Go Fast Parts?

So, i'm anticipating a fairly decent tax return this year, and i was wondering if anyone had any advice on the best way to spend about 500-800 dollars performance wise. I have a 88 ETA.

There is nothing that you can do to your car "perfomance wise" except turbocharging it and it will take much more than that. The other non-turbo option is to do an e-to-i conversion and since you already have a 'super' eta it should be a little bit easier. It will also consume a little bit more money though! Do a search on it on other sites (mye28.com)

Good Luck!

Gotcha, so i need a 3.4 short block?

And do you have any figures on how much power i can get from an upgraded exhaust, including replacing the header?

Nope. The "e-to-i" conversion uses parts from the 325i engine since the 325e/528e use a lower revving version of the engine which has more displacement (2.7 vs. 2.5) but lower power (but higher torque!) It involves using the intake manifold, cam, valves springs and some other parts to come up with a stronger, torquier engine. You will also need a special ECU chip for this. Checkout this page for detailed information.

If you are building a high reving motor better get solid rocker retainers or you'll brake a rocker arm.