I just had to have emergency brain surgery & it's going to be a while before I can drive a manual again. In the meantime, my only slushbix lives in a 1991 Dodge Dakota 2 WD behind a 318 V8. I think I wanna hop up the little truck. Any inspired ideas?
http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/reader-rides/986/
In reply to M030:
I can't help you with the Dakota, but very sorry to hear about your health issues. Hope it all did or will work out.
bravenrace wrote: In reply to M030: I can't help you with the Dakota, but very sorry to hear about your health issues. Hope it all did or will work out.
+1!!!!
The fact that you can type "I just had emergency brain surgery" is full of win!
M030 wrote: I just had to have emergency brain surgery & it's going to be a while before I can drive a manual again. In the meantime, my only slushbix lives in a 1991 Dodge Dakota 2 WD behind a 318 V8. I think I wanna hop up the little truck. Any inspired ideas?
Well, first off... good luck with your recovery! 
Second, you could stuff a 360 in there, as it should fit no problem. Not sure exactly what you would do for EFI stuff, as I'm new to these trucks myself (I have a '97 that I recently bought). I think the transmission is the same too. There are other options for engine swaps too. I know there's a build thread on here (from Rob Mopar?) that involves swapping in a new Hemi into a Dakota. and of course, I've seen LSX swaps into them too, because you can swap them into pretty much anything.
Sorry to hear that. The good news is this one ought to respond to all the classic small block Mopar speed parts. IIRC, this one is a pre-Magnum TBI motor. Does this one have to deal with emissions rules?
SilverFleet wrote:M030 wrote: I just had to have emergency brain surgery & it's going to be a while before I can drive a manual again. In the meantime, my only slushbix lives in a 1991 Dodge Dakota 2 WD behind a 318 V8. I think I wanna hop up the little truck. Any inspired ideas?Well, first off... good luck with your recovery!
A LA-series 360 will bolt in because IIRC, 92 was the start of the Magnum series. Biggest thing, get the trans overhauled before it breaks and get all the later model updates too.
Hemi swap is mine. LSx swap thread was mine. Thinking of dumping the Hemi for the LSx, since the LSx swap, with a full on manual 4L60E, can be done for well under $700 and easily well within challenge cash limits. 
I know if you search the LS1tech board, there's a couple of LSx swaps on there, rated "Dirt Cheap" and "Easy".
Ththanks for the kind wishes! Emergency brain surgery contains no win at all.
Previous owner threw away EFI SET UP & bolted on an. Edelbrock carb & intake. Truck is about 400% over-carbureted. Raw gas fumes behind running truck will knock you out. Plus big nasty flat spot off idle
M030 wrote: Ththanks for the kind wishes! Emergency brain surgery contains no win at all. Previous owner threw away EFI SET UP & bolted on an. Edelbrock carb & intake. Truck is about 400% over-carbureted. Raw gas fumes behind running truck will knock you out. Plus big nasty flat spot off idle
Aneursym?
It maybe over carb'd, but I bet it isn't tuned properly. You can NOT take a carb out of the box, bolt it on, and expect to get awesome MPG and/or power. This is why about 98% of parts store carbs get returned. It is a damn carb for goodness sakes, it REQUIRES fiddling with. This ain't EFI where you can bolt on and go.
the 318 is a good little motor. put a set of summit headers on it with a dynomax 3 inch catback single exhaust. 600CFM eddy carb is all it should need.
depending on the manifold, you should be good there. the factory distributors are a very slow advance that dont go anywhere they should. make sure he converted to non computer controlled ignition. if he didnt, convert it. if he did, spend some time recurving it. it will kmake a dramatic difference.
if you google foursecondsflat edelbrock tuning, youll get a GREAT step by step process on tweaking that carb. should be the bible for you. also covers ignition tweaking.
electric fan will make a great difference.
on the chassis, lightening the truck is a good start, but will only get you so much. ADDCO makes bigger sway bars. find 2" drop spindles, 2 inch drop springs, and a flip kit for the rear, or a 6 inch combo of hangars, shackles, and leaves. use KYB monomax shocks, and energy suspension bushings. make a kock off of the kenny bell x-brace for the second gen dakotas, and attach to your first gen.
add a hift improver kit and properly adjust your lockup and line pressures. will make your rebuilt trans last a lot longer.
hope that helps. (and yes, ive built a few hot rod dakotas. my next will be a convertable.)
michael
Ranger50 wrote:M030 wrote: Ththanks for the kind wishes! Emergency brain surgery contains no win at all. Previous owner threw away EFI SET UP & bolted on an. Edelbrock carb & intake. Truck is about 400% over-carbureted. Raw gas fumes behind running truck will knock you out. Plus big nasty flat spot off idleAneursym? It maybe over carb'd, but I bet it isn't tuned properly. You can NOT take a carb out of the box, bolt it on, and expect to get awesome MPG and/or power. This is why about 98% of parts store carbs get returned. It is a damn carb for goodness sakes, it REQUIRES fiddling with. This ain't EFI where you can bolt on and go.
When I used to work at one of the larger auto parts chains, a guy came in one afternoon and brings a Holley Street Avenger carb to the counter. He asked me if the carb was ready to go out of the box. I told him that all carbs need adjustment and they are not universal. He was appalled that he would actually have to tune it. He then points to the box where it says "Bolt on and GO!!!" and says that he is buying it and it better be ready out of the box.
A couple hours later, he comes back with a practically new Holley Street Avenger filled with fuel, and said he wanted his money back. It didn't meet the promise on the box, he said. 
People are dumb.
I bet there's lots of power to be had from tuning that carb alone. You could always wake that 318 up with a cam and lifter kit too. Cheap power!
Glad to know the brain surgery went well. I'm guessing you aren't looking to go nuts with a build on the truck and are just looking to have some fun with it.
What you have is essentially the production offspring of the '89 Shelby Dakota.
As the other guys pointed out, the '91 has the throttle body injected 318. Depending on the emissions requirements in your area you might be tied to a stock combo there. I want to follow-up with Matt on a Megasquirt solution for these engines. I have a couple customers that could use that option on ther TBI Mopars.
Trans is either the A500 or A518. I'm 99% sure it's the A500. That's the overdrive version of the Mopar 904. Some guys still stick their noses up on them, but they can be built to take some power and live. A good shift kit will make it much more fun to drive. It has a steeper 1st & 2nd gear than the 518. The A500 matched to a 3.91 rear is a nice combo.
The rear should be the Mopar 8 1/4". In the Dak they were available with 3.21/3.55/3.91 gear options. Most Daks I've come across have 3.55's. 2WD ones seem to have 3.21 more often than the 4x4's. All were optional with a limited slip differential. Sure Grip in Mopar speak.
Ratios numerically as low as 2.21/2.45 were available in M-bodies, but require a different carrier. And they would suck the life out of the truck. 2.76/2.94/3.07 were available in other models, as were 4.10's. Some aftermarket gears in the 4.30/4.56 ranges too, but that's probably overkill.
Aftermarket limited slips are available too.
Early Daks can handle very well. There are some springs and sway bars out there for them. Some lowering spindles too. Ranger50 can give you the pros and cons to them.
The 6-lug wheel options are better than they used to be, but swapping rotors and rear axles out for the earlier 5-lug versions opens up more options.
On the engine, freeing up the exhaust can help. Later Magnum exhaust manifolds flow much better than the manifolds you have now. The best of the Magnum manifolds were the '92-93 manifolds. They had a larger outlet than the '94-up ones. Can be harder to find, but any 318 powered '93-94 Dak/Ram/Ram Van would have them.
The later manifolds still flow better than yours, so they are a good option. Shorty headers are available, as are long tube Hookers ($$$), but on a mild 318 I'd stick with Magnum manifolds. Getting a good Y-pipe bent up to a 3" single system would do wonders for the truck.
If engine swaps are a possibility, 360's in both LA and Magnum form will bolt in. Stroker kits are available for both to that them up to 390-408". A 340 will bolt in, but cores for a 340 are spendy. If you want to go nuts, a second generation Hemi (426 based) will fit.
M030 wrote: Ththanks for the kind wishes! Emergency brain surgery contains no win at all. Previous owner threw away EFI SET UP & bolted on an. Edelbrock carb & intake. Truck is about 400% over-carbureted. Raw gas fumes behind running truck will knock you out. Plus big nasty flat spot off idle
Typing on the GRM forum after emergency brain surgery is a win in my book! 
I'm betting the fuel pressure going to the Ed carb is way more than the carb can handle. Should be in the 5psi range. The electric pump from the TBI system is rated much higher than that.
Flat spot is probably the engine flooding. 
In reply to SilverFleet:
If it got bolted on, fired up, and moved even one millimeter, NO REFUND!
Ranger50 wrote: In reply to SilverFleet: If it got bolted on, fired up, and moved even one millimeter, NO REFUND!
Yeah, that was my stance, until he got District Manager involved. We had to award his stupidity and ignorance by giving him a full cash refund. 
In reply to Rob_Mopar:
In my experience, I have only seen A500/42RH's behind 4 and 6 cylinders and A518/46RH's behind V8's.
THANK YOU for stating what I always have said. There is nothing wrong with sticking with the "baby" trans behind a V8. Of course, it has to be in good working order in the first place to live. I just look at the Pro-Flites out there and most of those use billet versions of 904 parts in a 727 case....to eliminate most of the rotating weight. So can they really be that bad?
Dusterbd13 wrote: on the chassis, lightening the truck is a good start, but will only get you so much. ADDCO makes bigger sway bars. find 2" drop spindles, 2 inch drop springs, and a flip kit for the rear, or a 6 inch combo of hangars, shackles, and leaves. use KYB monomax shocks, and energy suspension bushings. make a kock off of the kenny bell x-brace for the second gen dakotas, and attach to your first gen.
A 4/6 drop is WAY too much. I am rolling 2" lower on all 4 corners plus a 2" overall drop in tire diameter, for another inch of lowering, and still nearly hit the front wheelwells on bumps. I put any weight in the bed, about 400# worth, and I am on the bumpstops in back. And to jack the truck up has to be done from the side. Even with a HF low profile jack, I still can't get under the front crossmember. It is that low.
In reply to Ranger50:
The Shelby Dak's got A500's, but I don't think the 518 came out until '90.
I know the V6's got A500's, but I think the TBI 318 Dak's got them too. The later Magnum V8 Dak's got 518's, but I'm not sure on the early ones ('92-93).
I don't know if this trips your trigger, but there used to be a company that makes a kit to convert Mazda, Toyota, Dodge et al into hardtop convertables.
The roof sits in the bed on a rack when not in use. Kit included gaskets, snaps, instructions etc. Local kid put one on a Mazda truck, calles it Mazdarotti.
Add suspension, what's not to like?
Dan
Anbiss know The Wheel Volt pattern measurement? Truck Nerds Dome Cragars pr Ansen style Spottes mags( think Starallüren hutch Torino) bur i wanr find a cheap Set of Used ones. New ones are Kind of pricey
5x4.5. 5 lug is the same as the Fords.
I hate threads like this. NOW I have to go look for one.
Thanks guys. Thanks alot.
SilverFleet wrote: ...you could stuff a 360 in there, as it should fit no problem.
Be aware that while a 360 will bolt in where a 318 was the balance is different so if you do not also use the matching flexplate/converter/harmonic balancer combination you'll have a 4 wheeled paint shaker!
Good luck with your recovery and project
Jeff
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