Chevy V8 types

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

There are at least two books available on the Small Block Chevy from HP Books. These focus mainly on street performance, probably not your thing, but there is lots of good info in there as well.

If you can afford it, drop a 350 Vortec GM crate motor in front of the stock tranny or an H55F, and drive it. This will provide good power, draiveability and reliability.

M

PS: I was driving my Expedition home this evening, and got passed by an FJ60 that was going 80+ MPH. Nice looking truck, too.

I'm tinkin' Diesel, myself.
 
Now that I am thinking about it, because you are puttting this engine into a truck that pushes two and a half tons, maybe a 383 stroker motor is the option for you. That is a 350 smallblock that has shorter connecting rods and a deeper crank to pull the cylinder down a bit more to get the extra inches. These motors do not rev as high as the "stock"350, but have much more power. Also, there are performance upgrades up the ass for this motor. If I were going to put a V8 under my hood, then I would go with a 454 c.i. chevy from the early ninteys. That is a HOT motor. I will eventually put a diesel under my hood however.

If you are going to talk about Ford motors, which I do not suggest for the sake of the guy who started this thread, I would suggest a 351 Cleveland. This is a somewhat nostalgic motor and puts out some serious power for a smallblock. My girlfriend's father has a 351C in his DeTomaso Pantera. Ever heard of that? Its freaking cool.

Nevermind that. Heartworm, tell us what you will be using your truck for and we can help even more.

:beer:
 
earlyy 454 has a big engine . but also big word, if you are not interested in fuel econmy .. and want a lots of fun .. your choice ...

But 454 is not easy to be cool, I thought you maybe need, alum radiatos, electric fans .. and maybe much more, without the electronic parts ..

again .. if yiu can afford it ..
 
502 ;)
 
GLTHFJ60 said:
My girlfriend's father has a 351C in his DeTomaso Pantera. Ever heard of that? Its freaking cool

:beer:

Panteras are fun cars...I just love how loud and powerful they are when you are driving them. It seems those 351 cleveland would be hard to find.
 
Last edited:
You could try the brand new 572 big block from GM performance parts. That is the king. Period.

By the way, the pantera is just about the coolest Ford that I have ever seen. Possibly better than the new GT. But that conversation belongs in chat.

:beer:
 
Anyone know what kind of motor is in a 92 GMC 2500 van?
 
The 351 Cleveland is yesterday's dream - developments to the Windsor make it the better blue oval choice now. I think Ford builds a better block than GM, but I have a 5.7 Vortec in my 84 FJ60.

The 383 is not necessarily a lower-rev motor than the 350 - just has gobs more torque & seems to have some kind of magic through rod angles, stroke vs bore, etc. to make it a monster.

My new shop truck is a 56 F100 with a 460 (great time for gas to hit its all-time high!). An old mechanic buddy built the engine for me & said it didn't even have ridges at 100,000 miles. A GM block would for sure, but there are so many components available for the SBC that its relatively soft block is not a factor.
 
True, it is not necessarily a lower revving motor, but traditionally, a motor with a longer stroke has a lower rev range.

In terms of the Cleveland, it has a much better original design than the Windsor does, so no matter how much development the Windsor has gone through while the Cleveland has sat dormant, the Cleveland is a better engine.

:beer:
 
My wagon with a big block gets around 12.5 mpg. The previous motor being and LT1 got about 15 mpg in the same truck, as a daily driver. There is no comparison in torque obviously but the daily driveability of the 502 is also much better. You rarely need more than 3000 rpm to do anything that needs done. My wagon weighs in at about 6200 lbs. and the LT1 was struggling to keep speed on long grades. It would pull it but needed 3500-4000 and 3rd gear to do it. The 502 does it at 2000 or less in overdrive, and under load gets better economy than the LT1 did.
Gary
 
GLTHFJ60 said:
Now that I am thinking about it, because you are puttting this engine into a truck that pushes two and a half tons, maybe a 383 stroker motor is the option for you. That is a 350 smallblock that has shorter connecting rods and a deeper crank to pull the cylinder down a bit more to get the extra inches. These motors do not rev as high as the "stock"350, but have much more power. Also, there are performance upgrades up the ass for this motor. If I were going to put a V8 under my hood, then I would go with a 454 c.i. chevy from the early ninteys. That is a HOT motor. I will eventually put a diesel under my hood however.


:beer:

Don't rev as much? You have some more readin to do. In addition, I have 6 inch rods in my 383 ... longer than the 5.7 inch rods in a stock 350. There are many ways to stroke a small block and many combinations that will bolt to a crank with a 3.75 inch stroke.

Best advice. Strokers are nice but keep in mind you will never get out of this motor the extra money it takes to build one. If you build one do it for fun and know it will cost more. IF what you wish for is a cost effective conversion that leaves you with healthy reliable torque you can't beat a common 350.
 
Ok, fine. The 383 does rev just as much as the 350. The only reason that I was saying that was because a motor with a longer stroke does not rev as fast as an engine with a smaller stroke. That is an example of the physics of an internal combustion engine. I agree that a 383 does rev almost as fast as the 350, but because of the longer stroke, it CANNOT rev as fast as a regular 350 of the same power levels.

Keep bashing me if you want to.

:beer:
 
I'm sorry, I forgot to mention that I love big stroke motors. I would only put a big block into my wagon.

:beer:
 
I would not recommend the 351C. It is a pain to keep cool and you have to run higher octane for the high compression. Cool motor, no doubt, but probably not what you are looking for.
 
My .02 I love my vortec but miss the simple F engines. What do you want power or nostalga?
 
Back
Top Bottom