Help: What engine did you swap in?


IHC in the early to mid-fifties.

Post Mon Aug 21, 2017 11:12 pm

Help: What engine did you swap in?

I won't even have the truck for another year, and I'm already in planning phase.

I was going to wait on the engine until I really needed it, but found what appears to be a nice engine. Chevy LS3, 140K miles, with a complete restorod wiring harness for $2200 on craigslist. I could go over the engine this winter until I get the truck. Well, then the truck needs a new front end, new rear end, transmission, etc.

The Duramax diesels look really nice, wow. Cheapest engines out of completely crunched truck is $6K. Crates are $12K or $13K. A lot more expensive, maybe more work also.

If I wanted to build the LS3, I'll need to move on it.

What engine did you put in?

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Post Tue Aug 22, 2017 12:44 am

Re: Help: What engine did you swap in?

Look to the 4bt the 12valve cummins. I think there are several on here that have done or will do that swap.
Yep, Know all about the 6.6, got one coming for my 06 GMC. They do not like losing the water pump on a hill under load. The replacement is costing $4500 with only 105,000 on it, but from east to the west to get here.
How about putting the sheet metal on a different frame?
Just my thoughts
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Golden Jubilee
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Post Tue Aug 22, 2017 7:53 am

Re: Help: What engine did you swap in?

There are lots of different options, depending on what you want. Turbo the original engine, 300 Furd 6, Jeep 232/4.0 six, almost any V8. Most V8's will interfere with the original steering column.

Dean
Lifelong Kansan
Grew up with red paint
Moved off the farm 33 years ago.

Golden Jubilee
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Post Tue Aug 22, 2017 5:34 pm

Re: Help: What engine did you swap in?

If price is how you are selecting an engine, you are going about it backwards. 1st you need to know what you want out of it, then you need to look at the spec's and see if the engine in question fits the need, then you need to look at fitment and what needs to be changed to get it done.
By far the original block makes the best fit, it was designed to fit. Adding a turbo kit is the cheapest, simplest bang for the buck, it bolts on and only the exh needs to be custom.
Everything else requires fabrication, and how well that will turn out depends on you skill in engineering and fabrication.

Golden Jubilee
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Post Tue Aug 22, 2017 8:20 pm

Re: Help: What engine did you swap in?

CB89 is correct. The best fit is an OEM motor. I would not have one of the original lackluster lumps if it was free and delivered. The original engines are fuel thirsty. For the amount of fuel a 220 uses, it should have 400 HP.
I do not know the exact weight of a 220SD but it hangs really heavy on my shop crane, so I would hazard a guess of 700+ pounds.
The next best fit is a Cummins 4bta. The weight of a 4bta is 745#. This engine will pull harder than an original 220 and use 30% of the fuel. My son and I are putting a Cummins 4bta into his L110 and converting it to 4X4. I have a perfect shorty frame for this "L".
A local IHC owner installed a Mercedes 300TD in his IHC, and it runs like a Mercedes and gets 30 mpg.
Contrary to what a casual look might have a person thinking, both the 12 valve and the 24 valve Cummins 5.9 litre engines will fit without cutting up the cab for clearance. The "L" grill gives a little more clearance for an inter-cooler, but, the "R" grill will work after a little juggling.
If a person is considering either of the 5.9 Cummins "B" series, the original frame will not hold the weight or the the torque engines. With good traction a Cummins 5.9 will permanently twist an old IHC frame. The 12 valve weighs in at 950# and the 24 valve is 1150#.
I paid $3250 for my 4bta and spent another $1365 to have the injection rebuilt. Add a new starter from NAPA, a seal and gasket kit from Cummins. All in the 4bta/transmission/transfer case was about $4000. I would do this again in a New York Minute. This engine drives a GM TH475 automatic and an NVG 241c transfer-case. The axles are 1997 Ram 1500 DANA 44.
In the early 1990s I installed an IHC 6.9 Diesel in my R120. The transmission was a heavily modified C6 ahead of a divorced 205 transfer-case. After a bunch of parts shuffling the C6 was about 12 inches shorter. The axles were DANA 44/60. I would caution anyone considering this engine in an IHC pickup. It does not fit without a lot of modification to the cab and frame. For all of my bother, I got a fantastic sounding V8 Diesel with modest power and fair economy. It worked for 222,000 miles, luckily. I added a Gear Vendors overdrive and the R120 would cruise at speeds up to 75 mph. 90 mph was achievable.
My last IHC build will be a rare IHC "R" crewcab. I bought a perfect R150 frame for this project. The frame is 224 inches long and super strong at 850#.
You have lots of options to look at in the year ahead. Don't fool yourself into thinking a rebuild of the original lump of an engine will save you any money. A good running Cummins 4bta will cost about the same.
I like a 4X4 conversions for the simple axles installation and better braking upgrade. Anyway. I like the look of a modest 4X4.
I would rather have tools I do not need than to need tools I do not have
Thinking risks being controversial and possibly being offensive

Golden Jubilee
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Post Tue Aug 22, 2017 8:53 pm

Re: Help: What engine did you swap in?

lbesq wrote:Look to the 4bt the 12valve cummins. I think there are several on here that have done or will do that swap.
Yep, Know all about the 6.6, got one coming for my 06 GMC. They do not like losing the water pump on a hill under load. The replacement is costing $4500 with only 105,000 on it, but from east to the west to get here.
How about putting the sheet metal on a different frame?
Just my thoughts

The Cummins 4bta has 8 valves. I thought someone might like to know.
I would rather have tools I do not need than to need tools I do not have
Thinking risks being controversial and possibly being offensive

Yard Art
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Post Wed Aug 23, 2017 8:18 am

Re: Help: What engine did you swap in?

Hands down the 4bt with a Ford zf5 is the best. Now mine is a farm truck of sorts. I can pull a 16 ft trailer with 150 square bales weighing 60lbs a piece. It will do it without any effort. But trailer brakes are highly recommend! (learned that the hard way )Not to mention I'm getting 30mpg right now and that's in town driving, I haven't done highway yet. And the looks of confusion you get when it gives a little puff smoke when taking off at a stop light is priceless.
55' R-110 w/Intercooled Cummins 4bt, Hoset HX30W, Ford ZF5, Borg Warner 1356 T-Case, Ford 8.8 w/3.73/9800 miles and counting/4x4 swap 50% done

Post Wed Aug 23, 2017 9:28 am

Re: Help: What engine did you swap in?

This is a great forum!

I'm going to pass on the LS3 engine. The diesels are really the way to go with this project. I was thinking of a two stage project, first to get it running second to retire and get enough time to really make it look good. But I'm realizing now that there's a significant amount of time to just get it on the road. I really dislike the original engine. When I first got it running in '77, I got 27 MPQ. That's 27 miles per quart of oil. The crank was all beat up and burred. We had two trucks, we used the crank out of the second engine since it was better, but the crank was still beat up so smoothed it out with some emery cloth if I remember correctly. Cool thing was the guy who helped me rebuild it, I was able to be there much of the time. Cleaned it up some and it still leaked oil, soaking my clutch plate and causing that to fail. Out comes the engine again to a different shop who got a new rope in it which held. I'm sure it's going to leak like a sieve if I got it running again. Then there's the horrible performance and 11 MPG with a 10 gallon tank... I've been reading some of the specs and while a V8 gas is interesting, the LS3 is not really the engine I'd want. But a diesel is the way to go!

I am interested in using a different frame. Do people get custom frames built or do you find an old pickup and mount it on that? If the rails don't fit, just weld some brackets?

Golden Jubilee
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Post Wed Aug 23, 2017 9:48 am

Re: Help: What engine did you swap in?

For better or for worse, diesels and direct-injected ANYTHING are the future of automibiles and trucks.
There ARE downsides to direct-injected engines. Emissions can be a mess. On gasoline DI, the intake valve ports clog shut with carbon and only a walnut-shell blast will clean them!
Fun times ahead!

Golden Jubilee
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Post Wed Aug 23, 2017 1:59 pm

Re: Help: What engine did you swap in?

If the original IHC frame is in good condition a Cummins 4bta should work well. If you have plans to do some truck pulling or severe mudding, you will definitely need a replacement frame.
While the original frames are quite flexible this is not a totally bad thing. Flexing can often avoid breaking. There is no good reason to dump an original frame in favor of a frame from another remanufacturer unless the replacement frame is from Art Morrison. Frame swaps are best left to those who have the experience from a lift-time of doing them. Even the worst OEM IHC frame might be able to be saved with some carefully thought out repairs and gussets. An original frame does not survive well after being welded on. The upper and lower frame flanges should not be welded on and drilling more holes in the flanges is much less than a good idea for a person without the training and the special tooling. Even something seeming as simple as motor-mounts location is critical. Get this wrong and the frame will fail.
I would rather have tools I do not need than to need tools I do not have
Thinking risks being controversial and possibly being offensive
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