Im getting into uncharted territory here but thinking about replacing the 318 in my 85 Dodge van. With 375K on it a rest is well deserved. Ive been offered several 318 and 360's from 1979-86 along with their auto trannies; all are reportedly excellent runners. Also been hearing that some years should be avoided? My needs are for as much power as I can obtain with only external changes. The van is often heavily loaded AND pulling a trailer. Ask Ironhunter about my trip last year! Dont want no computers or FI.
I've seen lots of 70's RVs on eBay with 318's in them, so I bet someone offers a rebuild kit specifically for RV motors, which I'd guess would have a different cam and stuff.
286 I also had a 318 in My Dodge pickup that was tired. I replaced it with a 1989 police 318. What a great motor! They have 360 swirlport heads a larger cam and windage tray. The only thing I changed was the intake. Put an early 340 4 brl cast iron one with a 600 holley. Pulls my racecar & trailer at 60 very easy.--Feder
The main problem you are saddled with is that the 318 and the 360 use different motor mounts and brackets and such, so if you wanted to put a 360 into your pick-up you'd need the correct mounts from a 360 pick-up. The heads, intakes, etc. are interchangable between the small blocks, so if you can get a 318 and a 360, swap the 360 four barrel heads and intake onto your 318 you should be pretty good. The 318 heads and intake are total garbage.
Lots of Dodge vans came with 360 engines, especially the 3/4 and one ton models. (I worked for a rental joint that had several 360 4v powered vans in the late 80s). The 360 makes an EXCELLENT motor for trucks or any application where extra grunt is needed in a small block package. I would deffinately jump at the cahnce to nab a 360 if I were you. Intakes, cams, timing chains, distributors, etc, etc all swap out between 273, 318, 340 and 360 engines, so there's really no ADDITIONAL expense involved with upgrading to the bigger small block. Your current trans will bolt up, and if need be, motor mounts from a van with a 360 can be purchased new. The rest of your accessories, hoses, belts, etc will be a direct bolt-on. For the additional torque and power you'll get, it's really a no-brainer to step up to the 360. I had a mild 360 HO in my old 74 Roadrunner and that car hauled ass for a huge car like that! It had an Erson cam, Edelbrock 4v intake, dual exhaust, aftermarket distributor, Thermoquad carb and stock internals. Distributors are something of an issue on older Mopar small blocks. They tend to allow the advance mechanisms to sieze up, leaving you with a sluggish motor running at whatever your initial timing is all the time! The best remedy is to buy the electronic ignition conversion kit right from Mopar...it'll include a fresh distributor, control module, correct resistor and wiring harness.
All good info, thanks. I had thought that some year 360's were dogs thanks to the EPA. I know of one in a 79 1 ton van that got T Boned and has only 78K on it. Time to start getting serious, the season is fast approaching.
Hey Hack, Do you know if they ever offered a BB NOpar in a late 60's-ish to 70- ish or so Van??? I just found one that I can HAVE if I want it, and it supposedly has a BB. If so, what size to you think it would be, or how do I tell?
Anything after like 77 or so with Lean Burn is ok, but you need to rip that shit off and replace it with an Electronic Ignition Conversion with Vacuum advance. You can piece it together with NAPA parts, or just buy the kit ($$$!) and be done with it. The only thing is, after 75 or so, the compression drops and power is down. Dad's got a 79 300 (cop motor) 360, and it is alright, but it needs the electronic conversion cause the Lean Burn sucks ass! If you change anything (timing, cam, heads) it can't really compensate for upgrades. Not a real specific answer, but if you have any questions, shoot me a message, cause myself, my dad and my brother have all done swaps with these engines, and may be able to help ya. Jay
[ QUOTE ] Hey Hack, Do you know if they ever offered a BB NOpar in a late 60's-ish to 70- ish or so Van??? I just found one that I can HAVE if I want it, and it supposedly has a BB. If so, what size to you think it would be, or how do I tell? [/ QUOTE ] They quit putting in BB's after 78, so anything before that is possibly a BBM. A quick way to tell is if the dizzy is in the front, than it's a BB, if it's in the back it's an SB. It'll be a 383/400 or 440 if it is a BB, 318 or 360 if it's an SB. Jay Jay
Dont forget the 360 is externally ballanced so be sure to use a torque converter for a 360( 2 washers welded to converter) and the ballancer is enternal.The swirle heads are a plus I have a 89 swirle eng in one of my pick ups all I changed was intake carb and dist. I left in the stock roller cam runs great. Good luck I hope this helps
[ QUOTE ] they never put a big block in a van. even big block trucks are very hard to find. david [/ QUOTE ] Actually, I was just looking around on the internet, and it seems that they put big blocks in Vans from 1970 - 1978 (although only like 3% most years, with I believe it was 1974 being the greatest at 15%), and this one I'm talking about has a factory Carter Thermoquad on it; and from what I found they NEVER offered a 4 bbl small block in a van. Not tryin to be a jerk or anything David, When it comes to NOpars I'm totally ignorant... this is just what I found online (which DOES NOT mean it's correct! ) I'll shoot some pics of it tomorrow. Who knows, maybe we can both learn something!
Hey HRTH...the vans we had at Fairlane Car Rental were factory equipped with four barrel carbs on 360 engines. This was in 1986-88, and the vans were extended 15 passenger 3/4 ton models. But...in short...they DID put 4v small blocks in vans! (My uncle also had a factory equipped 318 4v Dodge 2wd pickup around the same year, maybe a little earlier, but in the 80s for sure).
Yeah Hack, I meant in the early 70's -ish vans (years that they also put in BB's)... Sorry for not specifying!
I like the styling on those early 70s Dodge vans...always wanted one to do a Full Disco custom job on!
I know... I also was torn between the A-Team Van, or the Van in the Ramones movie "Rock and Roll High School"!
I'll have disagree on the 4V-360 van. I had a 79 3/4 ton shorty van with the E58 cop motor. 4 bbl. double roller timing chain ect. I got it from a DEA auction. One seat,one sun visor, no windows, biggest gas tank, Port Everglades Dodge dealer sticker. AKA the smuggler package.
Hate to spam here but I have a SFI flex plate that is externally balanced for a 360. You can use any 318 or 340 torque converter behind the 360.. 383's were last used in 1971, that is when the 400 came out. What you want to find is a 360 out of a 78-79 Lil Red Express. They weren't hit hard by the EPA yet. later plmczy
[ QUOTE ] BTW, the 79 van with a 360 Im looking at has a stock 4bbl. [/ QUOTE ] Yeah.. That's what I was saying... From what I read, they never put a 4bbl small block in while a big block was available (thru 78) Anyway... Here it is:
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