how do i make efi work on my 318?

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discharger1332

discharger1332

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i have a 86 dodge van, it has a 318 w/ the factory 2bbl carb that is computer controlled. I would like to use the efi throttle body, that came into use in 88. i can see the ecm is different in 88 from the one on my van. does anybody know if i can wire the throttle body to work with my ecm?
 
There is as much difference between the computer carb and EFI as there is between night and day, Chev and Ford, water and dust

EFI is a complete system. "I guess" you are talking about TBI, that is "throttle body injection" which were the earlier systems, having the injectors in the throttle body.

There is going to be "several" sensors scattered around the engine connecting to the EFI system, as well as a dedicated distributor. In other words, if you cannot remove a complete working system AND HARNESS from a donor, you have a long hard expensive road.

Do you need to worry about emissions tests in your locale? If not, consider an aftermarket system like the "coming out" Holley Sniper, or the EFItech. There's a thread on them here

Otherwise, convert to a conventional carburetor and distributor. What you have is called "lean burn." There are many conversion tips on the www, google it.
 
88 was the first year Mopar brought back EFI to v8 engines too
 
Without a shop manual for "both rigs" and a working knowledge of the donor system, this might be tough. It also might not be worth the trouble. In addition you'd need to make some changes in the fuel system, and install the EFI pump. I don't know. It might be in the tank...........higher pressure than carb
 
discharger1332 said:
correct, I am looking to put TBI on. not efi sorry.
Click to expand...

FYI , TBI is EFI . I think you mean MPFI which is multi port direct injection like the magnum engines have. The TBI is a throttle body with injectors in TB. TBI is wet manifold MPFI is dry. TBI has all the disadvantages of a carb like fuel suspension and manifold design where as MPFi only has to move air through manifold making it work much better. The factory TBI system is pretty much considered no performance problematic junk. They had issues when new so I would imagine after almost 30 years it would be a giant pita to get it working in stock form much less with a modified cam etc.

I would go with a small afb or go directly to magnum MPFI engine. TBI=not worth the hassle
 
i kinda had a feeling it would be too much of a hassle. i saw a complete truck at the junk yard recently and the gears were turning. my motor is bone stock, and i have no smog laws here.
 
To put this in perspective, the factory TBI is a glorified version of "whut I had" to play with for one summer........Holley "Pro-Jection" 2D. There are several versions of this. The point is "these don't work" very darn well, but they are simple

http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=205959&highlight=holley,

attachment.php


These consist of

The throttle body and adapter to mount on a 4bbl manifold

The controller which has "pots" to adjust idle, cruise, accel, etc

A temp sensor

An optional (narrow) O2 sensor

fuel pump and you need a return line.

Regulator is in the TB unit.

================================

This was fun to play with and it did run and drive. In fair weather it was "OK." You really need a wideband O2 to tune it

The differences between the factory stuff you are contemplating and this is.......a few more sensors, and you cannot make any adjustments. Parts will be hard to find (for either system) if you need them.
 
yeah i am over all of that. I was hoping i could make the throttle body run with the sensors the current carb has. looks like electronic ignition and 4bbl swap are in my future.
 
TBI's very simple, like the carb setups. They don't use a dedicated crank sensor and fuel very much like a carb. TBI also used a tank pump like the MPFI, just limited to the TBI pressures.

That all said- there's more benefits to a Magnum swap than just the MPFI- the motors were a good bit stronger too.
 
If you want to run TBI, I would suggest a GM based system. The mopar TBI system wasn't all that great and there's little support for it now.
 
C130 Chief said:
If you want to run TBI, I would suggest a GM based system. The mopar TBI system wasn't all that great and there's little support for it now.
Click to expand...

and the GM TBI system was good? Granted it was fairly reliable although I did make lots of $$ repairing them in the 90's, they are a pretty sad excuse for injection unless you put it on a firewood truck...1973 J-2000 pu with GM 350 TBI engine. It starts well but as far as any performance, consider it an electronic turd. Granted, it is better than the Chrysler TBI but thats like saying getting shot in the leg is better than getting shot in the chest....they both suck.
 
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