318 performance and driveability.. advice please!

[K9COP]

Morning all.. I've got a numbers matching '68 318. It has 2.76 rear end, and is factory stock. The island I live on has a 50mph maximum speed limit, but that is only in a few places, and it's generally 40mph. I'd like some advice as to what to do to the car to generally improve it's driveability, and do the occasional burnout to annoy the cops (just kidding, I'm a cop here!)..

The car is an olive drab colour now, and I'm intending to change it to Sublime, as the interior is green, and I don't want to change it too much from original.

I've read a couple of the other 318 performance threads, and have come away a bit confused to be honest (the poor 16 year old who wants to beat ricers.. my car in the UK, where I'm from, which I haven't got round to selling, is an '89 Skyline GTR) what is a 2bbl, or 4bbl.. I thought that meant 2 or 4 barrel carb, but one of the threads says get a 4bbl AND a carb..

Anyway, I know you'll all say, "Buy a 360!" but I've become a bit obsessed with it being numbers matching.. does this REALLY matter? It's done 75K, so should hopefully be healthy enough.. the body will take a huge amount of work, so I'm probably running before I can walk, but any advice, bearing in mind the limitations of supply on an island, would be appreciated. Plus I've got that 3rd gen o fix up!

CaymanSublime

[K9COP]

Ok, done some more reading on here, and it seems everyone with a 318 is asking the same stuff. I'll keep researching, but if anyone has the patience to add more on here I'd be grateful. Thanks..

[74340charger]

Buy the edlebrock preformer package (heads, intake, and cam) make sure you change the timing chain, change the rear gear ratio because you don't need those highway gears, and you should have a car that takes off hard and is still really reliable and easy to return back to stock.

[daytonalo]

fantasy Island ? Boss , Boss , my feet cant reach the pedals !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!god rest his soul !!!!!!!!H.V

[moparjohn]

The 318 is a great engine, I know it's not the biggest or most powerful but it will hold up it's end for a long time and take alot of abuse. I cannot tell you how to build one, but it could be done very well.     By the way, get off that island!!! I know it must be a great place but I could not live there.

[tkkruzer]

must be rough to live on an island (LOL)here are some sites to help you build a great engine out of that 318. next , question? do you have access to an automotve machine shop? have the engine balanced if you do. this helps them last. also better gears as resently spoken of. freeway gears are of no benifit.and that is what you have, perhaps 3.55's or sootherwise read these articles they should help.( http://www.moparmusclemagazine.com/techarticles/155_0312_318_long_block_bolt_ons)(/http://www.popularhotrodding.com/enginemasters/articles/mopar/0667em_mopar_318_engine)(/http://www.carcraft.com/howto/116_0401_318)(/http://www.hotrod.com/howto/113_0304_318_small_block_build/index.html) maybe you can get some ideas..good luck..TK

[K9COP]

Thanks for the info guys. I'll look for some different gears for the rear end..

Moparjohn.. why couldn't you live here?

Thanks

[moparjohn]

First off, I don't know where you are, what island?  I only said that half jokingly. I do, however, enjoy driving my car 65-70 MPH for 6-7 hours a day. Some of our other members can tell you I drive my car on  alot of long distance  trips. OH Cayman Island I think I got it. I also have a hard time obeying speed limits (they're so limiting) I only stick to the 25 MPH speed limits when posted, otherwise I'm usually 5-10 over. How many miles of road does Cayman have? I hope you know I was only kidding about living there. John

[K9COP]

ha ha.. just wondered if you had knowledge of the place as it's soooooooooooooooooooooooooooo frustrating. I come from the UK, and have been a petrol head for as long as I can remember. I own a Skyline GTR in the UK, and had a great trip to the Nurburgring in it in 2005. I miss driving fast, although my Crown Vic (I'm a cop here - dog handler) gets a good workout most days.

The island is only 22 miles by four miles, but there's enough roads to use, it is fairly limiting though.. hadn't really thought about it until you mentioned it..

The speed limits are farily well enforced here, which I why I don't need a screaming Charger, just something that'll loaf about will be cool.

[moparjohn]

Cool then, oh by the way nice Charge in your pic- I happen to be a big fan of green!

[K9COP]

Thanks. My plan is either a classy dark dark green metallic, or Sublime!

[Silver R/T]

personally Id stroke it

[K9COP]

Sound expensive.. go on..

[Bones68charger]

It is... very $$$$

[K9COP]

Let me stop you right there then. I WANT FREE HP!! Doesn't everyone? What I want to hear is "If you take the intake widget of a 98 Dodge Generic, and put it on a 318, you get 400bhp... and they made 10 squillion of them.. so there should even be one on this pokey litle rock in the Caribbean..

[Bones68charger]

I have a 318 car also, and 318s were not meant to be performance engines out of the factory, but that does not mean you can't do it. I am hoping to get 350 pones out of mine, now I know it is not going to be the fastest car in the world but who cares, it will be fun enough for me. There are plenty of threads dedicated to HP 318s, and they have helped me tons.. I will have probably have $3000 at least if not more into my engine when its done, including carb intake, rebuild, exaust parts etc..... make that $4000. Going fast costs money. I am lucky my dads runs a tractor shop where I can use the equipment and help from his car nut employees.. 

[dart3404]

Thanks. My plan is either a classy dark dark green metallic, or Sublime!

SUBLIME all the way!!!! 
All though I kinda like the color that it is now.

[mikepmcs]

In reference to the 2bbl and 4bbl.  Most likely they meant get a 4bbl(barrel) manifold and a 4bbl carb. That would be your quickest power upgrade.  If you have an 8-3/4 rear end then you can read on this site  http://www.4secondsflat.com/rearendtech2.html  and figure out what center (3rd member) with a possible lower gear will come out of what other vehicle and just swap out the center. Trucks and vans are most likely your best bet to get a better ratio.  Headers and exhaust are also a cheap upgrade to gain a little Horse Power.
Those are the 3 things I can think of that it appears to me will give you the immediate "seat of the pants" performance you are looking for for the least cash and work involved.

This link will help you identify your rear end although i'm guessing it is an 8-3/4.

http://www.moparts.com/Tech/Archive/axle/6.html

I vote for the sublime as well, although the green on your car looks nice too. If you can just shine it up, then I would leave it that way.

v/r
Mike

[K9COP]

Thanks guys. The photo is quite flattering, as it's wet from washing off 17 years of Michigan grime. The paint is shot, micro blistered to hell all over, and looks olive drab matte when dry. I love the Sublime colour (although I understand it's a 1970 colour) but I'm just concerned it'll be a 'one trick pony' and I'll get bored of it...

Mike, thanks for the tech stuff.. I'll go hunting. There's thousands of vehicles here from Hurricane Ivan, so getting a rear end should be easy..

[deputycrawford]

I would personally go with a 4:10 gear in the rear like I have. It sounds big but I do 60 MPH all the time with 28 inch tall rear tires. You will will quite happy with the biggest seat of the pants feel from the swap. Then I would go to Headers. Dynomax makes a very inexspensive ceramic coated header. Then go to an Edelbrock Performer RPM intake and four barrell carb. After that go with a cam and transmission torque converter package. You will be happy with those six miles of roads out there.

Oh, by the way. I'm not a cop but I play one on T.V.....

[mikepmcs]

You Lie!!!!

Anyway, good sound advice, he's got another thread going that will cooberate this one...

v/r
Mike

[mopar_head]

Morning all.. I've got a numbers matching '68 318. It has 2.76 rear end, and is factory stock. The island I live on has a 50mph maximum speed limit, but that is only in a few places, and it's generally 40mph. I'd like some advice as to what to do to the car to generally improve it's driveability, and do the occasional burnout to annoy the cops (just kidding, I'm a cop here!)..

The car is an olive drab colour now, and I'm intending to change it to Sublime, as the interior is green, and I don't want to change it too much from original.

I've read a couple of the other 318 performance threads, and have come away a bit confused to be honest (the poor 16 year old who wants to beat ricers.. my car in the UK, where I'm from, which I haven't got round to selling, is an '89 Skyline GTR) what is a 2bbl, or 4bbl.. I thought that meant 2 or 4 barrel carb, but one of the threads says get a 4bbl AND a carb..

Anyway, I know you'll all say, "Buy a 360!" but I've become a bit obsessed with it being numbers matching.. does this REALLY matter? It's done 75K, so should hopefully be healthy enough.. the body will take a huge amount of work, so I'm probably running before I can walk, but any advice, bearing in mind the limitations of supply on an island, would be appreciated. Plus I've got that 3rd gen o fix up!

CaymanSublime

hehe that would be me =D

and about that whole ''threads says get a 4bbl AND a carb.."" it threw me off for the longest time to..... i think it might have been a typo or some one jsut picking on the noob so he can mess up     its all good though i know wat he means now