74 Gold Duster and tons of questions

-
S

strunk

Member
Joined
Jan 19, 2014
Messages
6
Reaction score
0
Location
Germany
Hi, i'm Chris and i just got a 74 Gold Duster 6 Cylinder. I'm from Germany so please excuse my bad english.
Just got the car and i can't wait to start working on it. The problem is, that i don't like the car as it stands there.
I already know that they replaced the 340 with the 360 in this year. Thats the first thing i want to change. This car needs a early 340. As far is i know the years 89 to 71 had the most hp. And i want to have some bodyparts changed. The picture shows what i want.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/Plymouth_Duster_(Orange_Julep).jpg

My questions:
1. The 340 should fit in the car. I guess i need a different subframe. Do i need a different trans? It is automatic right now. Do i need a differend rearend? I have discbrakes in the front. That should be fine?

2. In case i cant find a early 340. This engine was a stroked 318 right? So are there kits to make a 340 out of a 318? Or can i get more hp out of a 360? And is the sound of the 360 the same? HP and sound are the most important things for me. But i try to register the car in Germany. So it needs original engines. I can only replace smal things. The inside of the engines doesnt matter.

3. I really like the shark tooth grill of the early dusters. So do the fit in the 74? I know that the front end of the hood is a little bit different. Does it fit, but looks like crap? Has anyone done this before? Or does a ealier Hood fit the 74? Which leads me to my next question.

4. I like the hoodscoop on the picture. I know that it's not a duster scoop. Right? But on the picture the where able to fit it on the duster, so that should be fine. I saw it on the 74 hood too.

5. I dont like this big rubberthings on the pumper. Can i fit a earlier bumper on the 74?

6. Also i like to get this black stripe on the side, which says 340 on the end. Does it fit my car? Or do i have to get the 360 stripes and replace the number?


Tons of Questions... Thank you for your patience and answering my questions.
One last question... Does anyone sell a early 340. I dont need a rebuild one ;)

Thank you very much!!
 
1) 340's and 360's are physically identical on the outside and even take the same motor mounts, so you're good there. The transmission will work with either. you just may need a different flexplate or knock the weight off the torque converter. It's hard to tell what your rearend is without a picture. Does it have a cover on the back? If so, how many bolts does it have?

2) I would stick with the 360. They look identical on the outside...I'm not sure why anyone would slide under the car and look at the casting numbers on the side of the block

3) You would have to change the hood, front fenders, filler panel, and bumper

4) That scoop came on the Dodge Dart Sport or the Dodge Demon. You can get aftermarket reporductions

5) You can remove those if you want and only a slot will remain. A 73 front bumper won't have that if you keep the same grill structure. For the rear, you could use a 70-73 rear bumper and the right bracket

6) Yes, Order stripes for a 71 or 72
 
Tanks for the answer. I think you missunderstood 1. and 2. Right now i have only a six cylinder. So i have to get a new engine anyways. It seems that the early 340 is the best choice. I guess With my 6cyl i need a different trans and rearend. Or are they strong enough? My question was, which engine i should get instead of the 6cyl and which other parts i need for this.
So for the sharktoothgrill i need to change the hood, front fenders, filler panel, and bumper. So that way i get a other bumper too. whats different on the front fenders? just the frontpart? but they should bolt right on, right? i guess all those parts bolt right on.
 
Ok, yes, I did misunderstand

You'll need at least some adaptation mounts. You can get these from this place called schumacher creative services.

The trans from the Slant six won't fit. You need one from a small block 318/340/360...can use either a 904 or 727. Either one is fine if built properly and you don't have over 500 hp.

360 engines are usually less expensive to buy, but they have cast cranks and usually need to be rebuilt for performance use. 340's are usually worn out unless you can score a freshened one so you'll be rebuilding that too. I'm not sure if you can find much of this stuff in Germany anyway. You'd also need brackets and pulleys for the accessories and all the exhaust parts. If you are importing from the US there are probably more options.

Like I said, you'll have to look at which rearend you have. If you have a 7 1/4 which will have a very small center section and 2 1/2" diameter axle tubes, it will need to be upgraded. At that point, you may want to go 8 3/4.

The fenders will bolt on. The issue is the filler panel below the grille and above the bumper would be the difference. Now that I think of it, I'm not 100% that the fenders would actually have to be changed. Everything else for sure though.
 
thank you very much for your answer. just to doublecheck it:
in each case i have to rebuild the engines. if i find a 318 i can upgrade it to a 340 with a kit? or im better with buying a 340 then stroking a 318?
i need a lot of stuff like hedders, mounts and so on. i need one of those two transmissions you said. i'll look which rearend i have. then you can tell me if its allright?
for the shark tooth grill i need for shure a older hood, bumper and filler panel. i have to see if the 74 fenders fit.
 
also, the 318 and 340 have the same 3.31" stroke crank, but the 340 has a much bigger bore at 4.04" vs. 3.91". in other words, the 318 and the 340 use essentially the same crankshaft. the 360 has a 3.58" stroke and 4.00" bore, this is why with the 4" stroker crankshaft, the 340 yields more cubic inches than the 360(if both are bored .030" over, 408" and 416")
 
Welcome from Texas, have fun and learn to use the search feature here....it has helped me a lot.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top