I have a '64 Merc Marauder with a 2bbl 390. A buddy gave me the Edelbrock Performer intake off a busted 390 he had laying around. All the "experts" on the various sites say this intake is not desirable. Gotta be better than a stock '64 cast intake, doesn't it? I need torque more than top end power in this 2 1/2 ton tank! The smaller ports should give me that, right? Future plans call for factory cast headers and a cam change. I love the sound of a C8AX-C cam, but I realize it might be too much cam for this intake.
The performer will work just fine for low and med range, After about 5000 rpm it is pretty much done. I would not be afraid to use it for street use or on a car that I was not racing. They are a lot easier to install, being a lot lighter. Price is right use it.
Not made for drag racing but many people is using it for street, it's a very popular model, better than your stock intake and very affordable.
Why do the "X-spurts" hate it? As stated they are good low to mid range performers so unless you are making a drag racer, real world, it should work fine.
Be sure you got a back brace to get the old one off!!!!! And the car might come up a inch in hight lol.....That edelbrock should be fine.
The Performer will be fine...many don't like it as it is not much of a performance step up from a stock intake.... the weight savings alone are worth it IMO. Tom
I was watching one of the car building shows on TV last weekend, and the host was changing the intake on an FE motor, and he used a cherry picker to lift the stock intake off! Actually, a pretty smart idea, considering the weight and the fact that you're leaning over the fender to get it off. Years ago, I pulled one of the stock iron heads off of a 454 while the engine was in the car, and as soon as I got the head off of the locating dowels, my feet came out from under me, and I nearly face-planted into the engine compartment.
Not sure where those experts get their opinions from, but the Performer is a very good street intake. Ran one on the 5.0 in my Jeep with a 600 cfm Edelbrock on it and it gave me great performance and reliability. As for using a cherry picker to install a manifold, we did that when we put the tripower intake on my Kid's 455 Olds. We mainly did it so we could very slowly lower the intake down onto the gaskets without messing up the sealant or the position of the gaskets. Made it very easy to control that heavy chunk of cast iron better than if two guys were trying to do it by hand. Just adjust the cherry picker to very slowly creep down and you can guide the intake right where it needs to be until it sits down on the heads. Don
I have a dual plane Edelbrock Performer on my beefed up 283 and am very pleased with it. As stated above, it is a great street performer, and I don't go above 5000 rpm's anyway..... Good all around choice!! Cheers.....
I'm swapping to Montego spindles for disc brakes and a 1 1/2" drop. The loss of weight might just cancel the drop altogether! Thanks all for confirming what I already was thinking. Like you say, the price was right! Got to be an improvement over the 2 barrel.
alright when the experts say not to use it, the main thing is if you buy the intake new you might as well get the RPM. They are the same price. going from the 2 barrel to the performer will make a difference, going from a stock 4 barrel to a performer not so much asides from weight. Since you have it throw it on, and make sure the back intake gasket doesnt slide out from ya when you set the intake on.
Squirrel...A buddy has a factory 3X2 setup, air cleaner and all. He paid like 2500 beans for it! I'll stick with my freebie.
Put that manifold on! It will be fine. On a Stock it is going to make more torque up to 3000-3500 than just about anything else out there. Period! yeah it starts to lose HP above that compared to the RPM, the Factory PI, Blue Thunder and others, but you don't have the cam or compression to be running up there in the first place!
Dont forget to pull the rocker shafts & pushrods before pulling the intake with a------cherry picker !
And watch where the bolts go in the rocker shafts. One on each side has a thinner shank for oil flow.
I use this same exact combination of intake and carb on my lightly cammed 350 in my "47 Willys and it has proven itself to be a great and reliable combo on the street
You got a better deal than i did, I paid $25.00 for mine! I agree with all who said go for it. Be aware that if you use too long of a bolt on the top center valve cover hole, it can snap the threaded boss off the manifold .
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