6.5 to 454 vortec swap

[Scott_Lake_Service]

I just got a 94 3500 dually 4x4 crew that used to be a 6.5 diesel. No engine or transfer case or front driveline. Everything else is there including newly overhauled trans. It has the nicer package with power windows locks tac cluster all that. I have a 1997 3/4 HD suburban with a 454 I’ve been saving that runs good and is complete. I was thinking I’d swap entire powertrain, wiring and interior. Seems like that might be a lot. Wondering if it’s much easier to use the 94 trans with new 454 TC and keep the mechanical linkage. Find a Manual transfer case and use wiring from the 1st gen 400 cab/body wise and just go with the 454 wiring and computer? Can they be made to work together Thoughts? Or should I just find a 6.5

 

[Scottm]

3/4T suburbans are cool, especially when they have the 14 bolt full floater axle. Maybe leave it alone and find another engine/trans.

 

[618 Syndicate]

@Supercharged111
@skylark

 

[GoToGuy]

No front drive line? How much missing? Diff', half shafts, spindle's, brakes , drive shaft ?

 

[Erik the Awful]

I wouldn't go back with a 6.5. A Cummins swap would be the only way I'd go diesel, and it's not a budget friendly solution.

Is the Suburban hard broke? If not, I'd get that sucker back on the road. If it's swiss-cheesed with rust, it'd be a perfect donor.

The third option would be to find another BBC or a 6.0 LS. Unless you're doing a serious amount of towing, gas trucks make more sense. I always wanted to go diesel, but with the limited amount of towing I do the numbers never mathed.

 

[Scott_Lake_Service]

No just the front drive shaft is missing. Everything else is there. Must have got misplaced when they tore it down. I’ve never heard anyone brag about a 6.2 or 6.5 so I’d rather not put one back in. I’ve drove a few plowing snow years ago and they did the job but were kind of gutless for a diesel. The suburban isn’t in bad shape but out of the 3 454 mpfi trucks I have it’s definitely the parts one. My main question is with the wiring. I know the 454 will go in there and everything will line up. It’s more do I switch everything out including cab and chassis wiring it is it easier to just splice into the cab wiring for the 94 style

 

[Scott_Lake_Service]

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[Scottm]

You will want to swap in the L29's complete wiring harness and ecm. It's completely different from the throttle body wiring. You should consider doing the 0411 ecm swap too. It's a lot of work, but worth it if you have the time. I found burned wires in a couple places on mine, that I never would have found without pulling the tape and petrified loom off the whole harness. I posted this pic a couple days ago in another new thread about an L29 build. It's my truck from June last year, and I still want to throw up when i see it..

 

[Scott_Lake_Service]

Totally. I was definitely planning on using the 454 engine harness and pcm. I’m more interested in the crossover to the two generations of cab and chassis wiring. Easier to splice into the cab or just swap interior, wiring and components dash everything from the 97 into the gutted cab of the 94. Just haven’t done this yet on these trucks and was wondering before I dive in in the next few weeks. I read somewhere I will have to weld in the steering column support from the 97 into the 94 to make the 97 column work. I guess the nice thing of a full swap would be it would now be obd2

 

[Supercharged111]

I swapped a 454 Vortec in place of a 6.5. It was a 98 truck, but it seemed like the 6.5 never changed like the gassers did. It was plug and play, thing fired right up, only wiring required was a jumper harness so the dash would work correctly as all that is fed from what comes through the passenger side firewall hole and those connectors were different. I also had to jumper the speedo dampener/filter thingy. It was a very easy swap from a wiring perspective. Only thing you'll be missing is cruise, but if you're up for swapping the dash harness out you could have that working as well.