318 Builds

The problem with the 318 (and mopars in general) is this. Everything is old, and the tolerances are all over the place, so you have to overhaul and deck and all that good stuff to get any real power.

The aforementioned smallish (302/5.0) Ford motors don't have the pistons .100 in the hole from the factory, and, frankly, they came with better parts (namely heads) from the factory, so its not an apple to apple comparison. Hell, Explorers with 302s had factory heads that flow right there with the RHS stufff for the Mopars, and they have a better combustion chamber too.

In short, by the time you spend the money on an overhaul and all that jazz, the only difference between building a 318 and a 360 ends up being the price of the core motor, and a core 360 is what, $50.00 more than a 318? Pistons, rings, bearings, machine work, etc. are all pretty much the same price for a 318/360. So when the project is finished and you're comparing hp/tq - $$ spent, I think already having the 318 laying around is going to have proven to be a false savings.

Further, a 360 is going to be more fun as a street engine, because its going to make power lower in the RPMs, so there's more power in a useable range and less gear required.

All that said, horsepower is predominantly in the cylinder heads, then the intake/camshaft, then the shortblock. The RHS heads have gone a long way to being a bolt-on for getting a ton of power out of a decent stock shortblock 318, with a lot less hassle and $$$ than doing a full rebuild on something, so I think it is easier than it has been in the past.

Further, I can totally see the appeal of building a "giant-killer" 318. The problem is that they don't often end up really slaying any giants....


Steve