Turbo for Big Block Chevy

[BLAH BLA]

i just picked up a new toy hauler....so my truck is feeling a little underpowered. since a new diesel would cost $50K or more....i wanted to add some power to my current truck.

any body know of anybody building turbo's for carb'ed applications?

[XtremeModifier]

what motor? year?

[BLAH BLA]

1981 454.....

[The Rob]

A turbodiesel is just that. A diesel that was built from the ground up with a turbo in mind. Bolting some boost on a gasoline motor, that may always be under boost because you're overloading the drivetrain...not the best of ideas. Temps go up. Heads warp. Gaskets blow.

I've seen a whipple charger kit for those 454s with a mild amount of boost that seems to work ok. But if you're really going to use it to haul a heavy trailer, may want to think about upgrading the cooling system.

[XtremeModifier]

Yep, definitely. My 6.5L (of course, notorious for heating issues, as I'm sure Rob will verify) detroit has the trans cooler, large radiator, upgraded water pump, upgraded fan and oil cooler, etc. and it still has heating issues.

Rob, aren't the exhaust pipes from the 6.5L and 8.1L (??? on disp, the 454) the same? Basically what I'm asking is, isn't my 6.5L essentially a variance of a Chevy Big Block engine? If so, you could probably use the exhaust manifold from a 6.5L detroit diesel for the turbo.

It would be a lot easier to buy a used diesel. With the diesel market essentially falling out, lots of dealers (at least around here) have been stuck with used diesel truck inventory, and have been selling newer (2000+) diesels with low miles, full warranty, etc. for $10-$15k. I just wish I had waited on buying mine ... I bought it for $8k right before the market fell out, and then the value dropped to 3-4k while those stuck with diesels were selling the better (powerstoke, cummins, dmax) for just a couple thousand more than what I paid for mine!

[The Rob]

I know a lot about cars, but diesels are one area I'll admit to not having much to say in. I've worked on a diesel or two, but nothing major. A fuel distributor on an old Ford was probably the most in depth I got.

But I do know that 7.4=454 and 8.1=496.

Out of the three light truck brands, the Cummins is the best motor...but it's in the worst truck. So a used Duramax would be the best. Plus the Duramax comes with the best transmission. The Allison LCT1000 is fucking overkill for a light truck. They're more suited for tow trucks and other medium duty stuff. Avoid the first couple years though (2001-02). They had a few bugs in the engine and transmission that needed to be worked out. Plus I think the Allison went to six speeds after '04 or so.

[BLAH BLA]

i will not be needing the extra HP....i hooked it up and my truck pulls it just fine. i was told the trailer would weigh 11,000lbs, but that is the GVWR not the actual weight....

[FanaticalKilla]

Just run yours into the ground and then put a 5.9 Cummins with a mechanic pump in it. Lots of guys have done it and you'll have the best of both worlds.

[XtremeModifier]

Why the heck would you swap a cummins in a chevy? I'd just go out and buy a dodge with a cummins already in it, cheaper.

[TrippyJoey]

You could for sure drop a turbo in the 454, but you would have to switch from carburated to fuel injection with a simple 1.5K Edelbrock Pro Flo TBI injection and then use a custom intake. Or if you have the cash you could get a trained mechanic to convert your truck to a 4.6( I believe that's the size) Duramaz Turbo Diesel. these turbo diesel duramax engines are small, but strong. You could also if your truck is a pre 1974 emission truck you could drop a 6.1L Duramax Turbo Diesel get it modified with a custom twin turbo setup and a liquid to air intercooler. This combination in particular is used by many pro diesel drag racers cause you can get over 1200HP and 30MPG!

[XtremeModifier]

You obviously don't know anything about the older chevy diesels. There is only one released duramaxx (6.6L), the 4.5L never made it to production, and it looks like it never will. The 6.2L and 6.5L are older ... 6.1 duramaxx (2-x's) doesn't exist, 6.2 and 6.5 were "detroit diesels" and have lots of issues with the fuel system, computer, etc.

You would never twin-turbo a 6.2L, they weren't built for any boost, plus wtf would you go twin-turbo? 1200hp and 30mpg ... post up specs or ban. It's just not going to happen with the old detroits, they were never drag motors, they were friggin' work-horse, bottom-end torque motors. I should know. Not only was I a next-generation diesel engineer, but I also owned a 6.5L H.O. 235hp (the highest factory hp output 6.5L detroit) chevy diesel with a modded 4L80E.

[TrippyJoey]

You obviously don't know anything about the older chevy diesels. There is only one released duramaxx (6.6L), the 4.5L never made it to production, and it looks like it never will. The 6.2L and 6.5L are older ... 6.1 duramaxx (2-x's) doesn't exist, 6.2 and 6.5 were "detroit diesels" and have lots of issues with the fuel system, computer, etc.

You would never twin-turbo a 6.2L, they weren't built for any boost, plus wtf would you go twin-turbo? 1200hp and 30mpg ... post up specs or ban. It's just not going to happen with the old detroits, they were never drag motors, they were friggin' work-horse, bottom-end torque motors. I should know. Not only was I a next-generation diesel engineer, but I also owned a 6.5L H.O. 235hp (the highest factory hp output 6.5L detroit) chevy diesel with a modded 4L80E.

Yes your right I apologize I meant to write the old Oldsmobile diesel engine cause those were equipped in the chevrolets in the past. And I disagree about twin turbo charging Duramaxx engines. The Duramaxx LLY engines are used extensively by diesel tractor pullers as well as old school big rig racers (have you ever heard about the Freightliner drag racers of the 70's?). Here is even an article of a guy who has a Chevrolet Chevelle equipped with a twin turbocharged Duramax LLY engine with no problems and close to the 1200HP mark by now and they shortly discuss about how 1500HP in these engines isn't uncommon. http://www.popularhotrodding.com/features/0906phr_1970_chevy_chevelle_turbo_diesel/index.html

[BLAH BLA]

i don't need 1000hp.......and the diesel swap is really not worth it, all my buddies have maintenance bills and upkeep on thier new diesel that my big block does not need....

when she does die, its definately getting a blower....

[XtremeModifier]

Okay, since you can't follow my words, here's a simple list of popular TRUCK GM Diesel engines:

6.2L OHV Diesel - Big Block casting, non-turbo, 2V Diesel.
6.5L OHV Diesel - same as 6.2L diesel, only a longer stroke. STILL NOT A DURAMAXX! These two are called "Detroit Diesels" and were built as light-duty diesels, to work with existing 4l80e transmissions.
6.6L Duramaxx - best option of the three, and the best transmission, with the 6-spd allison, that can handle just about anything even a radically modded 6.6 can throw at it.

The 6.5L had a lot of trims, from non-turbo, ~165hp, all the way to the high-output, GVWR 8600+lb truck engine, rated at 235hp, and running 8lbs of boost.

Both the 6.2 and 6.5 had major issues relating to the designs being for non-turbo. For example, both commonly experience "head lift" where the massive compression (21.5:1 iirc) causes the heads to lift off of the block slightly, allowing coolant to pass into the cylinders.

The oldsmobile diesel, also known as the 350diesel, was simply a 350 2v small block with taller pistons to get the compression up to diesel levels. It was a total failure, with few, if any, motors lasting 100k miles (usually 500k is common, 1million isn't unheard of). The motor was a POS, and I would never recommend swapping one in. btw - 350cid = 5.7L.

The detroits are decent, okay if you already have one in there. I wouldn't recommend swapping due to the fuel, ecu, and overheating issues.

The duramaxxes are better engines. Still don't have the power of the 7.3L powerstroke or cummins (even 5.9!) but, as mentioned by Rob, they have the best transmission of the three, with the 6-speed AT Allison.

And I think I'd be the one to know diesels. Since I only spent a couple YEARS as a DIESEL turbo/emissions ENGINEER at BORG-WARNER. So, please, unless you actually know what you're talking about rather than spitting out random facts you read about in a magazine, and still can't understand well enough to repeat accurately, just be quiet and let those of us who ACTUALLY work on these engines, designed parts, work on the cars, etc. talk

[TrippyJoey]

Lol, well you got me there then and I have to admit my defeat. I'm not going to argue with a proffesional. But hey I was just giving my opinion.

[geoffm]

turn the exaust manifolds backwards and mount two turbos off of ebay on them and get a blow threw chamber and carb and then run your own piping the chamber is for a small block but it will work + run a lil nitiours so when u are at low rpms it will still spool the turbos and run a lil meth to cool the intake charge off a bit and protect your presious pistions

[geoffm]

turbo the gas job