New to the forum, big project time!

['74 Dart]

I was handed down a '74 Dodge Dart as my first car when I was 18. It needed a new tranny. Swapped transmissions with a '72 Dart and the car ran great for about a year. Then the engine started knocking hard enough to rock the whole car side to side... my buddy said most likely the hydraulic lifter went out, and a manifold cracked. Couldn't fix the car back then but I stored the car at my Moms and decided to never sell it and keep it until I have the money and time to fix it. Well, 6 years later I'm finally at that point. Just finished my daily driver upgrades and tweaks ('02 Subaru WRX), so I've done light mechanical work like exhaust, suspension, etc...
Anyways, my goal is to get the car running strong and looking good. I know the engine needs to come out no matter what, so I'm debating either just rebuilding the engine while it's out, or dropping a new 318 in. How would you go about it if you were in the same boat as me? New engine, or rebuild? Any other tips or suggestions/thoughts etc...? I'm fairly new to all this but figured it would be fun to learn and a dream to get this car looking good and on the road again.
Here's the car as it sits now.

 

[homecloned]

Welcome to FABO '74 Dart. Let's get her going. :cheers:

 

[RedFish]

Welcome to the forum. I would forget all the guess work as to what was wrong with it ( knocking and shaking ) and find out exactly what it needs.

 

[CudaChick1968]

Another Limelight owner ;-) welcoming you aboard!!! You'll love it here.

 

[Burntorange70]

Welcome to FABO!

 

['74 Dart]

Thanks for all the welcomes. First thing I'm gonna do is just pressure wash the whole damn car and bug bomb the inside... when I popped the hood (first time in maybe 4-5 years there were 3 big black widows welcoming me! Opened the cabin for the first time too and again, big *** spiders. At least it's not mice.
Then I'm planning on draining all the fluids, and go from there.
I haven't really explored this site much, but are there any resorces I should be looking at for DIY jobs like this? Any help is welcomed.

 

[retsud_043]

Welcome '74Dart:cheers:

 

['74 Dart]

Anyone with a link to a rebuild walk through of sorts? The cars getting "de-bugged" tomorrow and towed to a local shop for some looking and hopefully a shove in the right direction.
I'm so excited to finally be working on this car!

 

['74 Dart]

An update!
The car is back running! Took it to a mechanic friend of mine to just get it diagnosed, he said he'll just get it running for me. He doesn't speak English very well so I had a hard time understanding what he said was wrong with it. I do know he had to drop the tranny and replace something around there to prevent it from dumping water. He said he'd add water to the radiator and 2 seconds later it would all be dumped out from that area. Needed a new oil pump as well. Either way, it's running again!
It's still rough, the engine slightly rocks the car side to side, so I'm guessing it needs new motor mounts. Also I hear a loud tick that stays steady with the RPMs. I know my Subie does something similar and it's the injectors, but not sure what the noise is on the Dart.
So, where to go from here...
It needs a new exhaust for sure. Is it better to have custom pipes made, or is there a good source for exhausts? Will the car need to be tuned for any bolt-ons, such as exhaust? Does catless vs catted make a good power difference? 2.5" vs 3" ect exhaust matter?
Sorry for all the questions, but I know Subaru, not Dodge, so this is a whole new ball game for me.

 

[71dodge]

welcome well if ur pullin the motor its time for a big block

 

['74 Dart]

welcome well if ur pullin the motor its time for a big block

Not pulling the motor anymore. The problem wasn't the lifters, and it's running now.
Now I'm just trying to get it reliable and strong again. An exhaust is about the only upgrade I'd care to do for power right now. I just want a strong running, good looking Dart again! After it's running purrrrrfect again, I'll be concentrating on interior and exterior mostly. This is just a cruser.

 

['74 Dart]

Can anyone point me in the direction of a good vendor or online store that I can find parts for my Dart?