250i6 mods for Highway Driving

[Tdwmaxwell]

At the moment I drive a 1982 C10 with the 250i6 and the SM465 transmission, don't know what rear end. I'm looking to make it a bit more comfortable as a highway cruiser. I've been doing more highway driving recently and it feels like I put a lot of strain on the engine (I don't currently have a tachometer so I have almost no idea what my RPMs are). I've been thinking about doing an engine swap to a V8 but was wondering if I should try changing the gearing first. Any recommendations about what I should try to make highways more comfortable?

 

[Grit dog]

If it’s an original 6cyl I’d be surprised if it has steep gears. But if that’s what you’re referring to, a V8 won’t help high rpm’s.
If your issue is just it doesn’t have enough power then more power is the solution.

 

[ali_c20]

Welcome from Austria. Are you happy with the original engine and want too keep it? If yes I would install a tachometer (I prefer to have a tach in all of my cars) and check the rear end ratio. Tire size is also related to engine rpm.
You can use a Engine rpm calculator to get the rpm for current setup and the effects of the changes you want to make. No need for a tach then.

With that data I would see what needs to be done to achieve the desired goal.

This one has a list of popular transmission gear ratios:

https://www.crawlpedia.com/rpm_gear_calculator.htm