"Built up" Mopar 318 on Craigslist. Upselling at its finest.

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cudak888

cudak888

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Just when you think you've seen it all...

http://sarasota.craigslist.org/pts/5321963222.html

1978 318 Mopar/Dodge V8 engine, built up, block is seasoned, square decked, line bored, 20 over, hypereutectic pistons, 9.5 to 1 compression, 280 comp cam, HiPo springs. Engine is not frozen but has three cylinders with low compression. Great for motor rebuild.
Cylinder heads are ported, polished cc'd, gasket matched to intake. Built on flow bench with templates, intake valves 2.02 with hardened seats, exhaust 1.60 with hardened seats. Fully balanced.
Rods are MPR-324.
Transmission is 1984 Torqueflight truck transmission with low first gear and 4500 stall converter by "Plum Crazy". 10K miles since rebuild. Tranny was running well when engine quit.
Edelbrock Performer 318/360 aluminum intake manifold for 4 barrel.
Edelbrock Performer 1406-0650 4 barrel carb - needs rebuilt.
Mickey Thompson 318/340/360 Mopar aluminum valve covers.
Sanderson shorty headers ceramic coated.
Air cleaner, starter, water pump, power steering, alternator
All the parts needed for a small block mopar with builtup HP. At least $900 worth of parts. Would like to sell entire package. $700.
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Best bits:

"Built up" = "I threw an intake on top of this thing. Quite literally, as I didn't put gaskets on or bolt it down. Ditto for the carb."
"Block is seasoned" = "Someone put a gazillion miles on it back in the day. Therefore, seasoned. I've also peppered the crankshaft with paprika, just in case."
"Engine is not frozen but has three cylinders with low compression" = "Obviously, three cylinders with low compression is worth a premium over a seized block."
"Great for motor rebuild" = "Even though that's what's supposed to happen BEFORE it's 'built up'"
"All the parts needed for a small block mopar with builtup HP" = "We're including rust and corrosion free of charge."
"At least $900 worth of parts." = "When they were new. And I'll be damned if I'm going to give you the pushrods or rockers in the bargain."
"Would like to sell entire package. $700." = "The last time this performance build was running was when Tony "Mopar" DeFeo wrote about a drag race it competed in...back in 1978. Shortly after, it toasted a few exhaust valves and got shoved in a corner to rot into the 21st century. For $700, you can be the next sucker to deal with the rest of this engine's hidden problems."

:happy1:

-Kurt
 
This is what happens when you start believing what you hear on TV "car" shows, and reading too many "other" CL ads, LOL
 
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I think your tearing into this guy without any real evidence of what you portray.
He did say there .020 Hyper slugs inside a seasoned line bored & square decked block. That does not suggest to me a engine that just had parts thrown at it with a cam shoved in.

And he does clearly state that it needs a rebuild.
 
Expire said:
Does this come with a competition kanooter valve?
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With 2, 1 for each side. It also includes the Finnagin pin and auto rotator so it wears evenly. :coffee2:
 
rumblefish360 said:
I think your tearing into this guy without any real evidence of what you portray.
He did say there .020 Hyper slugs inside a seasoned line bored & square decked block. That does not suggest to me a engine that just had parts thrown at it with a cam shoved in.

And he does clearly state that it needs a rebuild.
Click to expand...

It's a non running 318 core with a few aftermarket parts and a little hopeful BS thrown in that was apparently rebuilt one day and then worn out.
I hope you are being sarcastic. :D
 
rumblefish360 said:
I think your tearing into this guy without any real evidence of what you portray.
He did say there .020 Hyper slugs inside a seasoned line bored & square decked block. That does not suggest to me a engine that just had parts thrown at it with a cam shoved in.

And he does clearly state that it needs a rebuild.
Click to expand...

I'll admit that I took liberties with the humor, but the ad and photos both suggest this engine is a collection of parts long ago worn down past their prime - both mechanically and in value.

I would probably not have said anything about it had the seller not made the rather dubious claim of "built up" coupled with those photos and price. I would have expected someone reasonably legit to have shown a closeup of the cam lobes. Given the state of the motor, I'd be much more inclined to believe his claims if he had a cylinder head off too to show evidence of those pistons.

As it is offered now, it's a questionable 318 core being sold as gold, nothing more.
 
I suggest Japan's latest tire. The Kwazi-moto-maxy pad. Patterned after Godzillas foot print, it's a 3 tread wide *** foot printed sneaker capable down to 70ft. In water, has climbed most of Mount Everest, (not the tires fault) and it is slated for the next "Moon Buggy" that is going to Mars.

I feel this tire does well on all surfaces. Endorsed by John Force after using them on his personal hot rod that ran low 8's in the 1/4. Mario Andretti suggests these as well since he has them on his daily driver, that Italian Red sporty car by Enzo. I'd also like to throw in my GrandMa's love for them. She talks about there smooth ride and how she out cornered the cops the other day on the park way. So far, she has 135,000 miles on them. Which is pretty good since she has only crossed the country 3 times this year. Yea, she's slowing down some in here old age. (94) But she still loves to drive.

OH! I forgot to note that you can find that tire on jets, pontoon boats, (as well as various skifts as well) skate boards in there micro tire class, bicycles, quads (the ever wear branding) lawn mowers, and various racing events as the newest and best there is.
 
It was probably a decent engine at one point.
It's now a D.O.A. Core, enough said.
He is trying to recoup monies on the bolt on performance parts.
Sarcasm and/or dry blunt humor. Ether will do. Both easily lost on the net unless it is retardedly wacked reply like the above on fire suggestions.
 
rumblefish360 said:
It was probably a decent engine at one point.
It's now a D.O.A. Core, enough said.
He is trying to recoup monies on the bolt on performance parts.
Sarcasm and/or dry blunt humor. Ether will do. Both easily lost on the net unless it is retardedly wacked reply like the above on fire suggestions.
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WHEW! you had me a little worried for a minute there. :D
I am sure if you said that while we were standing around killing a few beers it would have been obvious that you were just going along with it for the fun of it.
 
LOL, ummmm, yea, it would have been. The honest sarcasm would have shown brightly while professing the truth to it all.

Not for nothin though, IF he actually did do that block work to it, it is worth it then. That's a lot of bingos tied up in square decking and such work.
 
rumblefish360 said:
It was probably a decent engine at one point.
It's now a D.O.A. Core, enough said.
He is trying to recoup monies on the bolt on performance parts.
Sarcasm and/or dry blunt humor. Ether will do. Both easily lost on the net unless it is retardedly wacked reply like the above on fire suggestions.
Click to expand...

I hear you on that. Shame that some new people to the hobby can get suckered into expensive junk really easily though. Seems very prevalent on our local Craigslist.

Believe it or not, it is easier and cheaper to find a half-assembled, good smog-era big block for a decent price on our local Craigslist than a well-priced small block core - and the SB's outnumber the BB's. However, the BB's are almost always being sold by a knowledgeable enthusiast (on a stand in a garage), and the SB's are equally common to be sold by the crowd who leaves them buried in dirt in the backyard covered by a tarp with a million holes - at a price usually exceeding that of the big blocks. This one, by comparison, seemed to take the latter to levels of pure art ;)

-Kurt
 
rumblefish360 said:
LOL, ummmm, yea, it would have been. The honest sarcasm would have shown brightly while professing the truth to it all.

Not for nothin though, IF he actually did do that block work to it, it is worth it then. That's a lot of bingos tied up in square decking and such work.
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Very true. I'm most curious as to the three cylinders with low compression. Might be as simple as burnt valves, and the bottom end may be fine. If the deck is square, one might be able to throw a set of heads on this thing and fly - but there are less risky alternatives than a questionable junk block at a premium price. Who wants to take that risk?

Rule of thumb to keep from being burned: Core until proven otherwise.

-Kurt
 
If it was closer id give it a go! Why not, but I would check it first.
 
Mopar Tim said:
If it was closer id give it a go! Why not, but I would check it first.
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Sure if it was a 360 maybe, but a 318 not complete and in running condition for that kind of money?
I can get driveable 318's for under 300 bucks all day.
It also makes me question why someone would put all that expensive supposed machine work into a 318 in the first place.
What do we tell people here that ask about 318 upgrades and machine work?
(Better off to get a 360 and put your money into that)
 
The thing is a 360 stands out as a 360. a 318 can be disguised as a 273, even a 340 to the unaware. It is hard to see the casting numbers on installed Engine. And nothing really wrong with a 318.
 
TrailBeast said:
It also makes me question why someone would put all that expensive supposed machine work into a 318 in the first place.
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I tried wrapping my head around that. The 4006730-318 block is a 1976-1979 casting.

Is it possible this build actually dates from the early 1980s, and a 360 block would have been prohibitively expensive in comparison to using a pre-existing 318?

Does anyone know what's the absolute newest aftermarket part (in terms of release date) listed in this build?

-Kurt
 
The "built up" and "three cylinders with low compression" cancel each other out. It's a core engine with some mystery ported heads and a few older performance parts. I see a $300 pile of parts there at best.
 
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