my dad and I own a 1980 el camino with the stock 3.8l 229 v6.

it leaks worse than a screen door, does 0-60 in 3 exits, gets about 9mpg and stops on a runway.

all this and we want to fix it up. wonder why???

we want to go to a fuel injected ( economy and easier for tubo later) but for reasons of fuel economy we are thinking of staying with a v6.

if you have some specs or a good place to get them please let me know. we may consider a v8 if the fuel economy is good. we also need an engine/tranny combo that has a good availability of aftermarket parts.

I am an import nut but I also realize there is nothing like a sweet hot rod. I am hopeing to use my knowledge of imports with the fuel injected, ecu modifying, turbo setups to get power when wanted and keep this thing a sleeper.

since I plan on going for a turbo setup later I don't need big hp numbers now just something that is a good base to start from ( since forced induction is exponentially based on the na hp rating ) and reliable.

I don't expect to get 30mpg like I would from an import and it would be a sin to put an s2000 (honda) engine into this american classic so I am hopeing for more around 20mpg with about 160hp-200hp to start ( or more if the setup is right)

any help would be appreciated.