I wanted to know if someone has put a chevy 350 in a GMC truck and if you did. Did you move the steering box and steering column. And how far. Could you tell that you moved the column over. Was it differnt to steer it.
RE: Moving steering box for chevy 3 If your not interested in getting maximum horsepower out of the V8 then the easiest thing to do is use a 265 V8 (55-56) left manifold. This manifold will clear the steering box with the engine centered in the frame even though it's close. It is a flat log type manifold with the outlet at the front which is ideal for the exhaust pipe to be routed around the box. As far as cutting horsepower with what looks like a non free flowing design all I can say is we had a 53 shop truck with this setup, when gas was cheap, and it would melt the rear tires when you stood on it. Every swap meet of any size will have several 265 exhaust manifolds usually for around $25. One last thing--no rule says the engine has to be mounted in the center, in fact ford vans in the 70's were extreme in offsetting the engine to the passenger side.
RE: Moving steering box Be _very_ leery of doing this ~ you'll need to fabricate a new drag link and once done , there's no going back as you've ruined the frame.... Take some time and go look at other Ad's with V-ates in car shows , see how they handled this comn problem . If you ask over on Chevy Talk in the truck forums , you'll get some expert advice from the hot rodders there , they know how to do this without ruining your truck , good luck ! . -Nate
RE: Moving steering box Here's what one looks like when done right. Attachments: https://talk.classicparts.com/images/attachments/43f4255e092c2d7f.html
RE: Moving steering box I got the engine and tran at 4 degrees with the rear end at 4 degrees and i got the engine crossmeber and mounts bolted and welded in place and the trans crossmeber in place to the drive shaft was the right length. DO you got another picture of the driver side so i can see how they did the steering.
RE: Moving steering box Jason, sorry I didn't take a picture of the drivers side, but it has the steering box in the stock location and a 265 left exhaust manifold. Like I said it's close but never touches or vibrates. When that customer brings it back by the shop I'll take a pic of the left side. You sound as though your pretty darn skilled at this stuff yourself and you picked a winning combination. I have found that having the rearend down 1 to 2 degrees from the engine angle gives better U-joint life. The theory is by having a slight angle it causes the needle bearings in the u-joints to roll and not get flat spots. Of course, this was on our old shop truck that was driven bookoo miles. On a cruiser having the same angle on crank and pinion centerline is probably a non factor--if it doesn't vibrate just keep on smiling and cruising.
RE: Moving steering box Thinks for helping me out. If I got anymore questions I hope you can help me out.
