1966 Barracuda 273 build
Hello to all out there. I will thank you all now for any info and knowledge you can give me. I bought a 66 barracuda with a 273 2brl. Not the Commando. It did not run but all was intact. Soooo.. my nephew who is a mechanic said lets take out the motor, tear it down and mild build it. So having said that, the motor is out, torn down and here is what has been done:
Block tanked and cleaned, Cylinders bored 60 over, New Pistons purchased , new Mild RV cam purchased, Crank ground. I have the original cast heads and intake.
So here is where I get stuck. Right now my nephew has taken a back seat and im kinda stuck because he has not been around to lend a hand. What I would like to know is the following:
I want to convert the 2brl to a 4brl. Therefore is there an aftermarket intake that will fit 66 barracuda with a 273 ? Where can it be purchased and what type of carb? Also, are there any replacement/aftermarket heads that will fit this application to make this build work? This car is for my son so I'm trying to get this done quickly. Is there anything Summit Racing offers? If there is any more info that you may need to help get this moving. I have the specs when I purchased the cam. I also have pictures of most every part. Thank you, Glenn66
First off, Welcome to FABO! :welcome:
Now as far as heads go:
The 64 - 65 273 heads had a unique intake bolt angle and smaller 5/16" bolts, so you want to stay away from those, as intake manifolds are harder to find...
The 66 and later small blocks had the larger 3/8" intake bolts at the "standard" angle...
The 66 - 67 273/318 heads had the smaller closed chamber heads, which are the smallest (and therefore higher compression)...
If you swap 68 and later heads on it, you may loose some compression... I have a set of 67 273/318 heads ending in casting number 920 and I measured them at 63 cc which the book lists is supposed to be 57 cc's. Chrysler ran the heads "Fat" with a little extra meat, so the book numbers for combustion chamber volume will not match...
My favorite intake for the 273/318 heads is the obsolete Edelbrock LD4B intake. It's a dual plane 4 bbl intake and is great for street/strip performance. However you need to relocate the coil as there are not any bosses on the intake to put it in the factory position.
Next I would recommend the Wiand stealth intake which is currently available.
Weiand 8022WND Weiand Stealth™ Intake - Chrysler Small Block V8 - Holley Performance Products
Which will go perfect with this Holley 80457 carb, which is a 600 CFM square bore carb that matches the wiand stealth intake and calibrated for a late 60's v-8 and comes with electric choke:
Holley 4160 Aluminum Street Carburetor
And I like this carb gasket as it has the center divider to match the dual plane intake and also comes with mounting studs....
Edelbrock Heat Insulator Gasket
You need to be careful if you try to put larger valves in the heads, as the bore on the 273 is pretty small and can restrict/shroud the flow, or you may have to "Notch" the bores for better valve clearance.
That will be a good start.
