Doesn't matter how big the trailer is! Long arm or diesel, and that's still long arm. This thread is getting a little off track. 383 SBC is NOT the way to go with a tow vehicle period! Need low end torque and loping power! There is no way ANY SB of any manufacturer is going to last like a long arm! Just ask MB. They have already told GM what wouldn't work. GM did it anyway, and guess what? It didn't work! Vega engine, diesel Olds for the big ones.
Here it is. They say 4500 lbs. I think more. Big Cadillac! Big Cadillac engine. So now the car is running 10's
So. If I put one of these stock in my little English shit box. Should be able to peel the tires right off?
I know the reason for a small block chevy is Its a little harder to find parts for a cad while on a road trip. But Chevy parts are in parts houses every where. Shit ever one who wrenches has small block parts laying every where. I had a little 283 that pulled a race car/trailer spare parts and crew members to the races every where but it could have used a little more..This thread has been fun.
K9racer; I agree with what you're saying about availability of parts. I have thought long and hard concerning what I'm doing. My truck has a sweet 327 and 350 turbo, subframed, 10 bolt posi, etc. It's a really good driver and I take a number of open road(long haul) trips each year. I've had a number of small block Chevs. and like most of us I have a butt load of extra parts. I just need to do something to get me excited once again. I bought a 77,000 mile 1971 Sedan Deville. I believe the engine is 365HP with 500 ft lbs. of torque and 8.5-1 pistons. It should run fine on pump gas and pull hard. I'm replacing all gaskets, checking all bearings and installing a new double roller timing chain and an Edelbrock Performer intake with a reworked 800 cfm quadrajet. I've upgraded to an HEI distributor. I think it will be a great driver that will ignite the tires. I'm running a front steer 2nd. generation Camaro subframe. By all measurements it should be a good fit with stock cast iron manifolds. I'm not going to cut or beat on anything. If it won't fit I'll go back to the 327 combo. Oh, I forgot, I'm going to go with the MTS #10 stealth cam. Out of all of the HAMB DRAGS I've only beat my brother's truck one time. It's time for a slap down in 2016. Back to B.A. King, your best bet for easy of install is probably going to be a warmed over 400.
The Cad motor should go right in with a MTS or CMD kit. If something breaks on the road, parts shouldn't be a problem. The thread was started on a tow vehicle. Since it doesn't look like you'll really be towing it should just lope along for ever.
About 20 years ago, there was a surge of putting the Cads in 68-72 GM trucks(for towing). I always carry extra parts regardless. The only thing I'll be towing is a teardrop or possibly a T-bucket.
To make real torque. 1.Remove spark plugs. 2.increase cylinder comp ratios to 23:1. 3. Inject diesel.
And then Ford began installing International diesel engines and Dodge started installing Cummins engines, and the rest is history. Which brings up another point, if swapping engines is the answer, then Kona Cruisers has the right idea. There are plenty of 6.9 IH or 5.9 Cummins around.
Then there should be no problem. Your truck and a teardrop should weigh no more than a '76 hearse. Which is about 8 to 9 thousand pounds. That Cad motor will pull it easy and you won't even realize it's back there. Had a '66 hearse, 429, towed a drag boat with it. Could even feel it.
Here are a couple pictures of my 70 short box chevy with the 500 caddy in. I needed a little clearance on the right side. Gary
My '66 8000, boat and trailer, 1500 to 2000, plus extras. The usual, camping gear, tools, parts. Car ran 90 mph down the high without skippin' a lick. Pull from a stoplight like a tractor puller.
The caddy engine in my truck ran that way for excess of 20 years, then sat for 4 years and fired right up without a hitch! Gary
Two replacements for displacement. Rpms - lots more RPMs Or Boost- lots of boost. They make a habit of handing out spankings to engines with more cubic inches- lots more cubic inches.
Will they let me run nostalgia, if I run electric put a scoop thru the hood, and run a cd thru a big ass stereo?
I have a '91 Suburban 1500 2wd, 350/700R4, with 3.08s and a 33" tire. It has well over 218,000 miles on the clock, which is where the speedo stopped before I bought it. The 350 that's in it is tired to say the least, and probably now makes well below the anemic power it had on its best day. The engine is all stock; manifolds, stock heads, low compression, TBI... I was able to pull an empty (very heavy) steel 18' car trailer from Newark, NJ to State College, PA to pick up a complete '59 Edsel, and bring it all the way back home. No issues. Put it in drive, and it was able to pull up the hills of Route 80 and easily maintain highway speeds on the long even stretches. It wasn't setting speed records, and it definitely labored up the big hills, but it did it without any real issue. Now pretty much any mild, healthy SBC you decide to build is going to make double the power that my truck has. That said, if you have that much power, not only are you going to tow with no problems, but you're going to be able to do it at speeds that will exceed your chassis and brakes. You're not towing a 24' enclosed trailer or a huge 5th wheel. You don't need Caddy/RB Mopar/BBC torque for your application, it's superfluous. If you had a crew cab long bed dually, by all means go for the nuclear option. But if I was building a nice engine for my Suburban, I'd take a 383 SBC with Vortec heads, 9:1 compression, an Edelbrock dual plane intake, and short duration cam and roll along. A 350 hp/400 ft/lb will pull anything that chassis can safely handle
It seems every time I read any post that is technical the same couple of Experts ramble on over and over for pages ,even when no-one is answering their questions, Don't they understand ?
The Jalopy Journal
