Going from 318 to 360 info/help

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rigrunner

rigrunner

rigrunner
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A friend of mine has an older Dodge van w/o the emissions. They think it is either a 340 or a 360 engine. How can I tell which engine it is? Any info on that would be great.

Also, the transmission went bad on it and its been parked for 2 years. They are asking $100 for the motor. Is it worth it? I have a 73 Plymouth Valiant w/ a mildly built 318 and a 904 transmission in it. Will this motor bolt right up to my tranny or what kind of modifications might it need? What will i need to swap from the van to my car? I am also wondering if I will need to swap the radiator and/or oil pan. Will there even be a considerable difference in a stock 340/360 compared to the mildly built 318? I plan on refreshing the engine before puttin it in the car. Help me please! I need all the info I can get before gettin myself into another project! Thanks!
 
I've been told you need the driverside motor mount as well as a torque converter balance kit that jegs still sells for around 60 bucks. I have also been told you need the tranny kickdown as well but am unsure ill find out when I do the swap in the next couple of weeks on my dart. As far as finding out the size I'm new to mopar but there should be a sticker somewhere under the hood. Good luck.
 
Or you could get the B&M flex plate that is weighted for the 360 and use any neutral balance torque converter
 
The 318's kick down will work.

How hot your 318 is a unknown so compared to a stock 340/360 engine is asking wihch elephant will crap first at a circus.
You might need a new oil pan for a passenger car. IDK what the van has for a pan.
The rad should be fine and the car will most likely not be able to use the vans rad.

The driverside of the engine block will tell you what size the engine is. The displacement is embosed on the side.

If your going to freshin the engine up, I'd really recomend upping the anti with new slugs for some compresion. Stock 360's are known to have less than the advertised 8-1 ratio.
 
All the 340s were internally balance except one year. 1973. ALL 360s were externally balanced. So, if there is a counterweight on the balance, it's either a '73 340 (REAL unlikely) or a 360. The best way to tell is by looking at the block above the strater. It will have a series of numbers there with the cast date and the engine size. They are cast in numbers, not stamped. There is also a pad under the alternator ehaer there are stamped numbers as well, but that requires removing the alternator. Sometimes too, those numbers afr gone from either block machining or, if it was a warranty replacement block. The cast in numbers above the starter are the best way.
 
340's never came from the factory with 340's so it's likely that the engine is either a 318 or a 360. You can tell be the casting numbers on the drivers side of the block, the displacement will be at the end of string of numbers.

The 360 is externally balanced where your 318 is internal balanced. You will either need the kit previously mentioned to weld the torque convertor or a get a external balanced flex plate. Otherwise the 360 will bolt right onto your tranny. Don't know why you would need the kickdown since you are not changing the tranny. I would gues the van oil pan is a rear sump like a pickup so you will need a car pan and pick-up. The rear main bearing cap is different on the 360 so you can't swap over your 318 pan, you will need a 360 specific car pan, the pick-up from the 318 should work.

Your 73 car should have spool motor mounts so the drivers side 318 mount can be used on the 360 with an approximate 3/8" spacer, I used a stack of washers. The passenger side is the same for both engines.

Don't know what you have for a radiator know. the heavy duty / AC radiator on 318 cars is the same as the cars that came with the 360. I would try what you have before investing in a new radiator.

Don't know what you mean by a mildly built 318 or what freshening the the 360 is. If you are going to take the 360 apart I would invest in some flat top pistons (the stockers are dished) and a bigger cam and you should easily be at the 300 HP range.
 
it should be a 360 the 340 was never put in a van from the factory
you will need to use an external balance 360 flex plate/torque converter, (possibly from the van) but your trans will bolt up, and you will need to get a CAR 360 OIL PAN as neither your 318 or the truck 360 pan will work, and one motor mount (drivers side?)
 
WOW! ok, when i say mildly built on the 318, i mean i had a valve job done, heads shaved slightly, bigger cam, carb/intake and dual exhaust. nothing major. and when i say refresh the 360 i mean rings, barrings, timing chain, oil pump, have the heads checked..the basics. the 318 is a low compression engine w/ about 105,000 miles on it. its starting to sound like it would be easier and cheaper to rebuild whats in it when the time comes. i was just tryin to get an idea if it would be worth the swap for the trouble of takin the motor out of the van. If anyone has any more input that would be great! Thanks for all the quick replies!
 
42 cubic inches, longer stroke, and bigger ports, bigger valves, I think it is worth it
 
gonna try to get up to look at the engine in a few days. not gonna try the swap yet but thought for a hundred bucks its worth asking about. stupid question what is the flex plate and could i get the one from the van to use in mine? thanks wanting to findout whats involved before i tear the van apart. the engine alone is worth a hundred right?
 
The flex plate joins the crankshaft and the torque converter, and the flex plate that is in the van is identical to the one behind your 318. The reason that you need the B&M flex plate is because the 360 is externally balanced, where the 318 is internally balanced. The to combat this the factory welded weights to the 360 torque converter. So you will have to use a factory 360 converter OR a neutral balanced converter and a b&m flex plate. As far as the value of the 360 that is in the van ( if it really is a 360 ) I would definitely give a hundred bucks for it. I gave 300 for a RV 360 and the trans together.
 
gonna check on the b&m flex plate and by neutral converter is that the torque converter? the trans in my car has about 6000 miles on it and the converter was replaced when rebuilt. will the converter need replaced? could i use the converter out of the van and have it rebuilt? sorry for all the questions new to this external internal balnce info thanks..
 
I would just use the converter that you have now and get the right b&m flex plate. I believe that they have two different ones. One for a 727 and one for a 904
 
thanks the 318 in it now is gettin weak gonna have to do sumn in the next year or so def interested in going 360 but my 318 had the heads redone last year and then new cam so rebuild would be fairly cheap. gotta check the funds and weigh my options as im in the process of preping for paint and rebuilding the suspension. ugh so much to do ..
 
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