good mileage/performance set up
 

hey guys i love my 77 chevy big ten but i think its time for a new truck becouse it aint good on gas and dad wont let me mod my truck. and heres my situation im 17 and im broke. by the end of skool i will have about a grand saved up for a truck and i will be working this summer so ill have a little bit of cash saved up. well i kinda need an idea of a cheap set up for good power and mileage. ive been looking at short bed 2wd 80's chevys with like a 350 and 700r4s. so i guess my main question is what are some good bolt ons for the motor to bump up power without sacrificing mileage or improving mileage.

thanks guys
josh

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

go TBI i dont think your gas mileage will be better by getting a 80s carb truck and with auto

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

how hard would it be to convert an older truck to tbi? i heard they can have some probs when they get hopped up somthin with the computer? i think

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

First you need to set a realistic budget. How much will you be able to save over the Summer, and put with the 1000 you might have by the end of school. You say your Dad won't let you mod this truck, but you plan to buy another one to mod. That's a bit confusing.

If your current truck is pretty solid, then talk to your Dad about making changes to improve the economy. If that won't work, then you need to consider a smaller truck like an S-10.

Your not going to be able to buy a full size GM truck in good condition AND make mods to improve performance and MPG with the budget you have. I suggest you buy a economical small truck and keep your full size to fix up later in life.

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

ok so the thing about my truck when dad bought it new in 77 one of the reasons he bough it was to see how long it would last and its gone over 200,000 miles with no rebuild and i think he wants it to last forever idk. heres how he put it "do you know how many yards i had to mow to pay for that truck... so leave it alone" i guess hes what you would call touchy bout his first truck

i plan to make at least 3000 total by the end of summer and you can pick up a perty solid square body around here for like 1500

and about the s-10s me and them dont get along well i usilly end up putin them through heck and back. yea if only my dads s-10 could talk...

so whats some good mods i can work in to a budget of 1500 dollers

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

This guy did a TBI set up for $325 after selling a few parts. http://users.sfo.com/~eagle/howell.html

Aftermarket TBI kits are plentiful and under $1K. Look at TBI systems from www.jegs.com and www.summitracing.com.

Find a 96 and later 350, add TBI and you've got a great truck with FI, milage and power.

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

ok so i went over the article posted above and it aint sounding as bad as i thought so thats another option for me. didnt they make a square body called like an r 10 or somthing with tbi? were them trucks eny count? if i could get a truck with tbi already that would work better in the long run couse i wouldnt have to shell out 325-900 some bucks becouse i already have fuel injection and i can just spend my money on mods. i think also im gonna get the best truck i can afford, i dont want nothin i have to go home and go to work on right away(im done with them types of projects).

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

r/v series is a renamed c/k for square bodies, they changed it since the 88-98 were going to be called c/k 1500,2500, and 3500

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

it sounds like you need to sell the 77' back to your dad since he is so attached to it and find your OWN first truck that you CAN make mods to. I personally with a 3k budget would find a older toyota or small truck. the square bodies are great trucks but even with all the best parts the extra cylinders are going to eat up gas. since you said you beat up trucks then you need to either take better care of your stuff or get a better job to buy a better truck.

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

It sounds like your going to need to do some growing up this Summer. We have all done our share of beating on cars/trucks when we were younger. Now is the time to realize the value of what you drive and take better care of it.

To answer your question, the 1987 trucks were the only year that 10 series truck came with TBI. They are good trucks, but they weren't great on MPG.

I agree with scottsdaleowner75. If Dad is so attached that he won't let you work on the 77 it might be time to step out and get your own truck. I'll go back to my original statement that your not going to get great mileage out of a full size GM truck. If that's what your after, find a truck with 3.08 or 3.42 gears, an OD transmission, and a well tuned 4 barrel. Then learn to drive it with some control, and your mileage will get better.

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

yea i dont drive my 77 that ruff becouse it is my only transporation. i get about 10-13 mpg outta my truck which aint bad. but my buddie had a 76 gmc 3/4 ton truck with a 350 and like a towing cam and headers and a t-5 and he got like 17 mpg when he drove it rite and it was quick also. i would be thrilled to death with like 16-17 mpg or better if possable.

would 3.42 gears still have good pull off the line? all ive ever had was either 3.73s or 4.11s there strong off the line but neither would be good for a daily driver.

yea i guess its just best to get a new truck make it a good daily and mabey somday on down the road dad will let me fix it up even if it will still be put back 100% stock becouse of him i could just enjoy the restoration.


so whats some parts that i could bolt on for better milage. i was pondering on some vortec heads, some kind of low rise duel plane manifold and some headers and a cam but like whats the best parts to be bolting up for milage

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

3.08's and inline 6 with OD trans lol good luck taking offf

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

"so whats some parts that i could bolt on for better milage. i was pondering on some vortec heads, some kind of low rise duel plane manifold and some headers and a cam but like whats the best parts to be bolting up for milage"

Based on this statement that you made, think about the investment versus return. You said you can get 13 mpg and would be happy with 16mpg. That is only on extra 45 miles per tank of gas.

I would analyze it from a mathematical standpoint to see if its even worth spending the money (I have taken some liberties to show you what I mean):

---13mpg x 15 gallon tank is 195 miles per tank of gas
---16mpg x 15 gallon tank is 240 miles per tank of gas
---at 13mpg, if you fill up once a week your driving 10140 miles a year (195miles a week x 52 weeks a year) or 52 tanks of gas a year
---at 16mpg, driving 10140 miles a year would average 42.25 tanks of gas a year.
---if gas is $3 gallon with a 15 gallon tank (filling up once a week) thats $45 a tank ( times 52 weeks a year) = $2340
---If gas is $3 gallon with a 15 gallon tank (and your getting 16mpg thats 42.25 fill ups a year) that = $1901.25

So by spending $1000 in better gas mileage you will save $438.75 a year. That means you will drive nearly 2.5 years before you break even on your investment.. If you fill up 2x a month then it would be nearly 5 years before you broke even on your investment. Now if your filling up your tank 2-3 times a week, it makes a lot more sense to invest in better mileage, or even a different car with better mileage.

Just wanted to provide you with another way to look at your investment of mpg's so you can see if its worth it to you. Good luck with your decision...

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

thanks gregs71 thats perty interesting so ide have to drive it a while to get my moneys worth out of it. well i still gotta get a new truck couse the old truck aint getin the job done on gas. what kinda gas mileage are yall geting with you old trucks?

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

like 8 maybe suck it up and drive it

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

I dont get it ... you are trying to mod up the truck but get mpg at the same type,, I dont think they can combine,, once you mod up, even if you are not abusing it, you will "get on it" and there goes you mpg... mpg and MOD UP, dont mix too well imo

Re: good mileage/performance set up
 

im just lookin like 300 horses couse that would be more than strong enough for me

wasnt there a thread a while back bout what kind of mpg people were geting from there trucks i searched it last nite but i couldnt find it