Hot-rodders have a simple philosophy: When in doubt, add more power. If your vehicle isn’t up to the task at hand when it comes to drag racing, road racing or even towing, it may be time for an overhaul. 

Such is the case with this ’80s K5 Blazer we ran across on YouTube today, in a video entitled “Carburetors Suck”. It’s owner an avid off-roading enthusiast, decided that his old carbureted small block Chevy  just wasn’t going to cut it anymore, and that he needed something more sufficient.

Instead of replacing the whole vehicle with something more modern, he decided that a simple engine swap would do, and the SBC would have to go. Citing the carburetor’s limitations as the major fault, he decided it was time to go with some fuel injected LS power! Some how, we’re not surprised at all.

The video starts off with a shot of the Blazer attempting to climb a relatively steep rock covered grade, only to run out of power not even halfway up the hill. Then we get a walk-through of the rebuild process, almost completely step by step, from the tear-down procedure to the finished product.

With the 5.3L painted Chevy Engine Orange, the new age motor looks right at home in the '80s SUV.

The foundation of the build was an iron block 5.3 fortified with some slightly larger 4.8L flat top pistons and a 5.7L LS1 crankshaft. The engine was treated to an upgraded camshaft and valvetrain also, along with a 5.7L intake manifold. Keeping the truck cool is a ’98 Ford Windstar fan assembly, while a combination of a Silverado fuel pump and a Corvette fuel filter/regulator assembly quells the Blazer’s thirst. The owner includes some other details throughout the build process of the video, but if you want to know what they are then you’re just going to have to watch it like we did.