choosing an engine

[Midgets50]

i currently have a chevy 350 going into my 51 3600, but am looking for a good diesel as an alternative. im looking for something with decent mileage and something that is fairly common so i wont have much problems finding it. any help or advice is greatly appreciated
thanks in advance

[mknittle]

4bt cummins. they are shorter than the 6 and there are tons of old bread trucks with them with gm bell housings some have TH 400s. I bet youu could get close to 30mpg with one.

http://www.4btswaps.com/forum/forum.php

[arturo7]

Might be blasphemy to say this here, but the Mercedes OM617 is a beast. Aftermarket adapter plates are available to link up to a GM tranny.

Before you go the diesel route, look at the numbers carefully. You've got to do quite a bit of driving to justify the extra costs involved. Plus, a diesel is quite expensive to rebuild. Just food for thought...

[mknittle]

Mercedes OM617 is a slug and expencive. I had a friend that had one and my dodge 1ton with the 6bt got better mileage and was way faster. and that was before I turned up the fuel pump. besides parts avalibality the cummins has it beat hands down. how many Mercedes engines do you see in pumps in slap out oklahoma?

At $4.00 a gallon it would add up pretty quick.

[mr48chev]

I have to agree with arturo7 in that the payback with a diesel may be slow in coming unless you intend to put a serious amount of miles on the truck. Or unless you pick up a diesel for a decent price that doesn't need a rebuild.

The other option might be to sit down and figure out what you could do with the 350 to improve gas mileage.
fuel injection and a good distributor to match along with the right cam and rear axle gearing might give you a big jump.

I've got a buddy who's lost track of how many tpi swaps he has done in his shop and his customers usually see big gains in gas mileage along with gains in performance.

[Midgets50]

Thanks for all the input so far. out here diesel is only around 3.90. gas is at 3.60. im gonna be driving it at least 50 miles a day and the carburetorated 350 i have right now might get 12 mpg. don't know for sure but my unlce has one and it gets 12 if hes lucky. plus im gonna have about 37" tires so the diesel would have the extra torque. anyone know what one of the diesels motors would run for price??

[Midgets50]

if the diesel doesnt work out what could i do to the carbed 350 to help increase my mpgs

[mknittle]

The one thing people forget about a diesel engine Is maintainance. 400,000 is common.
no spark plugs no plug wires no cap no rotor. In 16 years and 200,000 miles on my 6bt All I have replaced is a water pump. and a couple batterys.

Now the truckis falling apart around the engine.

[mknittle]

Originally Posted by Midgets50

Thanks for all the input so far. out here diesel is only around 3.90. gas is at 3.60. im gonna be driving it at least 50 miles a day and the carburetorated 350 i have right now might get 12 mpg. don't know for sure but my unlce has one and it gets 12 if hes lucky. plus im gonna have about 37" tires so the diesel would have the extra torque. anyone know what one of the diesels motors would run for price??

I saw a bread truck for $1000 with a 4bt and turbo 400.

[arturo7]

Originally Posted by Midgets50

anyone know what one of the diesels motors would run for price??

Search on eBay for reference pricing.

[mr48chev]

Guys have been picking those bread trucks with the 4bt engines up through auctions but the last one I bid on was two states away. I figured I'd have to drive 600 miles and then tow my daily driver back behind the bread truck with a tow bar.
It's pretty much like buying a pig in poke though as you never really know what you will get or if you will make it home with it.
Here is the auction site I have bid on but haven't had success yet. I'm probably too cheap though.
http://www.go-dove.com/en/search/sea....asp?Query=4BT
From reading those adds several of them don't run and the rest seem to have lost their batteries.

[Midgets50]

been alot of help. unless i can find one for under 1000 around here i think on my budget im gonna have to use my 350 and try to improve the mpg best as i can

[Russell Ashley]

An easier upgrade would be a 5.3 out of a late model Suburban, along with the tranny. I have an 02 Burb and it gets close to 20 on the highway and about 17-18 in daily driving. And it doesn't vibrate like a 4BT would when it's idling.

[1project2many]

Carby engine tuning is becoming a lost art. 4bbl carb for mileage? Stick to Quadrajet. Yep, it's more complicated but yep, it can be made to get better mileage than a Holley. Trial and error is the name of the game. Go lean on the primary jets. If rear gears are numerically higher (3.90, 4.10) and rear tires aren't too tall (29" or below) use a heavier power valve spring. With more highway type gears and / or taller tires use a lighter power valve spring. Wind airhorn (secondary air valve) spring 1 to 1 1/4 turns (no more) with lower turns being for lower number gears. Select secondary metering rods with faster taper and smaller OD at tip. Ensure air valve is fully closed at idle. The whole idea is to make it so you aren't accidentally using the power enrichment when trying to cruise or drive easy in town. I had a 455 Buick in a 79 Monte that regularly got 18mpg after matching to proper rear gear and careful tuning. This is without overdrive. Those engines were usually in the 10 - 12 range.

Fuel injection tends to run for more years with less maintenance than a carb. FYI. Agree with the late model 5.3 install or even the smaller 4.??

As to diesel engines, OM617 is cheap these days depending on where you're at. Rusty MB's are for sale for under $1500 all day around here. Mine cost $200 and burns anything I can put into the tank short of small rodents. Acceleration though is something else. I press the pedal, sit back, and wait for the post office to deliver it. I think it comes by pony express. But 26 to 30 mpg in a car that weighs 3k lbs and runs down the highway spinning the engine at 3000 rpm is nothing to scoff at when you're commuting.

[mknittle]

Originally Posted by 1project2many

Carby engine tuning is becoming a lost art. 4bbl carb for mileage? Stick to Quadrajet. Yep, it's more complicated but yep, it can be made to get better mileage than a Holley. Trial and error is the name of the game. Go lean on the primary jets. If rear gears are numerically higher (3.90, 4.10) and rear tires aren't too tall (29" or below) use a heavier power valve spring. With more highway type gears and / or taller tires use a lighter power valve spring. Wind airhorn (secondary air valve) spring 1 to 1 1/4 turns (no more) with lower turns being for lower number gears. Select secondary metering rods with faster taper and smaller OD at tip. Ensure air valve is fully closed at idle. The whole idea is to make it so you aren't accidentally using the power enrichment when trying to cruise or drive easy in town. I had a 455 Buick in a 79 Monte that regularly got 18mpg after matching to proper rear gear and careful tuning. This is without overdrive. Those engines were usually in the 10 - 12 range.

Fuel injection tends to run for more years with less maintenance than a carb. FYI. Agree with the late model 5.3 install or even the smaller 4.??

As to diesel engines, OM617 is cheap these days depending on where you're at. Rusty MB's are for sale for under $1500 all day around here. Mine cost $200 and burns anything I can put into the tank short of small rodents. Acceleration though is something else. I press the pedal, sit back, and wait for the post office to deliver it. I think it comes by pony express. But 26 to 30 mpg in a car that weighs 3k lbs and runs down the highway spinning the engine at 3000 rpm is nothing to scoff at when you're commuting.

I press the pedal, sit back, and wait for the post office to deliver it.