oh it can make that much HP. just depends on how much $$ u wanna spend. Get a header and upgrade the intake to a 2BBL carb, then upgrade the valvetrain to roller rockers with a higher lift rate so the engine can breathe better ( make sure the springs are made for the extra lift though) then get a cam, maybe a 264 deg. cam, get a good ignition system (pertronix dist. with MSD ignition seems like the best), port and polish the head, then top it all off with a turbo, that should get u into the 200+ HP range,


got my 78 merc with a 250 I6 and i love it.