I have a friend that is big into building vehicles that make you say, "Did I really just see that?" Bobby started doing 12V Cummins swaps into Chevy pickups in the mid-90's. His first one was a 84 or 85 Chevy that got a 12V and a Getrag 5 speed. Bobby has since done quite a few 12V swaps into various Chevy's, preferring the '93 and newer Chevy's for their cushy ride quality, good looks and durability.
Recently, Bobby bought an '04 (IIRC) Chevy 3500 4x4 cab & chassis with a blown up Duramax and a good 6spd, and 3.73 gears in the axles. He retrofitted a flatbed he had sitting around onto the truck, and dropped in a SBC 400 gas engine. Well, he found that the engine would loaf along at 2100RPM at 70MPH, but the 400 was only getting 4-6mpg pulling the truck. Combine Bobby's love of the unique with the truck's gearing, and he realized that the only option was to drop a Cummins in. I love wrenching, so naturally, I volunteered to help Bobby with the swap. The question at this point became, "What motor are we going to swap in this thing," as Bobby always has 4 or 5 good 6BT's sitting around waiting for a new home. Recently, though, Bobby acquired a 4BT with a Chevy adapter. Basically, we flipped a coin, and decided that he should give the 4BT a chance to prove itself.... Here are some pictures (taken kind of late in the project, because I'm an idiot and forgot my camera)
I apologize for the sideways picture. It is upright in my photobucket account, but it doesn't seem to be cooperating here. Pointers?
I'll snap some more pictures as we get it put back together, and I'll let ya'll know how it runs
Recently, Bobby bought an '04 (IIRC) Chevy 3500 4x4 cab & chassis with a blown up Duramax and a good 6spd, and 3.73 gears in the axles. He retrofitted a flatbed he had sitting around onto the truck, and dropped in a SBC 400 gas engine. Well, he found that the engine would loaf along at 2100RPM at 70MPH, but the 400 was only getting 4-6mpg pulling the truck. Combine Bobby's love of the unique with the truck's gearing, and he realized that the only option was to drop a Cummins in. I love wrenching, so naturally, I volunteered to help Bobby with the swap. The question at this point became, "What motor are we going to swap in this thing," as Bobby always has 4 or 5 good 6BT's sitting around waiting for a new home. Recently, though, Bobby acquired a 4BT with a Chevy adapter. Basically, we flipped a coin, and decided that he should give the 4BT a chance to prove itself.... Here are some pictures (taken kind of late in the project, because I'm an idiot and forgot my camera)
I apologize for the sideways picture. It is upright in my photobucket account, but it doesn't seem to be cooperating here. Pointers?
I'll snap some more pictures as we get it put back together, and I'll let ya'll know how it runs