im was just wondering and couldnt find much info on other sites. but about how much power did the 4.3 they shoved in the g bodies make. id like to go with a 350 in my gp but with gas prices im not so sure now. did some research about building the 4.3 making 500hp naturally n/a. i wouldnt go that far but i think making about 350-400hp on a v6 would b sweet
4.3
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I could be wrong. but in my opinion a 250HP 6cyl will drink just as much as a 350HP V8. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.
Phoenyx said:
I'm going to have to agree; Generally, more power is had by More Air + More Fuel equation. Unless you have sophisticated electronics and design experience. You could go the gearing route, overdrive transmission, whatever, to help out, but I'm not sure how much you would be saving over a V8.
All those 4.3s were was a 350 with 2 less cylinders. Same bore, same stroke. I wouldnt think there would be that much of difference mileage wise. And I think the vortec headed 4.3 had around 250hp so the pre vortecs were probly slugs like the 305s. If you have the money I say go for it because it would be really different!
The most H.P. a 4.3 V6 ever had naturally aspirated was 200, of course there's the Turbo 4.3 in the Syclone and Typhoon, another story altogether. They were way underrated at 280 H.P. Car and Driver ran a 13.06 in a Syclone, that ain't playing in 1991. :wink:
Do it :!:
The 300hp 4.3L won't get any better fuel economy than a 350hp SBC, but they are still cool.
The 300hp 4.3L won't get any better fuel economy than a 350hp SBC, but they are still cool.
I wouldn't waist too much $$ on a 4.3. I did some research a few years back and custom heads and forged cranks for those things are very pricey. Anything over 300hp is pushing the reliability of those stock parts. If you want something different, then I say go for it, but the V8 will actually give you better gas mileage and be more reliable. If you don't believe me, go to a S10 forum and look for threads about V8 swaps. Many of the V8 S10 guys said they got better gas mileage with a V8(the ones who didn't go too radical with their V8 at least)
The 4.3 in my AWD Safari van is rated at 200hp and produces 250 ft/lbs of torque ( vortec heads, fuel injection, ect ... ) Keep in mind that the curb weight of the van is 4600lbs ( with a 4speed 4L60E trans ). On the flipside the orig 305HO in my Monte SS produces 180hp / 225 ft/lbs of torque and weighs about 3300 lbs.
On the AstroSafari board I frequent I have seen people swap to a "stock" V8 expecting more performance and you can see why they are disappointed. In my instance each of these vehicles get appx 13.5 mpg on a consistant basis over the last 3 years ( even after swapping in a 350 my Monte still gets appx 13-14 mpg ).
So yes in theory swapping a 4.3 into a gbody would produce slightly better MPG numbers and appx 200hp in stock form but why ??? Yeah sure it's cool to build a 4.3 for 300hp but to expect good MPG's is asking too much. Ask the GN and TR guys about the mpgs on their Turbo 3.8's. IIRC the Typhoon with the turbo 4.3 got about 12-13 mpgs at best.
If you want fuel a sipping DD buy a crapalier or furd focus. The fuel money saved on a beater that gets 25 mpgs could be spent on more go-fast parts for your GP.
On the AstroSafari board I frequent I have seen people swap to a "stock" V8 expecting more performance and you can see why they are disappointed. In my instance each of these vehicles get appx 13.5 mpg on a consistant basis over the last 3 years ( even after swapping in a 350 my Monte still gets appx 13-14 mpg ).
So yes in theory swapping a 4.3 into a gbody would produce slightly better MPG numbers and appx 200hp in stock form but why ??? Yeah sure it's cool to build a 4.3 for 300hp but to expect good MPG's is asking too much. Ask the GN and TR guys about the mpgs on their Turbo 3.8's. IIRC the Typhoon with the turbo 4.3 got about 12-13 mpgs at best.
If you want fuel a sipping DD buy a crapalier or furd focus. The fuel money saved on a beater that gets 25 mpgs could be spent on more go-fast parts for your GP.
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