Hi guys, this is my first post so please stick with me if i go off on a tangent. I'm looking to import a Chevy Pickup to the UK. It cant be any newer than 1949 because I'll have to pay 22% import tax and then 17.5% vat on the total so if i get a model upto 1950 i only pay 5% on the total including the shipping and the like. Anyway that's not the question. I'd something that has been restored from the ground up so i dont have to then have the work done over here and have parts shipped and the like but i don't want anything thats been lowered or anything as this will be used every day as a work vehicle. My question is does anyone know what European engines would fit into the engine bay? The reason is mainly down to fuel consumption and running cost. I'd perfer advice on desiel engines, then i could run on eco fuel like vedge oil, I'm also considering the possibilities of LPG conversion (Liquid Propane Gas) which I can have done locally. So I guess the question is would say a landrover engine fit or similar? thanks in advance christian
Christian ; You're going to LOVE this one ! . Go find an old dead Bedford bus and yank the Inline 6 cylinder Diesel engine out of it .... You'll need to fab up some motor mounts and so on . Or just buy any rusted out Japanese Diesel powered pickup truck and use that ~ there's GOBS of room in the engine bay of an AD truck . Volvo Penta (marine) Diesels (6 cylinders) wound up in many Volvo passenger cars too although I had one and wasn't overly impressed with it , some folks like them . Lots of stalled projects over here too . remember : you'll be wanting a truck with an open driveline , the original pre-54 rear end has an enclosed driveshaft setupthat _cannot_ be converted , you'll need to replace the whole rear end to get an open driveshaft to connect to whatever Diesel engine you plop into it . Good luck with your project ! .
thanks for the advise , who'd have thought i'd have so much choice.. as for fabbing anything, i won't be doing the work i'm too busy chopping up trees, i'll have to pay someone. just on a side note i range chevy UK and they were being very helpful until i explained i didn't want to use an american engine and then the phone went dead ! its not that i don't want to use one. If i could find an engine that would give me somewhere near Japanese fuel economy i would but desiel is like $8 a gallon almost over here so sorry if anyone thinks im killing a classic
Well ; Although I personally hate chopping up good trucks , you may be saving one from certain death.... Bedford Diesel is a GM subsidiary ,no ? I always thought it was .
Christian, you might want to direct your search towards 3/4 ton trucks in the case you use an older diesel. I think the newer ones are a bit less heavy but still hefty. My wifes fishing truck is a 1/2 ton 64 short wide Ford that had a Perkins in it when purchased and it was not the best. The front springs weren't up to the task and steering was too much for a small person. You might have to have one built to your specs but it is ALWAYS cheaper to buy one already done. You could get a weight on the engine you choose and if you want a short bed truck ( 3/4's are long) then custom springs could be used. Good luck in your search and there are still a lot of 47-49 AD's around.
thanks for the info guys. I've been trying to get as much info as I can from all sources. i recieved and email the other day on the topic of the engine.. Chris: I suppose most any engine will fit your 1949 with the correct skill and time. I suspect you will need to make side motor mounts because the diesel won't fit the small block Chevy V-8 change over bracket we stock. The next is the different bell housing that holds the engine to the transmission. If it is not mounted to the frame then the transmission will need mounted. Once again different transmission to frame mounts. Of course, the open drive shaft differential will have to be compatible to the drive shaft and transmission. Now comes the rear wheels. If they fit the rear they probably won't fit the front. You need two spare wheels and tires. It sounds like opening a can of worms. We are back to skill and time I have had a bright idea, why not just see what i can do with the original block. After all it seems a little silly to buy what is not only design classic truck but also a piece of automotive history and then chop it up. I have now signed up for the keep it simple method.
Hi Christian I am putting a transit diesel in mine should give 35/45 mpg cruise all day at 70/80 mph, engine and 5 speed box will cost approx £100, VW LT van has a straight 6 same engine as the Volvo that Nate was on about, or try a early Beamer with a straight 6, check that head is not cracked ,use early one as engine management on later models are linked to dash modual, key and fuel pump, I know for some Bedford diesel engines but they are a slow revving 3000rpm max lots of torque though. Have A Jag front end ready to go in hopefully over Bank holiday V12 gives you 4 pot vented disk, Jags go about 2 ton so plenty of stopping power,for a back axel theres Ebay or try looking on http://www.nsra.org.uk/ go to the forums and look in NSRA for sale / wanted ads Your are correct Nate Bedford is part of the Vauxhall group which is the English arm of GM called "Opel" in the rest of Europe Regards Gerald
thanks for that , i tried to join the NRSA but they aren't accepting new members at the moment. Sometimes i really wish i was a petrol head and not just someone with what seems to be dillusions of grandure. I think this is going to harder than i thought. I'm not stopping though
Gerald ; When I lived in Guatemala City . C.A. in the 1970's the local transit Co. had Bedford busses , they were very robust and handled the potholed roads (more like bomb craters) easily . most of them didn't have starters or batteries so occasionally we (the passengers) would have to give it a push to get the damned thing started so's we could ride to work..... IIRC the '84 Volvo Diesel wagon we had wad mechanical fuel injection , it had a manual 4 speed gearbox with of all things , a Laycock overdrive fitted . Christian : I'm a DieselHead too so carry on ! if this is what you want , don't be deterred by nay sayers . I love my old Mercedes W-123 Diesels .
Gerald, would you let me know how the V12 fits pics would be coolio if you have any ccoram@btinternet.com christian
Hi fellow brit, welcome to the crazy gang! sounds to me like you are going to be in for a lot of work doing a truck that way, if you change the engine you will have to change the gearbox, if you change the gearbox you will have to change the back axle, if you do that you will have to change the brake master cylinder, if you..............well you get the picture, i would give this serious thought before goin down this road, Why not do as i am and just keep it stock and enjoy it for what it is, a great old truck with a few quirks, jus my 2 cents, as they say on here
Hi Brit talking of Merlin engines and the sound of them, Went to Dutsford with my son and spent a day in the workshops on a Spitfire we got a special passes as I had to drop some spares of to them for one of the planes, awsome sound!!! Do you remember a few years ago that somebody shoehorned a Merlin into a E Type think it was road legal as well, never seen it myself but it was featured in one of the car mags Gerald
Diesel Engine There's a 52 3100 Pickup running around Nebraska/Iowa that has a diesel in it. It's a 4BTA Cummins. Even has the turbo and intercooler installed. Fits up nicely. He put a TH-400 tranny and a Dana 44 for a rear. The truck gets around quite a bit, so I'm sure it worked out well. There's another one running around Iowa as well, complete with the exhaust stack . Those Iowa boys are a little different! Andy
Hi and thanks for the welcome, I would love to keep it stock but then there is the power issue for motor way driving and then the brakes to stop me. Either way im going to have to do some work. There is no way i could trundle along in the slow lane I'd only get frustrated by the fact that I couldn't get a ton out of the truck should I want to. I if could get a good speed out of the stock engine that would be great, then its just the brakes change
