Advice for 1970 Sport Satellite

[Moparfiend]

If it is the motor @69Bee is down here is southern Arizona but you won't find a better machine shop. Dave is a Mopar guy and will do it right.

Hi Jim thanks I might just need that help for a rebuild. Need to confirm the engine is actually seized.

Bill did mention some other options for long blocks and I was looking last night into some 408 strokers from BluePrint Engines at ~$4500. Those might be a better way for me to go than putting that into a rebuild since I am more interested in performance over originality.

Thoughts?

 

[Billccm]

I have two friends who went with O'Reilly (one was a kragens) 318 long blocks. The price was great and they have had no issues whatsoever. Disclaimer is both are bone stock rides.

Mopar performance crate 360 long blocks are something to consider. Not entirely plug and play in a b body, but a good choice. I believe the passenger side motor mount needs modification.

 

[Moparfiend]

Feast on this. Great Westech dyno on the Blueprint engine. I actually saw this show on YouTube a fee weeks ago. This is the result of their 408 stroker with aluminum heads. The torque curve is not bad at all at 2500RPM! And at 3000 goes ballistic.

 

[JimKueneman]

Seems about right! I think I have about 350-360 ft-lbs at 2500 based on the model but I have been over 3500 RPM once in 6000 miles! I drive like an old lady so I did not see the benefit of spending the time and money in figuring out what else I was forgetting I needed to do in the conversion

 

[Moparfiend]

Ok here is the short of it. I pulled off the fan took 2 mins and tried to roatate the assembly with a breaker bar and extension no movement. So I yanked the plugs.....and water came out #8 and #3 cylinders AND then I was able to rotate the crank lol. All I can do is laugh.....

 

[JimKueneman]

Ok here is the short of it. I pulled off the fan took 2 mins and tried to roatate the assembly with a breaker bar and extension no movement. So I yanked the plugs.....and water came out #8 and #3 cylinders AND then I was able to rotate the crank lol. All I can do is laugh.....

Head-gasket and your done!

 

[JimKueneman]

"It ran when it was parked"

 

[PP1RT]

Guessing the rod noise you heard had something to do with the coolant leaking in. If i were you i would be wondering about the rod bearings. Sometimes you get lucky on a hydrolock...sometimes not. Slap both headgaskets on and hope for the best. Dont forget fresh oil and filter before starting again. If she runs after all this you will want to change your oil again real soon...like after an hour of run time to make sure you have any stray mousture worked out of the system. Milky oil=water/moisture in the oil.

 

[Moparfiend]

Guessing the rod noise you heard had something to do with the coolant leaking in. If i were you i would be wondering about the rod bearings. Sometimes you get lucky on a hydrolock...sometimes not. Slap both headgaskets on and hope for the best. Dont forget fresh oil and filter before starting again. If she runs after all this you will want to change your oil again real soon...like after an hour of run time to make sure you have any stray mousture worked out of the system. Milky oil=water/moisture in the oil.

Thanks PP1 yup its a big crap shoot aint it! This whole project has been from day 1. I might just try and sawp the gaskets to see if she will be ok. Everyone says the 318 is bulletproof lol..... other than dropping the oul pan which I would think I ned to di to drain the water lol any way to check or inspect the rod bearings?

 

[JimKueneman]

Thanks PP1 yup its a big crap shoot aint it! This whole project has been from day 1. I might just try and sawp the gaskets to see if she will be ok. Everyone says the 318 is bulletproof lol..... other than dropping the oul pan which I would think I ned to di to drain the water lol any way to check or inspect the rod bearings?

If you go that far I would throw in a new set of bearings and a quick hone and rings if the crank and cylinder walls look ok. Then you can see if the rods are bent. A rebuild (refresh) kit for those is cheap. Then you know what you have and get it on the road. Probably less than $500

 

[Kern Dog]

I had replaced my tank, but the replacement (a good working tank, by the way) was not constructed the exact same way. The 1970 California tanks had a separate "little" internal gas tank that you can see in the picture. The intent of this thing was to reduce gas spillage by slowly absorbing gas, but slower than what you could pump it. So when you pumped the tank "full", the level decreased a bit afterwards and (supposedly) reduced potential spillage out the vent or gas cap.

Anyway, I cut up the tank because (a) I was curious about the construction of the tank and (b) I had to cut it up to throw it out in the trash. Now, before people flame me for being an idiot and being lucky not to blow myself up, I only cut it up MONTHS after I took it out, vented and cleaned it - just in case!

Hawk

Hey man...THanks for that! I have a 70 Charger and now know where those 4 vent nipples run to. Strange! The 1970 Charger has a series of hard lines that run to a 2 1/2" metal tube that is on the RH side of the trunk floor. I'm guessing that the other 1970 B body cars have a similar setup.
I replaced my tank in 2002. It still looks great inside today 16 years later. My old tank was 32 years old when I replaced it and it too was full of brownish dust. My car sat for 12 years before the most recent prior owner got it. I think that "sitting" is one of the worst things you can do to these cars. Frequent use keeps things in motion. The tank rust is certainly from condensation that would not have formed as bad if the car was driven often.

 

[SublimeSixpack]

Thanks PP1 yup its a big crap shoot aint it! This whole project has been from day 1. I might just try and sawp the gaskets to see if she will be ok. Everyone says the 318 is bulletproof lol..... other than dropping the oul pan which I would think I ned to di to drain the water lol any way to check or inspect the rod bearings?

Everyone has their own approach on a situation like this, personally I'd pull the engine, put it on a stand, dig into it and see what I find then go from there. Projects like this quite often turn into a can of worms. You already know that.
But before making any big decisions I suggest you at least check the block's freeze plugs. If they're seeping coolant or are rusted thin they'll need to be replaced. (There's also two on the back of the engine that may need replacing, and to do so you'll have to pull the engine or trans. to get to those two).
Often times it's just easier to pull the engine. Much easier to work on that way.
On another matter that 408 engine sounds like a good option. Although at 438 horsepower your A904 transmission may not hold up long if you plan to hammer on it.

 

[Kern Dog]

Sometimes you get lucky on a hydrolock...sometimes not. Slap both headgaskets on and hope for the best. Dont forget fresh oil and filter before starting again. If she runs after all this you will want to change your oil again real soon...like after an hour of run time to make sure you have any stray moisture worked out of the system. Milky oil=water/moisture in the oil.

In 1996 I was trail running in my 73 318 Duster. I saw a swollen creek ahead and figured that I could make it. It was about 30 feet across and 30 inches deep in the middle. I was on the throttle and got through but it stalled out after I was on the other side. I had tools so I pulled the spark plugs and spun the engine over. Several holes shot water out! I blew on the plugs to dry them out then put them all back in. It fired up and ran fine afterwards.

 

[JimKueneman]

Everyone has their own approach on a situation like this, personally I'd pull the engine, put it on a stand, dig into it and see what I find then go from there. Projects like this quite often turn into a can of worms. You already know that.
But before making any big decisions I suggest you at least check the block's freeze plugs. If they're seeping coolant or are rusted thin they'll need to be replaced. (There's also two on the back of the engine that may need replacing, and to do so you'll have to pull the engine or trans. to get to those two).
Often times it's just easier to pull the engine. Much easier to work on that way.
On another matter that 408 engine sounds like a good option. Although at 438 horsepower your A904 transmission may not hold up long if you plan to hammer on it.

He would snap off the pinion shaft of the -741 rear end first!

 

[SublimeSixpack]

He would snap off the pinion shaft of the -741 rear end first!

That's just the opposite of what I've experienced with a similar power train!

 

[Moparfiend]

Yeah just throwing in some gaskets maybe too little too late but its a low cost last ditch approach to possibly try before a complete tear down or replacement. If I break transmissions or rearends that just means the engine is working really well right? Lol

 

[Kern Dog]

The durability of the axle is directly related to the traction at hand. If the tires are spinning, the axle isn't being as stressed as it would be if the tires grab and hook.

 

[SublimeSixpack]

Yeah just throwing in some gaskets maybe too little too late but its a low cost last ditch approach to possibly try before a complete tear down or replacement. If I break transmissions or rearends that just means the engine is working really well right? Lol

At least you have a good attitude and sense of humor about your project.

 

[Moparfiend]

At least you have a good attitude and sense of humor about your project.

Too be 100% honest I am not sure I am up to the task to tackle the scope of this project and am now wondering if I should get out now before I am in way over my head.......my health is not as good as it needs to be to be doing a lot of this work......so I have to unfortunately seriously consider if this project it still in my wheelhouse...

 

[SublimeSixpack]

Too be 100% honest I am not sure I am up to the task to tackle the scope of this project and am now wondering if I should get out now before I am in way over my head.......my health is not as good as it needs to be to be doing a lot of this work......so I have to unfortunately seriously consider if this project it still in my wheelhouse...

Sorry to hear about the health issue. Maybe just take it slow and get some car buds to help you. If I were closer I'd be happy to help. Good luck.