I'm looking at possible engines for a daily driver project (is that an oxymoron or what?) The truck in question will be a late '30s chevy 1/2 ton. Upgrades will be IFS with disc brakes, maybe IRS, high gear ratio rear end (3.23s or ?) and an overdrive trans for gas mileage. I already have everything except the late '30s Chevy, motor and trans. Driving conditions will be mostly highway with some mountain driving and carrying a moderate load infrequently. My main goal here is fuel efficiency (25 to 30+ mpg if possible) and being able to keep up with modern freeway traffic safely. I've looked at the Chevy crate motors and am considering a 4.3L L35 Vortec or the 350 Vortec. I know either one of these would provide plenty of power for this truck. But they both cost around $1800 so I'm wondering if the 4.3 will really get better mileage than the 350 or if I should just get the 350. I plan to run TBI on it either way. Also, does anyone know of a overdrive manual transmission for a decent deal, new or remanufactured? The Richmond's in the Summit catalog look really nice but at $3k are a little pricey. Does GM have a crate OD trans?
More questions to come. Thanks!
Dave
