4.3 rebuild for my '89 4x4

[madmtnmikey]

This is for my '89 S10 4x4

Not to beat a dead horse, but I'm weighing out whether to go 350, or beefed up rebuild.

All I want is about 250 to 300 lbs. of torque. I'm not worried about HP, I want pulling power.

I've looked at pretty all inclusive rebuild kits from Jegs and Summit for the 4.3 for around $550 and down, not including the Cam, headwork, and fuel system upgrade. I'd estimate the total for that route to hit around $1200.

The cheapest crate 350 that puts out at least 300 ft. lbs. I could find is between $1600 and $1800.

I'm also putting 31's on the truck, I need to be able to turn those easily.

I found a guy selling a 4.3 for the donar block and heads for $100 out of an 85 Monte Carlo.

Thoughts and inputs on this ? I know this topic of V8 vs. V6 advantages has been beaten to death, I'm just trying to make a decision and looking for help, not to create any more arguments on this. Thanks for any inputs.

[4pt9fiero]

Nothing beats the rumble of a V8.

[01x.joyride]

im gonna be about 3500 deep into my v6 build and ill be lucky if i have 250 hp..not sure about torque...

for half the price as you listed in your post...that v8 already sounds better...

[95tahoelt]

Quote: Originally Posted by 01x.joyride

im gonna be about 3500 deep into my v6 build and ill be lucky if i have 250 hp..not sure about torque...

for half the price as you listed in your post...that v8 already sounds better...

I'm at $2,500, I built my block myself! minus the $900 for the machine shop to align bore my block, bore the cylinders, hot tank my block, heads, valve covers and oil pan. they also mill my block and heads and did my new 3 angle valve job. surface ground my exhaust manifolds and removed my old studs.

My Blazer is now faster then my Trail Blazer now at 400 miles.
I'm waiting to get to 1000 miles on the engine before I install my chip.
I'm thinking I wish I would have went V8.
But we'll see what it has after the chip!

[madmtnmikey]

Ok, I see where everyone is going with the money to get the power out of the 4.3.

What about any hidden costs for installing the 350 ? Like mounting and the radiator, ignition.

If I went 350, i'd obviously go carb, I'm looking at power versus money spent.

My other question which I didn't ask initially, what about fuel economy ? will the 350 turn 31" tires and eat up less fuel than a modified 4.3 ?

[almighty4wd]

Something I've read here and on zr2usa is those who went 350 got same or better mileage IF (BIG IF) they stayed off the throttle. With that power though, many find that difficult

I know one guy dropped a vortec 5.7 in and has 33x10.5R15 tires, so slightly oversized, and he's netting 2mpg better on the highway. He also has the auto (beefed up), not manual, so not as worried about shredding gears because of power.

[madmtnmikey]

Well,

I've decided to stick with the 4.3 rebuild, I'll pick the engine up this weekend for $100.

I scoured through the V8 threads, and those guys seem to be spending close to the same amount in order to get a nice clean install.

I'm sure if you were really trying to pinch pennies, and you found a used 350 somewhere for cheap, you could save a lot of money. But I'm talking crate motor. I'm not knocking anyone that doesn't have the cash for it. I just want clean, and reliability, as well as ease of install.

I head out of town on the 15th, i may try to get the block and heads dropped off to get magnafluxed before I leave.

This is what I'm thinking right now, the motor is from '85 Monte Carlo:
block bored .040 over
Keith Black Domed pistons with valve reliefs, shooting for close to 11:1 comp.
Comp Cam: specs undecided, thinking 260-270 advertised duration
roller tip rockers, 1.52 ratio
12 angle valve job depending on cost
port and polish
Intake, i only saw one decent option on Summit, probably go that route
sticking with TBI
ignition will get upgraded at a later date after I get the motor in and running

Inputs welcome, everything is subject to change, this is a rough idea right now.

[disturbing V6]

If it is a real 85 block it will not be roller so if you wanna use roller your gonna have to go retro fit. Also the 85 blocks depending on when it was made were a 2 piece rear main seal not a one piece. So if its a two piece you will need a 2 piece rear crank which hopefully he has you can not put a 1 piece in a 2 piece block. Everything else is the same though. A good upgrade for cheep would be finding a set of 94 - 95 early vortecs. Still a six bolt like your but at the top of the intake runner has like a tear drop. They flow better then your z heads and the n heads. Also if the heads are true 85s unless built late in the season will have 4 corner bolt valve covers not center bolt.

[madmtnmikey]

Thanks for the info man, very helpful, much appreciated.
The guy had it advertised on craigslist, I'll find out when I pick it up, but it sounded complete because the tranny was still attached but I told him I didn't want it. There doesn't seem to be any decent aftermarket support for the crank so I planned to reuse it, hopefully it's acceptable.

[madmtnmikey]

Well damn, it would've been cool to be able to do that head swap, but I touched base with the guy last night on picking up the motor, it's an '86 not an '85