Is valve shrouding a concern in a 318 w/ 2.02 & 1.6 valves

[racerdude5]

I only have one question: If money is so tight, then why not race in a more budget oriented class for now? If it takes everthing you have just to get the car build, what happens if you blow the motor ,crash, need tires etc? I don't know much about sprint cars but I'm under the impression that even if the car was free, it is a VERY expensive car to campaign.

Okay, here's the deal. I've wanted to race sprint cars for many years now. I was only able to do so about 2 years ago, but a lot was different then in my life. So there are many different answers, I'm in no way expecting this to be easy; it's going to take a lot of hard work but it's what I want more than just about anything. Kids across the country start racing sprint cars as early as 12, I'm 18; 6 years is a lot of seat time and while I'm a pretty good driver (or at least I'd like to think so), I need to become comfortable in the car before I can go win any races. Sprint cars are also raced just about anywhere you can think of; there's a class in the UK, classes in Canada, South Africa, Australia, you get the point. I want to make a career out of this, but that doesn't mean I'm going to quit school.

At my local track there are 3 classes that I can run a Mopar in since there's no RWD Mopar 4 banger that I'm aware of. There's hobby stocks; ehh. They're cool for what they are, but the rules at different tracks vary a lot across the country; the car is also large and heavy therefore difficult to store and to transport to and from the track. I don't have a lot of space. Not to mention it's almost a destruction derby and I don't want to go out and tear up any Mopar. Then there's modifieds which are just about as universal as the Small block chevy itself; raced all over the place, rules are universal too for the most part. But then you look at the price for a roller IMCA modified and you're looking at about $6-$7k used (sometimes less) or $15k new. A sprint car roller can be had for about $3k used or $8k new. The sprint car is smaller and lighter than a modified as well. Modifieds are just as large as hobby stocks and weight nearly the same. Then there's sprint cars. My home track is a 1/5th mile, so power isn't everything either.

And as far as running costs go, I'm going to do my best to find some local sponsors to help out with cash. I'm building a brand C car as well that belongs to a nice guy who is helping me out, but I still can't give up on my dream of a Mopar sprint car; that's what I really want. I don't care for Chevy stuff, I won't spend any money or time on a Chevy unless somebody else is spending the money and I am just spending the time to keep it running and to respect their equipment and show my gratitude for the opportunity. This guy also has a 410 Mopar which we checked the plugs on, I woke up that night and couldn't go back to sleep because I hadn't put anti seize on the plugs before I put them in the W9 heads and I was afraid that the spark plugs would pull out the threads next time they were taken out. I'm extremely passionate about Chrysler products.

 

[racerdude5]

I don't get how you are gonna manage to pull this off I've done a quick research and unless I'm looking at the wrong engines they go for about $30,000 in your class and that's Chev probably can add another $10,000 for dodge. It's not that 650 hp is exactly a hard number to hit especially on methanol but the reason these engines cost so much is there built for endurance and even with all the best parts they only last 15 or so races.

I'm all for the under dog, I agree the 340 would be the better engine to start with but 318 is what we got so let's move on you've pick your engine so valve shrouding is a non issue it's all about trying to make it work now.

The biggest hurdle now is cylinder heads what's the plan there ? Probably your best bet there is to find 2nd hand ported out W2's

A engine from one of the best builders will run a guy about $35k probably, a few guys have those engines. I'm not sure how much of that is labor but you can eliminate that cost from my build. The Dodge will definitely be more expensive, but still; I'd rather run a near up to par Mopar than the Chevy that everyone else is running. That's why I'm posting on here, because I'm trying to do this with $3500; I want to make this work and I'm going to, I just need all the help I can get. The more help I get, the faster my Mopar will be.

 

[racerdude5]

Why I said that cause he's gonna build a 318 basically no matter what so I agree it's an issue but it is what it is. Its gonna make less than a similar built 340 but that the situation we got.

As far as heads, stock Eddies won't do much. The only choices are Indy Heads, CNC ported Eddies from Hughes, Pro Comp (IDK how much power they make), W2s, Brodix B1BAs, and anything else that has the stock valve angle approximately. I really need aluminum heads for the lower center of gravity as these cars get upside down a lot.

 

[273]

Go to a big Chrysler dealer around you and see if they will sponsor you even if it's a parts at cost deal, mark up is pretty high can save some coin that way. My cousin has a similar deal up here with his late model.

 

[yellow rose]

As far as heads, stock Eddies won't do much. The only choices are Indy Heads, CNC ported Eddies from Hughes, Pro Comp (IDK how much power they make), W2s, Brodix B1BAs, and anything else that has the stock valve angle approximately. I really need aluminum heads for the lower center of gravity as these cars get upside down a lot.

If you want aluminum you can use the W5 head. It has 18* valve angles.

Either the W2 or W5 are far and away better than any other head you posted.

 

[forphorty]

Okay, here's the deal. I've wanted to race sprint cars for many years now. I was only able to do so about 2 years ago, but a lot was different then in my life. So there are many different answers, I'm in no way expecting this to be easy; it's going to take a lot of hard work but it's what I want more than just about anything. Kids across the country start racing sprint cars as early as 12, I'm 18; 6 years is a lot of seat time and while I'm a pretty good driver (or at least I'd like to think so), I need to become comfortable in the car before I can go win any races. Sprint cars are also raced just about anywhere you can think of; there's a class in the UK, classes in Canada, South Africa, Australia, you get the point. I want to make a career out of this, but that doesn't mean I'm going to quit school.

At my local track there are 3 classes that I can run a Mopar in since there's no RWD Mopar 4 banger that I'm aware of. There's hobby stocks; ehh. They're cool for what they are, but the rules at different tracks vary a lot across the country; the car is also large and heavy therefore difficult to store and to transport to and from the track. I don't have a lot of space. Not to mention it's almost a destruction derby and I don't want to go out and tear up any Mopar. Then there's modifieds which are just about as universal as the Small block chevy itself; raced all over the place, rules are universal too for the most part. But then you look at the price for a roller IMCA modified and you're looking at about $6-$7k used (sometimes less) or $15k new. A sprint car roller can be had for about $3k used or $8k new. The sprint car is smaller and lighter than a modified as well. Modifieds are just as large as hobby stocks and weight nearly the same. Then there's sprint cars. My home track is a 1/5th mile, so power isn't everything either.

And as far as running costs go, I'm going to do my best to find some local sponsors to help out with cash. I'm building a brand C car as well that belongs to a nice guy who is helping me out, but I still can't give up on my dream of a Mopar sprint car; that's what I really want. I don't care for Chevy stuff, I won't spend any money or time on a Chevy unless somebody else is spending the money and I am just spending the time to keep it running and to respect their equipment and show my gratitude for the opportunity. This guy also has a 410 Mopar which we checked the plugs on, I woke up that night and couldn't go back to sleep because I hadn't put anti seize on the plugs before I put them in the W9 heads and I was afraid that the spark plugs would pull out the threads next time they were taken out. I'm extremely passionate about Chrysler products.

Well written, thanks for answering my question.

 

[racerdude5]

If you want aluminum you can use the W5 head. It has 18* valve angles.

Either the W2 or W5 are far and away better than any other head you posted.

The other thing to consider is that when choosing the open head route you have to run 1 inch long 1 7/8" restrictors in the velocity stacks. When running the B1BA's you only have to run 2 or 3" long 2 3/16" restrictors. Aren't the W-5s prone to cracking? Or is that a different head?

 

[yellow rose]

The other thing to consider is that when choosing the open head route you have to run 1 inch long 1 7/8" restrictors in the velocity stacks. When running the B1BA's you only have to run 2 or 3" long 2 3/16" restrictors. Aren't the W-5s prone to cracking? Or is that a different head?

The early W5's had some porosity issues and IIRC they had cracking issues along the lower head bolt holes. The later ones were nice pieces. Can you use ported heads. If not, skip the W5 as an unported W5 flows less than a W2.

 

[nm9stheham]

My home track is a 1/5th mile, so power isn't everything either.

I was wondering what your track was in all of this..... if the straights are short (like these MUST be for just 1/5 mile), then the power under the curve concern is lowered. Having sufficient torque across a fairly limited RPM range to keep the rear wheels ready to break free seems like the key. A lighter rotating assembly will help to break them loose when going onto the throttle... and you can adjust flywheel weight if you need some reverse braking torque diving into the corners.

 

[racerdude5]

The early W5's had some porosity issues and IIRC they had cracking issues along the lower head bolt holes. The later ones were nice pieces. Can you use ported heads. If not, skip the W5 as an unported W5 flows less than a W2.

I can run untouched Brodix B1BA heads with a 1 inch long 2 3/16" restrictor in each stack, or open heads with valve angle within 1* of stock and a 3 inch long 1 7/8" restrictor in each stack. So yes, as long as they aren't Brodix B1BA heads, and have nearly the same valve angle as stock you can do anything.

 

[racerdude5]

I was wondering what your track was in all of this..... if the straights are short (like these MUST be for just 1/5 mile), then the power under the curve concern is lowered. Having sufficient torque across a fairly limited RPM range to keep the rear wheels ready to break free seems like the key. A lighter rotating assembly will help to break them loose when going onto the throttle... and you can adjust flywheel weight if you need some reverse braking torque diving into the corners.

straights are short and narrow, turns are wide and banked. And wow thanks for that info, that's a really interesting concept.