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'89 R3500 Crew Cab 2wd to 4wd conversion & beyond

Started out with 2wd TBI350 with SM465 to current 4wd with 454, 700r4, NP241
My other frustration for the day, you can't always believe the box.

View attachment 477322

I thought I needed to make arrangements to get some distilled water but then I saw the box and decided otherwise. I did think it was odd because the coolant capacity is pretty high.

Then I pulled the jugs out to start filling the radiator.

View attachment 477323

Grrrr. :surepal:
I've had similar experience with Amsoil. Usually when ordering several mismatched items and they are reusing a bulk box to ship things in. It has thrown me when at first glance it looks like I have a case of euro oil or something else I wouldn't buy. I also try to always have a couple gallons of water on hand. This reminds me I need to buy more...
 
The irony is they usually put a big orange sticker on the box that says something about being a mixed pack. In this case it was all the same coolant so there was no sticker they just put it in a box for something different.
 
I should share the story about my harassing @6872xtc. Several years ago I believe it was Top of the World trail in Moab and I get out of the sweltering crew cab and here comes Dave in his K5 with the windows all rolled up just chillin' in the AC. So I had to give him hell about having AC on the trail. I asked how he was going to talk to anyone with his windows up. Meanwhile he's laughing at the wife and I opening the doors at every opportunity to let some hot air out. :haha:
 
After dealing with the fuel leak I didn't have a chance to try and start the engine this past weekend like I hoped. I attempted to start it on Tuesday but it would only crank. Looking at the status lights on the Terminator ECU, it appeared the cam sensor wasn't putting out a signal. I was afraid I might have messed up the wiring when I swapped out the LS1 plug for the Vortec plug. I found a wiring diagram for the Terminator harness and figured which color wire did what. Then I looked at what the Vortec wanted and figured out I had indeed swapped the ground and 12V reference wires.

I was a little suspicious about that because I was certain I was careful to keep the A B C designations stamped in plastic the same when I swapped terminal housings. After comparing the 2 terminal housing I found that the LS1 and Vortec connects are the opposite of each other. So A on the LS1 is C on the Vortec. In this case it would have been better if I would have looked at the order of the wire colors. So even tho the information I found said I needed to swap the A and C wires, I actually didn't because the terminal housings are swapped anyway.

So after fixing the wiring Wednesday, I gave it another shot and this time I was getting backfire out the exhaust. Uh-oh we can guess what means, I have the distributor 180 out. I mentioned it to @folkenheath and he told me I could just change the cam sensor in the Terminator software from digital falling to digital rising. Guess who the dummy was that forgot to bring his laptop to the shop, THIS GUY!

This morning I connected the Terminator to the laptop and switched the cam sensor to digital rising. This works in my case because there is only 1 tooth on the cam sensor formly known as a distributor.


Oil pressure was a steady 50psi. You can probably hear the power steering pump is pissed off at me. In replumbing, it lost a bunch of fluid; I filled it back up but I didn't bleed it. Other than that after a little bit of hunting it seems to idle good. I still need to get cooling fans installed before I can let it warm up too much. I also need to get the throttle cable situation figured out.

And obviously I need to bleed the power steering. But man it's such a relief to have it fire off and run.

I also fought with dead batteries through all of this. I thought they would be okay since they haven't been hooked up to anything, but both were dead. Unfortunately 1 of them won't take a charge even after trying 2 different AGM chargers and even doing the 2 battery recovery method. It's under warranty so hopefully I can get it replaced.
 
Nice, I heard of a trick to get those to work but haven't tried it. Pull it out and smack it on the concrete then put a trickle charger on it.

My buddy swears by it.
 
Nice, I heard of a trick to get those to work but haven't tried it. Pull it out and smack it on the concrete then put a trickle charger on it.

My buddy swears by it.
That is supposed to break up the sulfates build up on the plates.
I will try it on my big rig batteries that have been sitting for 2 years and won't fully charge
 
I have heard about dropping them also. I've also heard you have to do it from waist height and it'll scare the crap out of you. I'm not brave enough to do that with this battery as it's a group 49 which is half again bigger than a standard battery. I did drop it from about a foot off the concrete.

My charger also has a repair function that is supposed to break down the sulfates, but that didn't help.

I did just find out I'm getting it replaced under the warranty, so I should be set. Another reason I like ordering from Summit Racing.
 
Can I run the AC compressor for this engine without any hoses connected?

The compressor bypass pulley appears to be a piece of junk.


It's off by 2 grooves and starts to throw the belt.

20240608_163612.jpg
 
so many people forget the only time the pump is pumping is when 12volts is to the coil to lock in the pulley otherwise it is already a free wheel pulley .

and if you did not already have that belt you just needed a non a/c belt and small pulley like shown before .
 
so many people forget the only time the pump is pumping is when 12volts is to the coil to lock in the pulley otherwise it is already a free wheel pulley .
True, I didn't even think about the clutch.

and if you did not already have that belt you just needed a non a/c belt and small pulley like shown before .
There is that. I do still have that shorter belt. I think this is the right pulley: https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=3245190&cc=1303490&pt=6956

There are positive and negative to either option. I have the compressor but it will require redoing my power steering reservoir mount (hopefully not the hoses too). The idler pulley would be an expense but wouldn't affect anything else.
 
Fab up a quick bracket and grab a small idler pulley, then just measure for a belt. Just make sure the bracket is square and the depth is right and you'll be good to go.
 
I came up with a cheap solution for the throttle cable. I bought a $20 cable for a 1998 truck with a 5.7L. Same year as my engine but small block. The end fits the 7.4L throttle body 1/4 circle linkage. However it is about 18" longer than the 1989 cable.

20240605_150037.jpg

The firewall ends are different but the '98 cable still works in my '89. The '89 is on the left and '98 on the right.

20240605_150131.jpg

I routed the excess cable up the side of the intake.

20240605_151202.jpg

The '98 cable snaps right onto the '89 pedal. Problem is, the cable stop is in the wrong spot. I cut about 1/2" to 3/4" off and used the screw type cable stops to get 100% throttle. Actually I used 2 stops for good measure.

20240608_151536.jpg

Also added the washer so the cable stop didn't bust up the plastic.

I might get the Lokar cable like the 8.1L guys are using, but I'm in the penny pinching phase of the project and I just didn't want to spend that kind of money.

Although now that I've typed this it occurs to me I should use the braided cable from the '98 and cut it down to fit the plastic sleeve/ housing from the '89 throttle cable. :thinking:
 
Came back as I just thought of it, use the delete bracket you have and grab an idler puller that can flush mount, or use a bushing to space it off slightly at the right distance for belt alignment.
 

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