Anybody remember towing with the old 5.7 350?

[chevyguy45]

I had a 1998 sierra ext cab with a 350 back then and i loved it. They felt very strong on the low end. I think they had just as much torque as the 07-13 5.3 and it came in at a much lower rpm. Was anyone else impressed with the 350?

[snowblind]

Had same truck but a Chevy. I now have 08 GMC 5.3. Chevy pulled my trailers much better then my GMC. Wish I had a 6.0. Thinking of getting a chip to help hp and torque. Need to get more info on a chip first.

[chevyguy45]

What is your rear axle ratio? The 4 speed autos with 5.3 was terrible for me. My 2009 5.3 with the 6 speed auto was a great improvement the 4 speed was a slow shifter.

[snowblind]

I would have to look on the ratio. I do not have the 6 speed auto on my 08.

[Silverado4x4]

Hell yeah I remember those motors, you could work the hell out of a 350 all day and at night the motor I swear would look at you and smile. I really miss those days when a motor was called a 350,327,307,400 427 and so on.

 

And what did you get as a tranny? a 3 speed powerglide, 350 turbomatic and so on.

[SnakeEyeSS]

I remember my old 350 TBI, I put the chip, TB spacer, TB bowl on at the same time, like $300 in parts and added something like 40 HP and 80 TQ.

[kstruckcountry]

Yep I remember it. Still tow with a 350 occasionally. But no 350 that I have driven can come close to my 2006. The 350's are good off the line but they don't have much after that. A 5.3 has no issues with turning 3000rpm all day, and heat doesn't bother them near as much as it did the old motors. My 2006 will chirp the tires if I give it more than 50% throttle from a stop. Give it full throttle and it'll take til 2nd gear to hook up. No 350 I've driven has the same "punch".

[66nova]

I had a 95 step side with a 350 before I got my 07 Vmax. Absolutely loved the truck. Towed my car with an 18 ft flat bed great.

[KARNUT]

Back in the 70s we had a chevy dually with a 350 with a 400 trans and 410 rear end. We used it to haul a hay trailer on the farm. We would flip over the air cleaner lid pull it in low 1 and it would chirp the dual posi wheels going into second gear it would run pretty good. We also had at the time an el camino ss with a 400 small block and a 400 turbo trans, same thing pull it in low 1, it would feel like you where flat shifting into second, but that one would do more than chirp the tires. I did some crazy things with chevy small blocks never had one fail me, yet.

[Daryl LBZ]

I remember my first 350. All low end, fell on it's face in the higher end. Made for a lot of these moments as a horse playing 17 year old.

[LaserBlueZ71]

The issue with the new motors is electronics. The computer is tuned for fuel mileage and keeping warranty claims down. If GM let you have the full potential of the 5.3, you would probably kill the transmission or the rear end.

 

There is no question, the machining and build quality of engines today is far more precise then those of yesteryear.

[kstruckcountry]

Mine is tuned for maximum cargo redistribution.

[Silverado4x4]

The issue with the new motors is electronics. The computer is tuned for fuel mileage and keeping warranty claims down. If GM let you have the full potential of the 5.3, you would probably kill the transmission or the rear end.

 

There is no question, the machining and build quality of engines today is far more precise then those of yesteryear.

 

Now you see that is what gets me let people have the full potential of the motor and build the drivetrain to that motors potential to keep the warranty claims down. That's how I would do it if I were GM'S top man.

[Daryl LBZ]

 

Now you see that is what gets me let people have the full potential of the motor and build the drivetrain to that motors potential to keep the warranty claims down. That's how I would do it if I were GM'S top man.

Exactly. They couldn't make 10 grand profit per truck that way though. [emoji19]

[Carder09]

My dad had the 454 in his 97 Chevy, that was an awesome towing machine, at the time, and with the 4.10 gears, could shred the duals all day.