Let the fun begin.

[revmatcher]

I have a running 1997 5.7 motor if you need anything. I'd even pull a head or whatever.

 

[62barsoom]

I have a running 1997 5.7 motor if you need anything. I'd even pull a head or whatever.

Thank you so much for the offer, but I've got one on the stand that's supposed to run. And a buddy who's thinking about trading some 800 parts for a freshly rebuilt short block. Again you're a great part of why I love this group.

 

[62barsoom]

Hmmm. So it's safe to say that this isn't your first rodeo.



Amen to that. The more I learn, the more I want to try. My head is spinning with ideas...but my
body isn't keeping up the way it used to. Once upon a time I used to pull all-nighters on a car
project during the work week & nobody would be the wiser.

Now? If I pull an all-nighter it takes a solid week to recover. And everyone notices that Road Trip
is off his feed. :0)

At $800/shock I'd be looking to divest that chariot too. Good luck getting rid of the gotta-do
work so that you can focus on the 'get to do' stuff. Great thread, looking forward to your
updates!

All day is more than I want to do now. But you're right work at the JOB all day. Head to the shop and get the race car ready and loaded till midnight. Get home for a rest, back in the shop to roll at 4, drive 5 or 6 hours to run for maybe 10 minutes total. And had a blast. Fond memories now.

 

[62barsoom]

Trying to do a bit as I can, red dash leds installed today. The po of my pickup had them in and I liked them. He also put them in the foot well. I'll be going white for the rest of the interior of the Tahoe as I like to see inside well. I put them in the Sub and dig the brightness. I'll post a picture when the dash is all back together.

 

[62barsoom]

What about the donor motor in the bed?



1) Is this Plan B? If the donor motor's cam & lifters pass a visual inspection are you going to button it back up
and swap this in?

2) Or, if the donor motor looks promising, are you considering a quick refresh of the normal short block
wear items (rings, bearings, new timing set, gaskets) and then swap it in?

3) Or, if the donor motor looks promising, would you use this as an excuse to refresh the heads along
with the short block stuff in scenario #2? Then swap it in?

****

Worst case scenario is that the donor motor is also wounded just like the original one. This would mean that
both engines have been polluted by really hard chewed up lifter/cam lobe bits throughout. (And also the
engine oil cooler if equipped!) :-(

NOTE: For all the trouble that EFI systems can give us in troubleshooting mode, one of *the* main benefits
that they give us engine guys is that since they are much more precise with cold fueling (vs carbs with
the mechanical choke plates) ...you can open up a high mileage EFI SBC and there's near-zero ridge at
the top of the cylinder bores? And I've personally seen decent cross-hatch still showing in the bores?
It's amazing, especially when compared to what an old carb guy is used to seeing when the heads come
off a carbureted junkyard jewel. :0)

In English, as long as you open up a high mileage EFI SBC *before* a cam failure, it's possible to give
the engine a quick hone, clean up all the bits, install new rings, bearings, timing chain set, and fresh
gaskets, and have a nice, quiet runner with a long life on short money.

Let us know what you have to work with & what you are considering...

If the motor my friend has doesn't pan out I'll be taking the English route you mentioned. With a set of roller rockers and headers added to the mix. But one thing I've never understood is how sooty the exhaust pipe looks on an efi motor versus a well set up carburated motor. Must be an effect of the cats.

 

[62barsoom]

I really hate how a double din looks in the dash. Reading reviews on the Metra complete bezel is like reading the reviews of the $80.00 amozonian items. Not a lot of warm fuzzies. It's the backup cam I'm liking. Wish there was a quality wifi rig for my phone but all I see look janky.

 

[62barsoom]

And just because it's a beautiful day. Going to put it in, a friend's on his way.

Which didn't happen. Temps dropped, clouds rolled in, and wind picked up. Did power wash it though.

 

[62barsoom]

I really hate how a double din looks in the dash. Reading reviews on the Metra complete bezel is like reading the reviews of the $80.00 amozonian items. Not a lot of warm fuzzies. It's the backup cam I'm liking. Wish there was a quality wifi rig for my phone but all I see look janky.

Anybody have experience with the replacement bezel?

 

[Orpedcrow]

Anybody have experience with the replacement bezel?

Only secondhand. They fit about as good as an aftermarket grille…

They do what they’re designed to do but you can tell it’s aftermarket

 

[62barsoom]

Talked with my buddy today, new motor on the way. He and a friend built it for his mud jeep. They found it was puffing oil smoke. It was built to be spun hard. Pulled it out and found a cracked ring. Didn't hurt the bore so the ring got replaced. He replaced it with a big bore, stroked motor. It'll have all new internals, oil pump, timing gears, chain, and cam. I'll trade him the 5.3 with the bad cam, the motor that's in the Tahoe now and the front differential out of the parts 05 silverado. As well as the wiring harness and ecm. He's wanting to build a low buck 5.3 for the jeep. I think that's a fair trade.
Thoughts?