3306 vs 3406

Both are great engines. Both of them were made for many years by Cat in a lot of different applications and you can get all parts right over the counter at a Cat dealer.

The 3306 is 641 cubic inches, will have one long valve cover, and one cylinder head. The 3406 is 893 cubic inches, has 2 slanted valve covers, 2 separate rocker boxes, and is visually bigger by a bit.

Cat 3306
[attachment=14514]engine-cat-3306-pc,5e828b9e.jpg[/attachment]

Cat 3406
[attachment=14515]cat-3406.jpg[/attachment]

However a 3406E looks a little different

different horspowers 3306 around 200- 230 hp this one was in bulldozer d6h and excavator 330b for example and the 3406 was around 400-450 hp was mounted in D8R bulldozer, 245 and 375 excavator and 980F wheelloader.
both strong and good engines!!

In a truck the 3306 was rated up to about 300 hp. The 3406 went from 310 to 425 except for the PEEC, one model of those is 460 hp. Another easy way to tell is the injection pump. The 3306 is on the right and mounted on a slant. The 3406 is a great big flat top assembly mounted on the left. I have a 3306 in a 96 Volvo single axle. Great for the farm and hauling most things. It is a little short in the britches for big jobs but is still gets the job done and pretty easy on fuel. The old gear jammers got by with a lot less hp than the 3306 could produce. 3306's were noted for being dirty engines but with proper maintenance they'll run just short of forever.

Reason for my question was, I am looking at a Cat powered 4WD.The application for this one is in an older (mid 70's) Steiger tractor. This tractor has been re powered at some point ,from the original engine configuration. The tractor Data plate lists it as a D333 and Nebraska Test shows the 3306. The current owner does not know what is in it. He thought it maybe a 3406. Unfortunately, it does not appear to have been well maintained.

Even the re power looks like a hodge podge of bits and pieces. With the waterpump already leaking, I decided to pass . They say if what you see isn't good, what's hidden is worse. Way too expensive of a tractor to have to start putting money into down the road.

Thank you all for the education.


Matt

Good choice Matt.
Any engine's HP can be all over the map.
The maker will set it to the machinery makers request.
This is where that tractor can get interesting, the swapped
engine might look the same but what is the HP???
Too high and the power train of the tractor might be ripped apart.
You never know.
Later Bob