I picked up a 89 S-10 blazer as a daily driver. The car runs good but the 4.3 is on the way out. I figure I might as well swap it with a 350 anyways
I was thinking of going with an L98 motor (LT1's are supposed to be a pain to install on the truck) but I dont want to buy a high mileaged used motor only to have to pull it back out and rebuild it. My friends suggested that I should just get a carberated crate motor, it would be cheaper, easier to install, and brand new so I wouldnt have to worry about worn out parts. Are there any good carb'd crate motors out there making around 300ish hp that are reliable and get good gas mileage?

thanks

 

GM makes more than enough choices. I'd do the Vortec Headed cheap motor that they offer. Goodluck!

 

Pace parts a Pontiac dealership in PA has one of the best GM GOODWRENCH parts counters in the nation! I buy parts from them all the time, like Vortec heads, LT1 parts yada yada and of course crate engines galore!

http://www.paceparts.com

And a LT1 swap in that is not bad at all, I have swapped carbed SBC's and LT1's into them all the time.....when I open my new shop I can swap one in for you if you want, most places charge $10,000 labor plus a the drive train and parts yikes!!!! places like lee high tech in FL... I could do the entire swap with parts cheaper than that...

here is my 1996 dual cat LT1 from a 96 Z28 that I swapped into my 95 4x4 S-10 truck> http://mediaservice.photoisland.com/...2343414930.jpg

The LT1 runs much better than a carb'ed engine, this one makes 285RWHP and gets 24 MPG in 2wd, I got 16mpg in 4x4 driving up to St. Paul MN during a snow storm!!! thats un-real for the H.P. it makes in a 4 wheel drive...

 

I would look for a low milage camaro/corvette wrecked car with a LT1 that someone is selling or parting out. Then you can get all the stuff you need from one place. I am pretty sure you could find something for as much as you want to spend on a new crate motor. And another plus is the gas mileage you will get, as was mentioned will be much better than a carbd' setup.

It's winter-time now, someone has wrecked their car for sure in NY. Head down to the local junkyards and look for a wreck. If you wait until spring you will have to contend with all the other people looking for a project, so start looking soon and you might find something that hasn't had a bunch of parts robbed off of it. From my experience it's the best way to go, cause it's all the seemingly little things that kill your wallet in these projects.

 

Brand new Targetmaster with 4 bolt mains and a warranty is $1279 at scoggin-dickey.

go to SDPC2000.COM

 

Pace Parts is indeed a great place to buy a crate motor. Use a street demon carb, a good ignition and an overdrive trans and the mileage should be decent. A friend has a similar set-up in his s-10, and it runs strong plus gets 18-20 mpg on the highway. Sorry, I like carbs.

 

thanks for all the replies. I might be picking up a 93 LT1 motor out of a wrecked one, supposedly it has some work done to it too

kingslam you have a pm