ENGINES!!! What would you do?? Check it out!

[71ChevySS(straight6)]

Hello again! So, I've decided to take action. I'm pulling my 250. It needed a head gasket and intake gasket, plus it had low compression in cylinder 2, and it was choking itself out with antifreeze-tainted oil blowing into the breathe tube on the valve cover. At 44 years and 133,000 miles, it finally bit the dust.

The dilemma: what do I put in it now? I have approximately $2,000 to put into this.

-A fresh 250 would be the cheapest, easiest option. All the old parts (carb, hoses, fuel lines, radiator hoses, etc) would bolt right back up. Since it's cheaper, I can afford to splurge a bit and buy a header or headers, do a dual exhaust, maybe go up to a 2-barrel carb, maybe a Clifford intake, and possibly a performance cam.

-A 350 would be the traditional route to go. But, it would require different radiator hoses, fuel lines, motor mounts, etc.

-I found a freshly rebuilt 283 on Craigslist recently. It needs a lot (carb, headers, serpentine assembly, distributor, etc) but the guy only wants $300 for it. Are 283s any good?

-I have also considered a Cummins swap. Practical? Maybe not. Unique? Very. I'd have to upgrade suspension and completely redesign electrical and fuel systems, along with just the struggle of making it fit.

I will definitely swap out the rear gears. Currently, there's no way they're not 4,10s, maybe even 4.56s. The truck has to rev about 2500 RPM to go 45 MPH. So, 3.73s or 3.65s?

What about transmissions? The NP 435 has seen better days...
What do you guys think? Any suggestions? Thanks!

[Ft.ValloniaStreaker]

-I have also considered a Cummins swap. Practical? Maybe not. Unique? Very.

Have you considered a 4B or 4BT? Check out old bread trucks and some commercial applications they run around $1000-1500 around here and should pull you around just fine.......

[Greasey Harley]

165hp MerCruiser or OMC, Can be had with super low hours on the cheap. MC's also have the added advantage of finned aluminum valve cover.
Trick is to find a junk boat with a good motor. I have had people give them to me.
Added bonus; They'll turn 4500 rpms all day long!

[ho70]

283's are very good motors. Corvettes had them. For $300 bucks you can't go wrong. SBC parts are cheap and used headers, manifolds and carbs are all out there cheap. You may find a 327 or 350 for $300 as well. Chev tranys are cheap as well and I am sure you can do a swap for under $2k. A cummins swap should be more $$$$

[Nitis]

Does the 250 meet your needs?

Anything you do different you will have to make modifications that equals more dollars and choices that can unravel your budget in a hurry

Now I would look at it if the 250 works for you and let's say you can do it for $500. There $1500 to go towrds the rest of your truck.

[leftybass209]

The dilemma: what do I put in it now? I have approximately $2,000 to put into this. What are your goals for the truck? Towing? Hauling?

-A fresh 250 would be the cheapest, easiest option. All the old parts (carb, hoses, fuel lines, radiator hoses, etc) would bolt right back up. Since it's cheaper, I can afford to splurge a bit and buy a header or headers, do a dual exhaust, maybe go up to a 2-barrel carb, maybe a Clifford intake, and possibly a performance cam.
You're probably right, but are you happy with your 6?

-I found a freshly rebuilt 283 on Craigslist recently. It needs a lot (carb, headers, serpentine assembly, distributor, etc) but the guy only wants $300 for it. Are 283s any good?
Yes, it's a great motor. 300 bucks would have me questioning everything about it though.

-I have also considered a Cummins swap. Practical? Maybe not. Unique? Very. I'd have to upgrade suspension and completely redesign electrical and fuel systems, along with just the struggle of making it fit.
This is not a 2k swap. It's been done a couple times but the amount of fabrication and time involved exceeds the budget you set for yourself.

I will definitely swap out the rear gears. Currently, there's no way they're not 4,10s, maybe even 4.56s. The truck has to rev about 2500 RPM to go 45 MPH. So, 3.73s or 3.65s?
You need a transmission and an end goal for the truck before you need to worry about gearing

What about transmissions? The NP 435 has seen better days...
What do you guys think? Any suggestions?
Depends on the motor you choose and what you plan to do with the truck.

If you haven't noticed, you need to know what you want from your truck before any of this is decided, then there's a hierarchy of what you decide from there. I can say SM465 with granny low behind a 283 with 3.73 gears, but that means nothing to you if you want to cruise at 70 on the freeway and never tow or haul anything. MORE INFO PLEASE!!!!!!

[MidLifer]

Before a Cummins I would consider a LS swap. 4.8s are cheap, 5.3s not that much more and if you can find a wrecked truck you can pull all the trimmings along with it. Then you'll have a 400K motor that gets great mileage and starts on the first turn of the key every time. There is a ton of info on this forum about LS swaps including how to do them on a (relative) budget.

[Mock1]

Originally Posted by MidLifer

Before a Cummins I would consider a LS swap. 4.8s are cheap, 5.3s not that much more and if you can find a wrecked truck you can pull all the trimmings along with it. Then you'll have a 400K motor that gets great mileage and starts on the first turn of the key every time. There is a ton of info on this forum about LS swaps including how to do them on a (relative) budget.

X2
I see complete 5.3s on craigslist all the time for not much more than that 283, then it wont matter what your plans are for the truck. You'll be covering all the bases, power, reliability, efficiency, LOW MAINTENANCE!

[Crabass]

Take your time and shop around a while if you have the time. Any of the small block (Gen I/II) engines will require the same components for conversion from the sixbanger. An LS swap can get complicated, and I would think cause you to most likely go over-budget. Same with the diesel. A bit too far from the beaten path if you are hoping for a relatively easy swap.

I'd pass on the 283------"freshly rebuilt" could mean most anything, depending on who you asked it of. Just my opinion, but short-stroke engines aren't the best choice for full size truck duty.

In my opinion (again), it would be, from a value & performance standpoint, hard to beat the L31 Vortec (5.7L) 350 for a truck engine. Not exotic or glamorous, but if you're expecting to impress the crowds you'd better plan on spending quite a bit more than $2K. Of course, shopping for a used engine is a whole 'nuther topic, do your homework, a LOT of it!

The later model 5 speed truck transmission seems like a worthwhile upgrade, but I don't have any personal experience with it or the swap.

[Tango59]

I had a 283 with PowerPack heads in a 56 Apache.... Great little engine and plenty of parts still around.

[Nitis]

For example I was dead set on LS swap for a while. Well I have decided to pull my engine and see if it's worth freshening up or if not I'll buy a crate 350 of some variety. Then put it all back together in a week or sos time.

Then shortly after I recover from that investment I'm going to do a bolt on Stand alone tbi set up. Again quick turn around back on the road shorter down times smaller chunks of cash.

No LS for me was more involved time and money wise because of the 4x4

[Nitis]

Sure my tbi won't be as sexy as other options but my 93 has 300k on it still runs great and gets 17 mpg

[Scottcoda]

I had a choice to put a 350 in my truck when I first got it but stuck with my 250.. I have been able to find great deals on parts on eBay and amazon. You can find Clifford intakes on ebay all the time and I paid under 200.00 for headers delivered to my house from amazon.. Then had them powder coated for 100 bucks
.. When I am at shows my truck pulls a lot of attention I wish I could say it is because my truck looks fantastic.. It does not.. Its the 250 with a holley 4 barrel that people check out.. It's a great conversation piece and something people don't see everyday. But if your looking performance go with the 350.. To get a 250 to really put out serious horse power is very expensive and still may not be where you might want it

[mikecaddy500]

Picked up a 98 1500 for 1200. Swapping 350 & 700r4 into my 72. plenty of power and good gas mileage to boot!

[FrankenCub]

I'm in a similar situation, milling about which way to go. I seen a new GM 290hp 350 that Summit sells locally for $1650. Also have been looking at various 4.8 and 5.3 gen4 engines with around 100k miles on them for $500-$1300. I don't care much about injection but for another $500 convert it to a carb with MSD ignition. With an auto tranny it's almost bolt it. Manual you need a Sachs flywheel and BBC 621 bell housing. I have been kinda leery bout using a used engine but everything I've read on the newer gen engines I don't think it would be an issue. If you want a gen 1, look at ebay. Summit and Jegs have sales there and there's a couple other Chevy parts outlets (might be dealers) selling older stock for good prices.
Good luck lmao
I'm still pulling my hair out trying to decide

[mechanicalman]

I'd replace the head gasket and intake gaskets, and have the head freshened up. Of course the compression will be low on one cylinder because of the blown head gasket but you could just fix the gasket for that. 123,000 miles is not that much if it had the oil changed regularly and not driven overheating all the time.

Hey at least tear it down for inspection to see if it's feasible, you are going to have to either fix it or replace it anyway. Maybe if it looks good you could put the cam/intake/headers on the old engine.

You could drain the oil out of the old manual trans and put new in, that might help though I don't know how bad "it's seen better days" really is.

Or get a donor car that has a 350ci/350TH that runs good any body condition and obtain what you must to make it fit. It's been done many times you can search this site to see what has to be done. You will have to remove the "bell housing engine mounts cross-member" probably.

I'm not a fan of hot-rodding the 250 six, but if done right I know they can surprise you. To me V8/automatic is the way to go.

You might find a donor car with an overdrive that would make your rear gears more acceptable. You should check to see what gear ratio you really have just jack up one rear wheel, turn the driveshaft until the one wheel turns 2 full turns and note how many times you turned the driveshaft. If you turned the driveshaft 4.1 revolutions to 2 wheel turns then you have 4.11 gears.

If you have posi-traction, jack up both rear wheels and turn the driveshaft until both rear wheels turn once, and again count the driveshafte revs and that will be your ratio. If the driveshaft turned 4.1 revs while both rear wheels turned once then it's a 4.11.

Kinda makes it easier to plan what to do. You might be surprised and actually have 3.55 or 3.73 gears but even 4.11 would somewhat work with an overdrive.

[Don Quixote]

Many years ago I swapped my 292 for a 350. I can't complain about my 350 considering the abuse I have submitted it to, it has been quite good to me. These days though I really miss the old 292. It would make my VIN match the engine and it really was a little workhorse despite the godawful noises it made at high RPM. If someone dropped one on my lap rebuilt with the fixings ready to install, I would probably twitch until I did it.

[HSRACER]

It is incredibly hard to beat a good 350 with a 700r transmission. You can pick up both for way less than 2k and have the money left to buy the necessary brackets, hoses and exhaust work. You won't be sad.

Ls motors are the absolute best option for engines in our trucks. My experience is they are wonderful when installed but I always went over budget because of so many modifications required.

I would stick to the 350/700r with a 2k budget.

[71ChevySS(straight6)]

Originally Posted by Ft.ValloniaStreaker

-I have also considered a Cummins swap. Practical? Maybe not. Unique? Very.

Have you considered a 4B or 4BT? Check out old bread trucks and some commercial applications they run around $1000-1500 around here and should pull you around just fine.......

The 4BT was my original idea, but I live in southeast Kansas and I've looked everywhere on the internet for one in my area and have found nothing for less than $2,500. Maybe I could find one in a scrap/salvage yard, I haven't looked there yet. A 6BT would be more common in my area.

[71ChevySS(straight6)]

Originally Posted by Greasey Harley

165hp MerCruiser or OMC, Can be had with super low hours on the cheap. MC's also have the added advantage of finned aluminum valve cover.
Trick is to find a junk boat with a good motor. I have had people give them to me.
Added bonus; They'll turn 4500 rpms all day long!

Interesting! I'll have to look into it!

[71ChevySS(straight6)]

Originally Posted by ho70

283's are very good motors. Corvettes had them. For $300 bucks you can't go wrong. SBC parts are cheap and used headers, manifolds and carbs are all out there cheap. You may find a 327 or 350 for $300 as well. Chev tranys are cheap as well and I am sure you can do a swap for under $2k. A cummins swap should be more $$$$

Right. SBC parts are everywhere lol the Cummins swap would most likely be around $3,000.

[71ChevySS(straight6)]

Originally Posted by Nitis

Does the 250 meet your needs?

Anything you do different you will have to make modifications that equals more dollars and choices that can unravel your budget in a hurry

Now I would look at it if the 250 works for you and let's say you can do it for $500. There $1500 to go towrds the rest of your truck.

Yeah, it meets my needs. I'm not the go-fast type (although my Dad's 12-Valve Cummins will certainly move down the road lol), it pulls the loads I put behind it (which isn't much), and pushes me down the road. I'd like to upgrade, but I don't need to necessarily.

You've got a very valid point. Thank you sir!

[71ChevySS(straight6)]

Originally Posted by leftybass209

-What are your goals for the truck? Towing? Hauling?

-You're probably right, but are you happy with your 6?

-Yes, it's a great motor. 300 bucks would have me questioning everything about it though.

-This is not a 2k swap. It's been done a couple times but the amount of fabrication and time involved exceeds the budget you set for yourself.

-You need a transmission and an end goal for the truck before you need to worry about gearing

-Depends on the motor you choose and what you plan to do with the truck.

If you haven't noticed, you need to know what you want from your truck before any of this is decided, then there's a hierarchy of what you decide from there. I can say SM465 with granny low behind a 283 with 3.73 gears, but that means nothing to you if you want to cruise at 70 on the freeway and never tow or haul anything. MORE INFO PLEASE!!!!!!

I will be pulling things occasionally, but with this truck I plan to completely restore it and just drive it for fun. I'll buy a second-gen Dodge Ram someday for my puller / DD.

Yeah, it does what I want it to do. I'd like to go bigger, but it's not a necessity.

Good point.

True. I was only planning to do it if I could pull one out of a wrecked truck for real cheap.



The truck is just gonna be a toy once I restore it (which is what I'm going to college to do next fall, gonna get my Bachelors in Automotive Restoration). I will very rarely, if ever, hook it up to a trailer or load up the bed after I restore it.

Thanks for the help!

[71ChevySS(straight6)]

Originally Posted by MidLifer

Before a Cummins I would consider a LS swap. 4.8s are cheap, 5.3s not that much more and if you can find a wrecked truck you can pull all the trimmings along with it. Then you'll have a 400K motor that gets great mileage and starts on the first turn of the key every time. There is a ton of info on this forum about LS swaps including how to do them on a (relative) budget.

I certainly have considered one. They're plentiful on Craigslist around here lol and not very expensive. In fact, a few for $650 come with a warranty! The main problem I see with that is wiring the computer system up.

[71ChevySS(straight6)]

Originally Posted by Crabass

Take your time and shop around a while if you have the time. Any of the small block (Gen I/II) engines will require the same components for conversion from the sixbanger. An LS swap can get complicated, and I would think cause you to most likely go over-budget. Same with the diesel. A bit too far from the beaten path if you are hoping for a relatively easy swap.

I'd pass on the 283------"freshly rebuilt" could mean most anything, depending on who you asked it of. Just my opinion, but short-stroke engines aren't the best choice for full size truck duty.

In my opinion (again), it would be, from a value & performance standpoint, hard to beat the L31 Vortec (5.7L) 350 for a truck engine. Not exotic or glamorous, but if you're expecting to impress the crowds you'd better plan on spending quite a bit more than $2K. Of course, shopping for a used engine is a whole 'nuther topic, do your homework, a LOT of it!

The later model 5 speed truck transmission seems like a worthwhile upgrade, but I don't have any personal experience with it or the swap.

All valid points. Thanks for the input!