350 vs. 2F

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I'm a 2F fan. I love that the engine will pull from 800 rpm without complaining and will creep along a trail at low rpm's without stalling. Out on the road, although not fast, I've never noticed a real lack of power. I think you will find that most of the people complaining about the 2F power live in hilly areas or at higher elevations. I'm just above sea level and not many mountains here in Michigan. Basically comes down to personal opinion and a point could be made for either engine.
 
Oh yeah, the answer is NO to bringing the power of a 2F up to par with a SBC 350. Believe me I've researched and questioned this board, but without spending big $$$ you can only gain about 20 hp. Problem is that once you start doing to much to the 2F performance wise you end up losing the low end torque. Once you lose the low end then the 2F has nothing to offer over the SBC.
 
Cruisergreg said:
Yeah, abunch of HDCers took the two-day run up Lockhart Basin from that camping area near the Canyonlands Outpost. Came out over Hurrah Pass (where I met Devo). I was still 2F-ed then, but was with another guy that had an almost identical rig except he had a 350 (this is now Freightdog's rig).

Were you in a rattle-can camo pig that we ran into in BF nowhere in Lockhart?
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I talked briefly to the other guy. Yeah, that was the other pig, and paint was rolled on. ;) I had a hell of a time climbing out of that canyon. I just didn't have enough oomph to crawl over the obstacles- it was less than graceful. :o
 
humper99 said:
I think you will find that most of the people complaining about the 2F power live in hilly areas or at higher elevations.
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This point can't be overstated. Even heavily loaded my 2F had plenty of power the time or two I had it at sea level. But above about 2,500 feet the power begins to fall off dramatically. I live above a mile high and the driveability once I went with meats and body armor really suffered.
 
ridgerunner said:
I had a hell of a time climbing out of that canyon. I just didn't have enough oomph to crawl over the obstacles- it was less than graceful. :o
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That canyon was a real surprize. We had been told by someone that they had gone the whole way in a VW bus so we never figured out if we had missed a turn or what. That portion of the road wasn't on the maps we had.

It was easily a 4+ for us going down and maybe a 5 going up.
 
i own a vortec 5.7, personally, unless you really know how to work on that engine, keep the 2f, i would be all over a 2fe conversion (i saw a article on a guy who did it and he was very pleased) i love my vortec, when it runs, but its a constant battle, someday ill have all the quirks worked out of it and ill prolly be over joyed but until then that 2fe sounds pretty cool
 
Throttleman_610 said:
I own a chev 350 and a 1f. The Chev gets worse fuel economy but I have two tanks. To me the best of the two engines is I can buy Chev parts at any Napa or Kragen down the corner.
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I agree. I've had the 2F 60, the 3FE 80, and now the 350tbi 80. The I-6 is smooth like butter and quiet, but the 350 is a kick in the pants. I liked the I-6 feel as it's just like my tractor. Really slow, but it'll go most anywhere. I like the 350 as it has power and cheap parts. Everyone has worked on one as well. It's like selecting a firearm. Each has it's advantages, everyone has an opinion, and you'd be best off selecting whichever one suits your needs the best.
 
I have a supercharged '96 Vortec 350 and could not be happier.......well, maybe a diesel :flipoff2:
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Mor4wd said:
I have a supercharged '96 Vortec 350 and could not be happier.......well, maybe a diesel :flipoff2:
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Interesting trend. Five years ago diesel transplants into LCs were as rare as hen's teeth. Now it's all the rage. Wonder what changed.
 
DocB said:
My problem has been finding mechanics locally that are familiar with the 2F type of engine, ie industrial cast iron beast straight six. Many are not willing to work on them. Every bubba cut his teeth on a SBC and parts and specs are ever-whar. I have some problems with my 2F engines and nobody seems to want to look at them. Most mechanics now are not mechanics at all, but rather "technicians"; they want to plug a sensor module in and read what's wrong on a computer and not THINK. Therefore, I have had to learn about the 2F myself and diagnose many of my own problems.
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As well you should.

I believe that you have NO business owning a vintage cruiser and not knowing how to work on it yourself.

If a Mechanic who 'cut his teeth' on a V8 looks at your 2F in confusion. FIRE THE IDIOT. The 2F isn't that hard to deal with (see above). A simple haynes manual is all you need to work on it.

Chevy SBC V8's are good motors, but they are not amazing by any stretch of the imagination. Their popularity is due to the fact that there are SO many of them out there. An engine rebuild kit for a 350 V8 is $150. The SAME rebuild kit for a 2F is $999.

SBC V8's have been surpassed in reliability, technology, performance, and many other areas.

Honda can make a 1.6 liter 700 hp 4 cylinder motor.
Toyota makes motors that last 350,000 - 500,000 miles between rebuilds (22R, 2F, 2H).
Its a RARE SBC V8 that lasts that long.
A Ford Cosworth V8 will take more abuse and make more power than a SBC.

SBCs can make alot of power without spending alot of money.
SBC's are cheap and plentiful. If you wear out your SBC< you can rebuild it much less expensively, or throw it away and put another one in it.
THAT is

For what it's worth, if I were to get a FJ60/62/FJ80 I would put an SBC into it for 2 reasons. Cheap Horsepower and Cheap parts.
 
Ok. This is getting to me.
If you can fix a carb'd 350, you can fix any carbed 4 stroke automotive engine.
An engine's an engine. The mechanics who say otherwise wouldn't get my business for any make.
EFI vs carb, yes. Diesel vs spark? Yes. 2 stroke vs 4 stroke? Yes. Toyota vs GM? Bull****.
They both suck, squeeze, bang and blow. It's not rocket science.
 
Cruisergreg said:
Interesting trend. Five years ago diesel transplants into LCs were as rare as hen's teeth. Now it's all the rage. Wonder what changed.
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I think it just that now poeple are starting to notice the diesels ablility........I've had my 350 for about 5 years now and I do love it......but if I knew what I know about diesels now, back when i did the swap; I would have put a diesel in. Maybe Ill try one in another cruiser as Im happy how this setup works.
 
Tigerstripe40 said:
Chevy SBC V8's are good motors, but they are not amazing by any stretch of the imagination. Their popularity is due to the fact that there are SO many of them out there. An engine rebuild kit for a 350 V8 is $150. The SAME rebuild kit for a 2F is $999.

Toyota makes motors that last 350,000 - 500,000 miles between rebuilds (22R, 2F, 2H).
Its a RARE SBC V8 that lasts that long.
A Ford Cosworth V8 will take more abuse and make more power than a SBC.
SBCs can make alot of power without spending alot of money.
SBC's are cheap and plentiful. If you wear out your SBC< you can rebuild it much less expensively, or throw it away and put another one in it.
Cheap Horsepower and Cheap parts.
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First let me say that I'm not some flaming GM guy - never owned an American car and don't plan to.
I'm really amused how the idea of Toyota reliability keeps growing to the point of absurdity. Sure go out and find that half a million mile FJ60 and you're good to go. A 350,000 mile 22R is a statistical outlier not a "take it to the bank" reliability measure.

The technology in a 2F is nothing different than that used in a SBC (the 2F in fact is a licensed version of the GM stovebolt 6). But longevity is based on the number of times the crank goes around the block, not number of miles. There's nothing special about a straight 6, it just runs slower. The modern V8 is a beautiful design that puts a large displacement into a compact package.

Easy access to parts and cheap engine replacements are a good thing in an expedition vehicle, aren't they?
 
Cruisergreg said:
First let me say that I'm not some flaming GM guy - never owned an American car and don't plan to.


Easy access to parts and cheap engine replacements are a good thing in an expedition vehicle, aren't they?
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Ditto - I love the easy access to parts - when you live as far out as I do - that sums it up! We have 100 old chevys that the navajo have killed and I can scab.....

Of course just try to buy a whole vehicle out here - like the 64 Ford Falcon I would kill to have - and you get the standard navajo answer - "I am working on it" this one has set next to the guys house for eight years now...Ooops off the subject - :beer:
 
I run a REALLY built F/2F (bored, balanced, RV cammed yadayada). It gets me up the on-ramps and cruises nicely, but it's no V-8. Sometimes I wish for a little more oomph, but I drive a Pig. Off-road I love the 6, idles down and pulls from 500 RPM and NEVER over heats (must be something about 200 extra pounds of cast iron). Can't tell you how often I drive by a SBC on the trail, pulled over with the hood up, waiting for it to cool down.
 
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