how can i get 400hp out of a 318?

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moparnate52

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im looking to rebuild my 318 in the near future. i just want to know what you guys recomend for cam, intake, headers. pistons. and if i should bore, if so how much?, i want to be making 400+hp just dont know what it takes to do so.... and do they make turbo kits for 318? thanks
 
moparnate52 said:
im looking to rebuild my 318 in the near future. i just want to know what you guys recomend for cam, intake, headers. pistons. and if i should bore, if so how much?, i want to be making 400+hp just dont know what it takes to do so.... and do they make turbo kits for 318? thanks
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Going to have to bore and stroke it. I have the cam, intake, headers, carb, etc... and I estimate maybe 300 hp. That is probably optimistic.
 
9.6:1 compression, stout hydraulic roller cam, professionally ported RHS heads, big tube headers, air gap intake and a 700-800 CMF carb.
 
you'd only have to bore it over just enough to clean up the cylinders....020 over if you can...more common is .030 over....
 
go and find a 360. It will get you to 400hp faster and cheaper than spending the money on the 318
 
4 inch stroker crank and 308 heads bowl work and a solid voodoo cam and poof 400 or close
 
Good cam 750 dp carb, air gap intake, big tube headers, ally heads, kb pistons, and the bottle lol
 
Mopar to ya said:
Going to have to bore and stroke it. I have the cam, intake, headers, carb, etc... and I estimate maybe 300 hp. That is probably optimistic.
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jimjimjimmy said:
4 inch stroker crank and 308 heads bowl work and a solid voodoo cam and poof 400 or close
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Stroking an engine isn't always the best way to go, IMO the 360 already has too much stroke.... (great truck engine)

A 318 is basically a small bore 340, all you need to do is bump the compression, balance her and let her breath. 318s can be very formidable especially high winding ones.


Or keep the compression lower, balance her and force her to breath with a bottle/turbo/super charger
 
jimjimjimmy said:
4 inch stroker crank and 308 heads bowl work and a solid voodoo cam and poof 400 or close
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Give the man a prize.

Much prefer a smooth durable and flexible 392 cui smal block to some frantic twitchy revver that is intractable anywhere but on the race track.
 
res1vw21 said:
Stroking an engine isn't always the best way to go, IMO the 360 already has too much stroke.... (great truck engine)

A 318 is basically a small bore 340, all you need to do is bump the compression, balance her and let her breath. 318s can be very formidable especially high winding ones.


Or keep the compression lower, balance her and force her to breath with a bottle/turbo/super charger
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I know, you think if it was so easy the factories would had stroke the engines years ago and skip building big block engines. What did the factories do, they built the engines for rpm's with forged cranks and pistons. Ford had the 302, Chevy had the 327 and Mopar had the 340, all built to handle rpm's.

U need good heads, ported for sure. Maybe the RHS? forget the small port heads the engine needs to breath.

I would try for 10 to 1 compression and a solid cam for rpm's Comp Magnum 280 has been around for ages and works well. With a high stall converter it drive around town just fine.
 
that 318 in the popular hot rodding article was low buck as can get....415 horsepower at 6200 rpm's add a small bottle and your over the 500 mark with streetable ponies seems the guys at car craft spent more $ and made less hp but still with iron stock heads....hmmmm the old school took em to the cleaners
 
Stroking it is way to expensive for a mere 400 hp. The Car Craft write up should do it. Unported heads off a 360 engine, healthy street cam and some compression is all it really takes.
 
Fresh set of forged 8.5:1 smog pistons, RV cam & 15psi manifold pressure.

Drive it to work every day if you like. No 7000 rpm grenade, no chinese stroker crankshafts, leaky headers, etc.

No, nobody makes a "kit" to turbo a 318. Nothing keeping you from doing it yourself. I built turbo kits decades ago. It was either "one kit fits everything" (and nothing well) or vehicle specific. We went broke doing vehicle specific.

Depending on which A body you are putting it in, fabricating a turbo install is not terribly difficult.

B.
 
^turbos work too, how do the ricers make power and still have gas millage? simple turbo, it works.

dodge freak said:
I know, you think if it was so easy the factories would had stroke the engines years ago and skip building big block engines. What did the factories do, they built the engines for rpm's with forged cranks and pistons. Ford had the 302, Chevy had the 327 and Mopar had the 340, all built to handle rpm's.

U need good heads, ported for sure. Maybe the RHS? forget the small port heads the engine needs to breath.

I would try for 10 to 1 compression and a solid cam for rpm's Comp Magnum 280 has been around for ages and works well. With a high stall converter it drive around town just fine.
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My point exactly, I guess I am just cheap since I would rather build a nice stout 440 then stroke a sb. With my spool mount K member I can use all factory parts to put it in and with a few aluminum parts be roughly in the same weight range as a SB. Not to mention the aluminum heads are a bit cheaper for BB.

waggin said:
that 318 in the popular hot rodding article was low buck as can get....415 horsepower at 6200 rpm's add a small bottle and your over the 500 mark with streetable ponies seems the guys at car craft spent more $ and made less hp but still with iron stock heads....hmmmm the old school took em to the cleaners
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I love this build because it shows whats easily done with a budget and some ingenuity, imagine if they balanced it and decked it?

rumblefish360 said:
Stroking it is way to expensive for a mere 400 hp. The Car Craft write up should do it. Unported heads off a 360 engine, healthy street cam and some compression is all it really takes.
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yep yep yep, let her breath, give her some comp and a matched cam....

No need to reinvent the wheel, yes you can but personally I would rather put the money into what seems to be forgotten, the suspension because you can have all the power in the world but if you can't put it down whats the point?


On a related note, I have a high compression 360 (11.5:1) that I would love to destroke a 318/340 stroke, does anyone know if they make a crank to do so? I run all stick cars so a light weight high revving engine is perfect the car, and yes I plan on using aluminum heads.
 
How much horse would you need to get a 318 down in the 9's in the 1/4?? Ball park of course. I know Trans, Rear etc... will all factor in. The reason I ask is because supposedly my Dart at one point ran high 9's with the current 318.
 
318
Bored .040"
10.5:1 compression
stock stroke (3.31)
J heads with 2.02X1.60 valves minor work done 61cc chamber
Weiand Stealth high rise dual plain intake manifold
Edelbrock performer RPM cam with 1.6 roller rockers bringing lift to
.520/.544
750 holley DP
Hooker headers
Stock electronic ignition with orange box.

422 Horsepower
418 Torque
 
res1, MoPar has a crank with a 3.31 stroke and 360 mains I think.
 
Call me skeptical, but, I don't see any of those magazine 400hp/318 builds powering a 3200-3300# car to about 110-112mph in the 1/4, which a true 400hp engine should do.

A well tuned 9.5:1 360 with a xe268h will get you about 1hp per ci. Putting a cam with slightly more duration lift in a 318 gets you 50+ hp over a similar 360? Along with the recent 360/10:1/RHS/XE275HL/1.6 rockers/Air Gap/750DP making 427hp/440tq. Some things don't add up, that's why I'm skeptical.

A 318 at 400hp is going to have a really nasty cam in it, some compression and good heads ( not valve jobbed 340-360 pieces). JMO.
 
400 HP today isn't the same as 400 hp back in 1970, LOL

You still could build a strong running 318 that can take on these "400 hp" new cars today. But yeah nasty cam, heads and gears in the 4 range is needed.

I stop reading those mag back in the 1990's, don't think they are much better today.
 
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