Need some help on a 87 firebird

I have come across a 87 firebird for very cheap....i dont know much about cars....at all....and i was wondering what i should put under the hood...im kinda on a budget, but i need hp, and speed....what is the hightest hp engine i can put in....thanks in advance

nick

Well, lets assume you have the money to make the car safe and roadworthy....chances are, a cheap Firebird has some problems which require attention first.
Is it a v6 engine. If yes, don't bother with it. A decent V8 Firebird has the suspension and transmission you would need to support a decent engine.
The V8 Firebirds had a 305 (210hp) or a 350 (230 hp) engine, (small block Chevy) These engines are common and easy to build for power. You can easily build one of these to produce as much power as you can afford.
The trick here is the transmission. The 5 spd will not tolerate much more than 210 hp in its stock form, so it never came with anything bigger than the 305.
The 350 came with the automatic only. The 305 could be had with either the manual or auto.
If you can live with an automatic, look for a 350 engine. There are vast amounts of modifications that can be made to easily give you 400 hp or more. Assuming the car is well tuned and in good shape, I would suggest a performance exhaust system, with matched headers, pipes and muffler, along with a K&N air filter would give you the best performance increase for the money.

okay....is there any thing i can buy (new transmission) that would allow me to have a 350 in manual? please respond...

How about a 301 engine. I don't know how rare they were but I do know when they came out alot of people were swapping them for 400 engines. They are compatible with a turbo or a blower (The turbo is hard to find)