Chevy & GMC Vans

i stumbled across some websites which are talking about 4.3l v6 diesels and 5.7l v8 diesels that were found in buicks at one time. why have i never heard of these before? do any of our older members remembe these? i remember talk about diesel swaps into a astro but i dont remember anyone accomplishing it. ive also read the small isuzu diesels in chevy luvs and s-10s were modified gas engines that were set up to run on diesel, which leads me to believe these would be no different in size to our 4.3 or even 5.7s. why hasnt anybody done this swap yet? has it ever been discussed? is this site i found full of it do these really exist?

The GM 4.3L/5.7L diesels from the late 70s/early 80s were not known to be the most reliable. Main issue was head to block leaks/bolt failure. They were also a bit noisy and the exhaust a bit dirty. Many people believe that GM used gas engine blocks and turned them into diesel and thus the problems, this is not true. GM created their diesels in familiar engine sizes in an attempt to make people more comfortable with making the move to diesel. Unfortunately the head/block problem was not something the dealers or GM dealt with very well and the engines developed a bad reputation. There are aftermarket fixes for these engines that result in them being fairly reliable, but due to their unpopularity the engines themselves are difficult to find. Nationwide http://www.Car-Part.com search, I only 8 of the 4.3L and 16 of the 5.7L. This rarity and the lack of turbo charging result in them not being a popular engine swap choice.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oldsmobile ... _V6_engine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oldsmobile ... LF9_Diesel

The diesel engine swap is something I've been looking into for a while. The engines I'm leaning towards are the 2.8L I4 VM Motori (Jeep Liberty / crate engine), the 3.0L 72° V6 Mercedes (Sprinter vans / Jeep Grand Cherokee / MB C320-E320-S320), and the 4.5L V6 Navistar MaxxForce 5 (Ford LCF / International CF).

GnarliSafari wrote:i stumbled across some websites which are talking about 4.3l v6 diesels and 5.7l v8 diesels that were found in buicks at one time. why have i never heard of these before? do any of our older members remembe these? i remember talk about diesel swaps into a astro but i dont remember anyone accomplishing it. ive also read the small isuzu diesels in chevy luvs and s-10s were modified gas engines that were set up to run on diesel, which leads me to believe these would be no different in size to our 4.3 or even 5.7s. why hasnt anybody done this swap yet? has it ever been discussed? is this site i found full of it do these really exist?

There is a guy who I read about is selling a Astro Isuzu turbo all done and been running for awhile.He supplied pics and I believe was real.

I'm familiar with the 5.7L (350) diesel, but this is the first I've heard of a 4.3L version. Interesting!

I think the best... easiest?... most affordable?... route would be to find the small Cummins in a GM step van with a Turbo 400 attached.

I almost bought an early 80's Olds Cutlass Ciera with the 4.3L V6 diesel but when we went to look at it the engine was already warmed up when I told the guy specifically to leave it cold so I could see how it started in the cold. Up north where I grew up we regularly saw -15* to -20* in the winter. I never drove the car and it was the only one I ever saw.

mdmead wrote:I'm familiar with the 5.7L (350) diesel, but this is the first I've heard of a 4.3L version. Interesting!

I think the best... easiest?... most affordable?... route would be to find the small Cummins in a GM step van with a Turbo 400 attached.

X2

I'd ditch the TH400 and use a TH700R4, 4L60E or 4L80 with a stand alone controler, or my personal favorite pick, the NV4500 5 speed. The TH400 is great in a really HD application, but OD is great for a real driver.

25-30 mpg if built and driven right.

1Gary wrote:

GnarliSafari wrote:i stumbled across some websites which are talking about 4.3l v6 diesels and 5.7l v8 diesels that were found in buicks at one time. why have i never heard of these before? do any of our older members remembe these? i remember talk about diesel swaps into a astro but i dont remember anyone accomplishing it. ive also read the small isuzu diesels in chevy luvs and s-10s were modified gas engines that were set up to run on diesel, which leads me to believe these would be no different in size to our 4.3 or even 5.7s. why hasnt anybody done this swap yet? has it ever been discussed? is this site i found full of it do these really exist?

There is a guy who I read about is selling a Astro Isuzu turbo all done and been running for awhile.He supplied pics and I believe was real.

Gary, Here is one That You Can Know Is REAL... Jim

http://nissandiesel.dyndns.org/viewtopi ... highlight=

astroturf wrote: Gary, Here is one That You Can Know Is REAL... Jim

http://nissandiesel.dyndns.org/viewtopi ... highlight=

Great read!

But unless you wanted this diesel just to be different, it doesn't pencil out. With a 'best mileage' of almost 26 mpg, and worst of 21 mpg, you aren't saving much if any money. My 96 AWD hi-top conversion could pull down 20 mpg on the interstate and routinely delivered 18-19 mpg. In my area, regular is 20 cents or more per gallon cheaper than diesel. Then factor in the cost of the conversion...

A diesel Astro/Safari is WAY cool, and I'd still like to own one, but a 350 V-8 is a better swap. The swap would be cheaper and if you keep your foot out of it, you can maintain or even (marginally) improve your mileage. Plus you will have more HP and torque when you want to tow something.

mdmead wrote:

astroturf wrote: Gary, Here is one That You Can Know Is REAL... Jim

http://nissandiesel.dyndns.org/viewtopi ... highlight=

Great read!

But unless you wanted this diesel just to be different, it doesn't pencil out. With a 'best mileage' of almost 26 mpg, and worst of 21 mpg, you aren't saving much if any money. My 96 AWD hi-top conversion could pull down 20 mpg on the interstate and routinely delivered 18-19 mpg. In my area, regular is 20 cents or more per gallon cheaper than diesel. Then factor in the cost of the conversion...

A diesel Astro/Safari is WAY cool, and I'd still like to own one, but a 350 V-8 is a better swap. The swap would be cheaper and if you keep your foot out of it, you can maintain or even (marginally) improve your mileage. Plus you will have more HP and torque when you want to tow something.

I agree totally.

Dollar for dollar, the 350 swap is absolutely the best deal around. You would never regain the expense of a diesel swap in MPG savings, IMHO.

The only reason to do it is the 'cool' factor, which is something I can respect. Just like Gary and his 500cid Caddy motor.

I agree as well. Just thought it would be an interesting read. Jim

astroturf wrote:I agree as well. Just thought it would be an interesting read. Jim

Yeah, this is the first documented diesel conversion I'm aware of. I'd like to see more using different engines too.

astroturf wrote:I agree as well. Just thought it would be an interesting read. Jim

I read the entire topic, and totally enjoyed it. Very cool, thanks for sharing!


As a note, here are the specs on the Nissan Diesel that was used:

LD28 (inline 6)
2,792 cc (around 170 CID)
pre-combustion chamber (indirect injection, my guess)
89.8 bhp) @ 4600 RPM
125 lb·ft) @ 2400 RPM

The builder claimed 20-26 mpg roughly based on his posts. It is a novelty in my opinion, but still cool. You could prolly pull the same numbers with a 4.3 or a 2.5 (yes, a 4 cyl) with a stick shift, unloaded.

The Nissan diesel used isn't getting that great of mileage for a couple reasons. No turbo and it appears to be geared too low as the cruising RPMs mentioned are rather high. Good experiment though.

I really do think that 30 MPG is doable with a proper turbo diesel, as I know of people pulling 28 MPG in diesel Jeep Liberties.

Remember that another reason to go diesel is to burn home brew fuel.