Improving Performance of 1978 308 GTS

What do you suggest to improve torque and horse power ? I have seen some surper charge kits? How about changing the camshelfs and working on the carbs?

Should a try supercharge or not?

 

How fast do you want it to be?

Frequently, it's cheaper to sell the thing and buy a newer model Ferrari.

 

I don't know if one of those superchargers will work on carbs. Higher lift on the cams would do something, but not enough. There's way more things you need to do to get the HP up.

 

The kits I have seen are all designed for fuel injected cars. I suppose a correctly sealed airbox would allow for the use of a supercharger on a carb car, but it's a lot more complex than throwing a Holley on top of a 6-71.

Again, the mission parameters are important I'd personally spend money on brakes first.

 

Hey Chris, would an F430 motor fit the 308?

 

Ive seen blower kits for carbed 308's from back in the day. Not sure if you can still get them though.

 

I have seen lots of threads, searching for more power. The 308 already has a fairly high output/litre - the "cheap" stuff has already been done.

You can tweek it a bit with exhaust, ignition and jetting, maybe lightening it up a bit. Anything else is going to cost big.

Tillman is right, it might make sense to sell the 308 and go for a faster later model.

But, if you love the 308 and want it to go a lot faster, then the supercharger is the way to go.

You are probably going to want to improve the brakes, suspension, wheels and tires, oil and water cooling. Look at what the system costs are llikely going to be.

If you can do the work and have deep pockets, you will have a rapt audience, cheering you on.

I have "improved" a few vehicles and love it. It has never been cheap - but is always fun.

hth,
chris

 

My old autoshop teacher had a paxton supercharger blowing through three duces in an air box. That was 40 years ago and it realy cooked. (porthole t bird)


chris

 

Here is a 1977 308 GTB that I suspect is pretty fast around the track.
http://www.ferraris-online.com/pages/carintro.php?reqcardir=FE-308GT2-20969

Michael Sheehan's modified track car. Asking $79.9k for it.
I wonder which States it can be made street legal in?

 

Now that's just crazy talk.

 

There's always a comedian on board.

 

A 355 drivetrain can be made to fit, so I presume a 430 would also with enough time, money, and hammers.

 

True, but I'm certain it would fit without too big a fight.

 

It's really important to decide exactly what it is you want from the car, what the budget is and go from there.....there are as many options as there are $ in your bank account

Shoot me a pm if you want help with specifics.

 

350 Chevy small block and a G50 transmission

 

Here's a picture of this poor sole's 308. The owner wanted more power too.

That Ferrari has been sitting in a garage under the cover for over a year. Rumor has it that the owner has been seen picking up empty cans in parking lots to pay for the "more power" thing that has been going around.
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

exoticars-usa.com...the owner has a 77 or 78 with supercharger but he could help you and he is in NJ

 

welcome to my world....but we don't have can deposits here so I have to sit on the corner and just plain beg

 

Yeah, yeah...this coming from a man that once put a Merlin into a VW Bug.

 

While this won't give you neck snapping power that you may be after -- the cheapest and more effective power comes from replacing the paper filter with a K&N.
They're good for approximately 2-3HP. Though they do help with fuel economy more than anything. The most noted thing K&N users notice is crisper throttle response.

If you have carbs, an old rodder's trick is to knife edge the butterflies. By doing so, you're smoothing the air that travels across them.
You could also bore the carbs slightly -- and increase their volume -- and you'll have to make new butterflies to account for the diameter increase.
Again.. this won't give you big power -- but will help you with minor low-budget mods.


When I was taking Mechanical Engineering/Industrial Fabrication classes in university a friend and I worked on making a Holley 600 CFM flow better.
We milled the choke tower off, ported the venturies, and knife edged the butterflies. We flow benched it, and it was making 780 CFMs with the stock jetting.
We just wanted to see if it could be done.... and well...my friend's rock crawler ('70 International Scout) seemed be really responsive to the change.

 

What about weight savings? The 308 is pretty heavy for its class of car, (unless you have an old fiberglass one) especially an '82 like mine! Are there any practical weight saving techniques on the 308 that anyone has any experience with? I am not interested in a race-car, but just a fun, fast(er) street and track day car that I can drive to the race course.
I know that the rear deck lid seems about 10 times heavier than it needs to be. Would replacing this with a fiberglass or carbon fibre one, (I have seen them on the web) appreciably save weight? What other things could you possibly eliminate/replace to get the weight down? Im pretty sure that even my anemic '82's 205-on-a-good-day horsepower would feel like more if I could shave 100 or more pounds! Another benefit of course that I found on my Alfas was the improved braking performance automatically associated with decreased weight. That benefit does not associate hp increases!

 

There are a few things you can do.
Get rid of the full size spare and get the small spare.
Get rid of the AC Compressor.
Replace the stock headers and exhaust.
Replace the seats with aftermarket ones.
Maybe lose a few pounds. (That one i'm having a real problem with.)

 

Are the stock headers that bad on the US models?

 

Yes, they are like 1/2 the weight. I have the #'s down on paper at home.

I'll post what i have tonight.

 

Agreed. If your not bothered about the aircon then thats worth around 30 kgs if you remove everything, condensor/compressor/underdash unit/wiring/hoses etc...

Ok I have a Mondy and not a 308 but I was suprprised just how much certian parts that I removed weigh. Its all down to how original you want to keep the car. I have stripped out over 285kgs with a max of 75 kgs to go back on, so I am expecting a lot better accleration and handling.