New to me, need some advice
 

I have inherited a 1972 Gold Duster 225ci slant 6. It was my grandfathers, then my father's, and now mine. I am new to the Mopar scene. Back before 4 kids, I was a GM muscle fan. This car is bone stock with only 42k on it. It even still has the stock wheels and hubcaps. I have done nothing to it yet but correct a small fuel leak. I am torn. Leave it as is, or 340 clone it. I welcome all comments and suggestions. Thanks!

Thanks!
 

Thanks for the advice! D you know what the cost of a package like that would run? I definitely have the power bug chewing all over me! I went from a '71 GTO to a minivan. Haven't had my head snapped back in a long time!

well .this is a hard ordeal... do you want to keep it stock for the generations past? or do you want to give the generations ahead to hoo and haw over? if it were me id put a V8 in it. but put the 6 and tranny in a safe place.

I'd put a 360 in it. Like 66sportfury said, you can keep the original drivetrain if you ever want to return it to original. You can use the slant six K member and use motor mounts from Schumacher (they're on the internet). If you don't already have discs on the front, pull them off a later model A-body ('73 and up?) at the wrecking yard. It's a worthwhile upgrade anyway. You might be lucky - the front end I got to replace the drums on my Duster came off a Gold Duster. Grab the proportioning valve too - you'll need it. And if you have a 7 1/4 rear end you'll need to step up to an 8 1/4 at least to handle a V8. Again, it'll give you better brakes on the back and unlike 8 3/4s they can still be found under A-bodies in wrecking yards and it'll bolt straight in. Or move the spring perches on a B-body 8 3/4 and use that. Some wrenching, mostly wrecking yard parts with a few aftermarket parts and you'll have a fun car that'll stop in the wet :thumbsup:

Sticking a bigger engine in it and keeping the whole original package to one side has more merit than turbocharging, as that will bring broken bits in its wake...

But there are other options. A more traditional hop-up of the slant (or even another slant to enable you to keep the original original) can unleash plenty of performance... triple carbs (I would go for 2" SUs), headers, cam, compression etc... it could be very interesting to drive.

I would think it's an automatic? Go with a 4-speed... preferably an overdrive A833 and make your tunnel hump (that clears the linkages etc) removable so you can reverse the process if you wish. This will give you a much improved driving experience with the tall fourth gear enabling you to cruise economically.

You're right... I don't know that it will leave bits lying on the road...

But I've seen an awful lot of heartache over turbos over the years.

I remember the gold duster being a special package,like 40 pounds lighter than a normal duster,much sought after in the need for speed.

feather duster was the lite one.