Can you build a streetable pump gas friendly 318. I was wanting to build a 318 duster that performs but is not high performance. I want a car i can drive to the strip and run high 12's low 13's? any one know if thats possible. I would appreciate the advice.  

Hot Rod Magazine had a 318 build up recently.  They used mid '80s heads to get the engine to perform.  They stated that the heads on a 318 are the limitting factor and that 340-360 heads have too large a combustion chamber resulting in low compression.  They got over 400hp from the engine.  A good source of info is Hughs Engines for parts and advice:

http://www.hughesengines.com/

Bill

could you show me a link to their site that talks about that buildup or tell me what issue that was in?

Thanks

you can go with 340-360 heads as long as you go with the smaller 1.88" intake valve instead of the 2.02" intake valve.  Edelbrock heads wouldn't be a bad choice either.  

If you really wanna get deep into it. check out the book how to hotrod small block mopar.   

A streetable 318 that runs on pump gas that runs high 12's to low 13's??? Yep, with a blower. Pass up on the 318 and go with a 360. These engines make more torque and horsepower for the SAME cost as rebuilding a 318. Do your horsepower to weight ratio math, you will need torque. Everybody has a opinion on what is steetable. How fast do you think the stock 426 hemi cars went thru the 1/4 ?  They had good gas back then. good luck

What are you putting this engine in? With a 318 you should stay under 3200 lbs and you will still need a very beefy 318. The 360 would be a much better starting point if you want a small block.     

I hear everyone talking about Hemi's & 360's now-a-days. If I might speak my mind for a second and say I'm kinda tired of people drueling over the hemi's & 360's. They toss out the 318's like red headed step children. I have a bad-to-the-bone 318 bored .030 over with Edelbrock heads that puts out somewhere around 380 HP & 400ft lbs of torque. There's still quite a bit I can do to get even more out of it. The key was to mill the heads, get the compression up & get the heads breathing. And no it doesn't detonate, knock or ping. Edelbrock makes awesome heads for the smallblock Mopar. I openned the ports a little at the push rod pinch areas & polished the exhaust ports. Besides that, just make sure you upgrade & match the other components like an Edelbrock 600 or 750 carb, Edelbrock RPM intake, a nice size cam from .450" to .500" lift, 1.625"-1.75" headers & 3.55:1 or lower gears.

Right now I'm running a balanced engine with stock crank & rods, Edelbrock 6077 heads, 10.06:1 Compression, Keith Black hypereutectic pistons, Comp cam @ .447-.455 lift, double roller timing chain, Edelbrock Performer intake, Edelbrock 600 cfm Carb, Mopar orange box electronic ignition, 8mm wires, Dougs 1.625" primary tube 3" collector headers, dual 2.5" exhaust with crossover, Flowmaster 3 chamber mufflers, 2500 rpm converter & 2.76 non-possi gears. This settup gets my 71 Challenger across the 1/4 mile finish line in 14.5 seconds @ 98 mph. With 3.55 gears that would easily be 13.5 seconds. That's as fast as the 426 Hemi Road Runner ran in 1969! The 427 Rat-motor Chevy Vette ran 13.3.

Like I said, there's still a lot I could do with the carb, intake, cam & gears to get this car down the strip in high 12's to low 13's without a Hemi or a 360. Keep in mind this car is also heavier than your Duster. But know this for certain if you don't get yourself some slicks with this combo you better bring a gas mask at the starting line cause you'll be suckin tire smoke for days. The 318 is a very buildable engine. Problem is few people know it's potential or have the guts to build one & go up against a big block with one. My advise is to do your research & make sure you get clean iformation & facts, not opinions. 'How to Hot Rod a Smallblock Mopar' is an excellent resource book. I noticed one of the other members recomended it also.

The best part is, I have the numbers matching engine for my car that gets great gas mileage & hauls tail. You can too. Don't be afraid to put a little money into one of these very durable 318 engines. They're practically bulletproof. My 318 easily revs over 6000 rpm with not even so much as a hickup. Anything over 5000 rpm & you better hold on cause it starts really getting wild. Torque comes in down low around 1500 rpm & builds all the way up. I've had this engine over 6000 rpm & it only wants more. If you build this engine just follow the aftermarket parts instructions carefully. And if you have any questions call the manufacturer tech lines. In fact call them anyway just to pick their brains. You won't regret building a 318 right. And when the 360 or Hemi guys ask what in the world you have under the hood, you can really embarrass them by telling them. If you have any questions you can email me dirrect at RooferDan@aol.com 

Obviously I'm a roofing contractor so any engine advise is free of charge.

I get down with that. For my final project at JTI i build a crazy 318. Never dynoed it, but I'm sure it makes mighty fine powerr and torque. I like this guys attitude. Dont follow the trends. Do it your own way, that's what this is all about to me  

Hey dude, did you decide on what motor to build? How much money do you have to do a rebuild? Here in wichita, 318's and 360's go for about 50.00 bucks. I don't remember if you ever read the story about Herb McCandless building a 630hp 360. If you were to spend that kind of money like someone else on this post, hp vs cost, definitely build the bigger engine. Going 12's is not that hard to do with a 318, it's just easier to do with a 360. I have a friend that runs 12.80's with a turbocharged slant six. His cost was very high, the 360 in my dart runs 12.30's at 108.89, it does not have any aluminum heads and really, I did'nt spend no more than what it would cost to do a stock rebuild anyway of a smallblock. It's just a combo I've come up with and I drive it to work everyday. Let me know what you come up with,,, Good luck

I totally agree with you about the 318's, I think they're the best engine Chrysler ever made.  I have a 3318 in my 69 Fury, and (no kidding here) it has 432,871 miles on it.  The only thing that has been done to it is new fuel and water pump 100,000 miles ago, starter and alternator rebuild, new valve cover gaskets, and tuneups. I will keep it in the car which is being restored and customized right now (don't worry, it will be subtle customizing)  I am actually trying to find out if it is the highest milage fury in the world right now.

There was a great article in HotRod magazine on building a 318 last February or March.

O.K. I got it, build the 318 its your car. But it makes economic sense to run a 360, they are identical externally to look at. The 360 will be at least a 1/2 to 3/4 of a second faster than your 318.
360's like the the 318 had been over looked for yrs. by the 340 crowd, now that most of the 340's are worn out everyone has discovered the low costs of operating the   360 and most are running faster than the mighty 340's ever were.
As far as vehicle value, if you think a 318 running 98 mph in the quarter will get you the same money as a 360 running 108 mph, then go for it and good luck.  

2004?  

Good point, he has probably gone threw a couple of cars since then.