what to do what to do!!

[dons vs]

Hey guys ill give you a quick run down on my problem
i scored a vs ute for next to nothing from a family member, its just a clean vs ute v6 auto rah rah rah.
I plan to use the ute for work as im always carting engines and parts around and also to tow our race car.
People have told me dont tow with it as it will fall apart others have said na there fine for towing, our track car only weighs about 1 tone plus a tandom trailor so i dont know a max of say 1500kg.
Ok so thats the run down on what i got and what i want it for now here is where im stuck.

which way should i go with it?

wack a few mods onto the stocko v6 like extractors a descent intake and then take it to my mate and remap the ecu for some more ponies?

buy a second hand supercharger kit and stick that on?

get a hold of a spare v6 block and slowly rebuild it with some hi comp pistons and so on and then swap them over?

or find a wrecked calais or something and knock the v8 out of it and some interior bits like seats door trims, climate control and elec windows?



the other thing is im really keen on the idea of converting it to straight gas, i have also heard stories of the v6's not being able to run that well on gas but the 8's are ok when tuned for it.

so in short, throw some cash at a v6 or throw some cash at a 5lt v8?

thanks for anyone that can give some insight

[VSIIISU]

I believe the maximum load capacity will be noted in your owners manual. However that is for the total payload for the ute area. Towing capacity is where I am not too sure about and towing around 1500kg would be something that I would get a more professional comment on is there a likely possibility of the ute being able to handle the weight. I suspect for starters you will need tougher rear springs and what not.

I personally think gas on no matter how many pistons/rotors you run on will affect the performance to some extent. Gas are less dense compared to petrol and my belief is with that, it may give less performance as a result.

Here: HowStuffWorks "How Oil Refining Works"
Shows distillation process, diesels were once noted to be 40% more efficient than petrol counterparts despite their maintenance costs and ironically produces more torque than petrol. So by applying logic on that, in theory gas (being easily produced at lower boiling point) makes it slightly less power than say petrol. Of course, this is only speaking of theoretical side.

(edit) I personally believe it won't be just the engine that may need some attention. I would be looking at the overall structure of the vehicle and the dynamics in the ability to carry heavier loads.

[dons vs]

yah i understand ill need some better springs and what notill be taking care of all that gear it was mainly the engine side of things at the moment then ill tackle the gear box and diff as well.

as for the gas theory, one of the main reason diesel engines produce so much torque is there burn rate and power stroke is much more than a petrol engine, they use the heat of compression to ignite the fuel and can keep injecting the fuel at mass pressures on the power stroke to maintain a controlled burn giving greater torque outputs, even greater again on the new common rail systems with multiple injections on the power stroke.
petrol being an unstable fuel is hard to keep injecting on a power stroke in which case we need to keep the cylinder temperatures down and use an external source of ignition (spark plug/coil) gas is much the same only with a slower burn rate much like diesel, although still quite volatile we still need to keep temps down and use external ignition but with a slower burn rate you can in turn increase ignition timing and get a much more even burn rate than petrol which will in tern increase torque outputs.
Problem is with most gas systems is there hooked up in dual fuel and never tuned right, you will find cars tuned for straight gas will actually out perform a straight petrol car of the same equipment.

anyway all that a side still no suggestions as to which path i should look at first?

im still really on the fence, one side is saying stuff taking the engine out just bolt some gear onto it and save my money, and the other is saying just stick a 5lt in it then you don't have to worry about modifying it as it will have enough torque to tow straight up.

also i believe the ecotechs have alloy heads? where as the 304 still uses steel heads?, as this is a contributing factor to running straight gas.......

im open to suggestions guys dont hold back

[axemurderer101]

if its auto you will prob need to buy a trans cooler

[dons vs]

Yeah was reading some FAQ's and look like a descent shift kit and a trans cooler is in order, whihc is fine as i have account with speed flow and earls so i can get that sorted.
But where do you mount them? is there somewhere on the bottom of the box or on the valve body that you mount the fittings for the lines to the core?

also can anyone recommend anyone good in SE melb area for a descent shift kit and service on the auto box

[danja]

If you have a proper track car, is it really worth building up the V6 in a big way? Exhaust might get annoying when towing of you have to keep revving it to move anywhere and you're making all the show, but no go.

The 5ltr has my vote, for the pulling power. They can't cost much these days? Engine swap maybe?

[Stupa]

rip the auto out and beef it up, or go with a t56. the standard boxes really dont like towing

[VSIIISU]

Ecotec doesn't use alloy heads, iirc they are cast iron. The VS I have seen with auto gearboxes already have transmission cooler which is placed right in front of the radiator. No idea about the utes though.

[the_random_hero]

Make sure your towing weights are under the specified maxes on your ute. I've seen cars who's doors no longer line up from towing a load greater than they had specified