Early GMC diesel trucks

Mike (WA) · Aug 5, 2013

Did GMC (and maybe Chev?) put Detroits in their 2 ton size trucks in the late '40's and early '50's? I imagine it was fairly rare, due to the higher cost. Anybody got any more info on this subject? Anybody got one?

David from Kansas · Aug 5, 2013

Don't know about 40s and 50s but I have a '65 GMC wheat truck that must have originally been a freight truck as it had been converted from a diesel to gas when I bought it used in '69. It had 278000 miles on it when I purchased it used. I know it had been converted from a diesel due to the paperwork found in the glove box. I think it was equipped with a 471 Detroit. It has had a trusty 305 V6 since I have owned it.

Erik Ks farmer · Aug 5, 2013

I saw a GMC, a '69 I think, at a farm sale this spring, tandem axle, 5x3 spd that had been originally been a 471 detroit.

Alkay · Aug 5, 2013

In the mid-50's they started putting the 3-71 in some of the 400 series trucks. 4-71 and 6-71 in the larger series 600 and up.

buickanddeere · Aug 5, 2013

During the 50"s , 60"s and even into the 70"s. diesels were either not available in light and medium trucks. The price was prohibitive or the diesel choices were lousy.
Harper Detroit Diesel built their business with customers who ordered the cheapest gasser engine in the chassis with the lowest ratio differential . The brand new gas engine would be removed and a Detroit Diesel bolted in place.

Jo Bird · Aug 5, 2013

Most likely they used one of their own GMC Toro - Flow engines in the following sizes, D 351-V6 @ 130 hp, D 478 V6 @ 150 hp, DH 478 V6 @ 170 hp, D 637-V8 @ 195 hp or DH 637 V8 @ 220 hp. as per my 1970 motor's truck repair manual.. Can say I have only seen one of these engines. It's the D 478 V6 and is sitting in my garage, it's been a dream of mine to put it in a 3/4 or 1 ton since reading an article about Dudley Wolley in Floida back in the 70's. He claimed 60 mpg at the time and thought he could get 80 mpg with a little more tinkering around.
Jo

Jerry Coulter · Aug 5, 2013

I knew a man who had a trucking business using GMCs. They came with Toro-Flow diesel, kept burning out crankshaft bearings, and retrofit V6 gas engines in all of them.

Mike (WA) · Aug 5, 2013

I did find some on You-tube- don't know how to link, but if you go to you tube, then search for "47 GMC Diesel" it will take you to a (surprise) '47 GMC truck with 6-71.

I thought I had heard of some, found in barns, in the past.

Dean · Aug 5, 2013

The Toro Flow engines had oiling issues after oil changes. A service bulletin issued very early in the manufacturing run called for pressure lube before start up after all engine oil and filter changes. This solved the problems.

Dean

Hay hay hay · Aug 5, 2013

GMC Toro Flow were "60"s engines.

Dean · Aug 5, 2013

Detroit 453s were used in tandem dump trucks in the late 1960s. Not sure about 471s.

Dean

Anonymous-0 · Aug 5, 2013

In the early 60's the contractor next door had some Chevie dump trucks with 6V 53 engines in the trucks. I also know there were a few Studebaker trucks about that size with a Detroit.

Jon Hagen · Aug 5, 2013

(quoted from post at 20:22:56 08/05/13) Did GMC (and maybe Chev?) put Detroits in their 2 ton size trucks in the late '40's and early '50's? I imagine it was fairly rare, due to the higher cost. Anybody got any more info on this subject? Anybody got one?

We had a few early-mid 50's medium trucks in the area that had DD 4-71 engines.

Roy Suomi · Aug 5, 2013

Mahnen Machinery in Ohio had a '84 GMC with a 471 Driptroit with 5 and a 2.. It ran real well.. Smoked like the dickens when lugged..

old harv · Aug 6, 2013

I drove truck in the 80's and the company I worked for had one 70's GMC 5 ton with a Detroit and a 4 speed automatic. That thing was the noisiest, gutless, smokiest, most useless thing I have ever driven. Even the same truck with a 366 converted to propane was a lot better to drive. In down town Toronto with the detroit when you stepped on the gas, the smoke coming out of that thing would make the pedestrians run for cover. It took about 3 miles on the 401 to get it up to 50 miles an hour, which was as fast as it could go. I was glad to see that thing go down the road.

JOCCO · Aug 6, 2013

MIKE OTHERS are pretty much correct they put about every size detroit in a truck over the years. The big one in the 40's was i believe a 900 or 940 modle with 671. I would add that diesel trucks were more costly (then) and fuel stations were scarce for it. It was not as widly accepted buy the pubic either. Those larger trucks bigger than a 11/2-2 ton are rare as production was low back then. I do quite a bit with dodge and can tell you about them. You will see some of this stuff at truck shows although less due to current economy hope this helps some take care.

Mike M · Aug 6, 2013

This last memorial day parade in Hayesville Ohio there was an old city bus there. Sure sounded like a Detroit in it but even when they restarted it after the ceremony at the graveyard it didn't smoke. Maybe with the new low sulfur fuel and maybe someone really knew what they were doing when setting it up ?

Dean · Aug 6, 2013

Just about all of the buses, transit and over the road, built in the 50s, 60s and 70s were built by GMC Truck and Coach and all but the smallest, least expensive were Detroit powered. A relatively small number of smaller transit buses were built with Toro Flow engines, either diesel or gasoline, in the 60s and early 70s.

Most built in the 40s used 471s, while most built in the 50s use 671s. The 61/2? redesign used 6V71s for transit busses while over the road jobs used 8V71s.

The transit buses used Hydramatic 2 speed automatic transmissions, while the over the road jobs used mechanical four speeds.

When properly maintained, they smoked and leaked very little.

Dean

Earl-IL · Aug 6, 2013

Mike, I live in central Illinois and we have a club member that has 2 consecutive serial number Studebaker trucks with Detroit engines they appear to be 1.5 - 2 ton trucks.

greygoat · Aug 6, 2013

I've seen a 1955 GMC single axle dump truck
with a 4 71, and a Studebaker, long wheelbase
cattle hauler of about the same age with a 6V53.

Early GMC diesel trucks

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