Big block = more rotating mass (more kenetic energy).
Small block = less rotating mass (more efficient).
Cause I can find a 352, or a 383 big block, and a 400 small block.
Diesel, especially with a turbo Cummins, figure that the torque is roughly twice that of the HP. Much more efficient use of the fuel, and the fuel itself contains more energy (BTU's per lb of fuel).
Now, the big advantage of the big block over the other two is that our truck isn't really that light weight. So you have to have the better gears to have enough mechanical advantage to use the small block. The diesel can use lower gears and bigger tires, get great mileage, and has tons of torque in the lower power band.
Big block, you can still rev them up to a decent RPM if need by. You can't do this in a diesel. And if you are in the wrong gear, you have enough power to power through it, where most small blocks can't do this.
Of course, add a supercharger or turbo, and you change the entire equation.
 |
 |
