I used to do this stuff all the time but my mind is starting to go and I can't remember. This car was originally a slant 6 but now has a 318. The owner wants me to put in a 440 which should bolt right in but I think he will need V8 torsion bars or he's going to get a soft front end w/ the extra weight. It's going to be a driver so he is going to need a good suspension. Anybody know if this is correct? I checked the trusty MOPAR Chassis manual and they don't tell me that info for a B-Body but for an A-body they do tell you that the bars need to be replaced...

I know that the 6cyl bars are prefered for drag racing but I don't think they are suggested for street use.. I don't want to get in the middle of this project and run into big problems that I don't have time to fix.....

 

I would try just setting the hight of the front end after installation and see if it carries it. If not torsen bars are in order. Check your mounts before installing. I forget which side but some of the 318 had one side further foreward. You may have to modify or get the right K member. Like you, it has been a while, getting fuzzy in the memory department. I once had a duster and the bars held the 440 ok. Had to do some fabs on the K member though.

 

Thats not a direct bolt in. You need to call shumacher creative services. Or go to
www.engine-swaps.com
Thet will have the mounts to convert the 6 or 318 to the b/rb. They fit nice, I used some on my cuda... Let me know if you have any other ????

 

By the way the torsion bars will work but it wont corner really solid. It will lean a little more. If you want a road racer you will want to go with a heavier bar or even oversized for better cornering..

 

It's not gonna be a racer, just a cruiser. A couple years ago I swapped a 318 in a 69 Dodge pickup with a 400ci and it bolted right in using the BB motor mounts. If I recall correctly I may have needed to modify one of the mounts to make it fit but everything else went smoothly. If I have to start doing too many mods than it's not even worth doing. I'll keep you informed.

Thanks for the replies...

 

Like was said, the car will wallow in the corners. Since you've got the motor out anyway you might as well swap in BB T-bars or thicker. I've got road racing bars in my Road Runner(1.120") and I love them. BB bars are .960, IIRC.

 

A '68 Satellite is a B body. In order to have swapped in the 318, the previous owner would have HAD to swap in a V-8 K member. All the Mopar V-8 K-members are the same (except Hemi). So 273-440 will swap right in.
The only difference (AFAIK) between the 6cyl and 8cyl bars is the thickness. Trust me, you don't want the 6cyl bars in an 8cyl street car. I would go with the Hemi bars-- they give you good handling with a big block.

The Mopar books are pretty good. I would HIGHLY recommend the famous Mopar Action Disc Brake swap, where you use the spindles from a later A-body and the huge discs of a C-body to put GREAT disc brakes on a B-body for cheap.

Try the link here:http://www.moparaction.com/Tech/archive/disc-main.html The only caveat here is that mopars with 14" wheels will have to upgrade to 15" wheels to fit the discs.

For a street Mopar, it's important to build a balanced package. Check out the Mopar Action Flying Green Brick for a good primer on this.

Justin

 

I've done this a million times, get the 69 big block motor mounts and as Justin said it will fit. Bolt her in, but do upgrade the torsion bars. His remark about the brakes is on the mark, I've done a bunch of them myself, in a word AWSOME!

 

Quoted from one of the Direct Connection Racing Manuals:

The LA engine family is devided into two groups on engine mount bracket attaching lugs or ears. The 273 and 318 use one set and the 340 and 360 use another set. Both groups use the same right side attachment points, only the left sides are different.


Also: Generally, the six cylinder engines use one K-member, the v-8's another and the Hemi engine has its own special one because of the unique mounting system.

A "B" or an "RB" engine will fit by using same "K" member , but new brackets will be required - PN-22863751, PN-22536132. Insulators same as LA engine - PN-2536121 (2) These engine brackets are found on "B" bodied 440 and 383 vehicles from 1967 to 1972.

 

I used to race a 68 Satellite w/ 440 that ran mid 10s and I just had the stock 10" drums all around. They worked adequately. Discs would have been nice though. I had a friend w/ a Buick GS w/ discs and he took me for a ride to show me the brakes and I was amazed at how much better it stopped than my car. Then I took him for a ride in the 68 Beast and he was amazed at how fast that "Stock" 10 to 1 motor was with just a 533 hydraulic cam , a little "Juice", and a few tricks from the Engines manual..

Thanks for all the replies guys. At this point I think I'm gonna tell the guy that I'm not interested in doing the swap for him. There are so many potential problems that this car may end up sitting in my driveway for three months and I really don't want that.

 

Shoot, there are guys out there now with these 408/416 stroker small blocks running low 10s with just iron W-2 heads!! That 4" crank for the LA engines is making some mean street machines.

Most of those kinds of guys hang out at the Moparts racing BB.

 

What's the Moparts racing BB??

 

http://www.moparts.com/Tech/

 

Cool thank you very much.