Printable View
New member asking a hypothetical question. Has anyone swapped a Slant 6 in a D50 or Mighty Max. I have seen threads discuss going with a 318 or 360. I really don't want anything that big and I have a strange affinity for the Slant 6. Am I an idiot for thinking this could require limited faindication? This is something I am thinking about as something for the near future. Any pitfaills?
Thats going to be a long engine. You can fit a v8 but there's not too much extra room in the bay. An extra 2 cylinders long might fit if you cut the firewall and the radiator panel
I'll put it this way. LD28s were swapped into everything here, I have never heard of one going in one of these trucks
You are going to really have to take a lateral approach to cooling.
Your radiator will either have to be:
#1 - moved forward and right behind the grille (do-able... but tight)
#2 - remote located (do-able... but a lot of work)
#3 - alter the trucks' centre of gravity and shift the drivetrain back by modifying the firewall (do-able... but a LOT of work)
You will also have to take into account the location of the sump vs cross member, the design flaw of the sump running dry from oil pooling to the rear of the engine under hard acceleration and the subsequent pooling of the oil submerging the crank. There are ways of overcoming the sump problems by extensively modifying the sump with baffles and crank scrapers and extending the volume of the sump for added protection.
honestly there is way too much involved in a slant 6 swap. we are talking a BIG ol engine, long too. there is a reason the dodge dart was the smallest car they were offered in. but it is a great way to make power and an interesting idea. the guy i got my PR50 from has a 60's or 70's model dart with a slant six and he had a 318 carb and an intake manifold on it and he has had it up so fast the metal needle bent backwards. keep in mid this is a 3 on the column and a big ol heavy car.
the engine is about as long as a Viper V10 in length. hell its close to half a viper engine in size. the best route is to build a V6. there was the 3.0L SOHC engine offered in the 90's models PR50, but only to an automatic. (if you have a baby 904 the bellhousing to anything else with a 904 will bolt up) there was a few more variants. the 3000 GT had a DOHC twin turbo version but its really hard to find. and the VR-4 cars.
i would like to point you in the direction of a few common swaps seen on the board, as well as a few that are quite overlooked.
first note: mitsubishi made these trucks, and they have a dodge badge. so basically any engine swap from either brand makes sense, which opens options if you are the 'purist' engine swapper
if your truck doesnt have it already, a 2.6L or a turbocharged 2.6L is a pretty cool swap. these trucks never had a turbo so that would be cool
2.4L swap
2.0L DOHC swap
those are common 4 cylinder swaps
3.0L SOHC V6 these trucks had this from factory but only with an automatic, so a 5 speed paired to this would be a real beast (requires montero bellhousing)
3.0L DOHC with turbo(s)
thats all the V6 swapping ive seen here :(
5.2L/318 LA or Magnum its a common engine and you can use a 904 in its place if you want, just flip the trans mount for more space up front
5.9L/360 LA or Magnum " "
ford 302
chevrolet V8
thats all the 'common' v8 swaps
G52B 2.0L there is a 2 liter conversion in a 4x4 on the forum.
2.4L DOHC swap ive only ever seen one and its a beast. its even paired to a factory 4 speed!
thats about all the 'uncommon' 4 banger swaps i can think of
chrysler EGH V6 (3.3/3.8) offered in the minivans and jeep wranglers it is a interesting swap. its also my choice to make more power. but be ware! the NSG is only capable of 300 hp/tq (thats pushing the limit too) and a tremec bellhousing would have to be made and that costs alot of money.
3.9L V6 LA/Magnum its a 318 with 2 less cylinders so its 'like' swapping a 318 in as far as what youll need.
pentestar V6 there is a bellhousing to adapt it to a T5 and a TR4050
4.0L I6 its not much different that a slant 6 as far as the fact its an I6 but if it fit in a jeep grand cherokee i dont see why it couldnt fit in a similar sized vehicle with 4x4
3.0L ecodiesel its a new engine so all the ones at the junkyard should be low miles.
cummins diesel also overlooked and is even bigger than a slant 6 but still up to consider
thats all my 6 cylinders i can think of
426 hemi
440 v8
340 v8
LS engine
ford big block
oldmobile v8
pontiac v8
buick v8
big block cadillac
thats all the v8s that would be sensible. and even a big block is hard to fit and even harder to control
second note: a v6 is alot more economical that a slant 6 and can make the same power.
i still think a slant 6 is really cool but there is that oil pa pooling thing. move your pickup or have a pan designed. and please use a 6-1 header, itll fit alot better than those big heavy 2 peice. upgrade to aluminum intake and header and head or maybe even have an aluminum block cast and then use slant 6 parts and that will save a ton of weight.
but if you want a 6 cly you may as well get a V6 because its more economical and there are some with a 60 degree bank angle making it skinny and short.
the V6 has the following over the slant 6:
smaller
better economy
more power
more common
lighter
whatever you do you want an engine that has all the accessories to swap over. such as A/C, power steering, all that. you also want it to have been available with what ever transmission you want. i like a manual, i need something that has been paired to a manual or has aftermarket manual parts.
you also need a custom driveshaft and possibly a axle swap from a L series van.
you also need an ECU and wiring skills. this is a downside but youll still have to do some wiring with any engine swap, its a given.
also another thing to consider is the fact that EFI and ignition timing have come a long way. your computer is programmed to tune the air fuel and the ignition timing based off of intake temperature, throttle position, manifold pressure, cylinder head temperature, coolant temperature, oil pressure, oil temperature, engine load, engine speed, vehicle speed, the gear its in, the oxygen level in the exhaust before and after catalytic converter(s) and so many more variables.
your average slant 6 has a vacuum advance distributor that has a curve that isnt accurate, it has a set air/fuel ratio, and it doesnt adjust when hot. and they last about as long as any other engine.
i opted to install a 3.3L EGH V6 given to me for free. its in a 2000's chrysler minivan. i would prefer a 3.8L but the 3.3L is better on gas. besides its free and it already makes 180 horse and 210 torque and a few bolt ons can easily push it to 200 HP. the jeep wrangler had a 6 speed and a 3.8L, if i actually find both i may use the complete jeep drivetrain but if just the transmission and clutch assembly ill use the 3.3L. a couple of turbos and a tune and a 3.8 cam heads and lower intake could easily push the 3.3 upwards of 250 horse with the correct heasd gaskets.
your best bet is either a EGH, a 318 magnum, or a pentestar v6. or a mitsubishi V6 or a turbocharged 2.6L. the swap game with these trucks has a variety bigger than most!
but if you go slant 6 your main concerns are cooling engine bay space engine oiling and your transmission and 4x4 drivetrain, if so equipped.
Thank you for all of the info gentlemen. You have definitely pointed me away from the Slant 6 with the problems that WILL be involved and that's not counting the ones that inevitably come up doing any big project. I have 2009 Jeep with a 3.8 paired to a auto with overdrive that is stock and even though it's labelled a minivan engine, perform pretty well. Salteen, the 3.3 sounds about right. After doing a little research from your comments. I'm not looking to race it, but it's a truck and needs a little more umph without hitting the pump every other day. I don't know if I can find a better deal than yours but 3.3s are pretty plentiful and cheap. After reading up, chrysler mounted them longitudinally in their LHS platform cars which seems, from a novice perspective, seems like less engineering on the back end.
Were you able to keep your AC and other accessories and how much fabrication was it on your part?
I've considered the 3.9 Litre from a Dakota due to it using the same auto trans ( of course different bellhousing). Get a 94 and back engine and tranny and the tranny will bolt in the stock location and the shifter should also work. You just make motor mounts.
If it's a stick, I'm unsure if the same.
20 years ago i put a 360 and 904 tranny in a 86 ram 50 and even used the stock shift. Made mounts and the whole thing too about 3 working days.
It is archived somewhere in a geocities archive. Ram50V8
My 1968 Valiant was originally 225 Slant Six powered. When I swapped the 318 in, I had to put a 4 inch fan spacer in to get the fan close enough to the radiator for it to work. The Slant Six was at least 8 inches longer. I agree with everyone above, you would have to do a lot of engine compartment modifications to get it to fit lengthwise. Kind of like when everyone told me to bid block my Valiant. Go with what fits.
Stay safe and healthy!
the thing about the dakota engine is the LA version is weak and uses alot of gas, the Magnum uses even more gas and makes the power of the 3.0L.
the EGH, when built properly and taken care of, have seen upwards of 300k miles. i saw a 2005 3.8L go 380,000 miles before it got wrecked and totaled. but it still ran after that, it got itself out of the road. there is a 3.3L in my local junkyard an oil change shy of 500,000 miles, it was also wrecked and totaled.
the pentestar is also proven to be a really reliable engine, so if you want a 6 cylinder with power and eonomy, either a DOHC mitsubishi, a chrysler EGH, or a chrysler Pentestar will be your best bet.
if its an EGH 2001 is the best year model to get. they had aluminum intake and valve covers and that was the year they redesigned the rocker shaft to 7 bolts and bumped the power to 180 horses. not bad for a 2V OHV 60 degree bank angle engine, IMO.
now in the jeep it was really underwhelming. the NSG was about 75% efficient and the 37's on them combined with the taller gear made it lose over 80 hp from the fly to the wheels. the minivans made about 150 to the wheels and they were really strong and stout, escpecially the AWD version.
the pentestar was offered in the challenger with 305 HP, but you need custom parts and they arent dime a dozen like the EGH.
a V6 will be way better, trust me. or just keep the little 4 banger, that with a cam, carb, and header will make plenty of power for that little truck.
or maybe even a turbo...
but please dont use a LA or MAGNUM V6, its a weakened 318 that sucks way too much gas. these are economical truck you know.