350 vs. 2F

[Throttleman_610]

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.

Anyone who is slightly mechanically inclined can work on either motor. The f motor is the most simple in my opinion. Far more simple than my 78 350 with an Eldelbrock carb. I think we were discussing why we preferred one over the other. In Mexico I can get Chevy parts. On the Con there is a Napa store in Pollock Pines and I am confidant I can get parts.

For me the issue is all about the ease of parts availability, if I am stranded. Now that the questions have been raise I am taking my 1F and 350 out and doing an idle test uphill. (But thats not valid cause I have a turbo 400 behind the 350)

 

[Throttleman_610]

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 -

You got a Falcon? What year? How much?

 

[Cruisergreg]

http://www.fuelgaugereport.com/

Current trend is diesel ain't cheap anymore - what's your point?

 

[White Shark]

Current trend is diesel ain't cheap anymore - what's your point?

More BTU's per gallon 147k diesel vs. 125k gas. Typically better mileage per gallon. Simple design. Stable, low flash point fuel that doesn't degrade significantly over time as compared to gasoline. No oxygenation required in winter months to reduce smog. Smog exempt in most areas. Will burn crap fuel that has been sitting in a tank for years in rural Mexico. As long as your water separator is good and well maintained, you're likely to be okay. Those reasons and more are why diesel is popular in agriculture, the trucking industry, and the fuel of choice in most of the world, especially third world countries.

Diesel is one of the first items removed from crude oil. As a result, it's cheap to produce compared to gasoline which has to go though a ton of steps to refine. Diesel used to be cheap, but with the rise in people buying diesel cars and trucks, the refineries have decided that they can make fat profits in this area.

Check out this site, interesting pros and cons in the gas/diesel debate:
http://www.advanceautoparts.com/english/youcan/html/dsm/dsm20030101gd.html

 

[Gumby]

Toyota makes motors that last 350,000 - 500,000 miles between rebuilds (22R, 2F, 2H).
Its a RARE SBC V8 that lasts that long.

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.

I have seen a number of 2Fs make it to 200,000. I have HEARD of 2Fs making it to 300,000. 500,000? absurd. There's nothing special about a 2F. A 22R is an amazing motor, a 2F is not. I have yet to hear of a 2F make to 1,000,000 miles. A CSB has. Without a rebuild.
i'm not saying the Toyota is not the better built vehicle. Modern Toyota engines are far superior than their American counterparts, but let's not go too far overboard here.

 

[lowtideride]

Was just at a FLCA meet and was bull sh*ting with Soggy60 and his cruiser has 405,000 miles on it and he drove it 5 hours there and wheeled all weekend and drove 5 hours back.......(its a 2f)



There is a dude in the Down Under that has a million miles on his cruiser...(2f) with out a re-build... Forgot the sight but im sure its out there.


i'm not picking on you just telling you what i've seen and heard...

i'm not to worried we will run out of fuel sooner and later, and most likely have engines that run of grass clippings and old milk.



me personally ( ya ya i know, no one asked) but i rather have reliablity then a few more horses...

my 2 cents..

-Al

 

[RredFJ40]

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.

Tune your motor! I live at 4000' and regularly cross 5K+ passes, I have zero problems. When I go down to sea level, that is when I have problems.

 

[Cruisergreg]

Tune your motor! I live at 4000' and regularly cross 5K+ passes, I have zero problems. When I go down to sea level, that is when I have problems.

2F is long gone but tuning was not the issue - it was the best tuned motor around. And eeking over a 5K pass is not the same as living at high altitude. If I was to wake up in my bedroom tomorrow at 5K feet I'd be almost 1K feet underground. Most of my LC driving is done at 7K - 13K feet. For a three ton truck at that elevation a 2F sucks. Perfomance falls off dramatically as the number of feet climbs.