Hello, folks. My current project is a 1974 Plymouth Gold Duster. The car started out with a 225 C.I. slant six with 138k miles which ran just great; however, i was seeking more power. After some research, i decided to purchase SB V8 conversion motor mounts from schumacher. I had a spare 85' 318-2 engine, so i began the process of converting over. I installed a Holley Street Avenger 670cfm (Yep, unfortunately i'm over-carb'n at the moment) and a two-level 360 cast intake manifold. I converted to an electronic ignition, and installed 360 exhaust manifolds.
The car was a plane jane, but for 200$ it was well worth it, thus far i only have 1900$ invested in it completely, with the cost of the car, paint, mounts, carburetor, rims, tires, adapters, shocks, bearrings and hoses. The car's stock color was tor red (hemi orange) with a black vinyl interior, which i truely love. Granted, it may not be a 340 car, it does have the weak 7 1/4" rear end currently, and four-wheel drum brakes with the small bolt pattern, but it's a great project car for me.
My intentions with this car is to be a street cruiser (in no sense a show car) with a powerful, but reliable drivetrain. First and foremost i need to get rid of the weak links. I plan on swapping out my existing 7 1/4" rear end with a 8 3/4" sure-grip rear end. In addition, the brake system will be converted to 10.87" disc brakes with the 4x4.5" bolt pattern. The rotors will be cross-drilled and slotted for both better heat dissapation and, well, show :)
The 318 C.I. engine is temporary, don't get me wrong, i love 318's (more than most people) however, i love money even more; thus, for what i want building up a 318 would cost more than purchasing a 360. The engine will be matched with a torque flite 727 transmission. The engine will be bored, decked, hot tanked and will have forged pistons, a mild cam, and polished/ported heads for good flow. The 670cfm double pumper Holley Street Avenger carb will be installed, along with a aluminum high rise intake manifold. A-body ceramic coated headers with full 3" should make it sound pretty mean as well.
An electric fuel pump will be installed along with a MSD 6AL ignition system, a remote start system will be installed (the electric fuel pump will be vital on making this work). 18" Wheels on rubberband tires will be installed on all four corners (slicks are good and all, but this isn't a drag car :P). The rear will remain drum brakes :(
The audio system consists of a Rockford Fosgate 301M 900 watt (300watt RMS) mono amplifier powering a 12" JVD Warren G Subwoofer. A RF 4 gauge amp kits connects everything together. The deck i'll be buying soon is a Pioneer DEH-P4600MP. Other than that, there's nothing fancy about my audio system... Yet :)
The rims are 16x7" Off of a Lexus SC400, it has Falken 225/40/ZR16 directional tires. Rear air shocks and front gas shocks. The front was lowered by adjusting the torsion bars (poor camber). The suspension is very stiff compared to stock, hardly any body roll. I compromised a smooth ride for better handling, but i don't regret it.
The interior will be done soon, i opted to go with leather bucket racing seats with 5 point harnesses over the stock bench seat (One night i was fooling around in the rain sliding through turns with one-wheel-peels and forgot to buckle up, i ended up over on the passanger side trying to recover :).
