engine swap

[L31MaxExpress]

Do they make a vortec 305? Thats just egineering in reverse. A 305 makes more hp than a 350? You talk game about your souped up 5.0 yet tell us nothing about your dead horse? Why did it die? I did a warranty at Ford, R/R one cracked piston and rings. And Ford signed 1 year warranty. Not everything's terminal.

They did make a Vortec 305 it made 25 hp less than the 350 and about 40 ft/lbs less. Good solid running engine.

 

[Junkie2100]

never done that kind of swap, i went up not down myself, and it turned into a clusterf*** 350 to 454, unlike me youll probably be able to keep your transmission, but keep in mind what transmission you have, and what years the truck, the chip(or computer if you replace the whole thing) and the engine are.

its the little things that really eat at you like sensor connectors and accessories, like oh i have to go buy a new alternator because this one has a mounting hole in the center and the bracket has a mounting hole on the top instead, or some sensor switched from the square connector to the flat one. its not necessarily hard to deal with, but its something to keep in mind, there are a few places where i had to chop off the connector and run the wires to a different shaped plug but the wires were all the same its only the plugs that had changed, and the difference was only 2 years, engine was a 92 truck was a 94, but there were half a dozen different plugs

and the reason i say pay attention to the years and types of things like transmission, the new chip is gonna need to know what transmission you have, what diff, etc. you cant just buy a computer from a truck with the 305 that had a different transmission or gear ratio because then it wont shift right, truck year only really matters because it determines what wiring harness youve got, if you can match them perfectly, get a computer that matches the year and parts, engine that is the exact same year, you might be able to get away with just plug and play, but being a different engine i still cant guarantee that

 

[Junkie2100]

oh yea and i almost forgot another one of those little gems i found out after the fact, the hoses coming off my ac compressor, hit the engine... had to replace those too. which took a while because as youll soon find out if youve never done this before, playing auto parts roulette isnt always a good time. every time i go there and they ask me what vehicle its for i panic a little because i know i gotta figure out if i need the part for a 92 2500, a 94 2500, or a 94 1500 lol

 

[GoToGuy]

And was the radiator the 2 or 3 taller model? The radiator fan sits in different position. Small block fan shroud does not fit big block. Big block in place of small block engine hits top of small block fan shroud. Yes i learned by actually " your kidding me!". You want maximum cooling in small block? A hot desert option GM puts big block 4 row radiators big tanks 3 inches taller, the fan shroud is different to fit position of small block. Just a nice to know.

 

[Junkie2100]

And was the radiator the 2 or 3 taller model? The radiator fan sits in different position. Small block fan shroud does not fit big block. Big block in place of small block engine hits top of small block fan shroud. Yes i learned by actually " your kidding me!". You want maximum cooling in small block? A hot desert option GM puts big block 4 row radiators big tanks 3 inches taller, the fan shroud is different to fit position of small block. Just a nice to know.

oh yea, i had to replace the shroud, radiator, and wouldnt you know it when i replace the transmission the mount was in the wrong spot, so i had to drill new mounting holes for the crossmember, then i find out the driveshaft was slightly too long, but it didnt match anything else out there, had to go and have it cut and welded, and of course the exhaust wasnt gonna fit, tore that all straight out had it redone from scratch, small block to big block is an utter sh*t show, a series of realizations that even if the engine mounts fit literally nothing else will and i probably would have been better off driving the truck off a cliff and building a new one from parts, hopefully small to small wont be as much of a nightmare because at this point the list of parts i havent replaced is a fraction of the list that i have

 

[Erik the Awful]

a good running 305 can practically be had for free

Yeah, years ago I rolled the 305 out of my '81 Camaro off into a dumpster. There's a reason.

...and a 350 can be had for free. I know, I got one for free and gave it away for free. Everybody's moving to LS motors. They're the best budget motor out there right now.

 

[MrPink]

Yep I will be giving my 350/4L60e combo away cheap as I am going LS/4L80e. It won't be free as I am trying to sell it as a drop in combo. But it will be cheap($500 for both engine and trans).