Can I switch my 350 Chevy engine to a 6.2 diesel?

I had a 85 GMC cc dually with 6.2 and a ATS turbo and that truck ran and pulled great.

rjstractor wrote:

jerem0621 wrote:
When I was considering a Diesel sway for my V10 I was considering the IH 6.9 IDI. Should bolt in the frame rails of the F350 superduty with minimal effort.

Very cheap to work on.

I can see the cheap to work on and put fuel in, but going from a V10 to an older IDI non-turbo diesel would be a miserable experience to drive. You're almost cutting your hp in half!

It was going to run a turbo, no way I would go from a V10 to a NA Diesel.

I think that this would be a great swap for a gas superduty. Those IDI's can make some great boosted power. (Perspective her folks, not talking 800 lb ft here with an IDI.)

Thanks!

Jeremiah

jerem0621 wrote:
When I was considering a Diesel sway for my V10 I was considering the IH 6.9 IDI. Should bolt in the frame rails of the F350 superduty with minimal effort.

Very cheap to work on.

I can see the cheap to work on and put fuel in, but going from a V10 to an older IDI non-turbo diesel would be a miserable experience to drive. You're almost cutting your hp in half!

Jeramiah,

I would suggest the idi7.3 if you were going to do this swap, I realize you are NOT. BUT, none the less, they use the same block, etc. so might as well get the cubes and extra power from the cubes. Same as the OP, I would try to go with a 6.5 and get the exgtra power. Or as I did to a 69 convertable bug many years ago, it had a stock 50 hp 1500 motor that needed rebuilding, might as well make it a 1600, and get 60 hp out of the thing. That was the std rebuild any how!

As stated, the non turbo diesel motors do have a bit more power at idle and off the line initially, so for city slower driving this could be better for some. But wrong for others. I know of a lot of folks with boats prefer non turbo setups, sorta the same for farm type equipment too. Now why my mini trackhoe has a 750 cc turbo diesel producing 16HP.....next model did not have a turbo, also producing 15-16hp. works just as well!

Marty

ScottG wrote:
The 6.2 was a dog (had an 82) and won't even compare to a modestly rebuilt 350.
Stick with a gas eng, maybe a 454, and you'll save a bundle and get better performance.
You could also install a Cummins but for what thats going to cost, you'd be better off trading it in on a better used truck.

Listen to ScottG.

blt2ski wrote:
For that purpose, a 6.2 might work. Or as noted, try to find a crate 6.5, for the most part, that is a bored and slightly stroked 6.2. If you do try to turbo either one, try to cut the compression from the stock 22-1 or there abouts, down to 18-1, makes for a longer lasting motor, and you will not blow the thing up as easy with too much boost. If properly setup, a 6.5 should net you 18-20 depedning upon driving habits etc, with a lot more get up and go. The 6.5 does have like the 6.2, or the IHC IDI6.9/7.3 power off the line vs the newer turbos, seem to have a bit of lag, including my dmax. But once the lag is gone, they scream past these motors.

As noted, yeah cheap to work on. Injectors for $50-75 each, vs 400 in rebuilt form per on my dmax! one can get a set of hi pops for a 6.5 for less than a single injector for my dmax.

Have fun with the project.

Marty

When I was considering a Diesel sway for my V10 I was considering the IH 6.9 IDI. Should bolt in the frame rails of the F350 superduty with minimal effort.

Very cheap to work on.

Thanks!

Jeremiah

For that purpose, a 6.2 might work. Or as noted, try to find a crate 6.5, for the most part, that is a bored and slightly stroked 6.2. If you do try to turbo either one, try to cut the compression from the stock 22-1 or there abouts, down to 18-1, makes for a longer lasting motor, and you will not blow the thing up as easy with too much boost. If properly setup, a 6.5 should net you 18-20 depedning upon driving habits etc, with a lot more get up and go. The 6.5 does have like the 6.2, or the IHC IDI6.9/7.3 power off the line vs the newer turbos, seem to have a bit of lag, including my dmax. But once the lag is gone, they scream past these motors.

As noted, yeah cheap to work on. Injectors for $50-75 each, vs 400 in rebuilt form per on my dmax! one can get a set of hi pops for a 6.5 for less than a single injector for my dmax.

Have fun with the project.

Marty

wilber1 wrote:
Know a guy who went the other way with a 5.7 diesel in a Cadillac. Took the diesel out and put in a crate 350. Then he stuck the diesel in a boat.

I did NOT put that POS in a boat. Everything else correct :B

I put 225K on a 6.2 in an 84 3500 SRW. I didn't replace anything other than starters and wiring in a manual glow plug system. Other than that, it just ran. So for me it worked, as shown others hated that motor.

I have seen crate 6.5 motors for sale at Army Navy stores (the big ones) or you might catch them yourself at DRMO military auctions. The 6.5 replaced the 6.2 in the Humvee. There are many unused 6.5's sitting on crates. If you could find one I would use that. If you really want a 6.2 try to find one that was meant for a 3500 series pickup. They had a different intake and I think were called J series 6.2L. I am pulling this from memory and its been awhile since I have messed with these motors so varify. You might also just buy a Cutvee (military pickups they were 85-87 3500's with some additional springs) I think they were considered a ton and a quarter if I remember right. Unless already converted they would be 24V but these pickups had the more HD 6.2L I am referring to. You buy these pretty cheap. Buy it part it and use the running gear in your pickup. It will bolt right up.

showme wrote:
Thanks for those comments. To answer the question of "why would I want to?", The answer would be that I had one in my old Suburban, and it was a great little engine, when maintained. I was told when I bought it that they were known for 80k on the heads (warped heads, cracked heads, blown gaskets, etc.). Sort of like an older jeep. I was also told that this was caused by GM using substandard head bolts that were brought over from the v-8 gassers. The solution to this is to install new head bolts that are of a better alloy (won't stretch and contract due to the high heat and pressure that diesels suffer), before the heads are ruined by the old type bolt less-than-good-enough metallurgy. I've talked to many people who found this swear it's worth the $70 for the new bolts and the resurfacing and/or new heads. Secondly, the Detroit 6.2 is a tough little engine and so does well running on WVO or anything comparable. Others who have run it in most other American engines have not faired as well. The 6.2 is as good with it as Mercedes Benz' 300 and 240 diesels. They are also easy to find parts for and cheap. The U.S. government used them in military and USPS vehicles, and a lot of them are still going strong. Per the Cummins, I've seen and heard about all the trouble my Dodge/Chrysler buddies have had with them, and the exhorbitant prices for parts and repairs. I'd say "No offense...", but that didn't seem to be a lead in in any of the 6.2 bad mouthing that I just read, so I won't bother with that. Per the 454, it was this very forum who led me to the knowledge of buying a diesel (my former '95 GMC 6.5 dually to pull our 36' HR), that convinced me hands down that it would break the bank as a gas guzzler. "You'll be able to watch the fuel gauge needle drop as you pull up hills!! (No thanks!) This is going into an '82 one-ton dually that has a fiberglass service bed and a welder, so I won't be pulling anything with it. I would have kept my old'90 GMC with it's 6.2 but I needed a truck, not a passenger vehicle, and since it would have cost as much to have someone else rebuild the heads as I paid for it (I had a back injury at the time), I chose to sell it. Wish I would have kept it now. OK, then. Now that I know lots of people hate 6.2's, does anybody anybody have an answer to my question? Thanks!

LOL, I thought I did!

Get a new big block radiator.

Get a diesel torque converter.

Get a diesel throttle cable.

Make a return line for your fuel tank.

Get diesel motor mounts. (They might be the same as the SB?)

You can do a push button glow plug deal. In fact I recommend it.


Hook it all up and go have fun. I see what you're doing and there is nothing wrong with it. The 6.2 will also burn clean ATF and UMO just fine. DB2 pumps are cool that way! I think it's cool what you are doing.

BTW I don't agree with whoever told you about the whole head bolt deal. The 5.7 had head bolt problems, not the 6.2. In any event it's not a bad idea to ARP stud anything IMHO. Good luck and let us know how it goes.