I have a 1959 Chevrolet Step Van with a 235 that I want to use to tow my O.T. Vintage Race car. The step van has a gross vehicle weight of 10,000 lbs. The step van weighs 5185 lbs. The trailer I want to tow is a tandem wheel car trailer that weighs less than 1500 lbs. and the vintage racer weighs 1567 lbs... so I would be towing a combined weight of 3100 lbs (the trailer has electric brakes). I would probably have another 1000 lbs in the step van when you count tools, driver etc. The step van originally had a Eaton full floating 5:14 rear end coupled to a 4 speed with a granny low. This combination yielded a top speed of 50 mph so I changed the rear end to a 4:86 and larger tires so I now have a top speed of almost 70 mph. I also have a 4;10 rear end that I haven't tried yet. I also haven't tried towing with the step van yet since it is not insured. So, several questions... If I changed the 4 speed with the granny low for a T-5 (5 speed) out of a S10 would this transmission hold up to the combined load (truck, trailer, tools, and race car (9285 lbs?). Obviously I won't be doing any burn outs or otherwise abusing the transmission. I would want to change the transmission to get rid of the granny low and get a better cruising speed. Will the 235 be able to actually pull this combination (load plus a 5 speed) at a decent cruising speed(55 to 65 mph)? If the 235 is not up to the task, I will put a 350 into the truck. This model of step van originally was available with a 265 so a 350 shouldn't be a huge problem. So, will the T-5 stand up to a 350 with this load? If the T-5 would stand up to this type of load I would be tempted to buy a T-5 and try it behind the 235 and if the 235 didn't work out I would switch to a 350 and keep the T-5 What I don't want to do is buy a T-5 and a new drive shaft and find out that the T-5 won't handle the load. If I knew, for certain, that either the T-5 or the 235 weren't going to be up to the task then I would probably install a 350 with a different transmission that was designed for larger loads... possibly an automatic... recommendations for both automatics and manual transmissions? Any advice?
I don't know if a T5 would hold up, but I'd think a 1/2 pickup 5 speed would work fine and should bolt up to the 235 no problem.
I don't know of any pickup 5 speeds that will bolt up to the 235. if you keep the 235, you probably will want to keep the 4.86 gears and the granny 4 speed and get used to driving slow. I have a 57 chevy single wheel one ton, I swapped in a 3.73 rearend from an 80s 3/4 suburban. The truck has a tired 2bbl 283. It sure is easier to drive if I start out in granny low, even with no load on the truck. I plan to put a good sized camper on it, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to swap in a 396 so it has enough grunt to get up hills. Towing is one thing I would definitely not subject a T5 to.
Just an observation from many, many, many years of towing race cars with everything from a 1947 Dodge pickup with a hemi in it to a 2006 GMC K-30 Duramax, Crew cab dually.......Your engine, trans and rear axle ratio are not your problem. You have a very top heavy, high center of gravity vehicle. It has antiquated suspension under it. You have a narrow rear axle in relation to vehicle width and center of gravity. I suspect you will have a white knuckle, slow trip as you try to keep the trailer straight behind you while sawing on the steering wheel of the van. Great looking vintage van.......just not sure it is a safe/comfortable tow vehicle. Good luck and be safe.
I used to drive a old Chevy 60 series dump truck with a 235.This was a 6 wheel dump , about 18,000 pound with a load of gravel.Driving the engine flat out against the governor,shifting the 4 speed tranny and two speed axle to best advantage I could eventually be going 50 mph on a flat road.Repeat,this is wide open throttle 75 percent of the time in every gear when load to maintain speed. A 235 in your step van with trailer will be a slow ride,very slow.
The consensus seems to be that the 235 isn't going to work very well, if at all.... I will try towing with the 235 and the granny 4 speed any just to verify that is the case. Assuming the 235 isn't going to work, then I need to start looking for a 350... what is the best transmission for a 350 considering what I am trying to do? I am open to trying either a manual or an automatic. Strength and ease of installation are big factors.
Chevy switched from the SM420 that your truck has, to the SM465, about the time that they started installing 350s in trucks in the late 60s. If you want to keep a 4 speed granny box in it, that would probably be a good one, they used them for a long time. It's noticeably heavier than the 420, and is almost a bolt in to replace the 420. There are also manual 5 speed overdrive transmissions from trucks that bolt to the 350 engine. And you could go with an automatic, the TH400 would be a good one for non-overdrive, or a 4L80e if you want overdrive and can deal with the computer it requires, and can afford it, they're not cheap. The 5 speed or the automatics will require a different crossmember. The 465 will require the correct bellhousing to mount to the existing crossmember, from a 68-72 truck.
nice freaking step van. i've seen a lot of 58 milk trucks with stock 58 truck fenders on them, yours is sweet. i doubt if you'd be able to move it without a granny gear with a trailer behind you. i'd also worry about the stock brakes. if you put in a 350 any truck trans would do: 350, 400, 700r4. i'd still worry about the brakes though... squirrel puts a bbc in everything eventually. nature of the beast.
Before the V-8s, a lot of folks hauled some real freight with the 235. The major contractors that hauled new G.M. cars come to mind: Complete Auto Transit & F.J.Boutell were two. They used Chevrolet C.O.E. tractors and transported (4) 3300-4000# cars. Of course, they all ran 4 speed transmissions + 2 speed rear axles. Since that was pre Interstate, they were happy with 50-55 m.p.h. top end.
if you got hills the 350 may not be so great had a 1971 c30 with a 4 speed and with the 350 engine , 6.17 gears hauling 2 racecars it would run 55 mph at 5500 RPM as long as it was flat , on hills you would get into 2nd gear and crawl i would think about a 261, they will pull like a bear and keep the 4 speed which I am sure is a tough unit
Based on my experience, if you keep the 235, put a skirt around it and rig it to spray fluid underneath so people know they're comng up on a snail ahead of them. A 350 will handle a decent load, hills will be a struggle with more than 7500 lbs total weight though, you'll need those low gears especially if you had to stop on one. I'd avoid a 700R4 unless it was purpose-built by a good shop, they're okay for normal use with occasional towing, but even mine that I mildly abused over 4 years had pretty brown stinky fluid in it, it drove okay, but if I wasn't putting the trans in a much lighter car I wouldn't re-use it as-is. With a 1-ton van I towed a 3/4 ton van earlier this year, total was about 11,000 combined, it wasn't bad but you weren't going to get anywhere in a hurry with it. 350 and the 4L60E in the towing vehicle.
Just go put a small Cummins 4BT 4-cylinder diesel with an Overdrive GM NV4500 and get it over with....... The 4 cylinder varient (4BT) is the smaller brother of the 6 cylinder version found in late 90's F800 2-6 ton trucks, and the Dodge Ram 2500/3500..... the 4BT is commonly found in GM P30 step vans...... You'll get 20 mpg and all the towing you can throw at it..... and it will fit easily length wise where you need to be.. (height MIGHT be an issue) Otherwise plan for a trip similar to that which originally came with the vehicle...1959 handling and 1959 speeds...... I second vote that a sbc 350 is just well... a sbc 350 with still way too much weight anchoring it down...... The Cummins diesel stock makes around 105 HP and 265 ft-lbs (This torque is present throughout the entire powerband right off of idle).... and is easily tuned up to 450 ft lbs via just an intercooler and turbo....... Now to be honest... maybe I'm 'too young' etc but at interstate highway speeds (70 mph+) I sure wouldn't want to be pushing/pulling 10,000 lbs of truck/trailer/car with 1959 brakes...suspension, lack of probably even a sway bar etc.... But.. your party your parade and I respect that...... That being said my 1947 Ford is being built as a hauler..... new GM P30 suspension/hydroboosted disc brakes air suspension etc.... and chances are you coudn't even tell 10 ft away that theres a diesel, parallel 4 link out back, or independent front with 4 wheel disc all on air bags.... but tahts the point.... Either way be safe! ~M
They probably did not go that far back then with those trucks,from the rail terminal to the dealers which probably was not more then a couple hundred miles and very slow.
pulling this back from the dead. What about towing for short trips? I've got a 59 long bed pickup with the 235 and SM420 and was curious about putting a class 3 hitch on it to pull a trailer loaded with my tractor (it's an IH244, so about 1800lbs plus the trailer weight). I'm talking distances of 40 miles at the most. Other than sticking to 45-50mph speeds max, what else would I have to worry about? Overheating? Transmission?
Make sure you have good trailer brakes, working properly. Go slow, take it easy, and you should be fine. The 235 was used in rather large trucks, they were geared to go slow, and they worked fine for decades
My Dad use to have a tractor agency and would go to Amarillo from here and load up a new tractor + implements and come back- in a 44 Chevy 1 1/2 ton with a 216, never a problem. Of course top speed was maybe 35/40MPH! Replaced it with a 66 F-500 with a 300 six, that was great, it would run 45/50. I'd have no problem pulling the weight your talking about with a 235 40 miles or so as long as your not in a hurry, it would do fine. Like Squirrel said, good trailer brakes would be nice, that was the biggest issue we had with our old trucks, stopping while loaded sometimes would be nerve wracking
x2. I'd be more worried about stopping the rig. The problem is other people, who will pull out in front of you as if you really COULD stop… Brian
Just thinking about all the 235 Chevy pickups all over rural America that would just thump along the roads carrying 30 bales of hay and pulling a stock trailer full of cows...yeah 55 mph, affordable, repairable, and reliable. Times have sure changed.
Since this has been brought back up,I will comment. I read an article in "cars and parts" magazine about over the road trucks that had twin 6 cylinder engines,side by side. They also had a picture of 2 flat heads side by side. These tractors were used for pulling loads in the mountains. an extra 235 would help tow,but it wont help stopping or turning.
maybe think about a late model chassis swap keeping the body stock. i could definately see this in its current condition being a white knuckle slow trip just my opinion
Your 235 mated to a SM420 tranny with steep rear gears will tow, no problem. Just be prepared to piss everyone off on the freeway!
My father pulled a 40 ft Anderson mobile home from Wisconsin to West Virginia with a 1950 Chevrolet pickup with a 235 in 1954. Then he towed it back to Wisconsin in 1956. It had a leaf spring equalizer hitch. I don't know what the trailer weighed but I assume it was heavy with all of our furniture and possessions inside.
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