273/4 -318 debate

pishta said
Thats my point exactly: "with all the commando stuff ( The intake, advance curve and springs... whats left?) and 2bbl pistons...260+HP at 5500" imagine all that motors commando stuff (and other parts) on a ~18% bigger 318 short block (like I had, night and day with the 318 block). Like I said on the other thread, there aint much a 273-4 can do that a 318 cant do better.

That is what I have been telling you all along. You keep saying a 318 2bl will run with a Commando. My cousin thought the same and I proved it to him twice, happened like I said above, back in the day. I have no idea how your Commando was a dog, mine was not. The only point here is, you don't need a 318, 340, or a 360 to go fast. The 273 in the 64 4speed Cuda had the same power to weight ratio as a stock 383 4 speed Road Runner. It was a stock 2 barrel for about a month. And that was with a Holley 600 and a 284 duration cam. At it's best configuration it would blow that combination away. That little 273 would run anything. Looked at trading the 64 Cuda for a 360 Volare and passed since it was not as fast as the 64 Cuda. I took the money and had my seats recovered in leather. I used to build 318's for other people, but I kept my 64 273. With 4.10 gears it would fry the tires all the way thru 1st and halfway thru 2nd. With highway gears you could wind it up to 100mph in 3rd gear and shift into 4th. With 2.76 gears it would get mid 20's mpg on a road trip. This is all from a daily driven, always up for a race, drive anywhere, street car with 200,000 and 300,000 miles on them. I've said it before, I could have any engine I wanted. I am running 2 273's in a 66 and 67 Cuda and a 383 68 Formula S. You can make anything go fast with any Mopar engine if you use your head and can tune a combination. Yours may not be fast but, it does not mean mine is not.