360 question going into 71

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Muswagon

Muswagon

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Got a crazy good deal on a 71 H code Duster with no engine/trans. Buying a 360 this weekend out of a mid 70's van.

What do I need for motor mounts? It is an original 340 car, I will take a pic of what is there now but I believe the K member is bare. This is what Summit says I need which I believe is only half the equation.

I am noob to Mopar, not a great mechanic but I do everything myself. And yes I did search but that left me even more confused lol. Be gentle.

I need to get a car 360 oil pan which is in my summit cart already

The car was a steal at $4400 USD. so I am staying with the cheap route to get it on the road this summer still and decide what to do over winter long term.

Your help would be much appreciated

duster.jpg
 
you need 340 engine brackets.....and car oil pan with pick up...
 
Where can I get these brackets? I cannot find them anywhere. All I see are the 73 and up mounts, or brackets to convert from slant 6 to V8... In that speedway kit, are the brackets correct and the pads are what converts from tower power to 340/360? Again, I apologize, Mopar is so much different from anything else I have touched
 
You'll need 340/360 engine brackets; 318 brackets will work, but need to either be modified or use a spacer on one mount bolt (driver's side). It's not as difficult as some seem to make it out to be. Any year A body '67-'72.
The van motor will need a 360 passenger car pan (318/340 will NOT work) and pump pickup.
The van exhaust manifolds will not fit your Duster, you will need to source A body exhaust manifolds (340/360 manifolds have larger ports than 318s, but will physically fit in a pinch...) or headers. Magnum manifolds can be made to work, but only with manual steering.
If you can, grab the transmission out of the van, too. It will fit your Duster and will have the correct externally balanced (360) convertor. Try to salvage the trans/radiator cooler lines from the van, too. Brackets and small parts can be tough to locate sometimes. Also make sure you've got the entire kickdown linkage from the carb to trans.
Don't know if you've got a radiator in the Duster. The van rad *probably* won't fit, so try to source a '70 & up smallblock A body radiator (for correct positioning of upper and lower radiator hoses-'69 and earlier are different).
 
Oh, and when you put the pass. car oil pan and pickup on, you'll have to trim and re-mark your dipstick- the van stick will be way too long for the new pan. Or just replace the dipstick & tube with a correct passenger car one.
Depending how complete your car is under the hood, scavenge whatever you can from the van to get it on the road "on the cheap" for now- i.e. power steering pump if needed, alternator, throttle cable, etc. I doubt if the van shift linkage could be made to work on the Duster, but it may be worth grabbing it too, just in case (is the car column or floor shift?). Otherwise, start hunting for A body linkage parts.
The van 360 will have electronic ignition, your Duster most likely has points, unless it was upgraded at some point. This means you will need to either find a points type distributor, or get the electronic ignition part of the van wiring harness and adapt it into your Duster. Many posts on here to walk you through it. This will include the newer harness section, the control box, ballast resistor, etc. Being a '71, the Duster should already have the electronic voltage regulator, which means you're good to go with the van alternator.
 
@rainydayauto had a set of brackets for sale a while ago, not sure if she still does or not
 
Professor Fate said:
Also make sure you've got the entire kickdown linkage from the carb to trans.
Click to expand...

VERY IMPORTANT! You'll burn up the Mopar tranny if you don't have the kickdown linkage adjusted correctly.
The only way around it is to convert your automatic trans to a manual shift auto where you'll have to manually shift it to each gear.
 
You can get a new repop 360 oil pan on eBay really cheap. They are made in Taiwan but they fit good, I've been using one for a few years now with no problems and it was like 40 bucks
 
I'll make it easy.
1974 360 oil pan from a Challenger.
Copy my photo for your driver side motor mount and weld it. Copy my kickdown linkage and your Trans can use the 3 piece bell crank parts. Easy stuff.

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20210626_175600.jpg
 
Curious, that's an LA 360? Why is the pan and pick up different than a 340?
 
the rear seal of the pan on a 340 and 360 are different...so they take a different pan....
 
The RH exhaust manifold will fit your Duster just fine. LH, probably not. I'd either get the factory 340 manifolds, or go with headers. P/S? A/C? There's some significant differences there if you convert from with, to without. Get a car oil dip stick and tube rather than try to rig the van one to work. If you get the transmission too, make sure it's a slip yoke version and not a companion flange type. Take the slip yoke with it, but, not the driveshaft unless it's a small diameter one for some reason. The stock van driveshaft uses a very big diameter tube that can rub on stuff under certain conditions. Depending on the year of the van engine, there may be smog stuff that may require other mods if you take those parts off. The kickdown linkage may not fit your body. If it's a multi-link setup, it can probably be used. If it's the one piece rod, I can almost guarantee it will hit your firewall.
 
This is a simple swap. And this topic is getting beat to death. Let's throw the A/C system into the mix too. :(
 
Well, considering that A/C and non-A/C engines use completely different brackets and pulleys, it can be an important point......and expense.
 
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