Gen III in a S-10

[96 century]

Im looking at buying a s-10 with a 2.8 in it. And i was wondering if anyone was used GenIII parts in rwd aplication Most importanly heads, cam, intake, fuel injection? Reading in "S-Series 2.8L to 3.4L Swap" (http://members.shaw.ca/betterthanyou...ine%20swap.htm) and I ran across
"The aluminum heads are NOT available with an intake for TBI or Carbureted engines. There are ways to convert you vehicle to using a different fuel injection system along with these late model heads and intakes. But this article will not discuss these possibilities."
It sounds like this has been done before where can i read about these posibilities?

[zofo61]

if you figure it out....I will be selling the RSM ported TB UIM,LIM,and Heads.....very soon...keepme in mind

Chris

[Joseph Upson]

The reason they aren't discussing the 3400 is because it is a front wheel drive block meaning you'll have to relocate the starter. There is a member of this site who icorporated the aluminum heads and intake in his S10 project, Raven James, here are some pictures are found:

http://www.domesticcrew.com/raven/James/Engine%20swap/

[FallenZ24]

It would not be that hard to do. You would need the ecm and harness from an OBDI v6 car. Like a J-body. Make sure to get an ecm matching what transmission you're using. You would also have to fab up custom mounts, rotate the intakes 180*, and drill and tap the other side of the block for the starter. I think you have to use the RWD timing cover also. I'm sure the coolant lines and such would have to be sourced from other vehicles.

Yes, Raven did a turbo hybrid in his 2.8L Jimmy. I believe he is planning on a full gen3 swap w/ internal modifications.

[sharkey]

you guys are also forgetting about needing custom engine mounts (well, at least on the drivers side) because the mount bosses fwd-rwd are different. as for the starter, just get the apropriate bellhousing, like off a trooper or i beleive its pre 82 f-body, as the starter is on the drivers side like all the fwd are.

if i were to do it, id start with a 3.4l f-body block and just dump all the 3400 guts into it (except the cam, hydralic roller doesnt work in the 3.4l f-body block). as stated, turn the intake around, use the rwd timing cover/water pump, and all the accessories. for engine managment, id lean more to an f-body pcm and wiring harness, as it is sfi and is designed for a rwd motor, so there would be less wire splicing/leanthening.

[Joseph Upson]

"We" guys all failed to mention the aluminum oil pan clearance or the lack there of. It's a hard sacrifice to make given the added stability it provides to the block and main caps. Seems the members from Florida are nearly the only ones that know anything about this subject.

[FallenZ24]

I don't think the oil-pain clearance would be too big of a problem. YOu have to make engine mounts(which I did mention in my previous post) so it wouldn't be hard to move the engine up 1-2 inches.

Personally I wouldnt use the 3.4L Iron head. You would be downgrading. You'd lose alot of the good qualities of the 3X00. Extending wires isnt hard. I recommended a v6 j-body harness because they are usually easily avalable at j/ys. Why would you want SFI anyways. It changes to MPFI under hard acceleration. So why not run the MPFI all the time.

The bottom line is, If you don't have fabrication skillz or money to pay for custom fabrication (not cheap) this is not the thing for you. You also need to be able to source parts. Since I'm sure there will be some things that will need to be changed to fit the application.

-Joseph

ps. I have never done this swap. This is all just theory/common sense. I would have to be there to make it work. Lots of trial and error.

[bszopi]

Personally I wouldnt use the 3.4L Iron head. You would be downgrading. You'd lose alot of the good qualities of the 3X00.

How is going from a 2.8L to a 3.4L (both iron head) downgrading?? Sure, its not as good as a aluminum head swap could be, but is the hassle of custom fabrication worth the little extra HP you would gain?? It would probably cost at least twice as much to get an aluminim head engine in there and the difference in power really isn't that much. But going from a 2.8 to a 3.4 will be a significant difference.

[FallenZ24]

You have a good point. But this thread is about a gen3 660 in a s10. I said it would be downgrading because Sharkey said

"...if i were to do it, id start with a 3.4l f-body block and just dump all the 3400 guts into it (except the cam, hydralic roller doesnt work in the 3.4l f-body block)."

Why would you do that? Your pretty much only using the 3400 crank, pistons and topend in the 3.4L block. You loose the better oiling, windage tray, roller rockers, roller cam, etc... That in my opinion is not worth it.

[bszopi]

No, this thread is about using Gen 3 parts on 2.8L. Someone just happened to bring up using a 3400, but was never mentioned by the original poster.

[sharkey]

well, however you take it, this thread is talking about using aluminum heads in an s10, weather its on a 3400 motor or just a top end swap.

the reason i say drop everything is a 3.4l block is because of oil pan issues (i think you would actualy have to make a knotch in the pan to clear the front suspention) as well as engine mount issues. i realy dont see that using a flat tappet cam and the 3.4l oiling being that much of a trade off to having to make a custom mount/oil pan. there are a lot more flat tappet cams out there and realy the difference in power that you will see from the hydralic rollers isnt that much. and there is no reason you couldnt use the roller rockers or windage tray.

when it all comes down to it, unless you want a unique combo, a 3400 swap is kinda pointless in a truck. you can build it up, get 200hp out of it without costing insane amounts of money, but for the same money you throw in a smallblock and itll kick the crap out of a 3400.

[Joseph Upson]

True regarding the smallblock to 3400 comparison, but I believe there is more uniqueness and originality in getting an awful lot from a little and at the same time keeping in mind that gas prices are not going to stay ~$3 a gallon forever if you know what I mean. Small engines are producing more and more power. A 300hp V8 weighing 500lbs has the same power to weight ratio of a 240hp V6 weighing 400lbs so there are other variables to consider.

I think the object here is to make the best out of the platform you have. Owning a 350 TPI Fiero I still favor my turbocharged V6 Fiero for two main reasons: better gas mileage and V8 power when needed, that's called having your cake and eating it to. The aluminum heads on the 3400 amounts to about a 35 lb weight savings over the cast iron heads and they flow better, as for the cam the likelyhood of a worn lobe is neil and it has advantages over the flat tappet hydraulic cam when ground to performer specs.

The trend seems to be small package big punch. I'm slowly releasing my admiration of the smallblock for a smaller block. The 60 degree 3900 at 240/240 is no whimp when power to weight is considered. The LS series V8 with the aluminum block puts things back into perspective but then price wise it's not as practical in my opinion