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I spent some time looking in junk yards for electronic ignition advance plates and found a factory 11° plate in a motor home distributor. This was gold to me as I don't have a welder. I am setting up my 340 with 12° initial advance and get 22° crank degrees advance from the distributor for a...

I must agree with the Oil Geek, but can't stand his presentation style. As an engine oil formulation chemist with Chevron for 18 years, and may years doing the same for other companies, I do understand oils and oil formulations. For background, ASTM sets the requirements for automotive engine...

I have mentioned this previously, but I formulated Delo 400 for Chevron for 6 years and did additive development for 12 years. I run Delo 400 SAE 15W-40 HDDO in my older vehicles with perfect success. HDDO Heavy Duty Diesel engine Oils) have the same Zinc content as older oils and work fine...

I still have an original dual point distributor for my 340, but I ran the electronic ignition for decades when my original distributor shaft bushing wore out and the timing started wandering all over the place. The electronic ignition ran well to at least 6500 rpm which was about the limit I...

I have to admit that the 340 has mystique, but I realize that any engine can be built to the same HP/CI level with appropriate parts. So a 360 will be better than a 340 and the 360 block is actually stouter than the 340 when pushed to the limit. But what cannot be replaced is the memories of...

Have to wait 16 years for 3-40 month. 3-(20)40, but at least it will be a whole month of 3-40!

I have a 340 with the 284/484 cam and ran it at the strip for a number of years. It was great in a 340. Just a little lumpy and pulled over 325 at the rear wheels on a chassis dyno. I am restoring the Cuda now and going with a 340 with the 280/480. On first fire, it sounds excellent, but...

I have no idea if pistons are available, but with a bore that clean, I would strive to minimize the oversize to +0.010 or +0.020. This preserved metal for future engine overbores. I did +0.020 on two 340's and was very pleased with the results.

A-Z, If you are mechanically inclined, buy a Harbor Freight leak down tester and compression gauge, or similar. Check the engine for both compression and leak-down. Depending on altitude, a solid 340 should have ~170 PSI Cold Cranking compression and leak-down should be 10% for a well-sealed...

You are an evil person and will be punished, but not by me. I just might do the same thing!

Unless you like to take corners a little faster than a slug!

From what I have seen, within dyno runs the repeatability is quite good, probably 1% or 3-5 HP. It is repeatability between dynos that is the issue. Two different dynos in different locations and under different conditions will give very different results. Here I would say that 10% difference...

I dug up my old Direct Connection Performance Book from 1980 and used the Weight/HP vs MPH chart to calculate the HP my 340 made when new. The '68 FS FB 340 weighed 3050 or so with the back seat out. I weighed 185 or so back then in 1970. The car turned consistantly 13.50's at 105 with a best...

Most of what people said about oil is correct. SAE XXW is the viscosity measured at -20°C to -35°C depending on the grade. SAE 15@ is measured at -15°C and each lower W grade is 5°C lower in temperature. This is the lowest temperature at which the oil is guaranteed to allow starting and oil...

I generally trust Mopar parts over aftermarket when I have a choice. I scrounge junk yard distributors for different advance plates and have located 11° and 13° plates. This gives 22° or 26° advance allowing initial timing of 10-12° which works very well with my 284/484 cam.

I feel for you, 67Dart440GT. I went through similar issues with my 340. Turns out that there were 3 intake and 5 exhaust valves with small leaks due to a poor valve job. Compression testing wasn't precise enough to catch this. When I did a leakdown test, I found the issue. The one thing in...

The person that built my 727 said that he would not guarantee it if I used a Lokar linkage. It simply don't provide the correct signal to the downshift lever to keep line pressure at the proper level. As far as timing, I can see using more initial advance, but you must keep total advance to...

Having owned a '68 340 for 54 years, I found that Carter/Edelbrock carbs were easier to tune than Holley and similar cars. Metering rods are far easier change that power valves and channel restrictors, and older Carter's have 3 stage metering rods. I ran Holley's but was not impressed with...

Kerosene is really Jet Fuel that hasn't been tested or additized to meet alll jet fuel specifications. It is produced in low volumes as it is not used for many things anymore. But Kerosene, Jet, and diesel fuel are all similar Distillate Fuels with boiling ranges starting just above the top of...

I ran an AirGap on a 340 for a while and the engine was tuned on a chissis dyno producing 325 horsepower to the wheels with a 284/484 MP cam and port-matched heads. Otherwise a stock build. 10.2:1 CR. Although the AirGap cost a lot, it worked well and I am trying to save front end weight as I...

I love and appreciate the SBM in all configurations. But having owned a '68 340 that ran like a Bat Out Of Hell when stock, I must say that the mystique of the 340 lives on and the 360 is just a replacement engine for an original 340. My stock 340 ran 13.45 @ 104.5 best and 13.50's all the...

I like to port match the heads to the manifold, but probably more important is to make sure the bolt holes line up between the manifold and the head. They can be off if the block and/or heads are surfaced even a little. I stripped the threads on a head due to forcing the bolt to start in a...

As an owner of a '68 A-body, I would like to use the short water pump and not the longer '70+ pump for more clearance for radiators and fans. 3/4" is a lot for the A-Body engine compartment.

Wish they had jetted the TQ to give 13:1 AFR so we could see a direct comparison between the carbs. The TQ should have lower manifold absolute pressure and therefore slightly better air flow. But we won't know unless someone else does the comparison.

There is a lot of superstition and myth about oils as most people don't know what is in an oil or how they are certified. Also, times change, and advertizing of the past doesn't apply to current products. Such as Pennzoil sludges your engine or Mobil 1 Synthetic is superier to other oils...

As this is a mild street applicaiton and drivability will be a concern, building a 318, or even a 360, would be best. The 273 is nice and it is original, but it lacks torque and the small diameter bore has impacts on air flow into the cylinder. This limits HP to some extent. I built my 340 in...

There are a lot of factors to consider when choosing an intake beyond HP. Application is important as well. For a thought experiment, I used the Wallace Racing (Estimate Horsepower from Intake Airflow) program to estimate HP for each flow combination. The program lets you choose type of...

Things that have changed since the '80's are the availability of really good heads. The TrickFlow heads would be something I would consider if I hadn't already with with Edelbrock heads before the TF heads were available. These flow as well or better than W-2 heads with much lower cost and...

The Direct Connetion Performance Book (PN 4120792) is excellent and specific for MOPARS. I have read a number of books that have some misconseptions so be careful what information you use. A Stock 340 can easily make 300+ HP, so a 360 will be a sinch. Key points are good ring seal, excellent...

Dan The Man asked: "What is a synthetic fuel consist of?" There are a number of fuels being developed that arer derived from biomass feedstocks so they are considered "Renewable" fuels. This is a whole subject in itself, but I will stick to "Synthetic" fuel. Ethanol is a renewable fuel maded...