1976 truck 440 in 1968 Charger

[Silver68RT]

I'm working on getting my '68 Charger R/T running, and just figured out that it's got a '76 truck 440 in it.  The lower water pump port is on the passenger side, and my new 26" radiator has the lower port on the driver's side.  Can I just get a new passenger car water pump, and swap it out, or is there more to it?  I saw one on Mancini Racing website, aluminum, high flow.  What else is different between the '76 truck 440, and a '68 Charger 440?  It's got an auto in it now, but the car was originally a 4-speed, and my plan is to put a 4-speed back in it.  Is the crank likely to be machined for a pilot bushing, and if not, what can I do about that?

Thanks,

Doug
Silver68RT

[67_Dodge_Charger]

The exhaust manifolds, valve covers and water pump housing are different.  Yes you will have to have the engine balanced for the 4 speed. 

good luck
-Robert

[andyf]

Well first off, how do you know it is a truck engine?  The passenger side inlet was used on most if not all late model big blocks including the ones in Cordobas and other cars.  My guess is that you just have a late model big block and not a truck engine.  A 1976 passenger car engine will be stamped 6T440 on the ID pad near the distributor.  T does not mean truck, it means Trenton.

You can change the water pump housing by pulling the six bolts that hold it on and swapping.  The aluminum water pump housing will be a lot lighter than that cast iron one that is on there now.

[Silver68RT]

OK, I thought the water outlet was a car / truck thing.  I looked for 440's on eBay, and all the cars I saw were drivers side, and all the trucks were passenger side.  The top pad has 7T440, so I guess it's actually a '77 motor.  The casting number is 4006630-440-4.  Date looks like "11 1 76", and there's a stamp that looks like "7D 16 0" down by the pan rail.

Sounds like it's going to be more complicated than I thought to put a 4-speed back in this thing.

Thanks,

Doug
Silver68RT

[694spdRT]

You likely have a cast crank engine unless the crank was replaced at some point with a steel one. With the cast crank you will need to have an externally balanced flywheel and I am not sure if they even made a cast crank 440 4 speed flywheel. Like you mentioned, the pilot bearing issue is something you will have to check too.

[Todd Wilson]

Well first off, how do you know it is a truck engine?  The passenger side inlet was used on most if not all late model big blocks including the ones in Cordobas and other cars.  My guess is that you just have a late model big block and not a truck engine.  A 1976 passenger car engine will be stamped 6T440 on the ID pad near the distributor.  T does not mean truck, it means Trenton.

You can change the water pump housing by pulling the six bolts that hold it on and swapping.  The aluminum water pump housing will be a lot lighter than that cast iron one that is on there now.

I'd like to see pictures of the late model car 440's with passenger side inlet.


Your truck engine will have a different oil pan and pickup tube, Different exhaust manifolds and the water pump housing is different along with timing cover. The timing cover will work but you dont see the timing marks unless you use the cover and housing that goes together.  The truck engine might have different heads on it. Depending on what it came out of your rods and pistons will be different. Lower compression and maybe heavier rods. You may or may not have pilot bushing issues but there are kits available to take care of this.


Todd

[andyf]

7T440 would most likely be a 1977 440.  Could be from a passenger car or a light truck (pickup).  I doubt it is a heavy duty truck engine but can't really tell unless you post a picture.  What else is on the ID pad?  If there is an E stamped on the pad then the motor has a cast crank in it and probably isn't set up for a pilot bushing.

Lots of passenger cars came with the passenger side inlet, take a look at any Cordoba from that era and you'll see a passenger inlet.  The PS pump was dropped down low on the driver side so they moved the water pump inlet to the other side.

[Silver68RT]

I took a closer look at the pad, and it does say "7T440 E", I missed it the "E" first time I checked. 

It's not completely stock, because it's got an Edelbrock intake, Holley carb, headers, and there was a Crane Cam card in with the paperwork. 
Other than that, I have no idea what's in it.  I don't know if it's 8:1 or 12:1 compression.  The previous owner died, and he didn't build the engine, so anything that guy told him is lost.

It may just blow up, judging by some of the other handywork I see.  If you look close at the pic, you can see where they cut out the middle of the core support.  I can't imagine why, but I wouldn't fix a radiator with a big blob of epoxy, either.  I figured I'd try to get it running, and see what I've got, go from there.

I can take some more pictures if there's something you want to see.

Doug
Silver68RT

[firefighter3931]

You've got other problems. From the pic it looks lke you're missing the upper core support.....that needs to be fixed pronto because it affects the structural integrity of the chassis. I wouldn't drive this car until that was fixed. 

Ron

[andyf]

It is probably out of a late model car or maybe a pickup truck.  You might be able to tell more by looking at the VIN stamped on the passenger side oil pan rail.  You'll just have to get into it to see what is there.  If you pull the valve cover you'll be able to see what the casting number on the heads is.  Most likely a 452 head but could be anything.  Another thing to look at is the crank damper.  See if it has a cast crank damper on there or a forged one.

A compression check is always a good idea on a motor like that where you aren't too sure what parts are in it.  That will give you a clue to the compression, timing and general health of the motor.

[Silver68RT]

I've got a core support coming from Desert Valley Auto Parts.  Is that a bolt-in thing, or is it welded in?  I haven't taken anything apart yet to see what's involved in replacing it.  I'll see if I can borrow a compression tester from someone, that's a good idea.  I pulled the plugs, and squirted some oil in the cylinders, and bought an oil pump priming shaft, but I haven't tried turning it over or primed it yet.  It hasn't been started in at least 10 years.  I'm going to change the oil first, and drain the gas tank.  Any other suggestions before I try to bring this thing back to life?

Thanks,

Doug
Silver68RT