What motor for a Ply. Arrow truck? Don't reply to the other thread...

[jslikness]

Don't know why my poll didn't work but here ya go:

Alright, here's the deal. My buddy's got an 84 Plymouth Arrow truck (same as the Ram 50), and we're trying to decide what to do with it. Here's my rundown on the choices and why we would do each:

1) 2.6 Turbo It's already got the 2.6, and I can get a turbo and EFI setup off a Conquest/Starion and make some killer HP, but the EFI is kinda funky from what I've heard.

2) 2.0 DOHC Turbo (4G63 from a DSM) Done some research, and this is my favorite choice because it hasn't been done too much. The 4G63 will handle 400-500hp on the stock bottom end, and aftermarket support is plentiful. But, this one will require quite a bit of fabrication, which I'm not too scared of.

3) 2.5 SOHC Chrysler Turbo I would have to get the motor out of a first gen Dakota, and get the turbo, manifold, and ECU from a Daytona or other Turbo II car. Pretty simple, might have to fabricate the motor mounts...

4) 3.9 Magnum V6 Twin Turbo I could use the Garret TO3's that are easily found on both Chryslers and T-bird TC's, but this one would probably be the most expensive option

5) Old School 318 I'm pretty sure this one will get the most votes, and probably makes the most sense, but it would be cool to have something different. It's a tight fit for a 318, but it definetly does fit, and would probably be the easiest option to get some good HP from.

Go ahead and cast your votes!

[dwc43]

I'd go with a 318 or better yeat a 360 since they are the same size. If you wish to sell the 2.6 let me know. We just bought a race car and a spare body for my brother to run on the dirt track. It's an '80 Challenger.

[MoparMarcIdaho]

doesnt everybody?rear end from an early dart or something and go from there with the rest of the drivetrain from donor vehicle is cost effective and simple.I have one too and have been thinking along theses same lines myself.Parked right next to it is a 72 Sattelite wagon that runs good.with just a 2 barrel it would get good milage and be a test platform for numerous mods.Rear end might live for a while as a peg leg,just be nice.

[jslikness]

Reason for the 318 is I already have one, and we could build it mega-low buck. I figured all the votes would go to the 318...

The older I get, the more I want something different than what everyone else has got though...

[MoparMarcIdaho]

on what gets dumped in your lap.

[jslikness]

well, I've already got a 318 and a 2.6, and had someone who wanted to sell me a setup from a Conquest for the 2.6 with the turbo, manifold, ecu, harness, etc., but he never let me know how much, so.....

The 2.6 would still be the cheapest, the 318 we'd have to track down brackets, tranny, and the rear end would have to be replaced in short order.

I can still get engines and trannys for fairly cheap from the local boneyards, so I'm pretty much wide open. See I got one vote for the 3.9 though. The way my friend is talking though, he might want to build up the 3.9 in his 95 Dak, and sell me the Arrow, and if I get it, I'm going with #2...

[dwc43]

Well, let me kn0w if you want to sell that 2.6.

[71RR]

I would go with the 2.4L Turbo out of the SRT-4 and the PT Turbo.

[jslikness]

Yeah, I wouldn't mind that, but they're a little harder to come by....

Maybe in a couple years when some more turn up wrecked in the boneyards...

Oh, and as far as the 2.6 goes, I have another guy that has dibs on it, but if he doesn't want it , I'll let you know. Actually, he wants it for his own circle track Challenger... Small world I guess...

[jslikness]

Yeah, I wouldn't mind that, but they're a little harder to come by....

Maybe in a couple years when some more turn up wrecked in the boneyards...

[dwc43]

Originally posted by jslikness
Yeah, I wouldn't mind that, but they're a little harder to come by....

Maybe in a couple years when some more turn up wrecked in the boneyards...

Oh, and as far as the 2.6 goes, I have another guy that has dibs on it, but if he doesn't want it , I'll let you know. Actually, he wants it for his own circle track Challenger... Small world I guess...

Thanks. Does your friend run dirt or asphalt? Would like to swap some info around if possible. Looking for a good cam for ours to start with. Got any ideas? My brother will be running it on dirt. Our other cars will stick with asphalt though. I thought I could get away from playing in the dirt, but I'm back again. Anything for my brother though. He's helped me with my cars long enough, now I need to pay him back a little.

[jslikness]

He's planning on running asphalt with it, although I'm not sure if he'll ever actually finish it all the way. Right now he's got the car stripped down and was going to pull the cage out of one of his older ministocks and put in it, but he's got so many projects going who knows when he'll get it done. He right now has two Limited Sportsmans that he runs, and he was thinking about building the Challenger for his youngest.

As far as swapping info, pretty much all he knows about that car, he got from me... Don't get me wrong, I don't know that much, but he's not too comupter saavy, and has a hard time doing any type of research. Other than the link I gave you on the other thread, I haven't found too much else, but then I haven't been looking too aggressively either, but if I run across something, I'll let you know...

[dwc43]

Thanks. Every little bit helps.

[jslikness]

Well, looks like I'm going against the flow again. I got my hands on an 80 D50 for free (the Arrow was actually my buddy's that I was gonna buy from him), and since my buddy with the 2.6 Arrow wants to do the 318 swap, I'm gonna turbo the 2.6 and drop it in my truck.

My plans are to have it as a reliable budget build up. The bottom end isn't gonna need much, just get rid of the balance shafts and balance up the rotating assembly, drop in some JE pistons and some good ARP bolts throughout. The head is just gonna have the auxillary valves removed, a little port work done, a three angle valve job, and a bigger cam. For the intake and carb, I'm thinking about modifying the stock intake to bolt up a Holley 2 barrel, and then for the turbo it'll be of junkyard variety, either a Garrett TO4 or a Toyota CT26 most likely.

Anyway, it's most likely that nobody cares... But I'll keep everyone updated on my truck, and my friends Arrow, since someone might actually be interested in dropping a 318 in the truck... :P

And as far as the 318 goes, we'll probably build it close to the Junkyard Jewel Hot Rod Magazine motor, except I'm not sure about enlarging the 318 heads to the 360 intake size... So anyway, we'll build em both, and then I'll let you know which one's faster...

[MoparMarcIdaho]

weight to horse power ratio,and good luck with both.

[jslikness]

The way it's looking, we're hoping for about 325 at the flywheel on the 318, and maybe 225 on the 2.6, so I think he's got me even with the extra weight, but we'll see how the traction issue is...