318

-
zakimodo

zakimodo

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2005
Messages
395
Reaction score
79
Location
Berthoud Colorado
ok so just how much of a dog is a 318? my buddy had one in a 74 satelite , that damn thing could hold its own till he tried to rebuild it without any help.
Im putting one in a 74 duster, all that is changed is the bore (20 over) and an edelbrock performer with a 600 holley. i know gears and tranny selection change performance but over all how well should my engine do in the duster?
 
Well, what else did you do to it? Whats the;
Compresion ratio
cam spec
any head work
headers
exhaust size
current rear ratio
tire size/make
any trany mods
suspention mods
body mods (Fiberglass)
any other weight reductions

the list goes on and via a comparo of the info you provided, it lacks a bit to even make a guess.
 
every thing is stock on the car except the front end (alterekation) a fiber glass hood ,4 speed overdrive tranny , and 8 3/4 rear end with 3.23 gears., The engine is all stock cept what i have listed above with the addition of heedman headers. the heads have only had a valve grind. thats it
 
And the comp ratio is......
The cam is a
duration @ .050...........lift...........
tire size?
exhaust size?
(First 2 R important.)
 
I'm happy with my 318 build, but like Rumblefish says, what's your combo? I wouldn't expect much with stock port heads, stock cam & compression. Bump up all three just a little and the engine will run much better.
 
my engine is all stock i dont know all the specifics of stock parts im just courious if you think it will be a complete pile or not. This engine will get the upgrades it deserves when i get the money.
 
OK, I don't mean to bust balls here. But you did rebuild it right. Thats where the .020 overbore came in. I think I assumed to much here. As in you know whats what inside. Sorry about that.
I think it will run in the 15's in the 1/4 @ 90 - 93 mph.

Do you think it's a turd? Do you care what the numbers say when your driving down the road? I don't. Actually, I don't give a rats donkey about it. I'm just happy driving my turd down the road.

I gotta tell, late 70's to late 80's were tuff on power output on engines. My 400 from '78 is a dog. A dead dog at that. But i still get thumbs up and questions and wow! A big block,,,really! (OK kid, move along, move along...beat it! ...LOL)
The thing is, theres room to grow with it. What the future brings is the mystery and fun of it all.

Let us know how it runs!
 
i dont believe it will be to bad. now that i am done rebuilding it there is alot i wish i have done. I think the biggest issue is the heads. there 1978 heads (cant remember the #on them) but they arent anything special. if i knew i could find someone to do a good port and polish on them for a decent price i would definatley have it done.
 
It sounds like you put a stock 318 cam back in or reused the original ? It wont be all that powerful - reliable ? yes. Wil it make torque ? some, HP ? some. Biggest thing you could/should have done was change the cam. 318 cams are about as lumpy as a broom stick.
 
At this point I would install one of Summit brand cam kits, keep your existing intake combo, recurve the distributor and dual out the exhaust. The expense of porting your heads (even if you do it yourself), won't justify the cost for those casting heads. With the above it should still be fun to drive and low-buck.
 
Actually, I was thinking SUM-6901, 218/228, .441"/.441", 2000-4,500 range. Duration will have to be on the short side to compensate for stock type low compression.
 
The Crane I have is basicly the same cam with more lift.
 
yaaa i have thought about changing the cam out but like i say money is slowing me down, what do you think of the mopar "purple cam"?
 
We have a 75 Dart Sport with a stone stock long block. It has an Edelbrock Performer intake, 600 Holley and Hooker headers.
The 904 has been strip built, Mopar Performance 177k converter and a low first gear.
It has a Mopar Performance sure grip with 4:10 gears and 26x10 slicks.
Timing is set at a conservative 20 degrees
It runs 15.70's at about 81 mph at 4600 foot of elevation
We've yet to really 'tune' it so I think we can pick up an additional 3 tenths with this setup
This winter we'll put a MP hydraulic (P4452761) cam and bump the squeeze to 9:1.
Like to set that setup run 14.60's or so.
The 318 is a stout, strong little motor.
 
That is exactly what i have, cept the heads which i can get port mached for free, i am glad to see that it runs under a 16.5. my chevy lovin buddies seem to think it wont run under that.
 
The purple cams like compression, which you don't have. I would stay around 218 degrees at .050. BTW, my 318 in a Dart Sport has ported stock valve heads, 8.75-1 compression, 268/.485" Crower Cam, 3.91 gears, 904 trans w/2800 converter and I'd put it against any similiar built Chevy SB.
 
The Dart ran last Sunday, a break-out 15.52 @ 86.34 mph on a 15.59 dial-in.
We ran 12 psi in the slicks, but otherwise did absolutly nothing to the set-up from our last post. My daughters 60 foot time was a 2.205 with .052 r/t.
We are really pleased with the way the car is running and still thing there are couple of tenths in it just the way it is.
Long life the mighty 318!
 
zakimodo said:
yaaa i have thought about changing the cam out but like i say money is slowing me down, what do you think of the mopar "purple cam"?
Click to expand...
I agree with middleagecrisis on the cam and needing compression. Mopar cams work best with ported heads. I would look into a split duration cam with as much lift as you can get.

Good work mopardad1
 
I got to run the Dart today and squeezed a little more from the mighty 318.

Again an untouched set-up, still 12 psi in the Mickey Thompson's but shifted at 5000 rpm, (that's about all a stock 2 barrel cam will go).
I ran a 15.471 @ 87.46 (altitude corrected 4900 ft to 14.53) reaction time was cruddy, .127 (old man) but 60ft time was 2.146.

We'll she what it does next Spring after we make our cam and compression change.

Never let anyone tell you the 318 can't run!!
 
mopardad1 said:
I got to run the Dart today and squeezed a little more from the mighty 318.

Again an untouched set-up, still 12 psi in the Mickey Thompson's but shifted at 5000 rpm, (that's about all a stock 2 barrel cam will go).
I ran a 15.471 @ 87.46 (altitude corrected 4900 ft to 14.53) reaction time was cruddy, .127 (old man) but 60ft time was 2.146.

We'll she what it does next Spring after we make our cam and compression change.

Never let anyone tell you the 318 can't run!!
Click to expand...


I'll second that, you wanna go 'corrected times' my 318 turns my 3,600lb car a 13.0 @ 101 (14.0 @ 95 @ 5,200ft). upgrade that cam! :headbang: i have stock 360 heads, performer rpm, upgraded cam and some headers on a .030 bottom end :headbang:
 
Well, I'm doing a "quickie" on my truck's 360..Same idea. Agood running engine core..I'm adding Comp XE262 cam/lifters, new timing set, fuel pump eccentric, matching valve springs, new valve seals, and Edelbrock 750 and a Performer intake, MSD, a performance curved distributor, and a set of Hedmans..Nothing special. About $500 in parts and gaskets, plus fuel pump, water pump and all the misc other details. I would do the same deal with your 318. Even run the same cam, with maybe a Thermoquad instead of that 600 Holley. You have to watch the cam sie, it's easy to overcam, and make sure the valve springs are matched and fresh. Tuned right and a good driver, and most 340 guys wont know the difference. All a 318 is is a detuned 340.
 
Yep...build the teen....thos some nitrous on there and have fun. I ran an 11.85 @ 116 with a 100 shot on my Duster with a 318.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top