The Official Vortec 454 Info thread

[weaponoffreedom]

I was wondering about the most efficient rpm range for towing with the 454 Vortec. I’ve been keeping mine at ~2500 in third gear. Maybe that’s too low.

I stay out of OD in mine when towing.

IMO, the 454 is not a efficeint engine in MPG, but it is quite efficient for a towing engine, as far as power is concerned. There is no good mpg option.

Depends on the cam and cam timing.

I disagree, I think it has more to do with the weight of the trailer, as it pertains to towing.

Thanks. It’s a bone stock ’96 with 4.10 gearing and a 4L80e.

I think that is the best setup for al around rig. Mine has 373, and when towing our old camper, 6000# dry, I would cruise at 60-65 in third gear. In the hill see sometimes downshifted to 2nd. Only time we ever needed first was going up black mountain, in a traffic jam on the mountain = not fun.

If H ad one thing to change about mine, I would go with 410's or 456" or maybe 488's

 

[weaponoffreedom]

I was wondering about the most efficient rpm range for towing with the 454 Vortec. I’ve been keeping mine at ~2500 in third gear. Maybe that’s too low.

i would not say to low, if it pulls the load and does not heat up the tranny, push on. I have found higher rpms actually can run cooler temps in the oil and tranny, I have seen it with my own eyes on my scanner. Of course there are limits to everything, WOT for 6 hours would not be the greatest idea.

I have been close to WOT, about 4000 rpm for about 10 minutes before, she liked it, good workout.

 

[Schurkey]

WOT for 6 hours would not be the greatest idea.

I have been close to WOT, about 4000 rpm for about 10 minutes before, she liked it, good workout.

Heavy throttle for more than two--three minutes, and I'd be looking for colder heat-range spark plugs.




Maybe it's just me. It really ****** me off that the various manufacturers--GM, in this case--sell you an "automatic" transmission when you buy the car, then expect you to manually downshift if you're towing a trailer. Either sell the thing as a semi-automatic from the beginning, or build the vehicle robust enough--and smart enough--to not be damaged when pulling at max weight, legal speed or power-limited speed up any paved road through the Rockies and through the Eisenhower Tunnel.

'Course, that's not how the world works, so here we are deciding which manually-selected lower gear in our "automatic" transmission is needed.

 

[ralmo94]

build the vehicle robust enough--and smart enough--to not be damaged when pulling at max weight,

For what it's worth, the calibration engineer I had correspondence with told me that at the proving grounds the 4l80e could handle locked up tc in OD pulling 18k up a grade, all the other autos I know of all say to tow with od off, 4l60 included. IMHO as long as you have enough power to pull the gear without constant down up down shifts I think you're fine towing in OD with the 4l80, that said 3rd is a stronger gear, and a lot depends on wind resistance too

 

[weaponoffreedom]

4l80e could handle locked up tc in OD pulling 18k up a grade

1st gear= big lever, 4th=small lever. The bigger the lever the more weight you can move easier. HEat is the killer. So in OD, you could theoretically get to power band in OD going 90 with 18k, but it is not realistic. Heat would kill it. The power that would be nessessary would be serious.

 

[ralmo94]

So in OD, you could theoretically get to power band in OD going 90 with 18k, but it is not realistic. Heat would kill it. The power that would be nessessary would be serious

Mine did just fine in od with 18k gross ( counting truck ) data logs showed normal tranny temps. Converter locked doesn't heat ATF up that much, unlocked torque manipulation does.

With 3.73 and small tires I couldn't imagine driving over 65 in 3rd for sustained periods, with 265 tires, that's different, I can only imagine how 4.10s are.

All that said, I don't believe towing in 3rd hurts anything, but a 454 reving at 3k uses a lot more fuel than it does at 2200 or 2500.

Wind resistance makes a bigger difference than weight in my experience, especially at highway speeds.

 

[weaponoffreedom]

Mine did just fine in od with 18k gross ( counting truck ) data logs showed normal tranny temps. Converter locked doesn't heat ATF up that much, unlocked torque manipulation does.

With 3.73 and small tires I couldn't imagine driving over 65 in 3rd for sustained periods, with 265 tires, that's different, I can only imagine how 4.10s are.

All that said, I don't believe towing in 3rd hurts anything, but a 454 reving at 3k uses a lot more fuel than it does at 2200 or 2500.

Wind resistance makes a bigger difference than weight in my experience, especially at highway speeds.

18k gross sure, but that is not what we were talking about i do not think. I was referring to 18k trailer

 

[BNielsen]

This was posted on the OBS Obsession Facebook page, what do y'all think?
I'm intrigued as to how well it'll come together. I'm definitely going to be paying close attention to this product.

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[Scottm]

Oh man I was going to make those. I started drawing it in solidworks until I was able to confirm the stock covers would clear the comp rocker arms and studs.

 

[BNielsen]

Oh man I was going to make those. I started drawing it in solidworks until I was able to confirm the stock covers would clear the comp rocker arms and studs.

I figured it was only a matter of time before someone did.