MF35 tractor with Chevy 6.2 diesel and Olds D hist

"Winter 1976 - As a winter project, the engineers at Oldsmobile took the 350 gasser block, cast it
from high nickel iron, stroked the crank, cut reliefs in the pistons, reworked the heads with a
Ricardo Comet prechamber and installed Detroit pencil injectors. Found a Roosa Master 8 cylinder
pump from the local tractor dealer and machined an adapter plate to mount the pump. Made
five copies and put them on the dyno to do the tests. Two months later, Mercedes announced that they had put a turbo on the 300 and finally had a diesel that could keep up with the traffic. With the fuel crisis still in full swing and Detroit stumbling along with their two ton lead sleds, GM marketing went looking for a solution only to find that their own engineers had a hobby. Olds was given 18 months to get the prototype into production (about 24 months shorter then normal, especially for a new engine design). January 1978 - After working many overtime hours the engineers had developed an engine, that at the time had the best power to wieght ratio of any production automotive diesel ever made, but discovered the accountants all held a deep desire to be designers. Nix the dual exhaust, heavy duty version of the Roosa Master, the hardened head studs and the high nickel block. The result was a 120 hp diesel that got almost 40 miles to the gallon (IMP) and only 70 lbs heavier then it's gasser counterpart. Unfortunately you had to drag a magnet behind the car to catch all the parts that flew out of the engine. August 1981- After almost breaking the bank with warrantee claims, and after many hours of
exhaustive testing GM introduced the "DX" block with stiffer webs, high nickel block, roller
cam, new stronger crank, 27 modifications to the Roosa Master (now made by Stanadyne) (lets face it, it started out life as a tractor pump), better cooling channels, improved injectors and a
better head design. While they were forced to de-rate this engine to 105 HP, it still gave great mileage and reasonably acceptable power for the vehicles it was installed in. None the less, the previous
three years had written paid on it's reputation and nothing Madison Avenue could do could
revive it. The engine stayed in production through the 1985 model years but was quietly laid to rest."

"As a winter project, {{{{WINTER PROJECT at GM engineering???}}}} the engineers at Oldsmobile took the 350 gasser block, cast it
from high nickel iron, stroked the crank,{{{{WRONG... ALL Second Generation Olds 350's, including the diesel, had the SAME 3.385" stroke.}}}} cut reliefs in the pistons, reworked the heads with a Ricardo Comet prechamber and installed Detroit pencil injectors {{{{The production pencil injectors were Roosa Master/Stanadyne, as almost certainly the prototypes were. I REALLY doubt DDA had anything that small!}}}} Found a Roosa Master 8 cylinder
pump from the local tractor dealer {{{{I don't believe there would have been a SINGLE ag application for an 8-cylinder Standyne/Roosa Master pump in that era, or probably EVER. Certainly, the pump was a custom job from Stanadyne.}}}} and machined an adapter plate to mount the pump

With the right people, time and money, anything is possible.

Certainly, I realize ANYTHING is possible, with enough $$$$,as it obviously was, since they DID build the 5.7 Diesel.

My point is that the anecdote must be once or twice removed from the folks that actually built the prototype, because it contains inaccurate information that would not have come from folks actually closely involved in the project.

There is so much misinformation floating around about the history of the 5.7's and 6.2's it's ridiculous.

I ran one of those Isuzu built cab overs with a GM nameplate (don't remember which model but was larger than most you see)I was really impressed with the power and fuel mileage it made.

Lacking a foundry, GEP "farmed out" the casting of the blocks to NAVISTAR. After a certain date, 6.5 blocks used in HUMMERS, as well as NEW replacent 6.5 blocks bear the "NAVISTAR Diamond" logo as a casting mark in the central valley of the engine. The blocks has some added webbing for more strength, and are reputed to have a higher nickle content than the GM-produced 6.5's. True story.