318 or 360
All else being equal, how does the mileage of a 318 compared to a 360?
All things being equal?
As in slide the 318 heads and cam onto the 360? Or
Slide the 318 under the 360 heads?
I mean just what does all things being equal mean.
The 360 cam is about two sizes bigger, so you better be more specific. The 360 heads have bigger ports and will be sluggish on the 318, plus the port mismatch is gonna be a lil issue.
Either engine can be tuned to the same steady state fuel consumption, all other things as to the cars, being equal. But getting up to speed, and how you get there, will make some difference.
But here's the fly in the ointment; The 360 is 13% bigger and has a lot more torque. You can easily take that 13% gear reduction away from the 360, and cruise at 13% less rpm, and then the 360 has a solid potential to use less fuel in steady-state than the 318, yet have about the same low-rpm performance. That is a win/win situation.
13% is a lot. That's ~2.76 compared to 3.23s
13% difference at 65Mph is about 340 rpm.
Furthermore;
You could install the 318 cam, into the 360 and pick up about 8 to 10psi cylinder pressure ............... Giving you the potential for even better fuel mileage and low-rpm power, at the expense of hi-rpm power.
