The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop '53 GMC swap to a DEISEL

i want to swap a the stock 6cylinder/drivetrain in my '53 GMC pickup with a newer GM diesel to tow a motorhome trailer. Can you or anyone you know provide any suggestions? Find a wrecked donor is probably the best option right, and just trasnplant all the guts....computers, etc.

Hi,
You will have to beef up the front springs because the diesel engine will weigh twice what your current gas engine weighs. Also handling may change with the added weight- ask around I don't recall hearing of anyone doing the swap... for good reason, I don't know? Good Luck!

You'll run into weight, and width problems. That 53 frame probably isn't wide enough to shoehorn a V-8 diesel in there without some serious modification. I've got several 6-cylinder inline Onan/Cummins engines, from a retrofit UPS did some time ago. They're slightly heavier than a 292, and about the same length. I'm about to swap one into a Furd 350 stake-body truck, to replace a 351 Windsor/C-6 trans setup. I'll be using a New Process 4 speed, and it's already set up for a Chevy V-8 bellhousing and 12-inch clutch. They're high-speed turbo engines, 120 HP at 3,600 RPM. That's slightly lower-powered than the GM V-8 in the military Hummers, but not by much. It should be an interesting swap.
Jerry

if you could fit it you would be much happyer with a 5.9 litre cummins 24 valve turbo Deisel
oure nabour just transplated one it to a 78 chevy one ton crew cab but he had to do a 3 inch body lift to fit

Is it a 1/2 ton or ???? An easy swap would be the 4bt 3.9L cummins 4 cylinder (a shortened 5.9L). Cheap and readily avaialble in old bread trucks and reasonable weight. I think it has or can easily be turned up to 150hp. It is also reported to have the same rear bellhoussing pattern as the sbc. The 5.9 isn't much longer than the 302 but the weight is almost double the original six (~1klbs). The popularity of the 5.9 also makes it rather spendy. You can just about buy a used 855 cummins for the same price. If this were a big truck you may want to consider the 8.3L cummins. The only reason to do a diesel swap is the novelty factor. You will almost never recoup the cost compared to gas. I would also be concerned about the brakes if it is a heavy trailer.

If you want to keep your GM vehicle all GM, look at the 4.3L V 6 Olds diesel, short lived 1981-1984 in Gutless supremes and Monte Carlos. 85 hp at 3200 rpm, and tons of torque for a little package, very peppy little thing also. Most were mated to 200R4's

Interesting topic. I have wondered myself whether a cummins diesel could be swaped into a COE AD? I guess it could be possible with the 3.9 and I would have tons of torque! I think that would be really cool and with the cost of gas these days, a diesel would be cheaper to run.

I saw an Advanced Design truck which had a Cummins 5.9 installed at a truck show in Shelton, WA. I wish I had taken a lot of photos.

the large COEs realy have a lot of room for big sixs
the nice thing about the 5.9 if you can fit it is thear is a ton of parts for them to hot rod or get better milage (computer chips,intakes, injector pumps), altou thay are a good price $2500-4000 dependeing of year and miles
you can still almost build more tourq cheeper than A big block chevy

You can buy big block Chevys for under $1,000 if you shop a bit. Actually I have two that have cost me far less than that total. One of them came in a usable truck.

While I can understand the appeal of a diesel for some applications, I bet you're going to have to drive it a lot while carrying/pulling a heavy load before a used diesel vs. used big block comparison is going to favor the diesel economically.

I don't know what those motors cost new, but I suspect its far more than a truck type crate big block.

Run a diesel if you like, but I'm convinced most guys are kidding themselves if they think they will save money doing so.