'87 D250 Gas to Diesel conversion

[ursusarticus]

I have a '87 D 250 that was shipped with a 5.9(360) quadrajet fed engine. The 360 has at least a bad head gasket and the heat riser valve was taken out of the system entirely. Rather than dealing with these problems, and suspecting that one of the heads could be cracked I'd rather repower the truck with The Cummins 5.9 Turbo Diesel. I'd prefer the first generation 24v common rail engine. I've heard a few guys tell me that they are "nothing but trouble". I plan to use this truck as a utility type truck to haul firewood, bulky things such as soil, rock, and towing a 25 foot gooseneck trailer. I plan to lay in insulation when I put in new carpet to mitigate the noise vibration and harshness that come with a diesel engine. The truck has the 727 torqueflite transmission. I plan on installing a 68RFE transmission at the same time the engine slips in. I plan to get the higher rated front springs to deal with the increased weight of the engine. The nice part of this quandary is the next model year the Cummins was available as an option. The questions I have are the cooling system, and the integration of the ECMs for the engine and transmission. Any of you fellers have ideas on how to make this conversion as smooth as it could be?

 

[Simplysmn]

To Be honest you really don't have that much of a Truck .You would need custom wiring harness and controller to run that 68rfe and what not .IMO you would be better off to find a newer truck and go from there .You are talking a Bunch of Money to make this Truck Happen .

 

[ursusarticus]

To Be honest you really don't have that much of a Truck .You would need custom wiring harness and controller to run that 68rfe and what not .IMO you would be better off to find a newer truck and go from there .You are talking a Bunch of Money to make this Truck Happen .

Well in our part of the country a decent B2500 is about 25K or better and if I were to get another chassis that would be what I'd try to scare up. I was thinking for about less than 10K that I could get more capability and efficiency by doing the diesel conversion and when the Cummins option came out it was a year later in that chassis if I remember right but after a a couple strokes and a heart attack I could very well be mistaken.

 

[Simplysmn]

Well I do diesel conversion's for a Living and unless you just get a donor say 89-93 that way you can use all the wiring and fuel tank and it's pretty much a swap over job . the way your talking is very intense by using a Late model drivetrain you have to remember the late stuff is set up for Driver's side drop on the front axle where as the 81-93 is all Pass side drop axle and transfer case .Not that it Can't be done but you will have More then 10,000 into the part's let alone the whole conversion .

 

[ursusarticus]

The B2500 reference would be for a replacement truck with the Diesel option, not as a donor vehicle. I wouldn't spend $25k for a truck then hack it apart to build another one with. A underbed Gooseneck hitch would be all the B2500 would need. If I go this route I'd prefer the first generation common rail 24 valve engine. I've heard from others that the common rail engines are temperamental is this true and what seems to be the main issue with them?