Decided to rebuild my 383 now i got some ?'s

[Superman99]

Well after a 5 and a half hour drive to visit my parents, i decided to rebuild my 383 because i lost almost a quart of oil during the trip. That is way too much for my taste and i guess the only thing i can do is tear her apart and replace everything. Now i have a few questions. I want have never done this before but i have plenty of time so i am just going to do it slow and learn it while i go. I already have this book called how to rebuild big block mopars and i think that should help me out pretty good. I only want to this once, at least for a while. And i want to get the most power i can out of it. These are my basic ideas. The car is a convertible c-body, so i know its not going to be a hardcore racer and i want her to stay streetable and run off pump gas but i dont mind using premuim. So what should i do to her to get the most power and still be streetable.
I have seen that summit has a rebuild kits with new pistons and a bunch of other stuff, is that something i could buy or should i just buy parts individually? Also i see alot of kit are for bored over engine like .30 over and .60 over, should i do this too?
Sorry for so many question i am totally new to all of this
Thanks

[rb77413]

WOW Another convertible C-body with a 383!!! I ran into trouble and had to get mine built for me. However my combo is:
383 .030
flat top speed pro pistons for roughly 9:1
ported 906's
Lunati .477 lift cam with 275^
Hooker Super comp headers for C-body. No fittment problems. It is a console car.
2500 stall 3.23 8 3/4 rear
edelbrock performer intake with 750 electric choke.
it also has crane adjust rockers.

I like it however it could always use a little more. The reason for the small cam is that everything runs on eng vac. All the heating and AC doors do. A big car with powre brakes, etc... I believe a little more lift and dur will not hurt the vac that much. I woundn't go any higher on the stall, as it goes right to 2500 stall. The weight of the car will pretty much gaurantee you reach your stall. The max useable rpm for this is around 5500. The engine can still pull more but the cam and intake do not make any more power past 5500. I would get a cam to produce power to 6K along with the performer RPM. It is very streetable idle all day, lots of torque to get up to speed when merging and will cruise at 75-80 no prob. Another book to get is the Mopar Big Block Engines book. You cant have to much Literature. For what DeskTop Dyno is worth it makes 380ish hp and about 430 lb/ft o torque. BTW it is in a 70 Newport Convertible original 383 magnum (That block is in the shed and a junkyard block is what got rebuilt and is in the car now.)

[Doug Wilson]

The decision whether to bore or not is usually dependent on the condition of your engine now, when you're dealing with a street type rebuild. When you get the engine out, and your machinist check it, he will tell you if it need overboring. It's is best to bore it as little as possible, so you can bore it again in the future, when it needs it again.

How many miles do you have on it?

The kits from the various mail order suppliers are a pretty good deal.

There a a couple of things you need to do before you start turning wrenches, though. First, you need to figure out how much you can spend. This will determine the parts you're going to buy, and how elaborate your machine work is going to be. Second, it's very important that you find a machine shop that really KNOWS MOPAR engines. It's true that any shop can do the work, but someone who knows MOPARs will do a better job, for less money generally.

The best ways to find a shop are to hang around at the track and talk to guys that are racing MOPAR, and also to find a local MOPAR club and ask the guys there.

Once you've identified the machine shop and determined your budget, let us know those things, and we can help with the build up on this forum.

Good luck - you are about to have some real fun!!

[Superman99]

Well that is all great advice thanks. As for budget, i really dont have one, i can spend over a grand or two and not really worry about it so i will spend what ever it takes to have a nice powerful good engine. Oh also too as for mileage, i have to estimate because the speedo is way too fast so i know for sure it is under 180,000. I think based on the amount of error that it could be as low as 140,000. Oh and does anyone know of a shop in the monterey central california area??? Thanks in advance.
Paul

[72Challenger]

The most important thing to having a good strong engine is accurate machine work. Doug is right about only boring as much as is needed to clean up the bores, for what he said and also because thicker bore walls will disipate heat better and will of course be stronger. MAKE SURE the machine uses torque plates for both the boring and honing operations. The main caps should also be torqued. You may think an engine block is solid, but it deforms slightly under the stresses of the bolts. Getting perfectly round holes will assure good ring sealing, which results in more power, better mileage, less blow-by, etc. Don't skimp on good machine work.

[George G. Leverette]

The Aug 2002 issue of Mopar Muscle has an article on building a streetable 383. Some really good info and pictures. How many tools do you own or have access to, do you have a garage with plenty of room that can be tied up for a couple of months? A friend as tech advisor and helping hand would also be useful, any Mopar clubs in the area? There are stages in building an engine !. for a ring job to stop the oil flow the heads can be pulled, remove the oil pan and do a re-ring job and cvhange the rod bearings. 2 a local shop can do a rebuild for a few more bucks and save a lot of hassle. 3 it appears you are alluding to pulling the engine and trans and doing a complete rebuild with some modificans, good luck.

[Superman99]

Well i was suggesting that i was going to pull the engine. I dont think i could accomplish much without pulling it. I was thinking of attempting to rebuild the 727 while i am there and since the engine is out i am planning on striping the paint out of the engine bay and painting it or doing some sort of durable coating. I do have access to a fully loaded shop, it is a shop at a military base that i have been allowed to use. There is alot of knowledgable people there and it is only about a hundred a month to store the car inside and work on it. They have all the equipment to pull the motor and an area made to tear engines down and do rebuilds.

I hadnt even thought of just doing a re-ring job i wasnt even really aware that would be a good option on an older car.
So what should i do, i think the power its producing is good right now, but i have never had a car with this kind of engine or size. so it could still be lower then it should. How do i know what i should do with it? The main reason for me to tear it down was to get rid of all the leaks, oh and i also found a small half of a ring the diameter of a quarter under the old valve covers. I figured that meant alot was needed. So what should i do, any help would be great, thanks
Paul

[Doug Wilson]

1) pull the engine. 2) tear it down. 3) take it to a good MOPAR oriented machine shop. 4) do the machining they recommend for your intended use. 5) buy the parts you need (maybe asking us for suggestions). 6 ) reassemble with new parts. 7) don't drink while you are doing this. 8) put it in the car, fire it up and have fun!!

[Superman99]

Ok so what am i going to need for sure? I guess new pistons, camshaft and lifters, all new seals, rings for the pistons.
Other then that will i need a new crankshaft and if not will a new one give me more power? I was also thinking of getting new heads while i was doing all of this, i was thinking e-brock aluminum complete heads. What else will i need? thanks in advance
Paul

[72Challenger]

You definitely want to have the crank checked for straightness and for wear on the bearing surfaces. It can be machined if needed, no reason to replace it unless it is badly damaged or you want to build a stroker motor. The stroker would give you more power, a stock replacement would not. Strokers require custom pistons and balancing, more $.

You should also have the rods checked. You want to make sure they are straight and that the journal and pin bores are not worn. The rods can be reconditioned as well. Unless you plan on making a lot more power, stock rods are fine. If you want a little extra insurance, you can have stronger rod bolts installed. This also requires resizing the big ends as pressing out the old bolts distorts the rod slightly.

If you stay with the stock heads, you will want to have the valves ground (get a three angle valve job) and the seals replaced. You should also get new valve springs, especially if you are replacing the cam. Of course if you go with the E-brocks just bolt them on.

If you plan on doing the work yourself, get a shop manual and a good book on rebuilding Mopar engines. Worthwhile investment for sure.

Oh yeah, a couple more things. New timing chain and gears, preferably double roller. And a new oil pump for cheap insurance.

[freak007]

for your engine i think i would send your heads to Hughes and have the stage 1 porting done($825+S&H),add to that the HE1923Bl or HE21423BL cam and lifters($152+68),9-9.5 compression,there again hughes sells a good rebuild kit,complete and balanced with rods,crank,damper,and flex plate for $1755,that leaves you with bore/hone(10per hole) mill the block($50) a good 4bbl intake($200) 750 holley 4150($300) headers($200) HP ignition($200) timing kit($50) HV oil pump($50)



for a total of $4000 you can expect apx 450 HP

a set of 4.10-4.30 gears,and a 2500 stall converter,it would still be very streetable,and mid-low 13's would be WELL within reach...

[Doug Wilson]

I can testify that the "out-of-the-box" Edelbrock heads are great, as is, for a hot street engine. Bang for the buck (for heads) can't be beaten. The ones we put on the HELLFISH are great!

[dirty dan]

I agree buy and read all you can before you start. That way you will have an idea of what you are looking at when you start to disassemble the engine. And even more inportantly you will have a better understanding of what the machinest will be telling you about your engine. Don`t buy anything!!!!! Get the engine apart and in the machine shop. Get it cleaned and miked . Be patinet these things take time. wait for the machenist to tell you such things as how much bore is required and such. when you get the facts then you can make better decisions. Once you have the facts and figures we will be able to offer you better info. Be carefull not to put the horse before the cart. Waiting on the facts. Dirty Dan

[Superman99]

Well I am going to go ahead and strip her down this coming weekend hopefully. I thought i would run though my basic plan and see what everyone sayes.
I already have the following parts installed currently or previously purchased.
E-brock performer manifold
e-brock 750cfm carb with e-choke
msd 6al with blaster coil
MP electric ign.

I am planning on striping down the block and doing the machine shop thing like everyone said, then i will buy the rebuild kit.
I am still dont know what kit to buy. Should i get that hughes kit mentioned above? Or a different one? Plus whats the deal on a stoker kit? I havnt heard of that before.
After that is solved i figure i will get e-brock heads unless they wont work with the above items or anything else that is installed. I will also be installing a better cam while i am in there.
Any other things i should do while i am in there?
Thanks
Paul

[freak007]

the hughes kit is a good deal,because it is balanced and includes a new damper and flex plate,but shop around,see if you can find a better deal,PAW is real good for inexpensive rebuild kits...

[turbotim23]

Don't rebuild that motor in the middle of summer.Buy anther motor at junk yard or swapmeet and drive you car until that one is rebuilt.While your at it a 440 would make much more power,For not much more cost. Check your valve cover gaskets,and valve seals.I bet that you don't have any valve seals left,they get hard and crack apart.You can replace them using air pressure and not even have to remove head. I would find someone to do a cheap stock valve job,that would fix bad valve guides also.You could do this in a weekend for under 200.00,It would burn a lot less oil and you could drive the rest of summer!

[Doug Wilson]

Good point from turbotim!

[Superman99]

well after alot of discussion with some friends, and my father i have decided that the engine runs great right now expect for the leaks so i am just going to look at the valves and re do all the seals. The engine currently has no smoke and only leaks oil, but doesnt burn it as far as i can tell. Any one how hard it is to replace all the seals and if i need to pull the motor to do it?
Perhaps in the future i will rebuild it or do a stroker
Thanks
Paul

[dirty dan]

You wont have to pull the engine unless the rear main is leaking. Iwould start with the valve cover gaskets and check the oil sending unit for leaks. Next I would clean the engine so that any other leaks can be located and repaired. do them one at a time. there arn`t that many places that those engines leak from. Remember rule #1 If it I`nt broke don`t fix it. Happy trails.

[Superman99]

I think the rear main is leaking and the oil pan. The valve covers are new so the leak is not from there. The heads might be leaking too but i dont know if they can leak oil. So i think i may be pulling the engine regardless.

[turbotim23]

Wash that sucker then find the leaks! Don't jump to conclusions.All of that could be done with the motor in the car.I beleive they make a special tool to help instal rear main seal with it still in car.Changing valve seals in car can be done very quickly.Just takes air fitting to blow air into cylinder[I made my own by welding air fitting to old sparkplug].Also takes spring compressor.I'm sure you could rent[try Autozone] or buy these for next to nothing.

[Superman99]

I have washed it and i see oil going from around the pan, which i think would be very hard to get out because of the cross member. There is also oil coming from somewhere around where the tranny connects which i am assuming is coming from the rear seal. When i had a dual exhaust put on the exhaust guy said rear seal too.
As for the valve seals i am not sure where that is? Can anyone clarify for me? Is it part of the heads? I was thinking of putting e-brock heads on, so would that replace the seals?
Also how do i check the oil sending unit?
Thanks

[turbotim23]

Well I've replaced the oil pan gasket in the car before.While not fun it can be done.Helps to Pull long bolt out of motor mounts and raise motor.Valve seals are under valve springs.pull valve covers you can see very easily with flashlight.

[Superman99]

So new complete e-brock heads would fix this right?

[dirty dan]

The e heads would replace the valve seals. look on the back of the engine on top that is were the oil sending unit lives many times when these leak peple think it is the rear main. because when they leak the oil runs down over the back of engine and along where the trans bolts to the engine. and they can become a substantial leak. happy trails

[Doug Wilson]

Antbody ask how many miles are on it? If it's a lot, you might save doing some of the stuff twice by doing an overhaul.

[Doug Wilson]

That should read "anybody".

[451Mopar]

I rebuilt my 383 with the Summit rebuild kit with the forged flat top pistons. The engine was OK, but not great. The pistons don't produce a good compression ratio with the Fel-Pro head gaskets unless you mill the heads, and then the pistons have no valve reliefs. I just used a fairly mild cam and my piston to valve clearance was very tight. In fact, when I over reved the 383, I crashed the #3 intake valve on the piston and bent the valve.

I would look into using the Keith Black pistons (KB#162). The piston still sits 0.024" below deck, but has large valve reliefs. The piston will still have fairly low compression ratio unless you use the thin head gasket and/or mill the heads. The other option is to offset grind the crank to gain a bit more stroke length. This will give more displacement and compression. With a 0.030" over bore and grinding the crank 0.010" offset (3.400" stroke) you will have a 391 cid engine. With stock engine block height, KB pistons, Felpro head gaskets, and 84 cc heads the engine will have 9.25:1 compression. Milling the block 0.020" will increase the compression to about 9.67:1

If you want alot of power out of the engine, just step-up to the Edelbrock heads. They have alot of bang for the buck. If you want stock appearance, you may want to check out the Muscle Motors special on 906 Heads. I think they are $699 for the heads outright with larger stainless valves, hardened exhaust seats, bronze guides, springs, retainers, etc.

I don't know your gearing, but a moderate sized cam like the Hughes HE2330BL should make alot of lower and midrange torque and work with the mild compression ratio.

[Doug Wilson]

451 is right about everything he says.

[451Mopar]

Doug, you should tell my wife that [duck]