Posted by David on April 03, 1999 at 16:21:35:
In Reply to: Re: 1976 big block conversion HELP! posted by Chris Clouser on April 03, 1999 at 10:59:45:
Go with a 440 over a 383. The differnece in low RPM
torque is very apparent. I originally put a 383 in my scout
and actually went down in bottom end torque from the 304.
IH 304. When I replaced the 383 and put in a smog 440-4V the
"grunt factor" went way up and I still got about 16
MPG. The only substitute for cubic inches is
cubic money and with trucks of this weight that
extra stroke/torque is really is noticeable.
Caveat: a 440-4V can flat-out blow up a Dana 44.
I ended up with a spider gear hanging out
through a hole in the rear cover. I also nuked
a 727 torquefilte by blowing up a planetary
gear set while doing burnouts. Slapped that puppy
into second with it wound up and instead of burning
the tires again it said KA-THUMP. It still went
backwards but it would have been a long way home.