I'm right there with you on the DIY. I still got you on cost tho, and thats for evvverything, from fuel delivery to the air filters, then again I scored a hella good deal... I can understand why you would suggest EFI with your climate, sounds wild. In that case I don't think I would go carb'd. Luckily my area is not like that at all, with very consistent temperatures year round. Very possible to boost carbs as well
What do you think the pioneers of turbos were originally testing on? Your "whatever you want" theory is quite true, except for the fact that if you do decide to go further, such as turbo, you will need to upgrade things like fuel pump and injectors. Not to mention with EFI you need the stand alone system, computer to tune it, and software to tune it with. With the carb all you need is a boost-ready carb, jets to play with and a screw driver.. Much cheaper!!! Again, I am not dissing fuel injection, I agree it is great, but in my opinion, it is not great for every application. I'm just saying the same possibilities are achievable. Point is, some people just don't have time and money to mess with computers and wiring, and just prefer the raw, old skool feel of a carb'd motor. The most wiring needed for the carb swap is a power and ground for fuel pump
Its just so simple and straightforward!
Also, 3SGE will inevitably be faster/more powerful as it is a 2.0 compared to the 4A's 1.6. Have you ever seen a carb'd 3SGE
? I bet it would give you a run for your money!