Fuel Inj. 4.3?

[97fourwinns]

Right now I have a 97 4.3 GL with a 2bbl carb. I have been thinking about going to a 4bbl. Would I gain anything? Also would there be any other proformance up grades?

What about going fuel injected. I know they make kit for the 4.3 chevy motors for cars. Can you use this kit or has any one done it? Thanks

 

[Don S]

Re: Fuel Inj. 4.3?

Automotive EFI works on a different system than marine. No oxygen sensors plus they are not marine rated nor does it have the proper fuel pump setup. There are marine aftermarket kits, but not worth the money.
Your best bet would be to find a complete used 4.3 Volvo EFI engine from a junk boat. Or just go to the 4bbl.

 

[jkust]

Re: Fuel Inj. 4.3?

Right now I have a 97 4.3 GL with a 2bbl carb. I have been thinking about going to a 4bbl. Would I gain anything? Also would there be any other proformance up grades?

What about going fuel injected. I know they make kit for the 4.3 chevy motors for cars. Can you use this kit or has any one done it? Thanks

My take after seeing this question asked many times and a few actually making the switch to a 4bbl carb is an honest 15 hp. The 4.3 is actually a great engine but there are no easy bolt on upgrades that will provide you with large performance increases like you could do to a car engine. What I can say is that the Volvo seems to allow for a less expensive and easier 4bbl upgrade than the equivalent Mercruiser bc the intake for the 4bbl is already present.

 

[97fourwinns]

Re: Fuel Inj. 4.3?

So with going to a 4bbl you would see 15 horse. What would a 4bbl cost? Is there a good place to look at fuel inj.?

 

[jkust]

Re: Fuel Inj. 4.3?

So with going to a 4bbl you would see 15 horse. What would a 4bbl cost? Is there a good place to look at fuel inj.?

The 15 hp is debatable. Take a look at some of the previous threads on this and you will get all the specifics. Generally the carb is a few hundred, you'd likely need to modify the fuel line, possibly a spacer between the carb and intake as well. At the end of the day, fuel injection, which can be purchased as a kit is very expensive and generally regarded as not practical for the money. They are old school fuel injection. I've seen the kits for close to 2k if my memory serves me. Another debatable topic is that some feel that the 190hp on the 2bbl carb is understated anyway. The Multi Port Injection system which came into the market around 2003 replaced the older EFI systems (which you are referring to) and produce 225hp in the Volvo version and 220 in the Mercruiser version. The thing to recognize is that generally it takes 10hp to go one more mph. 15 hp won't necessarily give you much oomph for the $. Now I say that and the difference between the same boat with the 220/225hp mpi engine and the carbed 190hp engine is more than 3mph so I don't know how acurate the rule of thumb is in practice. The MPI versions of the same engine have higher wot rpm's as well. Another thing to consider is that there is a real possibility that you will need to go up and inch or two on your prop which adds to the cost. If I were you, and I have contemplated this myself, I'd throw on the carb/accessories, tune it and see what happens. Because you have a Volvo you don't have to buy the expensive intake manifold replacement which makes the job much easier.