Chevy 350 for towing

[IZwack]

Now that I have a trailer, I have my eye on a 1975 Chevy Pickup with a 350 cu.in. engine.

Soooo, I have a question for those who DRIVE (or used to drive) a truck with a Chevy 350: do you think a bone stock 350 will be enough to pull an Explorer + trailer?

I guess some may ask, why go for the 350? Well it is the most popular block out there and replacing it (and/or rebuilding a stroked version for a little bit more torque) would be cake .. and boy do I love cake

I'm focusing on just the engine itself right now cauz everything else on the truck (including the SRW rear axle) can be replaced with a stronger version for cheap.

 

[section525]

I use to tow a Kubota tractor with our old '88 Suburban all the time. It did well.

 

[IZwack]

I use to tow a Kubota tractor with our old '88 Suburban all the time. It did well.

That's exactly what my trailer used to carry.. small backhoes 'n such

About how much did the Kubota weigh?

 

[churd69]

should be enough power with the 350, you might have to do some work though since its a 75 unless it has been maintained well. My Grandpa's 92 (?) pulled a 85
parts car for our 79 back from TN to MI with no problems. I'd love to find an 75 for cheap, the body looks to be in pretty good shape, short bed or reg?

 

[section525]

Probably about 3k with mower. It was similar to this one:

 

[IZwack]

I'd love to find an 75 for cheap, the body looks to be in pretty good shape, short bed or reg?

The body is in PERFECT shape..

The bed is regular.. but it doesnt matter cauz I'm removing the bed, and then shoving and welding the hitch forward as close to the axle as possible to minimize trailer sway (but lets not discuss this on this thread )

Probably about 3k with mower. It was similar to this one:

Wow that looks more than 3k lbs

 

[EMG7895]

They are a pretty solid truck. My dad use to have one about that year, single cab long bed with dual tanks. Theres not much to them, easy to work on and pretty reliable. The funny thing about it was when someone borrowed it not knowing it had dual tanks and looked at the wrong guage, they usually ended up stranded on the side of the road 'til they found the switch.

 

[james t]

It should be a decent tow rig. The old carbed 350's are the cheapest engine ever to work on. If its an auto it should be a TH350 tranny, which is about the cheapest tranny to build. Ive had quite a few mouse motors in my time and have always had good luck with them.

 

[LOGJOCKY]

my current vehicle is an 89 GMC with a 350 and you will have plenty of power. they are really cheap and easy to repair and rebuild as well. mine is FI but I am sure carb will give you just as much if nto more power than i Have

 

[IZwack]

Thanks all for the reply! Good to know theres a good "bowtie" base on this Ford forum

 

[rookieshooter]

Thanks all for the reply! Good to know theres a good "bowtie" base on this Ford forum

Used to tow my chevy race cars with a 350 up and down the coast. Not a problem. In fact my Email has the word bigblockchevy in it LOL.

 

['97 V8]

my email is trucks_454@......
If the motor is in good condition i dont see a problem with it.

 

[90ranajo]

The only problem I see, is the fact that the '75s were smog motors. So your HP & torque are down as compared to pre-71s and post-84s. I think the '75 is rated around 175hp & 275 ft/lbs for RPO LS9.

My advice if you're set on this, is to go to the junk yard and pick up a TBI set up off of a '87+ truck and rebuild the HEI. Doing that you should pick up an easy 35hp & 25 ft/lbs.
If its in need of a freshing up, throw in a Eagle 383 rotating assy in it. And don't skimp by with the 5.7 rods, step up to the 6.0 rods.

 

[IZwack]

Thanks all for the responses.

The stock 350 in the truck right now will be temporary I think. Eventually, I am going to slowly build up a stroked version to slightly kick up the torque a little bit. But thats for the future. For now, I just hope the stock 350 holds up for about a year or so...

 

[Maniak]

My flatbed (which is getting a new carb.. should be here any day now) has a 350 in it.

It has enough power to pull a trailer with 8000lbs of water on it.. It never did it fast (never took it over 55 with that load). It also did well with the 750 gallon water tank on the bed (instead of pulling the trailer). It still didn't accellerate well but it could maintain speed even on the 2 lane road (turns and hills)..

Don't forget to check the rear end gear ratio. If its too tall then it will act like it is down on torque.

My flatbed is an '83 with a 4 speed (granny 1st) and 4:11 gears. I doesn't do anything fast, but it can pull weight. I'm pretty sure if I had 3.50 or so gears that the truck wouldn't be able to pull the weight I've had on it.

~Mark

 

[IZwack]

Maniak >> about what MPG were you getting with 8,000 lbs of water on the trailer?

 

[Maniak]

I never measured it (I was only doing 30 mile round trips.. 15 with water in the tank the 15 with the tank empty).. I know recently, empty at 60-65mph on the freeway I was getting 10mpg.. but I know my current carb is toast (different thread)..

btw.. with my current gear ratio/tire size I'm spinning almost 3000 rpms at 65mph which I'm sure isn't helping (people on the freeway just love me.. especially since the speed limit on the freeway out here is 75).

~Mark

 

[96ExplorerXL4x4]

We tow a 6,000lb travel trailer freqently with our 95 350 V8 Suburban (Year before the Vortec technology was used).

She struggles a bit but always gets the job done.

Just don't expect to be able to cruise at a high speed

 

[jrgaylor]

I have 73 3/4T 4X4 camper special 350/350 4.10s' when towing 7500# (explorer and trailer) it does alright on hwy and slight grades but when I get into the foothills my speed drops from 55 to 35-40 in 2nd
my avg MPG while towing is 6
I have recently purchase a 460 ford for towing duties when I am not going to places where 4WD may be needed

 

[EMG7895]

The 350s are good but the 460 flat out beats it. That ford will pull hard all day long and get 8-10 mpg consistantly.