Hello gents! Got a project booming in my head and hoping to get some suggestions and pointers if possible!
I have my '89 Suburban with a 383 tbi engine. The motor is decent however I want to use it in a different vehicle, my old Jeep. I've considered a lot of engine combos for my Suburban. It's a cruiser truck, comfy and roomy which is great for my back.
I have an idea though. Cadillac made the old 472 and 500ci engines. Low RPM torque monsters that are well built. I will say that I have absolutely no experience with them whatsoever! My father used to love them though, and swore by Cadillac vehicles.
I have read that they are a relatively easy swap and it is capable of bolting up to a 700r4 transmission with an adaptor. I do have a TCI heavy duty 700 on hand so I'm not too worried about durability on that end.
I've also read that it responds well to aftermarket EFI setups. While it is not necessary, it would be a gigantic plus as I'm really not a carburetor guy.
That being said, I would love to swap one into my suburban, in front of the mentioned 700r4 and fuel injected. For the most part I'd keep it stock, and looking at the '70-'72 range of motors. Would this be feasible? Budget isn't much of an issue provided I can convince the wife! Are there any tips about these motors that I should know? Thanks!

Great engine and not much work for a fabricator. I'm not a carb guy anymore, but have seen more troubles with the aftermarket EFI than I am comfortable with.

A long time ago I helped a friend put a Caddy 500 in a Chev pickup. It wasn'r hard to do as he started out with a 454.
Were it me I'd look a the big aluminum V8 in the caddy pickup or escalade. With a little money it can be built to put out close to 800 hp and is a vvt. There's a guy in Az that's putting them in Jeeps and still getting pretty fair gas milage.
Then again, for a lot less money you could build what you have into a masaged 383 with efi and be in pretty good shape for power & economy. The money saved could buy a lot of gas.

Thanks for the replies! Actually on an odd turn of events my buddy happens to have a Caddy 500, and we're probably going to trade for my old blower I had laying around.
I've heard a lot of horror stories about modern EFI too, unfortunately. However I am very familiar with the GM tbi setup, and a good bored out 454 tbi should do the trick on a 500ci. Should is the key word; I'm kinda venturing into the unknown with this plan!
BigNate, that 383 is pretty punchy! I have an old '86 Jeep Wagoneer that is missing its engine, transmission and...well pretty much the whole drivetrain. I'm planning on throwing that 383 setup with a good TH400 trans into the jeep. And I do agree that those new engines are fantastic! However, I love simplicity, and while I do struggle with carburetors I love old EFI. Plus, I am quite disabled but on my good days, when my body cooperates I LOVE! to go out and turn the wrenches! It is in my blood and nothing brings a bigger smile to me than making my old cars tick. And while it may be counterproductive towards my wallet and practicality, it enhances my well-being in knowing that I got that old engine running.
But the Suburban was originally equipped with a 454, and I let my in-laws borrow it for about 5yrs. Somewhere along that line that 383 got plopped in there, so going to a 500 shouldn't be much of an issue. I'm excited and while it's going to take a while before I'm financially and physically capable of starting this; it will be exciting!

I believe adapting an old GM TBI would be a very daunting task. You say bore out the GM throttle body, where will you get the larger butterflies? You will need to mount sensors on an engine that wasn't built to receive them, O2 sensors, wiring harness, If you use the factory pump, you will need to modify your tank to receive it or if you use an external pump you will still need to manufacture a return fuel line and some way pipe it back into the tank. This is just a little off the top of my head.

Add this, I just now noticed that you are going to use a 89 TBI car. Not a biggy if you still have all the old stuff. I am just not a fan of the aftermarket TBI, factory GMs are fine.

Lol...thanks Butch! There's a company that makes bored out 454 throttle bodies with larger butterflies and injectors...I want to say CFM Technologies? I'm going to keep the compression ratio low and keep it relatively tame (relatively speaking!) and this project will be going on (expectantly) about 5 years or longer.
I've hadn't really had the horror of working on an aftermarket EFI system by myself but until the technology improves itself, I think I'll keep it that way. I love the GM TBI setups and would like to grant that onto the 500ci, mainly for its simplicity plus if my wife ever needs to drive this truck, I want it to be bulletproof and simple.
Again thank you all for the comments.

Lucky you! Horsepower TV did a performance build on a 500 Cadillac motor a while back. You can watch the whole episode here and see the list of manufacturers that make parts:

500 Caddy

I remember watching this and thinking it was just the bee's knee's for a good stump pulling torque motor, even without every expensive high-output upgrade. If you're going to use the factory exhaust manifolds and y-pipe, a great cheap TBI upgrade is to modify the factory y-pipe with a Pace Setter 82-1177 or equivalent. The factory y-pipe is super restrictive, partly because the o2 sensor is externally heated by exhaust gas. If you free up the exhaust you'll need to use a three wire 02 sensor that has a hot wire connected to an ignition "on " source that maintains correct internal temp under all conditions. Otherwise you can get a run-rich default signal that destroys what little fuel economy that motor might possess. That trick is good for all GM TBI motors, BTW.

Thanks Tigger! That's already been done, using an aftermarket Y-pipe (2.5") connected to a 3" single pipe and Random Technology high flow catalytic converter, a new (as of yesterday!) Thrush welded single in / dual 2.5" out, exiting right after the rear differential. That pipe and o2 sensor really did make a difference!
I have a 4.56 rear end and plan on keeping the same ratio along with 33" tires. I'll be swapping in an TCI 700R4 heavy duty trans behind the Caddy 500. As far as the build, I may go as far as getting some custom short headers made up and a different intake manifold (possibly necessary with the plan of fuel injection) and *maybe* (key word!) a slightly different cam, probably with a 114-116 LSA to keep the MAF sensor in check for fuel injection. But aside from that, there will be no crazy power adders. Oh and I will be considering a strengthened drive line and maybe a new transfer case. This is off a 1/2 ton chassis so I'm not entirely sure how the drive line will hold up to 500+ ft/lbs of torque.
I already have a spectre twin snorkel intake in the truck so that'll go on top of the Caddy engine as well. I'm really not a fan of open element filters.
In all, it should become an easy driving torque monster, friendly enough for the wife and capable of any towing / stump pulling that should come about. The truck as a whole is in remarkable shape for its age and since my accident has become my choice vehicle when I feel good enough to drive. It's huge and sturdy, and I feel safe in it, plus its wonderfully comfortable with the overboosted steering and great shocks / big tires on it. In our other vehicles I'm a nervous wreck when driving; this truck is a mobile tank and rightfully makes me comfortable enough to actually pay attention to the road and freak out about cars following me and to my sides. Needless to say, I love this truck!
Sorry pain meds are kicking in and making me rambly.

I'm going to stick with my 350 TBI in my '87 Suburban 4x4 but I plan on stroking to 383, adding the exhaust mods, cold air intake, bore the TBI and add a hydraulic roller cam with a profile not much more aggressive than stock. That motor is rated for 210 or 220 and they rarely put out more than 180 back in the day. This should up it to a legitimate 250-270, more torque and no big fuel penalty under light duty. Maybe in a few years I'll get your bug and crank it up a notch.

Best of luck with your 500. I'll be interested to follow your progress!

Thanks again! I'll certainly post up another thread once the project begins and update it. My friend agreed to the trade but this project won't kick on for another year or so, until I'm physically doing better plus get everything tied up with this accident and whatnot. Definitely put a kink in my plans for a while.
And you are certainly headed in the right direction with that truck! I remember the picture you posted up and I'll definitely say I'm green with envy; that was quite a buy! It would be nice to have a reasonably gas efficient truck (for a late 80's 350) and have that power when you need it. My 383 leans more on the aggressive side but will still turn in okay mpg's if I'm easy on it. You should get a big chunk of torque on your build too.
One thing to keep in mind should that nasty little craving for horsepower hits you, is that there is a company called Wynjammer that makes a tbi supercharger kit, comes complete for $2,495! They have great reviews and while I haven't personally dealt with them (unfortunately!) my brother has and said they are top notch. It does require tuning however they are overall just wonderful, the tech support is great and he saw a 75% increase on his peak. That is actually an inner battle I'm having right now...aggressive supercharged 383 tbi or a Caddiburban!
My engine was quite an odd addition actually but a funny story. I let my in-laws borrow it for a while, because my mother in law is disabled and loves to camp. Plus she felt secure in it and she could drive it well, and I wasn't using it much. In any case I'm one of those rare guys whose in-laws are actually quite wonderful people. So bless her heart, she was out driving around and loving the hell out of that truck. But I guess she was really not liking the 454's gas mileage, and took it to a garage (without asking her husband or anyone actually, on a whim!) and asked what they could do to help the gas mileage. They suggested an engine swap, she said okay and had her other daughter pick her up as her husband was out of town. She then forgot about it until they called her up and she was free to pay and take it away.
Long story short, my father in law called me up and explained the ordeal to me when he decided to check the oil and got a big surprise! We found the receipt (luckily) as she had forgotten she had done so and went to that garage in a fit of rage. They'd already sold the 454 and I guess to make amends, they took the 350 they put in there out and swapped in that 383 for half price on the whole ticket with the 350 as returned credit. It's a good one too, 4 bolt mains, eagle forged rotating assembly, Crane hydraulic roller cam, 1.6 ratio roller rockers, a worked over Holley throttle body with 90# injectors, Edelbrock intake manifold and a Walbro 255lph fuel pump, plus JBA short headers, also a Milodon 7qt oil pan.
By the way sometime soon I'll shoot a couple of videos of the exhaust and whatnot and post up a link on here. It sounds glorious!

Metalsmith I'd be loving that 383!

You sound like a lot of fun if the checkbook can handle it! lol I get into projects like this and spend way over what I thought it was going to be. I have a Willy's that's probably had close to $40k spent on it and thinking of selling it. I am now working on a new beater 75 F250 that's going to be my huntin' rig.

Why not stick in a 502 Cheby????Dropped one in my Cheby truck easy peazy!!!

quote:

Originally posted by OLBIKER:
Why not stick in a 502 Cheby????Dropped one in my Cheby truck easy peazy!!!

Easy Pesy, but expensive.

quote:

Originally posted by butchlambert:

quote:

Originally posted by OLBIKER:
Why not stick in a 502 Cheby????Dropped one in my Cheby truck easy peazy!!!

Easy Pesy, but expensive.

My Kid got the power plant shipped to his Shop for about $7,500.00 This one:
Here at last is the king of all big block crate engines from Chevrolet Performance. These 502 cubic inch engines come fully assembled and are rated at approximately 9.6:1 compression with 502 hp at 5,200 rpm and 567 ft./lbs. of torque at 4,200 rpm. These complete engine kits make extensive use of aluminum to keep weight down. Including aluminum heads, intake, water pump, and valve covers. Additionally, these engines are full of heavy duty parts including, forged aluminum pistons, forged shot peened steel connecting rods with 7/16 in. bolts, forged steel crankshaft, 14 in. automatic transmission flexplate, four bolt main blocks, stainless steel valves, 6 quart oil pan, and windage trays. These complete engine kits come with generation VI 4-bolt main blocks with 1-piece rear main seals. Hydraulic roller camshaft specifications are .527 in. intake lift, .544 in. exhaust lift, and the duration at .050 in. for intake is 224 and 234 for exhaust with a 110-degree lope centerline. Single roller timing chain and aluminum large oval port 110cc combustion chambered heads. Intake runner volume is 290cc installed are stainless steel valves 2.25 in. intake side and 1.88 in. on the exhaust side. Valve springs are rated at 140 lbs. closed and 368 lbs. open, good for up to .680 in. lift. These heads have exhaust crossovers. Aluminum high-rise dual plane square bore bolt pattern intake manifolds and 870 cfm carburetor are also included.

We stuck another $2,500 in it for Tranny,custom drive shaft and rear end.Up graded the brakes and made the exhaust our selves for another $2,500.00.

Total cost for the build $12,500.00
By the time you get all the crap repaired in that Caddy engine(low compression nothing heavy duty) you will have $10,000.00 in a old piece of crap.I have $12,500.00 in a truck that I can chain up to your house and pull it off its foundation verses being frustrated all year with junk that leaves you stranded.Just my thoughts,OB

Ol Biker,
I've been in the business about 45yrs. 502 Chev crate motors with the waterpump, carbs, exhaust, and other accessories are about $12,000.
I believe the 500 Caddy will be a neat conversion, powerful, streetable, and cheaper.

Forgot my pledge for no more Internet arguments. Happy New Years to everyone.

No comment!

It was a different world back then, but in the mid-90s I had an 80 Chevy short box 4X4 with a top loader and front lockouts that I had a .030"-over 350 built for. It used a Wolverine stump puller cam, flat top hypertech pistons, and 1.70" intake valves. The bottom end was clearanced like it needed to be, and yes, it was carbureted: a stock Rochester. I ran 3.73 gears in the truck, and with the 33 X 12.50 Coopers it came out about 3.55.

That truck would have climbed a tree could it have gotten a grip, and I won't even try to tell you what I pulled out of the mud. The beautiful thing about the engine was that once it got up to about 6K, the darned thing ran out of gas because of the small intake valves. It was literally "un tear-uppable".

I have no idea what use anyone would have with anything that had any more torque than what that old truck had...

Here is a Company that I have dealt with that does good work.They can build you a nice 383 for under $9,000 that will drop right in.Plus they have a great warranty.Me,I want something that runs when I turn the key,not a project that frustrates me and will never put out this kind of HP and Torque.Just sayin.
http://tpis.com/pages/383lt1