I been a Chevy use most of my life. But I love mopar muscle cars.

Questions for the mopar fans.

I will post on another thread these questions.

First I know very little about mopar. I had a 73 Charge with a 318, 20 years ago.

My truck has a 3.9 v6. I know that you can fix up chevy v6's

3.9 is a basically a 318 minus 2 cylinders. Same parts except head, cam, and crank. I can not fine a cam for it therefore I can not rebuild it for more hp and keep decent mpg.

Some of my friends are telling me to put a V8 in.

Now which one 318, 340, 360.

Will the transmission work or will I need a different one. I am clueless about mopar transmissions.

Plus I want to keep a decent budget.

I want mpg at 18 to 25 if possible and power also.


I am a school teacher for a nonprofit group home for forster kids with behavior problems.

I would like to show my students how to fix up my truck.
They will learn so much.

Please put your opinion or experience in.

Thank you in advance.

New member from SW Florida
opcorn:

 

18-25 mpg You need to stick with the V6 What year is the truck / motor? Does it currently run ? What trans does it have ?
On a Budget ? stick with the V6 also A lot of things need to be changed when swapping to a V8
There are places that can regrind your cam, I would bet there is one as close as your local Mopar performance Catalog

 

http://www.hughesengines.com/Index/p...=&partid=22216

Add the cam above and true duals and headers with a good air filter and just drive it.

In a light weight Dak it will be a good runner. Students will get to do the front cover, water pump, timing chain etc.. Good teaching project.

 

WOW, Thank you. A Cam for my 3.9. AWESOME!!!

Other questions. Can I build my 3.9 to a 315 hp instead of 420 hp for the 318 as hotrod and another website.

http://www.moparmusclemagazine.com/t...d/viewall.html


Waiting for your response.

 

Hm... I bet you teach math.

I have not spent enough time on that motor to be an expert. But the answer is yes. The question is the ability to find parts like an intake that will flow and how much cfm do the heads flow. And if parts are available what is the cost / return. I will do some research on this because I see this becoming a trend with some and I would like to know for myself too.

If a cam and header dont run you off I can tell you I have done MANY magnum swaps. These are NOT hard. And you could grab a 318 or 360 magnum with all the accessories and trans for short money. Add an intake, carb and distributer and go. Search my old post.. Ive done some detailed ones on the process.

If your Dakota has a tall rear gear you will do ok on mileage due to its low weight and the magnum's low stall on the TC.

Ill post back when I get some info on the 3.9......

 

EDIT: Just saw your other post in the New Members Section. 1989 Shelby Dakota

I feel that you can get to the low side of your target MPG with a V8 if tuned properly for the rest of your drivetrain, your driving habits and if your gearing is setup in such a way that the motor is kept in the power band through all the gears. If you want power and want to do a motor swap, I'd go for either a Magnum 360 (~230hp/330tq - with a little bit of work and the proper tuning, you can make really good power) or a Power Tech 4.7L H.O. (~265hp/330tq - same thing applies). The Power Tech may be harder and more involved to swap in and probably won't be as cheap to buy.

You'll want to buy whatever trans came behind these motors as well as the trans behind the 3.9L V6 won't last long. Also, you'll want to get some 1541H shafts for the 8.25 rear axle that you have or swap it out for a 9.25 unit with 3.55 gears.