I dont agree that any s10 sized body-wheelbase is safe with a v8. The car (two door s10 Blazer) is too short and narrow for safety. Now I do agree that lots of folks do this swap. That does not convince me that the swap is safe. Its quite possible that GM agrees somewhere along the way cause they used pretty much the same drivetrain, tranny, rear, brakes, etc in the camaro while offering the V8 and NOT the 4.3. I think they inderstood that the weight and torque created with a v8 would make it a strange vehicle. Not so in the lower camaro. Lowering the conversion is one route and I see many that way. But the largest factory engine in the s10 series has been the 4.3.

My dad was a real serious mechanic. Used to ride around race courses with him when Stirling Moss was still around. Yes even those cars had room for a SMALL passenger, right next to the driver. He told me a little known fact once. The amount of fuel and air in proper mixture is completely and utterly related to the volume of the cylinder. It takes more mixture to fill more space. He started on prop planes and continued as a car mechanic. That one little fact has always remained constant to this day. Given identical build and tuning a smaller motor will always use less gas given a normal weight to move.

What I wanted was a nice looking engine compartment. I just looked at a friends 4.3 in his Blazer. Real nice car, lots of work. Manifold, 4barrel, chrome headers, plenty of "stuff". Engine compartment did not reflect. No shiny anywhere other than the headers, air cleaner, they were shiny. Thats all, a nice engine compartment. Thats all I want.

What is so hard about buying different parts? The stock motor was a 2.8, the stock tranny a 700R4 to go with it. If I am adding a 4.3 with a th350, what difference will brackets and pulleys make? When buying a belt or two?

We all have opinions and I have mine. Simply put: If the aftermarket guys would sell some "stuff" we'd be in better shape. Considering they already make that "stuff" and dont label it, I think I have a point.

 

I understand where you are coming from, but you are a pioneer, plain and simple. I commend you for your efforts and would like to have a clear cut answer for you. The simple fact is that no one here has even remotely tried what you are proposing. Your best bet would probably be to go to a junk yard, pull some parts that you would like to compare and try bolting them on to an engine like yours. Other than buying everything you want and finding out after you receive it that it won't work, that is really the only other way to do it unless you can find someone somewhere that has tried what you are attempting.

Simply put, my Bonneville with lower hp, smaller motor gets the same mileage as my parents Caddy STS when driven the same. When we went up to old forge last year, we both got identical mileage driving one behind the other. A 3.8L v6 vs a 4.6L v8. We both got 26mpg on the drive up and 27mpg on the way back. Now, these are not technically an apples to apples comparison as one is a supercharged pushrod v6 while the other is a n/a 32valve DOHC v8, but the weight of the vehicles is practically identical (STS is slightly heavier than the Bonnie - less than 200lbs) and the drivetrain configuration is again almost the same (4T80E in the STS vs the 4T65E in the Bonnie). Real world numbers not theories. But, I'll agree to disagree with you on the size of the engine debate.

 

Well as usual most theories are just that, but non of them are ever wrong "in theory". Just for everyone's info, I posted an add a couple of days back in the "PARTS WANTED" of this site for the factory brackets and pulleys, need the whole set. My other theory is that the factory aluminum, if in one piece, can be highly polished with some hard work and then sealed to hold the shine. I have not heard that one yet as an accomplishment. I have also not read everything I can on the subject yet. Any of you try that?

Just had to see what I could get for answers and I am really curious why no one sells the stuff.

 

Yes, the aluminum brackets can be polished or better yet, powder coated. There are even powder coatings that are similar to chrome, but not as brilliant and don't forget that the aluminum itself can be chromed.

Car-Parts.com may yield some results for you.

 

Wow this thread went goofy. Not sure why.
The only problem I see with your plan, is the various brackets were designed to fit inside a specific engine compartment, and not all engine compartmetns are created equal.

I will have to disagree with you on the wheelbase to engine size. I can see where GM decided the power to weight ratio falls within x realm, and that is what they follow. However I have seen some very big engines in some very small trucks do some amazing things offroading. We are talking very large tires, and 1 ton drivetrains stuffed into 100" wheelbase vehicles.
I give you the WhiteKnight. This rig started out as a S10-Blazer, and under its current morph you wouldn't know that. Check out hte videos of this truck, especially the early years, it is extremely capable and running some serious power in a short wheel base rig, that is not low to the ground.
Its all in how you build it.
WhiteKnight

there is even a Boss Hogs bike shop down teh street from where I work. This guy stuffs 502 big block engines into motorcycles and trikes. Doesn't get any more extreme then that.

I am into the off-raoding thing and there are guys swapping 4.3L engines into all sorts of things. It is a very popular engine for the exact reason you gave. Teh volume of air to fuel mixture. 250 pounds of toruqe from a V6 is incredable, espeically considering that 20 years ago not even sbc where pushing that kind of power.

 

Modified trucks can do lots of things. I am hoping very much that I can actually change the body just right to get 235/75/15 tires on the darn thing. NOT lift it. This is NOT going to be a highly modified vehicle. I just wish those of us facing the future with smaller motors would have the same access as I do with the v8's. When you think about something as silly and simple as brackets and pulleys things are being neglected in a big way for the v6 gm crowd. When the manufacturers simply DO NOT tell us that their stuff will work or at least sell them in sets that will work, we have a problem.

I also have a sbc with both v and serp pulleys. The serp covers the alt and waterpump while the v belts do steering. The air used to be serp. Cannot find serp pulley and v belt combo units such as are stock on the car. Why is this so. Because the few years affected wont make the aftermarket enough money. I bet there will be 4 and 6 cylinder motors far longer than those v8's

I would never have brought up the subject were the information commonly available and advertised. This is the void that forums like this fill.

 

Somewhere I mentioned that a carb intake from a 229 looked much the same patterns as the 4.3. A little history may be in order here. This will help all of us understand the bracket, pump, ect issues involved. Interchangabilty is important. Several things come to mind. Edelbrock based their carb manifolds on four barrel replacement for this engine. Now also available for the 4.3.

The original 4.3 aint so original. It was once a very simple 200 cube v6 in about 1978. It then became the now famous 229. Famous cause it was still with us as a 3.8. Really more of a 3.7+ motor, but we rounded her up. This one came about in about 1980 and evolved to the 4.3 in 1985 or so. I believe the 3.8 to be based on the 305 bore and the 4.3 to be based on the 350 bore.

Yes I do happen to own a 3.8 block. Got it YEARS ago before I got a puter good enough to get on the web with. Any one want it? Heads are a little rusty but block was stored in grease.

Am proceeding to look for brackets that went with that motor, though I dont think I had any of them either. Seems someone said; hey just take them off the v8, at the time.

ANY brackets from any of these motors should fit along with ANY v8 setup as long as we do not discuss the VORTEC and balance shaft motors. And of course they all come from one engine. Yes balance shaft caused timing chain cover difference. Untill that point, the timing covers were all the same.

Interchangabilty for the waterpump I only see mentioned for Edelbrock. Their shiny pumps are available as a just one part number for all 90 degree engines wether they be v6 or v8. They are available in BOTH rotations and also for vortecs. Meaning that they are different for vortec engines, but when both are vortec, the v6 and v8 are the same part number. Not that I will buy one. It is entirely possible that the parts house tha lists them that way is completely wrong. Cannot attest to any solid testing information myself, just reading a web site.

No, I didnt know any of this before exept that the 229 was also a six based on the v8.

 

Could you tell me what kind of bolts was used to mount the alternator bracket into the engine(95 blazer 4.3 V6)? Thank you

 

This thread is over 12 months old. That and the thread author is no longer a member here.