Fuel Injection Conversions

[tomelenbaas]

I have a 1988 Mariah with a small block Ford 351 PCM engine. It has the stock Holley 4bbl carb and I'm considering converting to fuel injection with the Holley ProJection 2D system. Has anyone made the conversion, and if so, how successful was it. Thanks.

[87SunSportMikeyD]

Sweeeet dude I didn't even know this existed!!! I would love to know the price and more details!

[wotan2525]

I haven't done it but I researched it and everything I found basically said there wouldn't be any advantage over a well-tuned carb. Just more $$$ and hassle getting it set up correctly.

[michael hunter]

I checked into it years ago the price was $1500 plus then, probubly more now. I couldn't
justify the expense. Do you know what today's price is?

[87SunSportMikeyD]

We have been theorizing that wakesurfing with a lot of list or boat lean to one side is very tough for the carb to stay working properly. Were thinking EFI would take care of that. But if I can't do it for under $200 or the cost of an Edelbrock carb, etc (haven't even done $20 carb rebuild kit yet) it's probably not going to happen. Love the thought though.

[tomelenbaas]

Holley has two conversion kits. The more basic runs $1060 at Jegs. The more advanced kit runs between $2200 to $2500 at Jegs. The lower end system would work for stock small block engines under 275 hp. It is a lot of money which is why I was hoping to get some feedback from someone who's actually done it. The performance enhancement and fuel efficiency are supposed to be significant. But I can buy a lot of extra fuel for the cost, even at today's prices. And I've never had a carb issue in the 20+ years I've owned the boat.

[DKJBama92Mariah]

Save your money. The aftermarket EFI will be more trouble than it's worth.

If your Holley carb is giving you flooding issues at extreme angles you might consider an Edelbrock carb. I am not normally a huge fan of the Edelbrock Q-jet carbs, but for your application, one could serve you well. Because of the way the Q-jet is designed, it is MUCH less prone to flooding when run at odd angles. For that reason, it comes highly praised by the off-roading community for its reliability in rough conditions. If your Holley is giving you fits, replacing it is probably your best option.

Honestly, If you've truly got your heart set on EFI, you'd probably end up better in the long run by saving the money now and putting into repowering with a new EFI motor when this one finally gives up.

[n2sking]

Don't do it, There is no way to run it in closed loop mode with an O2 sensor and It will never run right. I helped a buddy do the same system on a 351 PCM nautique, and it never ran right after that. Fuel pump, return lines, wiring pluc ecu. It's just too much hassle.

[tomelenbaas]

Save your money. The aftermarket EFI will be more trouble than it's worth.

Is this the voice of personal experience? What kind of trouble? It seems like everyone I talk to has an opinion and no two are the same. Most of the opinions seem to be based on hearsay. I've only talked to one person who actually made the conversion - to a 1990 Mastercraft with a small block Chevy - and he swears by it. I'm curious to know what other people have personally experienced or heard about with TBI conversions.

[tomelenbaas]

Don't do it, There is no way to run it in closed loop mode with an O2 sensor and It will never run right.

Thanks for your comments. The latest iteration of the ProJection system does include an "optional" O2 sensor for a closed loop system, but you have to drill out a dry location in the exhaust manifold. Kinda scary.