The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop 478 v6 into a 94 c3500 possibility

wondering If I could put a 478 v6 into a 96 c3500. realizing that there is some fab work to be done is it a possibility?

I am trying to learn about the 478 as fast as possible as I have access to a rebuilt one with 4 speed looking for a truck to put it in that's not astronomically priced

why would you put an old engine into a new truck? Also, dont they sniff emissions in your neck of the woods.

Nevermind the fact that the old GMC V6 is much heavier than the engine that chassis is designed for.

The big GMC V-6's turn slow and guzzle fuel. And from all reports I've heard do not respond well to modification.

I can see it in a restoration, but its hard to imagine putting one in anything else.

That said the GMT400 series trucks accepted a lot of different motors including 454's. How does the 478 compare dimensionally with a 454?

I've never seen published dimensions on the bigger V-6's so have no idea how big they really are.

They are pretty big...
Friend of mine runs one in a dodge straight truck hauling apples from the orchard to the processing plant. He's got it running very well and last I heard he was getting between 2 and 3 mpg, but understand that's a tandem axle truck with a full load of apples.

I see no reason or advantage to putting one is such a new (and small) truck.

Grigg

just a thought the engine is blown and it seemed like a possibility I know a far one but one nonethe less. Emissions no longer for 1995 and before( its a 94 not a 96 as i said earlier). I may be getting a big bolt with a straight six and that may be a more worthy candidate. This will be my farm truck strictly built for hauling loads not mpg . Modern engines have power and torque but more expensive parts and tools needed to repair. My original preference was a 454 4bbl. Looking for the right truck and then the right motor if it has none.

Thanks for all the feedback I needed to hear it befor eI dove in with my eyes closed.

because he more than likely got it for nothing and it is sitting there
ron

why not simply spend $300 on another SBC from LKQ and not worry about conversions if its just a farm truck. The EFI motor will run better than a carbed truck.

A 350 Chevy is about the cheapest motor possible to buy and maintain. If that is what it came with I'd replace it with another one. If the existing one can't be fixed cores are usually cheap.

You can rebuild a 350 Chevy for less than the cost of misc performing an engine swap.

Now if I were thinking about replacing the motor in a C3500 and wanted something big and cheap, I'd look for a Cadillac 500. No heavier than a big block, but more torque and often available nearly free.

the 6.5td has issues that may be in 1k-2k range to fix I agree a 350 is fast easy and a butt load of parts and performance options. Simply asking a 350 to be a big puller is maxing it out.

I know you can make it work gearing bolt on stuff but for torque I like displacement. 454 big block etc. My buddy wants me to go with a newer 6.0 5.3 or 8.1 Maybe I am just stuck in the dark ages I like carbs ( not an expert mind you just like em).

Options and opinions are varied on this subject and I think we all gain from these discussions.

+1 for the Cadillac 500. It's actually about the same weight as a small block Chevy, and it develops a ton of torque. I put over 300,000 miles on a 472, which is a virtual clone of the 500, just a bit older and smaller. Dropping in the entire 500 engine/Turbo 400 transmission assembly out of a mid-70's Cadillac Fleetwood would be a very simple swap. Just fabricate some motor mounts or adapt what's already there, and get a set of pipes made at a muffler shop. The big GMC V-6 was an overweight gas guzzler with a very poor power to weight ratio when it was new, and 40 years later, it hasn't improved at all!
Jerry

+2 for the Cadillac - not only for size, but because of mild cam, small valves and ports all produce torque at low speed, which is what a 350 can't do even with speed equipment.

Do you have a 96 with a bad engine that you want to replace? If so buy an EFI engine from a salvage yard that is a bolt in. As for the 478 engines, they were built when gas was 20 cents a gallon and became obsolete during the oil embargos of the 70's. I bought a GMC with 478 at an auction in the early 80's with the intention of moving trailers around with it. It used an unbelievable amount of gas. I even went so far as putting a brand new carb on it and that didn't help. If you want to restore an old 60's GMC as a toy, they are durable engines and have a unique sound. As for working with them, those days are long gone. The one I had that I used for about a year actually had a new factory short block in it. I tried selling the engine or the whole truck for about 25 years with absolutely no interest. I finally sent the whole thing to the crusher last year. I would compare putting a 478 into a 1 ton to putting a John Deere 2 cylinder into a half ton.

OK SO unless I hit the lottery the 478 idea was a short lived one. the caddy idea is interesting. After this will be my cowboy cadillac

I think I will do a search right now......hhhmmmm my wife is gonna kill me

ok next question the eldorado was a front wheel drive? what are my tranny options? also 500 did come with efi in the end did they not?

I think the 500 in the Eldo might have been a special situation- - - -not sure if that engine will bolt up to a conventional rear drive setup or not. There are plenty of 500's out there in regular mid-70's Fleetwood rear drive bodies, however, and they use the BOP bellhousing Turbo 400 transmission. Easy swap! If you can't find a 500, the 472 is on the same block, and it's only a little smaller. I think all those engines came with regular Quadrajet carburetors. The EFI engines were mid-80's and newer, after Cadillac downsized to the 425 and smaller engines.
Jerry

The Eldorado motors do bolt to the same rear drive stuff as the other Caddy motors. You need an Eldorado pan and pickup for most applications.

Cadillac had an injection system in the 70's though I don' think anyone uses it any more. '76 was the last year for the 500 and if my memory is accurate an available option that year was EFI.

I've seen 6.5td for 1500 exchange, with a good warranty. I had one I put 250,000 miles on not the most powerfull engine i ever had but it got 25mpg empty, and it pulled a loaded stock trailer decent. Only problem I ever had was the stupid fuel pump driver mounted to pump right on top of the engine. I bought a kit that relocated it to inside the cab which fixed that issue.