Maybe not. http://www.shadetreeconversions.com/truck-plans-book-p-1.html These guys are located right here in my state... My mind starts thinking of a b-body conversion with a 6 speed... could be fun.
Up here, our gallon is 5 US quarts. Yesterday, GM had an ad for the new Pickups at 57 MPG HWY/ 27 City. A tractor diesel would have LOTS of torque at low revs.
They want 50$ for their book, but I'll bet someone else has figured it out, too. Heck, a used tractor should be pretty cheap.
You can get that type of mpg if you want. There lots of mods to do. The thing to understand is that it's not easy and it's not cheap . If some little gizmo or ebook says something else just ditch it aint true... BTW: Going diesel to get 50MPG (that is US MPG) is cheating ;-). Cheers Dyna
There's a whole world of Cummins 4BT converted trucks out there. Getting 35mpg out of a 70s GMC half-ton pickup with a 4-cylinder diesel and a 4-speed isn't bad. Those 4BT's are 3.9 liter engines. I would think the 3.3 liter version could do a little better in a lighter truck. Show me a stripped down 87-91 F-150 short bed with a 3.3 liter Cummmins and a 5-speed stick, I don't see any reason it can't get 40mpg. I would think the ideal size small diesel to get 50mpg would be about 2.5 liter, maybe 90-100hp, 180-220ft-lbs of torque. But a 60-70hp small tractor diesel might do just as well. Then again I've been toying with the idea of stripping down a Festiva or Geo Metro, dropping in an 18hp generator-type engine, gasoline, and seeing how close to 65-70mph I can get it to go. Someone did it with a 10hp forklift engine and got up to 45-50mph, sometimes 55mph. A little bit more oomph and it'd be good to go. Biggest problem is making it fit under the hood and still attach to the transmission properly.
Back in 79 a couple of guys put a Perkins diesel into a Mercury Capri and got terrific MPG. They sold a handful of them. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,916788,00.html?iid=digg_share
