chev 283 w/powerglide vs 202 w/trimatic

[ben]

i checked with a local bloke recently. he didnt require too much.

[Rocket]

    When I first put a 350 Chev in my van I installed a 2.75 ratio diff. with a T350 tranny (broke it) so installed a beefed up t700. When cruising with lockup engaged I found there was no difference in economy between 3rd & 4th gear (diff to tall). After much chatting with people in the know I went to a 3.5 ratio diff. This gave me a taller top gear than the 2.75 T350 combo & a better spread of ratios overall. I now have the same economy  (2100 rpm at 100kph). Gets off the line much better & is fantastic for towing because I can go back to 3rd (direct) for towing up hills & I also lock & unlock the torque converter at will. I think any ratio that is taller will be to tall for the little 283 when in 4th. It was certainly to tall for my 350 when I had 7 adults on board.

[Hippo]

Good info Rocket thanks,

What size and aspect ratio are the rear tyres and what IS the economy.
BTW a 3.5 is not taller than a 2.75 but shorter.....the higher numerical number
is actually is a lower diff ratio thus more rpm for a given speed.

Dennis

    When I first put a 350 Chev in my van I installed a 2.75 ratio diff. with a T350 tranny (broke it) so installed a beefed up t700. When cruising with lockup engaged I found there was no difference in economy between 3rd & 4th gear (diff to tall). After much chatting with people in the know I went to a 3.5 ratio diff. This gave me a taller top gear than the 2.75 T350 combo & a better spread of ratios overall. I now have the same economy  (2100 rpm at 100kph). Gets off the line much better & is fantastic for towing because I can go back to 3rd (direct) for towing up hills & I also lock & unlock the torque converter at will. I think any ratio that is taller will be to tall for the little 283 when in 4th. It was certainly to tall for my 350 when I had 7 adults on board.

[Rocket]

I am running 235/65/14 on the rear. I am old school referring that the ratio of 2.75 is to tall & 3.5 is about perfect. I get around 650km on trips to 150 liters of LPG with the van tipping the scales at about2.4 tonne . Around 525km about town.

[Zeeman]

Dont want to throw cold water on you guys but I would be checking with your local engineer before I put a lot of time & money into engine swaps From what ive been reading lately they might a lot tougher to get passed It would be very disappointing to go to all that trouble only to get a nockback when fronting for a engineer's cert I could be wrong but id check FIRST

The engineers certificate is another thing to consider. Minimum $500 inspection fee, plus changing everything over. I know the requirements in NSW have recently become more. Victoria is not so bad. One thing that will make your life easier is ensuring the year of the engine is the same or earlier than your van.

I still think that unless you plan on going all the way with your van, the T700 will be the way to go. For a drive in/drive out conversion, you'll pay around the $2500 mark.

The bedford really needs a V8 for adequate motivation. Just depends how much you are willing to spend.. all in the name of greater economy of course..

[westy12]

Gday great info again guys thanks for that, so maybe i should just stick it in with the powerglide and see how the economy goes and maybe change to the t700 down the track... your economy rocket with the 350 and t700 is pretty much the same as my 202 at the mo. i get 650 kms to 140 liters gas. so with the smaller 283 i should be getting better economy than now so thats great. whether it actually happens is a different story! the guy who has the v8 is the same guy who is doing all my rust repairs... he said it would take 3 weeks, he has had it for 7 months and counting!!! talk about a backyarder! luckily a mate gave me his townace so i still have wheels. this guy is totally hopeless, id like to stick it to him and get up him but im getting all the rust cut out and a full repsray for real cheap so im trying to stay on his good side and go with it. but it is getting beyond a joke! if he ever gets it done it should look pretty good, and if i can get the v8 put in too... bonus!!! will keep yous posted... cheers luke

[Jeff]

Westy, it sounds to me that he might have quoted too low and now he doesn't want to do the job.
You could offer him a decent bonus if it is done in a month, and if he doesn't perform, then he probably isn't going to, and then you may need to take it elsewhere.

[mezzmo]

Geez westy, "7 months" and "real cheap" is not a good combo mate, i think i'd be looking to get it done somewhere quicker and pay that bit extra - could end up costing a lot more in the long run if this guy doesnt do it properly.

just my 2 cents worth

[Kirk]

Heya Luke,

Im with Mezzmo on this mate....believe me when i say, dont trust ANYONE....7mnths is way to long, and yeah as someone commented, it sounds like the V8 might be a stalling tactic:( Have you checked on the van to see what progress has been made? It took me 3 mnths to find out that my van was sitting on blocks outside a garage in the rain, before the "Mechanic" informed me he hadnt done ANYTHING....and my van had no windows, and was in primer....

Everytime i pay full price for something, people say "oh you got ripped off" or "thats way too much" but from personal experience....ive only been ripped of by people who said they could do it cheaper:( And that includes recent work on my new car:(

I dont have the answer....as my $1k and she can be registered (grrrr) has turned into $6K and she is in worse shape than she started....and some 3 or so years later:(

Even when i decided to do it myself, booked and paid for a welding course...the bloody school calls me 2 weeks later, and says they are full??? ahahaha...oh me oh my..

Anyway....GO CHECK ON IT!!! And push him....he either is legite, and he will understand your concern, or he isnt and you will find out sooner rather than later. Any reasonable person should understand why you would be pushing for an end date:)

[westy12]

gday guys yeah i agree totally but what can u do?  im not going to take it back off him then spend 4 grand to get done what he will charge me 1200 (if he ever finishes it!!) ive paid him 600 and he says hell only charge me 600 more to finish it... i offered him 1000  if he would have it done by easter, havent heard back from him! he swore on is kids LIFE that it would be done by easter. i sorta knew it wouldnt. first he said done by xmas, then oz day, now easter. well as i see it all its costing me is 600 to have a second car registered. but if he ever finishes it ill be saving thousands... i got quoted 4 grand to fully replace the gutters which were totally rusted. hes doing that, aswell as any other rust he sees and doing a full respray, all for 1200!  sounds too good to be true right? well i guess it is! to be fair to him he has been in and out of hospital over those 7 months and his health is not good. i hope he holds on long enough to finish it thats all. whenever i speak to him he sounds legit and i think hes relatively honest but hes just a hopeless case. ill ring him after easter and see what his next excuse was, but he wont be getting the extra  money i offered.
PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE!!!!