273 Compression Test Results

Unlike some others who have posted on this subject, this engine has not been sitting around for years. I drove it from Sacramento to Los Angeles 2 years ago and I try to drive it once a month since then.

Judging by the various numbers I'm hearing, and also by the service manual quotes, I'm thinking that 150 is a good healthy number for a newer engine, and 120 is down near the low end of the range for an older engine. My one really low cylinder is clearly due to a bad exhaust valve and the rest of them are right around 120.

So what to do? My goal for the car is to have a correct and original 1965 dart. My dad bought the same car with the same color and options the week I was born so it's a bit of a nostalgic thing for me. It's never going to be a sports car no matter how much money I spend on it, and when I want to go fast, I have a Yamaha FJR1300 that will do 0-60 in first gear in 2.8 seconds (so I'm told).

I read some engine rebuild threads from ToolManMike and others and it sounds like a quality engine rebuild can cost $3000. I think the thing to do is rebuild the heads, bolt them on and see if the compression comes up. If I decide later to find a 1965 block and rebuild it, I can reuse these heads.

By the way BillGrissom, it is a harbor freight compression gauge. I used that spare fitting they give you. This weekend, I'll try putting known pressure into the guage to make sure it's calibrated correctly.