Hi guys I dont post on here too often but you guys are always a great help. I just bought a fairly clean 81 W150 4x4 with 318, np435 and 3.21 gears.. truck is a short bed...the 318 runs like crap and needs a massive tune up..Anyhow, I also have a 62 powerwagon 4x4 which i am going to sell.. it has a built slant with a towing cam, headwork, and 9.2 comp ratio.. my powerwagon weighs 4500lbs.. and tows like a freighttrain but it also has 4.10's and 33 inch tires =2500rpm@60mph.. i am thinking about switching the slant into the 81.. the motor is fairly fresh.. my buddies are all harrassing me of course.. because i'm thinking about pulling out a running v-8 to put in a leaning tower anyhow...opinions are most welcome.. the truck will be a weekend driver and see occasional towing duty. THanks for reading... I look forward to the responses, Dan

MUWAHAHAHAHA, finally a step in the right direction, find some motor mounts out of an 80s ram for a slant and get the ones off the slant too, grab a 4spd bellhousing and PUT IN THAT SLANT!

the wiring will work for the 318 and the slant, you may want to upgrade to an MSD ignition (IF) you have leanburn, if not you're clear to go! (the 318 wiring may need to be slightly altered (ie. lengthend)

Justin

I Agree, Do It, It would be worth it just to watch your friends' reaction to get that good Slant in your truck Done properly it should give you excellent service. My late brother had a 1980 D-100 stepside with a stock Slant 1-bbl and the 833OD in it. He realy wasn't much of a "car guy" and his wife just abused hell out of it, but I remember borrowing and driving it ... It ran decently, had resonable power/drivability/torque. The Slant you have should run about half a Light Year better than my Bro's did. The Slant in that beloved but abused truck proved the durability and reliability of our favorite Chrysler engine once and for all to me I still have that Stepside stored out of town safely, I plan to eventually ressurect it. As my Signiture says: Dare to be Different! a different slant

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Dare to be Different...

My brother-in-law Dan and I found a really nice 75 valinat in a yard that the 318 died and the owner just didnt feel like replacing. you should have seen the look on his face when I said" its too bad it is so difficult to swap in a slant" talk about pricless. If you have a good running slant and want to go through all that work go for it. sounds like you need to replace the engine anyway. then will at least need an entire exhaust system, mounts, fuel lines, does the 62 power wagon have the same trans as the 81? that could be where you run into some problems.
good luck!

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Ok, I'm a heretic.

Now, that that's settled, if it were mine(which it isn't), I'd try doing a sharp, thorough tune-up on the 318 before I made a decision. If the engine is in sound mechanical condition and just needs its maintenance brought up to date, it would be a lot easier to use what is already in place.

A 318 is a heck of a workhorse, and offers surprising performance with a little good tuning. Kinda like a slant (there, am I redeemed? ).

engine swaps in trucks are HELLA easy compaired to our cars

Dont shoot me!!! but the 318 is the underdog too!!! its a smal v-8 that people dont think you can get power out of! like on a slant jump to a 2 bbl get better performance and better m.p.g,on a 318 jump to a 4 bbl and the same thing happens! plus its almost as undestructable as the slant!

I would choose a 360. Less to change and more power then the 318 and/or the \6.

Hey guys, wanted to let you know tuned the 318 up throughly it runs a little better, it has an edelbrock 600 and performer intake..... My gas mileage remains at 11.1mpg no matter what speed i drive, or how I drive it. Power is ok, but no better than my warmed slant 6 that I have in the old powerwagon... this motor must be very sick, as it is using one quart of oil every 150 miles this is the worst oil consumption i have ever seen with any engine period...the engine does not leak and does not blow a haze either..that i can see..So now I'm at a crossroads..either put another smallblock in or hunt for slant to np435 bellhousing and do the deed Any ideas are welcome... I'll probably get beaten for puttting a slant in a v-8 truck, but thats the best option I have at this point...being that the warmed slant is a nearly new engine.. Thanks for the help....

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The worst mistake a boss can make, is not say "well done"

Have you performed a wet/dry compression test yet? Id be interested in the results.

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I've been calling it as i see it for my entire life and that's not about to change. Take it or leave it.

NOT YET.. I THINK I MAY DO THAT SOON...AT THIS POINT THOUGH I'M NOT GONNA WASTE MUCH TIME ON THE ENGINE.. ITS OBVIOUSLY WORNOUT HAHA

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The worst mistake a boss can make, is not say "well done"

I would have to guess the oil consumption may be due to an excessively rich mixture. You know, washing down the cylinders and thinning out the oil, hence burning it. If I were to guess, I bet the carb is not jetted correctly, probably the main reason you only get 11 or so mpg. You might want to do a compression test first and then pull a few plugs and see how the mixture is burning. If the plugs are black, which I'm willing to bet they are, I would get a jet kit for the carb from Edelbrock and start from there.
Don't give up on the old girl yet, I bet there is some life left in that 318.

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"That thing gotta HEMI in it??"

I agree with the last post. Until you do a compression test, you don't really know the condition of the engine.

It might be ok.

A lot of people just buy the carb and throw it on the engine without tuning it. (of course, no one here would ever do that... ) Then they complain about how poor the performance is... You might find the previous owner did this... From the factory, new carbs tend to be jetted conservatively -- rich. That way it's more likely to run on whatever engine it's dropped on, right out of the box.

Then again you might find the engine's only got compression numbers like 60 or 70 psi... It's worth the hour's time to check.

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My truck is a Frankenstein creation
Built from the dead carcasses of others
And brought BACK TO LIFE!