1972 Longhorn

[Tonner]

I recently picked up this '72 Longhorn that once belonged to my Grandparents. I have been working on a '72 C/30 flatbed. I got i running and driving, but the body is too far gone to be worth resurrecting. I'm going to steal the 350 out of it and throw it in this truck to get it running. I'll drive it for a while as I figure out how much I want to modernize it. It came with the original 350 in pieces in the bed. I'm going to have a machine shop check it out as it has been rebuilt before and see if it is worth working with. My question is how much horsepower can I realistically get to the ground if I want to keep the stock ride and length? I keep watching shows like this and thinking I could give it some "get up and go" without getting too crazy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7mvgf6_p1g
I want it to be fairly reliable and not a total gas hog. Should I just keep a stock 350 in it, or build it a bit?

[jocko]

Welcome, nice truck and very cool that it was in the family. If you want a hot rod, a Longhorn is about as far from a good starting point as you could be. I'd personally rebuild one of the 350s and get it going like it was when new - it's a very cool truck just like that, and, you'll get to enjoy driving it without breaking the bank - and put a few $ into other things it need rather than an overdone motor. Don't get me wrong, nothing wrong with a hot rod, I like em too - but I would only build a longhorn to use and drive as a truck for actual work or camper/trailer hauling. The 350 is more than sufficient. The maybe someday turn a swb into a hot rod.

[kwmech]

I agree, you can do a mild rebuild on the 350 and probably get a clean 275-300 hp out of without going to any extremes. It would be a nice runner

[Tonner]

So if I wanted to make it a daily driver, what could I do when rebuilding to improve fuel economy?

[Ironangel]

The best your ever going to get out of one of these trucks with a carbureted 350 is 14 mpg tops. If you cant live with that then you'll have to spend the money to convert to fuel injection. It's your choice but the way I see it is; If your looking for mileage get a new truck. If you want to drive and enjoy an unmolested classic then your grampa's truck is a good one...Personally, I'm attaching an addendum to my trucks (two 72's) that they stay as is or nobody gets them!

[Longhorn 69]

Nice truck, I have my Dads 69 Longhorn 3/4 ton, he was the original owner, and it doesn't look to be in as good of condition as yours. I'm just getting started on the project, stripped down to frame now. It has the original 396 in it and I don't think it has ever been worked on, not sure the original miles as I remember the speedometer was broke for some time. I'm going to get a basic overhaul on it and plan to use as a Sunday tour ride. I cant wait to here it rumble again. What condition is your box? Mine is in poor shape on the inside, wood floor gone, inside panel bottoms rotted off, and a lot of pin holes, I'm looking for new Longhorn box side panels as an option, but no luck with that. It has also had some repairs to the outer side panels. Good Luck with your project.

[jocko]

If you are concerned with fuel economy, you won’t achieve many gains based on how you build the engine - it’s a carb’ed 350 so it’s gonna get what it’s gonna get, just keep it tuned to factory specs, perhaps add electronic ignition. If you spend a decent portion of your time above 55 mph (or would like to), fuel economy is best addressed with an overdrive trans (which doesn’t sacrifice 1st gear torque) or a rear end swap (which does).

[davepl]

If you do nothing special it'll get 11mpg, and if you go a careful build and target fuel mileage as the goal, maybe 13 (in town numbers). They're just heavy bricks with old ineffecient motors that are never doing to be very economical. Jocko is spot on about the overdrive, and that's what I did. Lot's of gear (4.10) in the rear end for spirited in town driving and an overdrive (4L80E) for the highway.

Queue the guy who gets 27mpg in his six cylinder heading east through the mountain pass...

But in other matters, it's not a great photo, but the body doesn't look unsalvageable to me!

[MARKDTN]

Originally Posted by Tonner

So if I wanted to make it a daily driver, what could I do when rebuilding to improve fuel economy?

I would buy a TBI 350 out of a '87-95 truck, van, suburban.... Keep the fuel injection and get it running. Mileage will increase and power is decent. A Van harness is almost self-contained for these or aftermarket harnesses are inexpensive. Add a "kicker" fuel pump and should not need many other mods. The stock accessories and exhaust will bolt right up. The 1-pc rear seal engines last longer than the 2-pc ones and don't leak as much.

Or add Tuned-Port injection on top of a stock bottom end. A bit more pricey and need more fuel pressure, but lots of low-end torque.

[Tonner]

Thanks guys, the body is in great shape. There are a couple little paint bubbles on the bed and it will need new wood, but even the metal strips on the deck of the bed can be saved. I'm looking forward to making this a daily driver. I'll look into overdrive. I'll probably keep the low-speed rear end as it will need to do some work.