And how much and you safely stroke a 318 without any heavy machining?