Barracuda engine swap (from 273 to what?)

indeed, I did not mention the '62 changeover in my posts. Thanks for clarifying.

Never say never with Ma Mopar either - weird things show up in weird places. . .

 

I have a 440 stuffed in my 65 A body, an early Hemi would be cool.

 

is fairly narrow......not sure if tti offers headers for under chassis[/QUOTE]

Hard to find, but look for the "Spitfire" headers that were made by a small shop. The guy that made them was named Harold and was a PITA to deal with but his headers worked great on any A body Mopar and were 1/3 the cost of TTIs. A lot easier to install also.

 

I took one of thoose 318 blocks with 5mm thick cylinderwalls and bored it to 340, std, forged 340 crank,forged eagle rods,forged pistons and 318 efi (cast no 302 closed chambers) with 360 intake valves with mira cut...

Went like a arrow..

 

The Polysphere 318 WILL NOT fit the Barracuda. They redesigned this engine into the 273 specifically so they could get a V8 that would fit the Barracuda/Valiant/Dart. That was for the 1964 models. In 1966 they redesigned the 318 to match the 273 as far as heads etc. and had an engine they could use in the larger cars and in the compact A body cars.

So. The 64 up 273 will fit and so will the 66 up 318, 340 and 360.

 

looks sweet. that will be the next swap i'll do. have to save some money and time first.

does anyone have information on the hp and torque on a 318 from the period 85-89? I can only find up to -74.

 

If you can get a 440 in there, a poly 318 will fit, might take a bit of modification though. I wouldn't do it but, to say it WILL NOT fit is wrong.

 

what is a henway about 3 lbs.

 

That is not fully correct. 64-65 intake will not work on a 318, but 66 will. The 66 used bigger bolts at the now standard angle. Same as the 318/340/360

You will need a reducer for the snub hole on the back of the 318, if its an engine from an automatic.

If you go with a 360, B&M sales a weighted flexplate

The 318 "302" casting 318 heads are a good choice, just remember to tap and plug the smog holes.

A few people have used magnum exhaust manifold will good results.

 

I'm reviving this old thread as the time has come to put in the new engine! Damn, can hardly wait, summers coming and the barracuda need some fresh air! =)

Anyways. We would love some last good advice from you guys. Maybe we can get a clearer view of what needs to be done, since everyone we talk to says different things =)

I'll bring you up to speed:
We have a stock Barracuda 1966 with the 273 engine which needs changing. We have bought a 318 from the 1985-89 period. The engine have earlier been rebuilt to fit a dart -66 which include modifications to the oil pan and installation of old type water pump. It has been mounted with an automatic transmission, and the flex plate is still bolted, but we wanna fit the stock 833 behind it.

Since the swap is gonna take place on a weekend far from the nearest place to get replacement parts we need to be as prepared as we can be. If we need replacement parts, special tools (outside the range of a normal modern machine shop) we need to know about it beforehand. This is where your help is much appreciated!

As we understand it the things we need to do this swap is a pilot bushing (such as this one: http://www.brewersperformance.com/proddetail.asp?prod=PB329) to be able to fit the 833. Is there any other parts that are likely to be missing on the 318 since it hasn't been mounted with an 833 before? Does any modifications to the new engine need to be made?

We have heard different toughs on the need to center the bell housing with offset dowel pins. What are your toughs and advices?

The new engine is complete, newly serviced and with good gaskets. However, the stock 273 is not. The parts we are planning to replace are oil filter, fuel filter, distributor cap and ignition cables. We also think the 2 port carburetor seems a bit weak, so we have a new edelbrock intake manifold and carburetor to put on. Are there any other parts we surely need to change, or at least inspect?

We are much appreciative for all the help we can get. As you probably guessed a long time a go we are novices (but with a will to learn!) when it comes to engine swaps. We are however gonna have professional help with the actual swap. But no one that has experience in this exact swap. It's hard to have that luxury in Sweden... =)

 

Hard to find, but look for the "Spitfire" headers that were made by a small shop. The guy that made them was named Harold and was a PITA to deal with but his headers worked great on any A body Mopar and were 1/3 the cost of TTIs. A lot easier to install also.[/QUOTE]

We ended up making underchassis headers for it when i had the 340/4speed combo in it....went back to manifolds when i tamed it down...lol want to say 340 mountsdidnt bolt in and we had to make mounts to fit. Lot of learning curve doing a 63abody v8 conversion....as they only came with slants...

 

I have a '65 Barracuda with a 318 & a 727 Torqueflite stuffed in it.

Things are tight on the exhaust. There are a pair of manifolds that work on an A/T car. They are available aftermarket from Dorman. #674-270 & #674-271 Summit had them the last time I looked. They will NOT fit with power steering, and I can't say what it will take to get the down pipe past the Z bar for the clutch on a M/T car. The do flow a LOT better than the original 273 part with that long neck on the driver's side.

My 318 came out a 1975 truck. I swapped the timing cover & water pump so the radiator and brackets still fit. Easy enough to do.

B.

 

I actually really like muscle cars but I dont consider them a traditional Rod or Custom.Isn't that what this place is supposed to be about?

 

Thanks for the advice about headers. I forgot to mention in my last post that we actually also got some new headers that are specially made for the tight fit...

JeffSled: Sorry if you think I am not in the right forum. But can't you see we are trying to make the barracuda more custom?

No but seriously. We come here for the good advice we know you guys have, and everything we learn in this thread we are also gonna implement on our Plymouth PA hot rod from 1932 when the time comes. For that purpose we have bought a 360+833 but we aren't there right yet since we are working on the chassis right now.

So simply put, we are hot rod builders, and that is why we are in this forum. But we also need advice about our barracuda, which I hope we can get =)

 

One big issue you will run into is the 2 bbl to 4 bbl conversion. The fuel linkage is different between the 2. If you can find a 4bbl pedal and linkage in a junk yard, grab it.
Make sure you use the 273 style waterpump and timing cover to match the factory radiator.
Distributors are different between 66 and 86. Points vs electronic. The 273 dizzy will work in the 318.
Again, plug the smog holes.
273 exhaust will fit the 318

 

273 manifolds even fit a 340....i used a 360 cop car water pump

 

Is this a reference to the throttle linkage? If so, good catch, as the mounting bracket is very different between the 2-bbl and 4-bbl manifolds although, on a manual trans car, the 2-bbl piece could be made to work.

At least check the run-out of the bellhousing while the engine is out of the car. a TIR of 0.007" tolerable before installing offset dowels. Most of the Mopar service manuals have a section devoted to this operation.

Pilot Bearing: P4876056AA or 53009180AB (5.2L/5.9L Dodge Truck Magnum/Jeep Engines)
is a sometimes easier bearing to install, especially if the crank is not drilled. This bearing presses into the raised shoulder in the center of the crank flange.

 

Doen't that just mean that we need a different mounting bracket, or make the original work? New linkage seems a bit overkill... Anyways, if this is troublesome, we don't have to change the manifold right now as it can be done after the engine is mounted.

Yes, We got the service manual and have read the section. And it doesn't seem a indicator is to expencive so we will check the offset. Altough some of the professionals we talked to said that this doesn't matter... But maybe that's just bad knowledge from their part? Say that the bellhousing is 0.030" or something off. Is it a big deal to just let it be if you don't have the correct offset dowel pins? The hard part is to find offset dowel pins in Sweden, as time is limited to order from USA. Same thing goes for the bearing. Can't find the roller bearing in Sweden, but can find the original pilot bushing. So hopefully that works...

Ohh, and also. Heard that you might need to drill the hole or cut the axle from the transmission if you are unlucky after you used the roller bearing since the fit is to tight, but that doesn't need to be done with the original pilot bushing. So it seems we might have to do some modification which ever part we choose......?

 

Sorry, yes, throttle linkage. Thanks for clearing that up. I have not played with a 4 speed a-body, just my 65 commando auto.

 

1. The brackets are of a slightly different design. Yes, the one you have can be modified. This is easier with a manual trans assembly.

2. Any TIR (total indicator reading) over 0.007" (0.0035" from center in any one direction) needs correction if you expect the front bearing to live very long. The larger the offset the shorter the life span.

3. Check the fit before installing the bearing.
If the crankshaft is not drilled for the bronze bushing the you will need the bearing.
Yes, if the crank is not drilled then you might have to reduce the length of the input shaft.

As to freight costs, a small USPS Priority Flat Rate box is listed as $16.95 to Sweden from any US location.

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Interesting, the cop car pump points the other direction?

 

Making this harder then it has to be. This age cuda is an a body car. No diff then the dart. 318 will fit without issues and plenty of room. Same for the 340/360. One option is to run 360 heads on 318 for some cheap power. Guy I knew some years back blew his 6 in the same year car as yours and in it's place he installed a 440. No that was not a typo. We tied the frame and used in those days were called elephant ears. Remember you could get big-blocks in these from factory

 

You could not get a '66 or earlier A-body with any for of a big block, and no, its not the same as a '67 up A-body. Now that's not to say one cant be dropped in, but it's not a simple bolt in like a small block is.

 

Slayer is correct. In 67 the body was widened to be able to install a big block. A big block can be installed in a early A, but its a bunch of work.