K5RPD
Junior Member
- Joined
- Jun 24, 2018
- Posts
- 2
- Reaction score
- 0
- Location
- Arkansas
- First Name
- JJ
- Truck Year
- 1988
- Truck Model
- Suburban 1500
- Engine Size
- 350
Seeking advice- (yet another guy doing this...) I have an '88 Suburban 4x4 that is titled as a '1500' but it has 8 lug wheels all around. 14bolt FF rear end and 10bolt front axle. Currently is a TBI350/700R4/NP208 (passenger drop) that is a 1995 year block on a rebuild that is marginal at best. Axle ratio is 3.73 with 295/70/17 mud tires (33inch). Has a 4 inch lift installed. Total weight currently with me driving is 5,980 pounds.
I picked up a junkyard engine- a 2004 LM4 5.3 DBW with ~160k miles complete with 4L60e transmission, computer, harness, gas pedal, tac module. The Gen 3 LM4 is all aluminum with the 862 heads and the dished pistons. I have the 5.3 disassembled and cylinder walls, rod bearings, main bearings, and cam bearings all look really good with minimal wear.
I'm not looking to build a 4x4 Suburban to take to the drag strip. I have noticed that on a lot of the builds I'm reading about, the torque curve gets shifted higher in the RPM band, which is something I would like to avoid. This is NOT a daily driver- just weekends, for hunting, hauling a trailer of firewood, etc. I would like to have quite a bit more torque than my current engine- maybe a target of 375-400 in the 2000-4000 rpm band somewhere?
Looking for recommendations on camshaft selection, with specs, please. Ready to swap valve springs, as needed...
Also- is it worth my trouble to find a set of flat-top pistons to bump my compression ratio? (All Gen3 rods, pistons currently)
I have the stock 25lb injectors/fuel rail/intake, and I also have a "Z" (flex fuel) truck intake with the 33lb injectors/fuel rail. I realize the tune would need adjusting, but would the bigger injectors be a prudent choice depending on your suggestion of a large camshaft for more power?
Forgive the wall of text... I just want you all to have all of the info to make good suggestions! Thanks in advance!
I picked up a junkyard engine- a 2004 LM4 5.3 DBW with ~160k miles complete with 4L60e transmission, computer, harness, gas pedal, tac module. The Gen 3 LM4 is all aluminum with the 862 heads and the dished pistons. I have the 5.3 disassembled and cylinder walls, rod bearings, main bearings, and cam bearings all look really good with minimal wear.
I'm not looking to build a 4x4 Suburban to take to the drag strip. I have noticed that on a lot of the builds I'm reading about, the torque curve gets shifted higher in the RPM band, which is something I would like to avoid. This is NOT a daily driver- just weekends, for hunting, hauling a trailer of firewood, etc. I would like to have quite a bit more torque than my current engine- maybe a target of 375-400 in the 2000-4000 rpm band somewhere?
Looking for recommendations on camshaft selection, with specs, please. Ready to swap valve springs, as needed...
Also- is it worth my trouble to find a set of flat-top pistons to bump my compression ratio? (All Gen3 rods, pistons currently)
I have the stock 25lb injectors/fuel rail/intake, and I also have a "Z" (flex fuel) truck intake with the 33lb injectors/fuel rail. I realize the tune would need adjusting, but would the bigger injectors be a prudent choice depending on your suggestion of a large camshaft for more power?
Forgive the wall of text... I just want you all to have all of the info to make good suggestions! Thanks in advance!
