engine swap

[lawdog]

I have a 1987 dodge ram pickup slant six with 4speed would like to swap to 360 v8 auto trans can anyone tell me if i have to change anything on the electrical like the control module, also will the rear end make any difference in the gearing? Thank you very much for your help.
lawdog

[speeddragon190]

depends on how you do it. you going carbed or fuel injection? carb would be much easier. trash the factory Lean Burn system, put a regular elec. distributor in it and install an MSD ignition box and the ignition will be done. you have to lengthen or re-route some wires for things such as the temp. and oil press. sending units, but nothing major.
you'll need to install some kind of shifter, either by swapping in an automatic steering column w/ all the associated linkage, or by using an aftermarket shifter, such as a Hurst or B&M. driveshaft will be the same(as long as it's not a Club Cab).
you'll need V8 motor mounts. also a V8 auto radiator and the tranny lines that run from the tranny to the radiator.
the rear end will probably have a 3.55 gear, should be fine unless you do a lot of long haul highway driving. it'll pull really good w/ the 3.55.

[lawdog]

Thanks for the reply Speeddragon, would i be better off using the 4speed?
Thanks again---lawdog

[speeddragon190]

doesn't really matter, both the 4-spd and the 727 auto are strong trannies. basically comes down to personal preference, whether you like to shift it yourself or just put your foot down and let it do it. by the way, i'm assuming you have the OD 4-spd, not the granny 4-spd. the granny 4 is a strong tranny too, but not very good for performance.

as far going w/ the OD 4-spd, one thing to keep in mind is although you can use your existing tranny, it is very hard to find a V8 bellhousing for it, or at least a cheap one lol( i'm a cheapskate lol). i was going to do a 3-spd to OD 4-spd swap in my 72. i found 2 in the last year and a half, both 90 bucks or more. the reason for this is that the OD 4-spd had a much larger input bearing than the regular 4-spd, hence it had a larger bearing reatainer that required a much larger hole in the bellhousing. not many of our trucks came w/ a V8 and OD 4-spd, i've only seen 1 or 2, so the b-housings are pretty scarce.

on the other hand, V8 autos are a dime a dozen, you can find one at almost every junk yard. 360's are starting to dry up, but they're still relatively easy to find, if you have the money.

personally, i like a straight drive. i'm currently working on a 5-spd swap for my truck, using junk yard parts. i'll post on here and keep every one updated on it as it comes along. Keisler Automotive makes a complete 5-spd swap kit using the Tremec 5-spd(common upgrade tranny in Mustangs), but it's almost $3000, and i don't have that kind of money to drop in my truck.

[lawdog]

Speeddragon, Thanks for your help, what i have on my mind is i pull my livestock trailor and haul my tractor sometimes been useing my 1986 ramcharger with the 360-auto trans but it is wrecked now and i was thinking of pulling it and dropping it in the pickup also the steering collum. I think i can take everything i need off the ramcharger. My ramcharger would get in a pretty hard pull sometimes up hill but i am hoping that the 3.55 rearend will help on that. Thanks very much for your help and replys good luck on your 5speed swap.-------lawdog

[speeddragon190]

yeah, you can take everything you need out of the Ramcharger, it's all the same. you should be able to use the existing driveshaft is your truck.

[Moparfreak1980]

i thought they quit putting the slant in vehicles after 86 and went to the 3.9L v6 but they could have left it an option for the ram i don't know or am i a year early on this thought

[lawdog]

Don't know Moparfreak, My pickup is a 1987 d100 with slant 6 -4 speed overdrive trans.
Looks factory to me but i don't know. That is how it is listed on title also.
Hope this helps.------lawdog

[speeddragon190]

i believe 87 was the last year.

[Moparfreak1980]

probably since you got one have you ever done a backround check on the truck

[lawdog]

No never done any i probably should but haven't thought about.
lawdog

[Moparfreak1980]

not like there a big deal but i've tried doing one on mine nothing came up