what intake will fit a 74' 400 engine?

[oilcapitalclassics]

Just bought a 65 grand prix convert. (cat) it has a 74' 400 2 barrell, i want to put on a 4 probably edelbrock, what manifolds will fit these heads? I've been told that i need to find 72 or higher because of the center heat passage was changed on the heads, how good is that info? and what problems if any will i encounter to make the change? Thanks Jim

[Larry]

I don't know a lot about the change on the center heat passage, but if all else was equal (ie: matched up), then do as most do and block off the center heat passage. There are even small block off plates that come with many gasket sets. If the car is in a cold climate, however, this might not be wise as you can use that extra carb heat for cold mornings. I have even heard of people using bowling ball hole plugging material (for redrilling/resizing) to plug the heat passage in the intake.

All that being said, it would only apply to if you were looking to find a used intake. If you go brand new, Edelbrock will have everything figured out for you already. I've had good luck with Edelbrock's high rises on the street, but some of our racers will have the latest, best recommendations.

Keep us posted.
Thanks,
Larry

[oilcapitalclassics]

Well i guess i'll try to find a 74' 4b intake, i'd like to just bolt something on that's ready to go with an edel. carb , another idea i've had for the future would be to replace the heads with old style IV's and maybe add a 66 tri power, the block code is YJ which is the lowly 190 or 200 horse engine, would this be a suitable short block as it is to work off of for a very mild old style engine or am i way off base here?? The thing runs great with just a 2b but i'd like a little more power and a lot more style.

[Stu Norman]

Any 1965 and newer intake will work. Some mismatch can occur with the exhaust crossover, but there are plate available to block these off. Just be aware of teh problem and correct as needed.

A 1972 or 1973 stock 4 bbl would be ideal. The Edelbrock manifolds (Performer) is OK. The Performer RPM will probably cause a stock engine to feel sluggish, it's more designed for a higher RPM application.