Morning, Well my truck has been finished for a year now and I'm just about got all the bugs worked out. It's my daily driver and I've got over 11k on it now. The 4.3 and a 700r4 is proving to be a good combo for the little truck. I'm getting about 17.5 mpg in town and around 24 on the highway. I hate my seat, it is uncomfortable and a hassle to get under and behind. I want to keep the bench, so what about the Glide seat? I know it's expensive but I've been saving for a while now and could swing it. Does anybody have any experience with the seat? Thanks Jesse
Seat Comfort I use a bolster pillow because my back is broken and hurts if I don't support it . Look at some custom upholstery jobs at the Show & Shine , ask to sit in them to get ideas as any competent Auto Trimmer can easily re - work the padding to suit your needs . In my experience , the most comfy seats tend to be fairly hard , not soft & puffy .
Thought I'd throw in a few shots of my truck. Of course the engine. 4.3 v6,vortec heads, edelbrock manifold man, with ported throttle body, full roller rockers, comp cam ( pulls from 1500 to 4800 good torque, bored .60 over, full tube headers, 2 1/2 exhaust with flowmaster, non balancer block. Next are a few shots of Lonestar Good-Guys at Texas motor speedway. Fun!!
Wow, I'd love to hear more about the V6 Vortec! I have been thinking of dropping a Gen III or newer if there is one into my wagoneer. I also hear good things about the 04L60E tranny that comes with them. These seem plentiful and they already have engine mounts and adapters made for them for jeeps. The thought of this in my 47 or 53' really stirs my imagination. How bout' some thoughts you have and problems. Some of the Vortec 6's get 300HP Flashlight
Yes, the autocross is great fun! It also gives you an opportunity to really push you truck to find the limits and see what it is capable of. As you can see in the pics, too much body roll. I have a rear sway bar but no front, by the time I'm back at Good-Guys this fall I will have one. I'm also upgrading to disc brakes on the rear. The Vortec thing has been an adventure. Since the original engine was junk I looked for an alternative, as Nate says " Not another SBC", so I decided on the 4.3. My block is an 89 with no balance shaft. That is good and bad. They have some vibration at certain rpms, but they have less moving parts. If you use an early block b4 96 and want vortec heads (way better breathing and maybe as much as 30 hp increase) you have to change the intake man. The vortec man bolts are vertical not slanted. Then an adaptor for the throttle body to manifold. The push rods, rockers, and lifters will all work but you need to change the rocker arm studs to the adjustable type. I also added poly locks for insurance. After I drove this combination for a while I decided I needed a little more power to be happy. ( It's never going ot be a v8) I changed to a Comp cam with 500 lift and 206/210 duration. I also added full rocker arms, well the rocker arm studs wouldn't work again. I had to have the heads drilled and tapped for new studs. Originally I had some factory headers on it but I changes to full length ceramics and they really made a diff too. One other thing, with all these changes I had to have the computer reprogrammed. That is when the whole package came to life (westersgarage.com). I am now happy with how it runs. No lumpy idle, pulls hard under WFO. I have had it 100mph to make sure the visor won't come off and it is stable and the A/C is cold. I'm not sure what else you could ask for. ps It has a MII under the front This is probably way more info than you wanted, sorry, I got carried away!!
Really, it just left me thirsting for more. The fit is very nice in the motor compartment and looks made for it. There are several options the Jeep folks like, from the Hummer IL 5cylinder Vortec, to an IL 6 cylinder. also a couple V6 choices. I think the O4L60E tranny with OD is the way to go. These engines are all foreign to me as I hadn't driven a GM since the eighties. Me, I barely know the difference between the 216 and the 235! Please feel free to discuss your reasons for choosing your Vortec. What about motor mounts, if your 700R4 bolted up I would think the bolt pattern will take the newer tranny. I see salvage yards with motor tranny combo's fo $1500-$2000. Could be the wave of the future. Flashlight
The reason I chose the 4.3 is the parts are cheep and plentiful. It's chevy! I decided that although it would be nice to have a v8 I wanted to be different, and it was going to be my daily driver, not my hot rod. The later model vortec 96 up are probably the better ones to get. Find one you don't have to rebuild. I think getting one from a reliable junk yard with low miles and paying a little more is the best idea. Motor mounts aren't a problem, plenty of aftermarket. Just measure and weld. You can go with an electronic or a 700r4. you will have to have an engine wiring harness made. Probably around 500 to 1000 dollars. Most people don't use stock harness,because there are some circuits you won't want and they are a pain to use. Here's a thread where there is a lot of 4.3 info. http://www.s10forum.com/forum/f107/the-holy-grail-of-4-3-info-131868/ If you have any more questions let me know, I don't consider myself an expert, but I do have experience.
I forgot to mention why I went the non electronic tranny. With a 4.3 the v8 power isn't there, and when the torq con locks up it's like having one more taller gear. I don''t like lugging the engine around. With the right rear end ratio, I chose a 10 bolt w/ 3.23 gears, and driving in 4th unlocked, the truck has good pep. When I hit the highway I flip a switch and it locks up for better gas milage. A 3.50 rear end would be good to, it's just preference.
Looks like them there back fenders were added onto... No? Thank you for all the info about the V6! I know there are a bunch that check this site to see what is possible to do with what they are driving, and this kind of information will help! *Whenever* I finally get my G back on the road, I will drive it 'til that 228 says "uncle". At that point, I'll have to evaluate a new route. Rebuild what I have, or go with "zoom-zoom". Looks like a V6 fits with all kinds of room. A 283 bolts up with the stock tranny, (I hear...) or all the other ideas! Thanks for your time and sharing of knowledge!
Wow, that's a lot to think about. What do you think you get for milage on the highway locked up? I know what you mean about lugging in final gear. I cruise my F__d 4.6 @45/50MPH and its at 1100-1200RPM getting 24MPG. The Manufacterer must not think its a problem. Maybe a small Block 8 cyl Vortec would be the answer. Incidently, I just changed to full Synthetic Oil and got 0.6 MPG more with AC running immediately. Your point about Motor availability is right on, even 235's/saginaw's are getting harder to find, so we may as well roll with the flow.
I'm getting a little over 17 in town and around 24 on the highway. It's not that I think lugging is an engine problem, I want an engine to be crisp in response, not have to build rpm to where it comes on the cam and then goes. As I push the accelerator down I want the engine to gain rpm with it not build to it. That's just me!!
