I talked to Hot Rod Jim on the phone tonight.
He's the guy who made me the original Electro-Metro adapter plate.
I phoned to ask what he thought about trying to take a Mercedes diesel engine and stick it in my S10 truck.
Overall, he said it is totally possible to do. It would require building new motor mounts, use a different fuel tank and a few other things, but totally possible.
He did indicate that it would be a lot of work and take quite a bit of time. A new drive shaft could be fabricated to connect the Merc auto transmission to the Chevy back end. I would also want to change the gears in the differential to take advantage of diesel's low-end torque, and still have a decent top speed of the vehicle.
When I talked to Master RV Mechanic Rich last night, he said that the hardest thing might be to get the speedometer to read right. Of course he's had years of working on diesels, and I can barely tell a fuel injector from a hole in the wall....
I am starting to feel that I am up to this project. I know a couple of guys, so I can get advice when I need it (I'm not all alone!!!) and I should be able to borrow an engine hoist and other odd tools I will need, but don't have.
Going from gas to diesel and a '95 to a '76 should go pretty well. Everything is simpler, less wires, more basic. I think I can figure it out.
