ChevyMan0784
Lift & Lockers
Posts:699
 |
| 09/09/2007 10:23 PM |
|
| Ok, here is one for ya'll. I just picked up a sweet 1988 V3500 Chevy for 800 bucks. Only problem is that it has a blown 6.2 Diesel in it. And from what I have heard, they are crap from the start. So I want to convert to just a gas 350. But what problems am I going to run into? Wiring? The truck has a Turbo 400, so I know it will bolt up to that. But what about the motor mounts?? I dont know, can you guys think of anything else?? Is hooking up an HEI going to be a pain, or the starter wires and alternator? |
|
gimmie fuel gimmie fire gimmie that which I desire-James Hetfield
*Never give an Irish man good cause for revenge.
*Guns dont kill people, but they sure help!!
*98% OF AMERICANS SAY 'OH S**t' BEFORE GOING IN THE DITCH ON A ICEY ROAD.
THE OTHER 2% ARE FROM ALASKA, AND THEY SAY, 'HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS |
|
|
SnoMan
Lift & Lockers
Posts:943
|
| 09/10/2007 3:45 AM |
|
| Actually the 6.2 was a pretty good engine. It was a little weak HP wise and the injector pumps only lasted 100 to 150 K miles but engine internals were very sturdy. Given todays fuel prices I would give some very serious though to repairing engine in it even though I am not a big diesel fan. ALso the newer 6.5 is same block so a newer more powerful 6.5 would bolt in. |
|
--------------------------
Visit the SnoMan at
www.thesnoman.com |
|
|
webby4x4
Forum Admin, Magazine Editor
Rock Star
Posts:2375
|
| 09/10/2007 9:12 AM |
|
SnoMan has some good points. The 6.2 was a pretty good mill and the 6.5 is a bolt in.
If you're set on converting to gas, then you'll need to get some weld-in motor mounts for a small block motor, but they're cheap and often times, far superior to the stock units.
EFI - You may want to consider going with a TBI unit instead of MPFI. They're darn-near bolt in units and can often be installed in just a few days. Get one off of a 1988 - 2002 Chevy 1/2 ton truck or Blazer (Full size). You need to snarf the wiring for it, the ECU and of course, the TBI unit.
If you want something that's easier, go with an aftermarket kit from someone like TurboCity (www.turbocity.com). I ran one of those for about 7 years and loved it. Be sure however, to tell them that you're looking for a direct replacement, or give them engine specs. Their off-the-shelf unit runs rich as it's built for something around 300-350 HP.
You could go with an MPFI unit, but you're in for weeks of work to get it all setup. The TBI units run on a low-pressure elec fuel pump which can be bought for about $19.
Rick |
|
Rick Webster
Editor, 4X4REVIEW.COM - A Tork Media, Inc. Publication
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
'74 FJ40 Land Cruiser
"Measure once, cut twice" |
|
|
SnoMan
Lift & Lockers
Posts:943
|
| 09/10/2007 11:27 AM |
|
quote:
Originally posted by webby4x4
You could go with an MPFI unit, but you're in for weeks of work to get it all setup. The TBI units run on a low-pressure elec fuel pump which can be bought for about $19.
Rick
Good tip on TBI, simpler and cheaper and easier to fix too and VERY reliable. |
|
--------------------------
Visit the SnoMan at
www.thesnoman.com |
|
|
ChevyMan0784
Lift & Lockers
Posts:699
|
| 09/10/2007 12:13 PM |
|
| Well the deal is that two rods went through the block. Now, if I DID decide to go gas....it would be carb'd. But I just found an entire 85 Burb with a 6.2 for only 500 bucks. The guy just wants his tranny back. I am going today to try and fire it up. It has been sitting for about 4 years. So I am grabbing my starter and batteries to go see if it works well. I think this will be the easier route, rather than deal with the wiring, mounts, and fuel tanks.... Plus I have 16 gallons of BRAND new diesel in the tank!!! Which is freakin gold!! hahahahahaha. Now I just have to find a place to do the swap..... |
|
gimmie fuel gimmie fire gimmie that which I desire-James Hetfield
*Never give an Irish man good cause for revenge.
*Guns dont kill people, but they sure help!!
*98% OF AMERICANS SAY 'OH S**t' BEFORE GOING IN THE DITCH ON A ICEY ROAD.
THE OTHER 2% ARE FROM ALASKA, AND THEY SAY, 'HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS |
|
|
SnoMan
Lift & Lockers
Posts:943
|
| 09/10/2007 1:14 PM |
|
quote:
Originally posted by ChevyMan0784
Well the deal is that two rods went through the block. Now, if I DID decide to go gas....it would be carb'd. But I just found an entire 85 Burb with a 6.2 for only 500 bucks. The guy just wants his tranny back. I am going today to try and fire it up. It has been sitting for about 4 years. So I am grabbing my starter and batteries to go see if it works well. I think this will be the easier route, rather than deal with the wiring, mounts, and fuel tanks.... Plus I have 16 gallons of BRAND new diesel in the tank!!! Which is freakin gold!! hahahahahaha. Now I just have to find a place to do the swap.....
If it threw rods it was from neglect not a bad design. If you keep the oil in them full and change it every 3K or so the motor can easily go 250 to 300K or more which maybe a pump change or two during that time. The engine itself will outlast a pump or two. |
|
--------------------------
Visit the SnoMan at
www.thesnoman.com |
|
|
ChevyMan0784
Lift & Lockers
Posts:699
|
| 09/10/2007 1:47 PM |
|
| Yea, I am deffinately aware of the whole changing the oil and filter thing. You see, I just bought it with the motor the way it is. I have called many diesel places in town, they all tell me the same thing. That the 6.2L just wasnt that great of a motor. They had head gasket problems (as well did the 5.7 olds), parts are insanely expensive, and they are fairly difficult to work on. Also, with a very large lack of power and tourque...they werent known for their performance prowess. So, besides all of that. The motor looks very clean, as does the trans. The entire truck is immaculate with a perfect body with very clean paint. It came with a slew of maintinence records, and some one loved or just took care of this truck. I have no idea of why the motor blew, but not having oil is a deffinate cause for any motor failure. My hope is that once I put this other diesel in it, that it will last a good long time. I need it to tow my yellow truck to the trail. I dont know if it will even have enough power, but one can hope right?? |
|
gimmie fuel gimmie fire gimmie that which I desire-James Hetfield
*Never give an Irish man good cause for revenge.
*Guns dont kill people, but they sure help!!
*98% OF AMERICANS SAY 'OH S**t' BEFORE GOING IN THE DITCH ON A ICEY ROAD.
THE OTHER 2% ARE FROM ALASKA, AND THEY SAY, 'HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS |
|
|
SnoMan
Lift & Lockers
Posts:943
|
| 09/10/2007 2:52 PM |
|
| When I worked for the government in flight test many years ago we had a few trucks that were late 80's GM 1 ton's stake bed trucks with 6.2's in them and they ran pretty good and I did not find them lacking. The 6.2 (and 6.5) is a pre-chamber engine and it operates better at higher RPM than newer direct injection ones. If you drive it like a new diesel and think you can lug it you will be disapointed but if you kinda drive like a gas motor and do not worry about winding it up to 3000 RPM and more regularly you will find it runs well. The trick is at least a 4.10 axle ratio with stock tires and even a 4.56 if you move a lot of weight. 6.2's that have had head gasket problems are mostly from people overheating them or trying to lug them all the time. If you drive it like above, change oil often and make sure it cooling system is in tip top shape, you will not have any problems with the motor. Unlike the 5.7 diesel which was a converted oldsmobile gas motor, the 6.2 is/was a diesel from day one. The 6.5 is basically a improved 6.2 with stronger heads and engine interanls to take a turbo boost. (you do not really want to turbo a 6.2 and if you do limit boost to about 7 PSI max) |
|
--------------------------
Visit the SnoMan at
www.thesnoman.com |
|
|
webby4x4
Forum Admin, Magazine Editor
Rock Star
Posts:2375
|
| 09/10/2007 3:25 PM |
|
I drove ambulances for years with the 6.2L motor and they did really well. Just mash the gas and let it build up RPM's, and away it went.
I think there were some pretty good upgrades for the motor, and you can even do a propane injection kit for it, which boosts HP and torque by a LOT. I'll see if I can dig up some links for performance tuning.
Rick |
|
Rick Webster
Editor, 4X4REVIEW.COM - A Tork Media, Inc. Publication
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
'74 FJ40 Land Cruiser
"Measure once, cut twice" |
|
|
ChevyMan0784
Lift & Lockers
Posts:699
|
| 09/11/2007 3:15 AM |
|
| By "lugging", what exactly do you mean? I mean, I drive my gas engines pretty hard most of the time. This truck will be an exception to that, it is far too large for that. I will probably just drive it like a normal truck. It is automatic... so I will let it do the work. Unless you recommend shifting it manually. But I did get that other 6.2L it does have about 150k I do believe. The guy said he replace the injector pump twice since he has owned it(since 94 supposedly). And as far as towing, will this truck move a tandem axle flat bed trailer with my mud truck on it? Or is it going to have a huge problem with it.... |
|
gimmie fuel gimmie fire gimmie that which I desire-James Hetfield
*Never give an Irish man good cause for revenge.
*Guns dont kill people, but they sure help!!
*98% OF AMERICANS SAY 'OH S**t' BEFORE GOING IN THE DITCH ON A ICEY ROAD.
THE OTHER 2% ARE FROM ALASKA, AND THEY SAY, 'HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS |
|
|
SnoMan
Lift & Lockers
Posts:943
|
| 09/11/2007 3:47 AM |
|
quote:
Originally posted by ChevyMan0784
By "lugging", what exactly do you mean? I mean, I drive my gas engines pretty hard most of the time. This truck will be an exception to that, it is far too large for that. I will probably just drive it like a normal truck. It is automatic... so I will let it do the work. Unless you recommend shifting it manually. But I did get that other 6.2L it does have about 150k I do believe. The guy said he replace the injector pump twice since he has owned it(since 94 supposedly). And as far as towing, will this truck move a tandem axle flat bed trailer with my mud truck on it? Or is it going to have a huge problem with it....
By "lugging" it I mean forcing it to work hard at lower RPM's on long pulls without down shifting. (do not be afraid to down shift on a long climb and let it run a higher RPM while WOT) Most modern direct injection diesel owners would tend to pull them hard at lower RPM and shudder at the though of hitting 3000 RPM or more regularly. Do not be afraid to wind this one up getting a heavy load moving. As far as a tow tug, if you have about a 4.56 behind it with stock tires it should do okay as long as you are not planning to set speed record on long hills. While not overly powerful it is a pretty sturdy mill if tended to properly. |
|
--------------------------
Visit the SnoMan at
www.thesnoman.com |
|
|
ChevyMan0784
Lift & Lockers
Posts:699
|
| 09/11/2007 1:26 PM |
|
| Sounds good. What about anykind of bolt ons? I have looked low and high and have found no "in a box power adders". Aside of doing a turbo, (which seems very complicated for a truck that didnt come with it originally), or propane injection.... is there anything else? And for the propane, is it difficult to add that... and is it safe for an older motor? I might just go with propane if it wont tear the motor apart. |
|
gimmie fuel gimmie fire gimmie that which I desire-James Hetfield
*Never give an Irish man good cause for revenge.
*Guns dont kill people, but they sure help!!
*98% OF AMERICANS SAY 'OH S**t' BEFORE GOING IN THE DITCH ON A ICEY ROAD.
THE OTHER 2% ARE FROM ALASKA, AND THEY SAY, 'HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS |
|
|
SnoMan
Lift & Lockers
Posts:943
|
| 09/11/2007 2:27 PM |
|
| I think I would try propane injection as it boosts power by improving efficiency. I would stay away from a turbo because the 6.5 version of that motor was modified with thicker heads and better hardware to allow it to be turbo charged. Also prechamber engines do not see a big boost in power with turbos anyway. Proper gears for load will hep you more than anything else and not hurt longevity either. |
|
--------------------------
Visit the SnoMan at
www.thesnoman.com |
|
|
ChevyMan0784
Lift & Lockers
Posts:699
|
| 09/11/2007 5:00 PM |
|
| Well, that sounds pretty good. Once I get this new motor in the truck, and take care of some other minor stuff like the king pins....I will look into propane injection!! |
|
gimmie fuel gimmie fire gimmie that which I desire-James Hetfield
*Never give an Irish man good cause for revenge.
*Guns dont kill people, but they sure help!!
*98% OF AMERICANS SAY 'OH S**t' BEFORE GOING IN THE DITCH ON A ICEY ROAD.
THE OTHER 2% ARE FROM ALASKA, AND THEY SAY, 'HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS |
|
|
webby4x4
Forum Admin, Magazine Editor
Rock Star
Posts:2375
|
| 09/11/2007 5:53 PM |
|
| Propane injection works pretty well with that motor. It stinks like hell, but then again, so does Diesel. ;) |
|
Rick Webster
Editor, 4X4REVIEW.COM - A Tork Media, Inc. Publication
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
'74 FJ40 Land Cruiser
"Measure once, cut twice" |
|
|
ChevyMan0784
Lift & Lockers
Posts:699
|
| 09/11/2007 7:55 PM |
|
| that is the hope!! the working well part. Maybe not the stink....lol. This motor does have like 150k on it ( the new to me one). So is there anything that I should look at before I put it in? I am going to fire it up in the suburban that it is in...just to see if it works. Anything I should look for? |
|
gimmie fuel gimmie fire gimmie that which I desire-James Hetfield
*Never give an Irish man good cause for revenge.
*Guns dont kill people, but they sure help!!
*98% OF AMERICANS SAY 'OH S**t' BEFORE GOING IN THE DITCH ON A ICEY ROAD.
THE OTHER 2% ARE FROM ALASKA, AND THEY SAY, 'HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS |
|
|
SnoMan
Lift & Lockers
Posts:943
|
| 09/12/2007 4:11 AM |
|
| Might pull pan and eyeball it to see if it is clean and pull a bear cap or too as well and replace rear main seal while engine is out. I tend to replace these things on old engines whether they need it or not because they are a pain to change later. (It would be a good time to replace front main seal too) BTW, 150k is not many miles for the engine a$$embly itself if it has very well maintained. |
|
--------------------------
Visit the SnoMan at
www.thesnoman.com |
|
|
ChevyMan0784
Lift & Lockers
Posts:699
|
| 09/12/2007 12:33 PM |
|
| Well, I guess I can only hope and guess as to the internal condition of the motor. And hope that it was well taken care of. I am not sure though, this suburban that it is coming out of was plow truck. And it is on a second rebuilt THM400. So it may have been abused some. |
|
gimmie fuel gimmie fire gimmie that which I desire-James Hetfield
*Never give an Irish man good cause for revenge.
*Guns dont kill people, but they sure help!!
*98% OF AMERICANS SAY 'OH S**t' BEFORE GOING IN THE DITCH ON A ICEY ROAD.
THE OTHER 2% ARE FROM ALASKA, AND THEY SAY, 'HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS |
|
|
SnoMan
Lift & Lockers
Posts:943
|
| 09/12/2007 1:11 PM |
|
| I have a old 79 J20 that I plowed snow with for many year until I retired it a few years ago. It had a very hard life and never had any tranny problems with its THM400. Still works good today. |
|
--------------------------
Visit the SnoMan at
www.thesnoman.com |
|
|
ChevyMan0784
Lift & Lockers
Posts:699
|
| 09/14/2007 2:18 PM |
|
| And that is the reason that I believe that this truck has been abused some. I personally have never been able to kill a THM400. Sounds like it was just alot of shifting (it was a plow truck), or maybe had a leak at some point and smoked it. But anyways, I am going to go for it and begin the transplant this weekend. So wish me luck, I think I am going to need it. |
|
gimmie fuel gimmie fire gimmie that which I desire-James Hetfield
*Never give an Irish man good cause for revenge.
*Guns dont kill people, but they sure help!!
*98% OF AMERICANS SAY 'OH S**t' BEFORE GOING IN THE DITCH ON A ICEY ROAD.
THE OTHER 2% ARE FROM ALASKA, AND THEY SAY, 'HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS |
|
|
sammy 87
Street Queen
Posts:107
|
| 09/20/2007 8:17 PM |
|
| I agree with snoman the 6.2 is a good engine I think you will get more miles out of it than the gas 350 dont get me wrong im a big fan of the 350 but i think for a one ton a diesel would be best for lets say towing and if you wanted more put a turbo on it. also the t400 is agreast toruqe tranny great for pulling. |
|
|
|
|
ChevyMan0784
Lift & Lockers
Posts:699
|
| 09/20/2007 11:13 PM |
|
| I do agree. And, I have made my decision. If no one buys it by snowfall, it stays. Then next summer (or this winter), the D60 and THM400 and NP205 go into my shortbed. Plus I need some sheet metal. And that 4 core radiator sounds good, as does the tranny cooler. Man, the more I think about it....I am going to just keep it and scavange the sucker!!! |
|
gimmie fuel gimmie fire gimmie that which I desire-James Hetfield
*Never give an Irish man good cause for revenge.
*Guns dont kill people, but they sure help!!
*98% OF AMERICANS SAY 'OH S**t' BEFORE GOING IN THE DITCH ON A ICEY ROAD.
THE OTHER 2% ARE FROM ALASKA, AND THEY SAY, 'HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS |
|
|
SnoMan
Lift & Lockers
Posts:943
|
| 09/21/2007 4:36 AM |
|
quote:
Originally posted by sammy 87
I agree with snoman the 6.2 is a good engine I think you will get more miles out of it than the gas 350 dont get me wrong im a big fan of the 350 but i think for a one ton a diesel would be best for lets say towing and if you wanted more put a turbo on it. also the t400 is agreast toruqe tranny great for pulling.
A 350 can last a very long time with a oil cooler and frequent oil changes. I new a guy that put 310,000 mile on a 71 caprice with a 350 and THM350. All original. As far as turbo, again you do really want to turbo a 6.2. The 6.5 which replaced 6.2. (and is basically a improved 6.2) It has thicker stronger heads and head bolting along with some other beef ups to support a turbo boost. |
|
--------------------------
Visit the SnoMan at
www.thesnoman.com |
|
|
ChevyMan0784
Lift & Lockers
Posts:699
|
| 09/21/2007 4:58 PM |
|
| Well, I tell you guys what. If you want this 6.2L, then I will give it to you FREE FREE FREE!!!! You just pay shipping, and I will even take it down to Lynden Transport for you! haha, just kidding, unless you really want it. Nah, I am going to tear this truck apart for parts. |
|
gimmie fuel gimmie fire gimmie that which I desire-James Hetfield
*Never give an Irish man good cause for revenge.
*Guns dont kill people, but they sure help!!
*98% OF AMERICANS SAY 'OH S**t' BEFORE GOING IN THE DITCH ON A ICEY ROAD.
THE OTHER 2% ARE FROM ALASKA, AND THEY SAY, 'HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS |
|
|
webby4x4
Forum Admin, Magazine Editor
Rock Star
Posts:2375
|
| 09/21/2007 7:40 PM |
|
| Well, for $800, you can't go wrong with a great parts truck! |
|
Rick Webster
Editor, 4X4REVIEW.COM - A Tork Media, Inc. Publication
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
'74 FJ40 Land Cruiser
"Measure once, cut twice" |
|
|