Best 273 and 318 builds (NO 360's please)
The kit would have to sell for under $3000.00. If a 302 ford can be made to
to perform as it does, why not a 318??
Its because the late model Ford 302 shortblock is very useable as-is. The machining is very consistent and the pistons are not a mile below the deck like a 318.
All stock (late model) 302 heads are like Mopar "302" 318 castings. LOL. They've got wedge shape combustion chambers.
Also there are a zillion awesome aluminum cylinder heads for small block Fords. Hell, even the Ford GT-40P heads they put on the explorers are awesome. 200 CFM stock, 58cc combustion chamber, and they don't crack.
And they run hydraulic roller cams, and there are a million performance grinds for them.
Unfortunately, it seems like you have to go to the machine shop to make a 318 run half decent, and if you're spending machine shop money, the $250 for a core block 360 is an insignificant spend that will net great returns.
HOWEVER, I'd be curious what you can actually get a stock shortblock 318 to run at the track. As I think this would actually generate some interest. There is so much variance in stock shortblocks (and many of them are soooo old) that it would always be a case of "your mileage may vary."
Of course, it takes some pretty good RPMs to get power out of a little motor, and I don't know how long some old 318 shortblock is going to tolerate being spun to 6500 or so.
You'd need a good set of cylinder heads (as in Magnum/Iron Ram heads or LA-X RHS heads with small wedge shape combustion chambers and good ports for a real intake manifold. A custom cam that was ground to crutch the lack of compression, and all the bolt-ons.
With a 58cc head, and the pistons .100 in the hole (my stock 71 they were .110 on one side, .095 on the other), you could get the compression up to 9:1 with the skinny head gaskets, maybe a smidge more if you didn't have valve reliefs.
Again, if you're starting with a hydraulic roller block, your ultimate potential would be higher because you can get so much of a better camshaft.
I've got a decent mid 70s 318 laying here. I've been tempted to try something like this, but so far its more fun trying to get my 5.9 into the 11s rather than a 318 into the 12s.
Steve
