305e v6 engine rebuild
 

I just got my 1st truck as a gift from my grandfather in-law he can no longer drive and gave me his 1965 gmc 1500 longbed it has the 3 on the tree with no power steering and it has 8 lug wheels other than that I don't know much about the truck and it's history. I have been looking for a machine shop that can rebuild my engine but I get turned down no one seems to have all the parts to rebuild shops can't find pistons. Can someone please tell me where I can get all the parts to do a complete rebuild? The truck currently runs and has about 289,000 miles any help is truly appreciate thanks. I'm located in San Fernando, California.

Re: 305e v6 engine rebuild
 

California is a hot spot for parts. True, parts are getting more difficult to find, but with some research and some wtb posts here I am we can help you locate parts. Lotta members here with good used parts as well. :ok:

I was able to get pretty much everything I needed for my 305 v6 rebuild through O'reillys. That included:

Full felpro gasket set
Timing set with chain and gears
Oil Pump
Rod Bearings
Water Pump
Distributor

I had to get Main bearings NOS, same would be with cam bearings. I searched Ebay for those.
Cams are not reproduced anywhere that I am aware of, but they tend to pop up on Ebay in nos form as well. Or you could always have your reground which could lead to some mods.

Valves, valve springs, not entirely sure if those are available. The parts store guys around my area actually KNOW what they are doing so I can see if those are still available. Checked on summit racing's sight and no luck.

Pistons are not repopped, but if the ones in your 305 are ok I'd just re-ring them.

Someone will have to chime in on rings.....far as I know you could get them from Sealed Power.

Re: 305e v6 engine rebuild
 

I appreciate your knowledge.
Do you know what is a fair price to pay for this motor overhaul? Ballpark?

Re: 305e v6 engine rebuild
 

I put no price limit on these engines, they are going by the way side as more and more keep junking them with worthless small blocks. Stock or rebuilt this v6 engine will last 300,000 easily if routine maintenance is done. Can't say that for small blocks. I didn't Have mine rebuilt as I did most of it myself so the total cost in parts was around $900. I know of a completely rebuilt 305 v6 going for almost 3K+ right now. All depends on how much money and time you really want to put into it.

EDIT: Super nice truck there to!

Re: 305e v6 engine rebuild
 

Ditto on that
great truck!

Re: 305e v6 engine rebuild
 

Judging form the apparent very nice condition, it appears it has been well taken care of.
My question: Does it need a rebuild?
My guess is that you will get many miles from it, while you are accumulating the needed parts or a rebuild, so take your time, get used to the nice example you have acquired and learn the common maintenance tasks appropriate for the truck.
It will likely last a lot longer than you would think, if you continue to take care of it.

Rod J
Issaquah, WA.

Re: 305e v6 engine rebuild
 

Congratulations on acquiring this truck. Looks like a great one! I have to agree with the above post though, why rebuild? It seems like there is a common theory that just because you have an old truck with a lot of miles on it that you should start rebuilding the engine. I don't know that that's necessarily true, if it's running great then what's the problem?

That said, there are still parts available to rebuild these. I'm not sure about pistons, but I got bearings through my engine builder, and they're also listed on Egge's website. I just looked and I already through the boxes away for all of my bearings, I can only remember that they were a black and red box, LOL. May have been sealed power or something like that but I'm not sure. I had a ton of help through this website, that's probably the most important thing to remember. I even found what I believe to be a new old stock camshaft on eBay.

Gaskets seem to be available at various places through the Internet, Fel-Pro still makes them. I think they are now in stock at Summit racing.com, I also got a set through rock auto (but they have a habit of sending me the wrong parts and then charging me for return shipping)
TJ seems to have good luck with Oriely.

A word of warning: everyone you talk to, outside of this forum, it's going to tell you that this motor is worthless, impossible to find parts for, heavy, not worth rebuilding, a boat anchor, etc. They will all then begin to pontificate that you should pull it out and replace it with a small block Chevy. Then they will have some cockamamie exclamation that because it has two more cylinders it is fundamentally superior. These people lack imagination, motivation and any appreciation for anything that they can't order chrome repop parts from whatever catalog is laying around. After rebuilding my 305 V6 this winter couldn't be more happy that I did, it's not a super high-performance ProMod truck by any means, but it's the right motor for the right truck and it works great for when I use it for. I get so many questions and compliments about whether it still has a V-6 in it, people seem to be shocked when they find these still running. It's a great piece of history. It's unique and I love it.


You have a great-looking truck on your hands right there, I agree with WE7X, I would focus on getting to know the thing and doing simple upkeep and maintenance. I think you're rushing into rebuilding it if there's nothing that it immediately needs. Cruise through this website a bunch more, you're going to find a ton of post about how durable and long-lasting these engines are. Drive it, learn it, love it. When it comes time to rebuild it you've already found the place with the most info��

Re: 305e v6 engine rebuild
 

If the truck runs without any issues, I definitely would not pursue a rebuild. I've posted several times over the years about a local friend here who has a '65 GMC panel with 305 V6. He has over 600,000 miles on the engine and it has never been rebuilt. Modern engine oils are light-years better than the oils available in the '60s, and contribute to long lives for these engines. With proper maintenance and keeping the revs under about 3200, your engine should give you years of service before needing anything major.

Re: 305e v6 engine rebuild
 

Couldn't have said this better myself. I've had a few people say that to me and I told them to their face that their dumb small block was over used, common, and lacked any imagination. lol Many times they turn and walk away without any sort of comeback. Truth hurts I guess!