318, how tough is it ?

[Plymouthy Adams]

I think you are going to find equal wear on the bearings. These old 318's would take abuse by the best of the procrasting owner. More than not you will find mininum wear on the lower end..the upper end will have a bit of wear in the cylinders...the heads will probably have a bit of slop in the valve guides..and the exhaust valves may be a bit used and cupped..a quick refresh of the heads, new stem seals and new exhasut alve..and you be back in business. Recommend another cam though..usually these babies take abit of abuse..especially when you mentioned the Penzoill..stuff is refined better these days but still parrifin base...leads to build up. The intake manifold will need the crossover cleaned..am sure it is 100% plugged..if not it will be closed up pretty much. Only real problem the 318's ever had. Not sure if the 85 got roller lifters..it is a plus if you do..I like them..less friction in the engine..Clean the strainer real good..changes are when you tear it down you will find the hardened rubber valve stem shells up in it..common as a house mouse. I have a 88 roller 318 here and also a early 70's 318 truck engine..the one with the forged steel crank...and then another 318 standard plain jane..

It is not necessary that you pump up the engine to move your big car down the road..however it will not be fast off the line but neither will it leave you sitting. Slight upgrade to the RV cam..go back to early pre-lean burn ignition..if you want to pump it a bit a later model 4 bbl intake..use stock cast iron..better manners and performance than an aluminum..aluminum is recommend by Mother Mopar ONLY for all out race. Has too flat spots for the street..if you get my drift. You can add a windage tray and double roller timing to add to lube protection at higher RPM and more accurate timing over a longer period of operation time. Leave the asymetrical heavy factory fan blade..dyno test proves it for an additional 20 HP over a replacement flex fan...

A quick clean up of the block to .030 over..new cam bearing and pay close attention to the bronze bush for the intermediate shaft that the cam drives the oil pump and distributor off of..it is cheap insurance to install a new one.

Get a good set of brass freeze plugs as they are worth the extra 4 dollar...also..look to putting truck center dump manifolds on your car if you original donor downpipes do not slip in..these will allow for the making of a sweet H-pipe.

[knighthawk]

thanks Tim, alot ofgood ideas,suggestions here. ........ I test fit the engine today, so how high do I put the engine? I think I need to keep the tailshaft or rear mount the same hieght as bottom of the frame rails and then level the carb. Right now there is very little clearance between the tie rod and oil pan, as it has a front sump oil pan . I will also have to re-work the firewall to clear thevalve covers, so I can keep the core support and rad in the orinial place. Plus, it don't look like the steering shaft will be able to come out the same spot.. I just want to make sure I'm not overlooking something (?)

[Guest mikeys toy]

where exactly do you live? I may wanna come up and take some pics....

[knighthawk]

mikeystoy; SouthEast Kansas ,about 40 miles north of Coffeyville , near towm of Cheeryvale,

[knighthawk]

New question : wasn't there some one a while back, talking about putting a Cadillac 472 or 500 in something like a '48 Dodge ? Just wondering if and how it fit ??????????

[BobT-47P15]

Cheeryvale........sounds like a smiley little town.

(I know, it's supposed to be Cherryvale)

Back in 1968 I inherited a 1967 Plymouth Fury I company car with a 318 in it. Ran that baby pretty hard, usually had a load of advertising and other stuff in trunk and back seat, sometimes pulled a small 2-wheel trailer, on one or two occasions ran it real low on water. It kept on ticking. Always thought that was a good engine.

[knighthawk]

I understand the 318 has a good reputation, but this particular engine has been really abused or ignored and supposedly the tranny is not good either. But it is '' free'' as it is just laying in the corner here. I guess it would be goo to try to keep it all Mo Par . But, you gotta admit, it would look really cool to see a Cad 472 or even an old ''nailhead'' in there ! But then that would cost more money again, but it's going to cost some money to clean up this 318 and tranny , too ! So, you see, I just which direction to lean to....... If the 472 won't fit ( easily ) then I can eliminate that...........just thinking ahead...........thanks.

[BobT-47P15]

Yep, it's like that old joke about the monkey taking a whiz into the cash register......it all runs into money.

How much work does that old abused engine need???? Will remain to be seen. How good will it turn out to be with a little cleanup.....anybody's guess. You won't know how it will do till you put it in a car and drive it. How much are the parts (and labor if you don't do the work) to do a rebuild? It might fit in better than some others however. Still going to take some re-engineering. Can you find an motor in better shape for a reasonable price? Many questions.....no easy answers.