The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Why the 216 engine?

Hi Folks,

I have a question about GM's choice of engines in the 40's and early 50's trucks. If GM had better 6 cylinder engines with high oil pressure, why did they keep using the 216? It doesn't make sense to me to use an inferior engine when the GMC trucks had better engines.

Jeff

They did it in the 80's too. Remember the 2.8L?
Scott

The same reason GM had a chevy, pontiac, olds, buick, and cadillac. They covered the whole market that way. The cheapo (chevy) was basic while the snazzy (cad) had all the bells and whistles. Back then chevy and GMC were different trucks with the idea of capturing two segments of the market. It's called marketing. If the chevy had everything there would have been no market for the others.

What's wrong with the 2.8??? My S-10 has one, great engine. I get 25 mpg running 75 mph on the highway. Yeah, they have their quirks, like the oil leaks and starter problems (just put ANOTHER one on!), but overall their good in the correct application.

The 216 was a much higher volume production line than the GMC. It was in all the Chevy cars, too. It worked just fine for the time. You didn't drive over 45 mph much in 1950. GM would have had to add another production line or two to cover the Chevy trucks.

There is really nothing wrong with the 216 as long as you know what to watch out for. They last a long time.

Thanks! What does one watch out for to keep the 216 running for a long time?

Jeff

Change the oil and don't over-rev it. A fellow in the VCCA forum told me hotrodders of that era preferred the splash engine. It was more dependable than the high pressure oilers.

Basically if the motor works and sells for the times, your sell more with looks and appeal. The looks changed and the powerplant worked for the market sales so to save money (IMO) they left good enough alone. You can find some good reading in the Encyclopedia of Chevrolet Trucks by Don Bunn. Just picked up a copy and find it a good "libary" read.

The only real way to kill a 216 is to stretch the rods or starve the rod bearings for oil.

Like Tiny says ,, frequent oil changes (no filter remember) and easy on the gas , my 216 is still going after 66yrs.

GREAT ENGINE !!

OK,, so I wrecked a few in my youth,, but it was all 'cause I had TOO big a right boot, LOL.

Throw a tach on there if you're worried about killing it.

3000 RPM is just about the limit for a "Stock" engine. If you were to throw aluminum pistons in that old girl, you could probably bump the red line up to 3500 - 4000.