Little help ID-ing this 340 wedge

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Asktoro

Asktoro

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I know I really should have grabbed the VIN but I was in a hurry and dropped by the car lot where I seen it, guy wants 15 grand which seems high considering dings/scrapes/deck lid being wonky. Has an oil leak too and the K-member has been welded/altered.

It's supposed to be a 1970 H code 340 wedge, but I noticed the stripe looks like a basic duster and the altering of the K-member with crude welds make me question it. I love the car and it doesn't bother me too much that it might not be an H code but it pays to know exactly what you're buying and it's value, it's easily done with a VIN which I'm grabbing tomorrow but I'm itching to know the truth... It looks like your basic duster re-badged and the motor swapped out to make it look like a 340 wedge. I'm not an expert so I could be making a fool of myself but didn't H code wedges have a stripe closer to the top saying 340 underneath it and basic dusters had a stripe more along the middle of the body? Anyways heres a pic



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Stripes and other stuff can be changed sometime in it's life.

Take pictures of VIN plate, data tag and door sticker as well as the K-frame.
Also pics of the engine and rear end.

Post them here and we will nit pick the hell outta it!
 
damnimcooltom said:
Is that in Missoula?

Not a 340 car. Slant six.

VL29C1B183928
Click to expand...

I think you have your answer. A 1970 duster h-code car should have twin body stripes down the center of the sides. That car has what I would call "Gold Duster" stripes.

Other things/clues it would have are a rallye dash with 150 mph speedo, the rad is as wide as the opening on the front, a passenger side bolt on exhaust hanger bracket for dual exhaust (the driver's side is welded) this bracket is located forward of the gas tank, a flat washer welded to the front of the K-member, front disc brakes, stainless trim on the roof drip rails, front sway bar, 8.75 rear.

Also the 340 "wedge" decal started in '71. So I don't know if you can really call it a 340 wedge. But the wedge refers to the cylinder heads and all 340s had wedge heads, so go figure. Back in the day there was some idea that the 340 wedge decalled cars had a "special" 340 and were faster, but we now know that was not true. It may have been more of a case that the wedge decal V24 cars tended to have more options, so they would be more likely to have 3.55 or 3.91 gears which would make them accelerate faster than the 3.23 cars. Just my opinion anyway
 
340duster said:
. Back in the day there was some idea that............ "special" 340 and were faster, ............... a case that the wedge decal V24 cars ................... more likely to have 3.55 or 3.91 gears which would make them accelerate faster
Click to expand...

I think you pretty well summed it up. Also probably meant to conjur up thoughts of "max wedge", oh boy oh boy.

From the description, this car is a fake.

Of course if it's represented as a clone/ tribute/ insert your favorite word, the question becomes "can you build this car for 15 grand?"
 
And is it actually a 340 and not a 318, personally standing in front of the car with the hood up I can't tell the difference. I'd get the casting numbers off the side of the block to be sure.
 
damnimcooltom said:
Is that in Missoula?

Not a 340 car. Slant six.

VL29C1B183928
Click to expand...


Yes it is, on Reserve St. I'm guessing you either looked at it or seen the AD in a paper.

I asked him a lot of questions, the biggest red flag of all is he refused to start it up so I could hear it and some wires under the dash seem to have came loose... perhaps it doesn't even start. It took some talking to even get him to let me look under the hood and inside the car, he wanted me to look at other cars first I don't know why...

When I popped the hood you can clearly tell that the PO put some dough into it. New brakes, A arms replaced (I could tell) K member welded which I thought it was a swap. Skinnies on front psuedo-slicks on rear tells me it was a hobbist weekend racer. Air cleaner badges it a 340. I really do think it is a legit 340 swap as for the heads being wedge I didnt look too much... was mostly dazzled by the houndstooth interior which I'm a sucker for....

So it's not a real 340 wedge. Gotta love car dealers who buy classics at auctions and can't tell you a single thing about it. Too much Barret Jackson amirite? There's a lot of 'fakes' around here like a 1970 dart swinger out by the airport. I ask the guy how fresh the engine is, is it matching etc..... when it looks like a mix-match hobbist rebadge.

Either way I love the car, but this information may give me some 'wedge' on his price along with NADA since they seem to like it so much. I'd say the car's worth 7 grand if it was slant 6 alone, since it has nice upgrade parts and a swapped engine..... ballpark figures cause he can't tell me how fresh it is :( But thanks guys, mopar folks gotta stick together!
 
Did that car just show up there yesterday? One went by on a transport through here yesterday. I'm curious if it's the same one.

I know the car lot. It's where I bought my wife's PT cruiser ten years ago. As with all used car lots in Missoula, don't trust a word he says. Do your own research and don't let emotion dictate your decision. i don't trust that guy as far as I can throw him.

The lot's website doesn't claim it to be a 340.

Oh, wait. You're saying Reserve? The site I was looking on said Russell. Must not be the car that was seen going through here yesterday.
 
15K seems really high to me in this economy.

I've seen real H code cars go for less than that, after sitting around a while.

Steve
 
My bad, got the two confused and I've lived here a year already! The cars been there awhile, a couple months. Guy has a rag top GTO and buick GS which are way nicer but not my brand of car.

That's weird you say the website doesn't claim it to be a 340. I asked the guy if it was he said yes and the sticker was original, even the air cleaner said 340..... That's bad practice, I really dislike people who badge their car as something it's not. I don't mind if folks make clones, but it MUST have the stuff the badge reflects otherwise thats just goofy. The air cleaner said 340 wedge. What a mix-matched Chernobyl baby... I'm thinkin hard..... really really love houndstooth bench seats and interior, but I feel I may get insanely screwed. Wedge heads are worth a nice $$$ and if its not even wedge... that's just lame. K frame weld job seemed crude too which might mean the alignment of the drive would be off.....probably is due to the main rear seal leakage...... UUUGGGHHH :( sigh...... guess I'm passing. It pays to wait to find a good decent car.
 
demon seed said:
And is it actually a 340 and not a 318, personally standing in front of the car with the hood up I can't tell the difference. I'd get the casting numbers off the side of the block to be sure.
Click to expand...

Normally easier than that. Look on the drivers side, just below the FRONT of the head, just below the head/ block parting line on the front of the block. There should be a string of stamped numbers, and the CID should be the first few. I think 234?
 
Asktoro said:
Wedge heads are worth a nice $$$ and if its not even wedge... that's just lame. K
Click to expand...

I think you're confusing the Max Wedge 426 and 413 or whatever with the 340.

Lots of sets of X heads in good shape go unsold for $500-$600, whereas the big block Max wedge stuff can go for $2000+ a pair.
 
All SB Mopar heads were wedge...Come to think about it, all V8 OHV heads are either wedge (or canted wedge 351C style or 454) or Hemi. I think hes trying to drive a "wedge" between you and your money...
 
Look underneath for the factory tork boxes.That would be a dead give away. Aftermarket ones can be welded in but that you would notice. All other stuff like ralley dash,stripes,and even vin swaps can be done.Just my 2 cents.. Craig.
 
Can someone explain this torque box thing to me? How is it different on the 340 cars and where is it exactly?
 
LXguy said:
Can someone explain this torque box thing to me? How is it different on the 340 cars and where is it exactly?
Click to expand...

They are simply contoured sheet metal that are welded at the front and or rear to help box where the frame meets the crossmember and rocker area.

Grant
 
Slant 6 duster that was painted green, had some stickers slapped on it and a V* conversion.

The vin VL29C1B183928 tells it all.

Now they are asking a butt load of money for it.


That's what you have there.


I mean........ It's a nice enough car but clearly not an original performance model.

It is also a 71, not a 70.


V = Plymouth Valiant / Duster
L = Low
29 = 2 Door Sports Hardtop
C = 225 145HP 1-1BBL 6 CYL
1 = 1971
B = Dodge Main, Hamtramck, MI, USA
183928 = 83927th Vehicle
 
LXguy said:
Can someone explain this torque box thing to me? How is it different on the 340 cars and where is it exactly?
Click to expand...
I just took a picture of mine.This is the front drivers side. Hope this answers your question. Thanks, Craig.
 

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Good effing riddance, excuse my cursing. I finally caught the guy who owned the lot and tried to strike a deal.

The conversation goes like this --
It isn't a real H code, there's dings, dents, scrapes and it's a hobbist racer so I have no idea how good a job the guy did or whats in the engine you can't even tell me the engine specs or the rear gear atop that nicer cars which are real H codes are going for less.

Him: paints original no rust, a real h code would be 35 thousand, dont matter the paints original and you don't see cars in such condition as this blah blah blah.

Guy watches too much barret jackson, is a complete retard, is trying to sell me a 2,000 buck car with a 5,000 crate engine for 15,000 when the body's scraped, dinged and probably going to rust due to that rendering 'original paint' utterly worthless, atop that the badging is all wrong and he can't even tell me nothing more than "it has shiny 21 inch rims and a 360 engine! ITS FAST IT GO WHOOSHY!" kept interrupting me and just...... I don't think any car dealer ever pissed me off this much. I am flat out done with that. Search for a mopar continues :( living in the northwest isn't the greatest when most cars are bowties or ovals.
 
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