4-Door with 340 from the factory?

-
People did/do all kinds of day one add on's and changes.

They still do with modern musclecars. But back then you could do whole motor changes much easier because everything wasn't so integrated.

I have dealer and original owner documentation of an 454 LS6 being put into a brand new 70 1/2 Camaro SS 396 325hp car. Owner saw it could be done in a magazine. He called the Regional GM Rep (even have owners notes).

We looked at it 38 years later and it looked stock. Even the date codes; which make sense because it was done in 1970.
 
This is onlyan interesting story, but in 1975 My brother rented a 75 Cordoba for a week in Phoenix, and when he went to check the oil at the station the air cleaner said 340.
and, in the late 80's I also owned a 74 charger 440 magnum with a forged crank. 71 block, but it was a numbers matching car. So Chrysler did try to use up many of the leftover parts they had during the time period.
But, I haven't heard of someone able to order a 340 in a sedan. they could though order everything else that a 340 car came with.
Air cleaner decals mean nothing.
My mom's best friend had a 69 Olds cutlass, bought new, with a 455 in it. I wanted that car, cause I knew there were no 455s in cutlass/442 till 70.
A few years ago, it needed some engine work (head gaskets if I remember right) and strangely enough, 455 parts didn't work.
It was a 350.
I also remember a guy racing a 70 Montecarlo at the original Irwindale raceway, with a LS6 in it. He claimed it was a factory Copo car.
 
All I can think is Dennis Weaver would have had a lot less trouble in “Duel” if he had a 340 in his four door valiant !:lol:
 
Here is one for you guys. In 73 I was leaving school in my orange swinger. I saw a 71 demon Sizzler orange coming the other way.I had no clue what a Sizzler was then. It made a left in front of me and what I noticed was the orange accessed grille and orange bucket interior. I thought it was ugly with that interior back then. But I can recall it having a orange front bumper. I always talked about this car. There was a lady driving the car and it was going into a area of town that had no outlet.

At the end of last summer I was driving through Northampton sitting in traffic at a light and to my surprise it was coming the other way. I couldn't believe it. It did have a orange bumper and there were no bumper bolts that I could see. It looked like the same lady she had to be in here 90's . I turned around and went looking for her at shopping centers and drove all over. She was gone. It was 318 I could here it was a V8 and stick heard her shift as she went by. Rear wing on the car. This lady must have this car for 51 years. This summer I am knocking on doors in the area where I first saw the car. Well My wife will . They always answer for women. I am determined to find it. I'll get pictures. Hopefully in my driveway.
 
Olds 350 400 and 455 is the same block.

...but head gaskets would be different.
 
I put a Ferrari emblem on the engine cover of my Renegade 1.4 t.

It IS a Ferrari designed engine.

Renegades have zero badging on turbo engine vehicles.

I put "MultiAir Turbo" badges from a Dart GT on mine.

All factory stuff, all legit per the model and options, just not as came from the factory.
 
Last edited:
A few years ago Hemmings did a article on the Last 1980 Aspen R/T
The man worked the assembly line and he had it built the way he wanted it.
It's possible that the same scenario "Could'' have happened.
 
Air cleaner decals mean nothing.
My mom's best friend had a 69 Olds cutlass, bought new, with a 455 in it. I wanted that car, cause I knew there were no 455s in cutlass/442 till 70.
A few years ago, it needed some engine work (head gaskets if I remember right) and strangely enough, 455 parts didn't work.
It was a 350.
I also remember a guy racing a 70 Montecarlo at the original Irwindale raceway, with a LS6 in it. He claimed it was a factory Copo car.


it wasn't just a lid and decal, the carb was thermo, and manifolds were dual exhaust..Keep in mind this was a brand new car.so why would the car have that? nobody cared about high performance setups by then, not the dealer, and certainly not in a Cordoba.
 
it wasn't just a lid and decal, the carb was thermo, and manifolds were dual exhaust..Keep in mind this was a brand new car.so why would the car have that? nobody cared about high performance setups by then, not the dealer, and certainly not in a Cordoba.
In the case of the Olds, I'm sure it was merely an assembly line screw-up. Either they didn't have the right lid, or didn't have the right decal. I'm pretty sure the Olds was single exhaust.
 
nope on the 1970 4dr 340 - heck you couldn't even but a 2 dr Dart GT or 2 dr Dart Custom in 1970 with a 340.
 
Pretty sure 350 4 barrel gm B/O/P engines could have dual exhaust.
Especially in mid sized cars.

Mom's buick lesabre was 350-4 but single exhaust.
Neighbors olds cutlass was 350-4 but duals.

...and pretty sure a lid with a 455-4 sticker could have been picked up at a junk yard for less than $5 back then.
 
My sisters 1973 Olds Omega 4 door, 350 Olds engine 4 bbl single exhaust with a cat.
Did burn tires till you let off. That 350 Olds engine was a torque monster.
 
Forgot to mention, she (the Olds owner) also had an immaculate 62 Belvedere crew cab (four door sedan)with a 318 Poly, and a slant six 67 Dart 2dr post car. I wanted both of those too.
 
Last edited:
What's a belvedere crew cab? Maybe a 4 door sedan? If so never called a sedan a crew cab till now.
 
Lots of different names for the same thing. I always called them a More Door.
Even had a license plate with that for one of my cars.
 
I spent 35 yrs in the car biz and can tell you that if an exec , fleet or a big dealer wants something special he can get it . Maybe not so much today but back prior to the 90s regulations were not as strictly adhered to . And the production lines were more flexible back then . I spent Thanksgiving with a retired Chrysler plant manager ( or in management I should say) that gave me a lot of interesting info . Like when an employee ordered car went down the line it got special attention .
I have heard credible stories of W2 heads on police pursuit pkgs . W2s on a Little Red Express owned by Shepard ( IIRC ) and I parted out a 69 Plymouth wagon equipped exactly like a Road Runner right down to the aircleaner , manifolds , carb , windage tray ,trany and 3.23 posi ... still have the fender tag .
 
I had a 68 Dart 270 four door 318 4-speed with factory A/C. I sold it to Bill Reilly who makes the AlterKtion k-frames. It was know 340 but it was different. I also had a 69 Dart 4-door with 318 and 727 auto that had the ralley suspension and 8-3/4 with tow package. Bought it off the original owner who ordered it. He wanted a Dart Swinger 340 but the wife insisted on a 4-door so he ordered everything he could to replicate a 340 Dart but could not order the engine...
 
Here is one for you guys. In 73 I was leaving school in my orange swinger. I saw a 71 demon Sizzler orange coming the other way.I had no clue what a Sizzler was then. It made a left in front of me and what I noticed was the orange accessed grille and orange bucket interior. I thought it was ugly with that interior back then. But I can recall it having a orange front bumper. I always talked about this car. There was a lady driving the car and it was going into a area of town that had no outlet.

At the end of last summer I was driving through Northampton sitting in traffic at a light and to my surprise it was coming the other way. I couldn't believe it. It did have a orange bumper and there were no bumper bolts that I could see. It looked like the same lady she had to be in here 90's . I turned around and went looking for her at shopping centers and drove all over. She was gone. It was 318 I could here it was a V8 and stick heard her shift as she went by. Rear wing on the car. This lady must have this car for 51 years. This summer I am knocking on doors in the area where I first saw the car. Well My wife will . They always answer for women. I am determined to find it. I'll get pictures. Hopefully in my driveway.

back in 73 when that sizzler turned in front of you did you happen to notice how much gas was in the tank?
 
The stories on this stuff are always the same. "My brother's friend's Uncle's hooker friend saw one in the junkyard" or "The friend of a friend's brother in law's gay lover bought one new"

It's all bullshit.
 
the part of these bullshit stories that alway's astounds me is not the stories, but do they actually think people are buying these fairy tales
 
the part of these bullshit stories that alway's astounds me is not the stories, but do they actually think people are buying these fairy tales
Exactly. You can tell when something has a ring of truth. Most of the time I just nod and say "uh huh". LOL
 
I worked at a full service gas station as a kid. I still remember a 66 Belvedere 4 door (family car, bench seats) from a nearby town that stopped in for gas. I was surprised it had a 361 - don’t remember if it had a 4 bbl. Then I noticed it had a 4spd. Only factory 4 door, 4spd grocery getter I ever saw.
 
66 B body 361 was a 2 barrel.

When I worked at the gas station, I drove a 78-ish Aspen wagon that was a 360, four speed with bucket seats, and it was purple (not plum crazy, but more of a maroon).

All factory.

Owned by average 50 year old couple.
 
-
Back
Top