Rebuild 350 or swap in 383 in 96 2 door yukon

[Walrusmt]

Hey folks,
My 96 has 140k on it, but the previous owner ran it 3 quarts low. I know a rebuild is due, but I’m looking for an opinion from the forum on the next step.
Since they only made the 2 door Yukon with the 350 Vortec in 96 is there any value in keeping it stock/original? Or is it ok to drop in a 383 crate motor?

Thanks for you thought!

 

[swathdiver]

Well, first off, did running it low damage the engine? I had an oil line break once on the way to the drag strip. Ran my fastest times ever that night but noticed the temp climbing up a little higher after each run. Turned out an oil cooler line burst leaving very little oil in the motor. Jury rigged the hose, poured in a spare quart and drove it 66 miles home. Tore down the engine the next day and guess what I saw? Nothing! No damage at all thanks to Mobil One synthetic oil.

Alright, so let's say the motor needs fixin'. I'm of the mindset to fix what you have and keep things as original as possible. Someday a Yukon GT might be a collectible but will never be a '70 Camaro SS or Z28. If you're looking for cheap and easy and keeping it original is not important to you, the 383 seems the way to go.

 

[Walrusmt]

Well, first off, did running it low damage the engine? I had an oil line break once on the way to the drag strip. Ran my fastest times ever that night but noticed the temp climbing up a little higher after each run. Turned out an oil cooler line burst leaving very little oil in the motor. Jury rigged the hose, poured in a spare quart and drove it 66 miles home. Tore down the engine the next day and guess what I saw? Nothing! No damage at all thanks to Mobil One synthetic oil.

Alright, so let's say the motor needs fixin'. I'm of the mindset to fix what you have and keep things as original as possible. Someday a Yukon GT might be a collectible but will never be a '70 Camaro SS or Z28. If you're looking for cheap and easy and keeping it original is not important to you, the 383 seems the way to go.

Thanks a ton for the advice - especially the 70 Camaro comparison. Oil pressure is around 50 at when I start the engine in the morning, but once it warms up drops to around 20 PSI.

I will keep the L31 as is, patch up the leaks - see how it goes. Other than eating distributor caps and rotors the truck is solid.

I'll also begin a 383 build in the garage. In my experience a "2 week engine build" usually last about 3 years lol.

 

[Tonyrodz]

Thanks a ton for the advice - especially the 70 Camaro comparison. Oil pressure is around 50 at when I start the engine in the morning, but once it warms up drops to around 20 PSI.

I will keep the L31 as is, patch up the leaks - see how it goes. Other than eating distributor caps and rotors the truck is solid.

I'll also begin a 383 build in the garage. In my experience a "2 week engine build" usually last about 3 years lol.

I had the same problem on my express van with burning out caps and rotors. I changed out the ignition control module and it was good to go.

 

[bigfootchiro]

Oil pressure seems good. If you’re talking about potentially rebuilding your 350 vs 383 crate, why not rebuild yours INTO a 383?

 

[Walrusmt]

I had the same problem on my express van with burning out caps and rotors. I changed out the ignition control module and it was good to go.

Thanks for the input. It's a cheap and easy fix so I'll investigate. I thought the symptoms of a bad ICM was failed start or rough idle. None of those are a problem here. Cap just stops working after a couple of months.

 

[Walrusmt]

Oil pressure seems good. If you’re talking about potentially rebuilding your 350 vs 383 crate, why not rebuild yours INTO a 383?

That would be ideal. This is my daily driver and I don't have the down time to pull the engine, rebuild it and re-install. I could probably take off a week to do the removal and install, but that's it.

 

[Tonyrodz]

Thanks for the input. It's a cheap and easy fix so I'll investigate. I thought the symptoms of a bad ICM was failed start or rough idle. None of those are a problem here. Cap just stops working after a couple of months.

I had the same problem. Cap and rotor would maybe last--tops--3 months. After I swapped it out, problem went away.

 

[Walrusmt]

I had the same problem. Cap and rotor would maybe last--tops--3 months. After I swapped it out, problem went away.

Thanks again for the tip. I swapped the ICM yesterday.
The one I pulled off looked like new, even had the “Singapore” laser print on the face. However there was very little thermal paste on the surfaces. I smeared the new surfaces with an even layer.
Hopefully it will work. I’ve got another cap and rotor ready if needed.


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