Dartman1967
Well-Known Member
Anyone have a recommendation as to buying a new engine? Probably looking at a 318 as an upgrade for the 273.......comments? recommendations? its going in a 67 dart just looking for a daily driver
new engine
- Thread starter Dartman1967
- Start date
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What kind of car are you putting it in? Year, Make, Model...
What do you want out of it? Cruise, Daily driver, street/strip, race....
We need more info to be able to give you direction...
What do you want out of it? Cruise, Daily driver, street/strip, race....
We need more info to be able to give you direction...
How much cash do you want to spend? And what's it going in?
LocuMob
Fluid Technician
Speed costs, how fast you wanna go?
moper
Well-Known Member
I personally like being "in charge" of the rebuilding rather than buying one "done" or "all new". You can probably get some great deals on local 318s that were done and have some miles on them. Personally I'd rather have a used one that runs well than a never-been-run reman. I would not buy anything from a mass rebuilder.
Otherwise look around - there might even be something in the classifieds here.
Otherwise look around - there might even be something in the classifieds here.
How much do you want to spend , how much HP do you expect . Why do you need an upgrade ? not enough kick at the stop light or on the highway ? Cheapest route is probably a 360 , right there you have the extra cubes and torque , 318 will be next in line . But if you want mega HP and TQ be prepared to spend .
For just cruising around a 360 would be hard to beat for the $$ You can probably find a GOOD running used 360 for under 800.00 tat would be a good upgrade
For just cruising around a 360 would be hard to beat for the $$ You can probably find a GOOD running used 360 for under 800.00 tat would be a good upgrade
Let me add , I really like to see a high perf 273 running in those old Darts . If I had the car I would put the money into the 273 , you can get a good solid daily cruiser with the 273 , costs a bit more to do than the 318 or 360 , then again if it were about money we'd all drive a chebby 350 , they cost less to build than any Mopar
Dartman1967
Well-Known Member
I am looking for something that I can just drop in and everything will match up---such as mounts, tranny etc. Can I do that with a 360?
Hello, McFly... :banghead:
What year and model car are we talking about? :???:
Garbage in... Garbage out.... #-o
With a 360? .... Almost, here's why....
The 360 is externally balance engine, so that requires you to purchase a special B&M flex plate to mate with you neutral balance converter. There not to expensive at all.
Next are motor mounts. The simple way to fix the issue is to purchase "1" large nut to "slip over" the bolt of the motor mount. This takes up the extra space that the 360 mount is wider. It doesn't have to be exact.
A minor issue is the exhaust manifolds. The 273's will be a little choking on the bigger engine. If the 360 has exhaust manifolds, see if it will work on your car. Different year engines have different exit locations. In a worst case issue, reuse the 273 exhaust manifolds.
After that, maybe, maybe, the radiator will need to be replaced with a larger one. These can be purchased new. The 360 produces more heat and therefore needs more cooling capacity/ability. The old radiator may possibly be smaller but certainly older and perhaps a little gummed up/clogged from the many years of use.
The order of importance is in order. The first one is a must.
I would try and get a 360 engine. There plentiful, produce excellent torque and good HP in stock form. Simple bolt on's net very good power gains without going into the engine for a cam swap.
I myself was able to get 19/20 MPG's out of a 360 in a '79 Cordoba.
I only did bolt on stuff. An "H" piped 2-1/4 exhaust off the exhaust manifolds, 625 Carter on top of a OE intake, a K&N filter in the factory air cleaner, a vacuum advance distributor from MoPar and a MSD 6A box.
Gears were 2.76 and tires were 235/60/15's on all 4 corners.
Tune it well and cruise it easy. Enjoy!
The 360 is externally balance engine, so that requires you to purchase a special B&M flex plate to mate with you neutral balance converter. There not to expensive at all.
Next are motor mounts. The simple way to fix the issue is to purchase "1" large nut to "slip over" the bolt of the motor mount. This takes up the extra space that the 360 mount is wider. It doesn't have to be exact.
A minor issue is the exhaust manifolds. The 273's will be a little choking on the bigger engine. If the 360 has exhaust manifolds, see if it will work on your car. Different year engines have different exit locations. In a worst case issue, reuse the 273 exhaust manifolds.
After that, maybe, maybe, the radiator will need to be replaced with a larger one. These can be purchased new. The 360 produces more heat and therefore needs more cooling capacity/ability. The old radiator may possibly be smaller but certainly older and perhaps a little gummed up/clogged from the many years of use.
The order of importance is in order. The first one is a must.
I would try and get a 360 engine. There plentiful, produce excellent torque and good HP in stock form. Simple bolt on's net very good power gains without going into the engine for a cam swap.
I myself was able to get 19/20 MPG's out of a 360 in a '79 Cordoba.
I only did bolt on stuff. An "H" piped 2-1/4 exhaust off the exhaust manifolds, 625 Carter on top of a OE intake, a K&N filter in the factory air cleaner, a vacuum advance distributor from MoPar and a MSD 6A box.
Gears were 2.76 and tires were 235/60/15's on all 4 corners.
Tune it well and cruise it easy. Enjoy!
magnumdart
There is a bad moon on the rise.
Not knowing what ya got doesn't help, but I doubt everything will line up. My first thought...exhaust.
My dad used to get 20 MPG hwy with a 76 Charger with a stock 360 2-bbl. Single exhaust even...
It's possible to get good MPH with a 360.
Yeah, we need to know if it is an early A (64-66) or later 60's A (67-72). #-o
Then we could give him some better, more accurate advice on what he will need to do to make it all work.
I'm guessing it is a '67 myself.
Not hatin' on the 318 idea, but if you're going to go through all of the hassle to change the engine, you might as well get the extra cubic inches of the 360. Check your local Craigslist and maybe some surrounding areas. I'm sure if you keep your eyes open you can find a good deal on a gently used engine. Like the others have posted above, some things will have to be changed (exhaust, cooling, flex plate) but they can be done relatively cheaply. Good luck!
nothingbutdarts
Well-Known Member
Yeah, we need to know if it is an early A (64-66) or later 60's A (67-72). #-o
Then we could give him some better, more accurate advice on what he will need to do to make it all work.
In his 1st post it mentiones it's a 1967 Dart that had a 273 in it, he updated the thread today.
An early 318 (67-69) would be the easiest to just drop in for the 273, as all of the front end parts on the engine will be compatable with your original radiator configuration and they also had the highest stock compression. You could also rebuild it. then it would be a good opportunity to put the larger port heads on it 340/360. If you want to use the larger port heads, then buy some 10.5 pistons, and your final compression with the larger port/combustion chambers will be 9.2 - perfect for a street engine.
Or get a 340 or 360. You can find a 360 much cheaper than a 340, and throw some 2.02" valves and a good cam in it, you will have a good runner (360's can run as good as a 340 if built right). If you go that direction, you can take the current timing chain cover, and water pump off of the 273 and put them on the 360, then use the stock 360 vuibration damper, just remark for TDC as the marks on the 360 damper will be 90° off of the original 273 marks. Then you can use the original radiator in your car.
Or you can run the newer style timing chain, vibration damper, and water pump. Then change to the newer 70 and later style radiator (make sure it is comparable width to fit in the existing bolt pattern).
The best factory exhaust is the 68-70 340 exhaust manifolds. They are around, but a bit expensive, but worth it to save the hassles of headers.
Or get a 340 or 360. You can find a 360 much cheaper than a 340, and throw some 2.02" valves and a good cam in it, you will have a good runner (360's can run as good as a 340 if built right). If you go that direction, you can take the current timing chain cover, and water pump off of the 273 and put them on the 360, then use the stock 360 vuibration damper, just remark for TDC as the marks on the 360 damper will be 90° off of the original 273 marks. Then you can use the original radiator in your car.
Or you can run the newer style timing chain, vibration damper, and water pump. Then change to the newer 70 and later style radiator (make sure it is comparable width to fit in the existing bolt pattern).
The best factory exhaust is the 68-70 340 exhaust manifolds. They are around, but a bit expensive, but worth it to save the hassles of headers.
He just updated it for the information that we need and I have been asking for. It wasn't there before when I was asking for it.
Now we can get him going in the right direction. :cheers:
Dartman1967
Well-Known Member
Thanks for all the help and suggestions. As I am not a gearhead (actually far from it) I need all the help I can get. Will look for a 360 and see what I can find.
moper
Well-Known Member
If it was me I'd say stick with a 318, find something local you can hear run. If it's god, that will accept all the psrts off the 273 and literally bolt in without raising the spector of exhaust flow and fitment, mounts, oil pans, etc. It will look factory 273 but be a little better. If you're not a gearhead, and will be having to rely on a local place to do it all, simplest is best IMO.
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