318 Magnum swap?

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lmalone

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My buddy totaled his 1998? Dodge pickup with a 318...I was wondering about swapping it into my 1968 valiant 2 dr post. He says I can have engine and transmission for 1000. Is this an easy swap? What do I need to accomplish this? And is it worth it? Thanks in advance...the car is currently a slant six....and in project mode.
 
First, decide if you want to do engine AND transmission. To swap the transmission you get into some custom crossmember fabrication and interior tunnel modifications. If you only want to do the engine swap, you can usually find either Ram, Dakota, or Durango engines fairly inexpensive. A lot of donor vehicles will cost less than $1000.

All of the major engine type modifications are well documented. There are some minor details that need to be covered. I think you will have to use aftermarket motor mounts for the /6 crossmember. Someone will correct me if I'm wrong! LOL You may want to upgrade to a stouter rear-end. Mine had a 7 1/4 that I upgraded to a 8 1/4 Trac-Lock. I also had to change out my driveshaft.

Do your research before jumping into this project. Decide how much and how far you want to go into the swap. There's a lot more information on the subject now than when I started about a year ago - Thanks again to FABO.
 
Usually a 318 or 360 magnum can be bought at a salvage yard for 350-400 bucks. Many times they give the mileage, and compression. 1000 bucks sounds high to me, especially with 166,000 on the tranny.
 
318willrun said:
Usually a 318 or 360 magnum can be bought at a salvage yard for 350-400 bucks. Many times they give the mileage, and compression. 1000 bucks sounds high to me, especially with 166,000 on the tranny.
Click to expand...

I agree, especially if you end up not using it.
 
he is high on price as you only want the motor. I have a 360 magnum 4 speed in my 68 valiant so fire away with any ?'s that you have. we will be happy to help you out.

I would do the carb over fuel injection but that is just me. You can buy a whole truck with a burned up tranny for that price. 166k if the tranny has not been rebuilt it is probably close to the end of its life. There is something to be said for knowing the history on the motor but 500.00 is what motor is worth IMO
 
Had almost 180k, on my 360 Magnum mule . The bores looked perfect, left it alone bottom end wise.(flat cam ,yes hyd rollers can go flat...) Installed a new, NON HIGH VOLUME oil pump. Lit ,like a champ(still have 60 lbs ,oil pressure). I spent almost a year of late nights,researching this very subject. My .02 cents....
 
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