I am doing the 8V swap also. I added a header and flipped the intake so my snorkel is on the pasengers side and the intake tubing does not cross over the exhaust (not great for intake temps). A 2.5" exhuaust plumbing will help it breathe a little easier too, aftermarket cats are plentiful to stay within smog. (not sure about those details though)
I regeared my Tcase to 6.5-1 and axles to 4.30 gears in order to run 33" tires. You shouldn't have to go to that extreme but a nice tcase regear would be handy anyway.
As with any motor, give it plenty of air, fuel and spark and it will give you power...