Differences between 92 magnum and 93 on by

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Brooks James

Brooks James

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I have apparently one of the earliest 360 magnums. I have seen quite a few parts listings for 93-2000 magnums but not so many for 92 only. The serial numbers

On mine deciphers to 92 and I have the block where it has the oiling passages to use la heads
What’s up?
 
Are you sure it's a Magnum motor? Does it have 6 bolt or 10 bolt valve covers? I thought 92 was the last of the LA 360s which had a roller cam.
 
It’s definitely a magnum I already researched the casting no /yes 10 bolt covers /rollercam /magnum style flex plate /cam and valve springs magnum
 
Brooks James said:
It’s definitely a magnum I already researched the casting no /yes 10 bolt covers /rollercam /magnum style flex plate /cam and valve springs magnum
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Many people don't know the 1st couple years of the magnum had the oil passage to feed the head . They were at a cross road...history shows the path they took with pedestal rockers and eventually eliminated the passage.
Might be up to '94 or '95 they had the passage.
 
'92 on down 5.9's were LA. '93 on up were Magnums. Maybe it was cast in '92 for the '93 model year?
 
318willrun said:
'92 on down 5.9's were LA. '93 on up were Magnums. Maybe it was cast in '92 for the '93 model year?
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That definitely could be I used to run with a guy who raced for Chrysler and he said that we’re plenty of times that if it fit it was installed
 
Brooks James said:
That definitely could be I used to run with a guy who raced for Chrysler and he said that we’re plenty of times that if it fit it was installed
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What vehicle did you pull it out of?
 
318willrun said:
'92 on down 5.9's were LA. '93 on up were Magnums. Maybe it was cast in '92 for the '93 model year?
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That is probably the answer. By Oct. they are selling next years models.
What is the casting date?
 
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moparmarks said:
That is probably the answer. By Oct. they are selling next years models.
What is the casting date?
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You keep thinkin that. Man, I thought about the same......but get this. Kitty's Ford Escape is an 04 Model. Says so right on the emissions sticker under the hood, the sticker on the door jamb and of course it has an 04 owner's manual. This thing has an 05/2003 build date. Earliest "next year" model car I ever saw. Crazy.
 
NOPE!

92 was the first year of the magnum.

92 Magnum exhaust manifolds have slightly larger outlets. IIRC it's 2 1/8 vs the 93 and up 1 7/8".

That's the only difference I can tell you about, though, although it's a fairly well documented one, even here on FABO.
 
YY1 said:
NOPE!

92 was the first year of the magnum.

92 Magnum exhaust manifolds have slightly larger outlets. IIRC it's 2 1/8 vs the 93 and up 1 7/8".

That's the only difference I can tell you about, though, although it's a fairly well documented one, even here on FABO.
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I’ve got the 2 1/8 manifold on the pass side and a 68-71 340 on the drivers side. A while back when I was looking for the best flowing manifolds and I ran across a dyno test of all small block manifolds and the different ones were damn close in flow. I don’t remember
Where I saw it but a post somewhere
A guy said the good 340 manifolds he only lost 8-10 hp over a set of tti’s.
 
Brooks James said:
I have apparently one of the earliest 360 magnums. I have seen quite a few parts listings for 93-2000 magnums but not so many for 92 only. The serial numbers

On mine deciphers to 92 and I have the block where it has the oiling passages to use la heads
What’s up?
Click to expand...
Summary of 360 Magnum block info in this link:
Sorting Out: Chrysler’s 238, 318, 360 Engines, Doug Anderson, Automotive Rebuilder, April 2000
1992
This is a transition year with a rather unusual 360 block. It looked like a Magnum on the outside with the three flat, drilled pads along with the old style ears, but it was still the early engine on the inside with the oil holes in the cam and block. It’s a 53020006 casting.

1993-’97
The 360 Magnum came out in ’93, one year after both the 238 and 318 Magnum engines were introduced. It used the 53020006 block that came with the three flat, drilled pads and the oil style ears. It still had the oil holes in both deck surfaces, but they were not used because the rockers were oiled through the pushrods.

The best guess is that they were drilled so that the block could be used as a "fits-all" replacement; the cam without the holes blocked the flow of oil topside on the Magnums. This engine had the grooved rear cap with the dowel pin as well as the recess for the o-ring. The Magnum cams all came with the short snout, but without the oil holes in the two intermediate cam journals.

The 360 Magnum pistons have a unique rectangular dish that gives a 9.1:1 compression ratio with the new chambers. The rings are a nominal 1/16", 1/16" and 3/16" wide. The crank itself was carried over from the past, but the amount of external weight used for balance is different, so both the stick flywheel and the torque convertor are different than the earlier versions.

The non-Magnum engines required 19.79 in.oz. and the Magnums need 14.65 in.oz. in order to be properly balanced. The rear seal was the same two-piece fluorocarbon design used in other Magnum engines. The 360 cams have different timing, so it’s best to keep the 318 and 360 Magnum cams separate.

That’s all there is to the 360 short blocks. They follow a pretty predictable pattern except for the oddball block in ’92.
 
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