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IH Bulldozer Repowered With 1971 Pontiac 350 Engine
Steve Perkins, Hammondsport, N.Y.: Faced with cutting up an old IH TD9 bulldozer for scrap because the motor was shot, Perkins decided to look for another option. He ended up installing a 1971 Pontiac 350 engine with a 3-speed transmission in the dozer.
"People told me it wouldn't be big enough, but I figured a
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IH Bulldozer Repowered With 1971 Pontiac 350 Engine ENGINES Engines 31-4-37 Steve Perkins, Hammondsport, N.Y.: Faced with cutting up an old IH TD9 bulldozer for scrap because the motor was shot, Perkins decided to look for another option. He ended up installing a 1971 Pontiac 350 engine with a 3-speed transmission in the dozer.
"People told me it wouldn't be big enough, but I figured a lot of diesel engines are under 100 hp and this one was over 300 hp," recalls Perkins. "It works fine. The big car motor just has to idle. I don't even touch the throttle."
He did have to make some changes to the motor and transmission to get it to fit. He started by attaching a mid-70s Chevy 3-speed transmission. He then made and attached a flat plate on the back of the transmission to the Pontiac bell housing, cutting the tail shaft assembly off even with the plate. In place of the assembly, he mounted a chain sprocket.
He then mounted an identical sprocket on the front of the bulldozer transmission and butted the two together. A double roller chain on the two sprockets provides power transfer.
For hydraulic power, Perkins removed the harmonic balancer pulley from the Pontiac and replaced it with the hydraulic pump from the original IH motor.
"The toughest part was getting everything perfectly in line," he says. "I made my own motor mounts and did a lot of measuring."
Perkins also made new exhaust manifolds out of 3-in. square tubing since the original Pontiac manifolds didn't fit between the frame rails. He also installed a truck radiator with an electric fan, which saved him from having to connect pulleys and shafts to power it.
After six to seven years of use, the Pontiac "dozer" is still working well. Perkins uses it to move dirt, pull logs, fix driveways and even move snow after big storms. Not only does the engine seldom get above an idle, but the Chevy transmission never gets out of first gear.
"I just used the three speed to get enough power down low so the engine wouldn't have to wind," explains Perkins. "I use the IH transmission for gear selection. It has never lacked for power."
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