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318 to 413 swap

8K views 22 replies 4 participants last post by  fal308 
#1 ·
I have a 4x4 89 ramcharger With a 318..I just pulled a great running 413 HT (27,000 org miles ) from a 71 RV and i would love to put it in my ramcharger..will it fit ? and would I have to change tranny's.

I picked this up for $1200 :rck: and got the RV for $400 ..I really Hope This motor will fit..Anybody That Knows if it will Please let me Know..Thanks

I have completely rebuilt the dash with fiberglass and diamond plate..installed a 17" screen connected to a computer mounted in a custom speaker enclosure located in the rear with two 1600 what Jbl 12" subs and the speakerbox slides with remote to see the 2 1400 watt amps capaciter and crossovers located under the rear floor. (thanks to installing a BMW sliding sunroof in the floor) Brand new carpet and 2 bomz Racing seats are going in soon as they get hear (any day now)
 

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#2 · (Edited)
Nice RC! Sure it will fit! That chassis had a factory 440 available back in the late 70's so yeah. A big help on this project will be www.bpeusa.com they carry conversion LA/Magnum 318/360 to B/RB, motor mounts, bellhousing, exhaust products ect...The only 'problem' I see is the huge cooling pump casting those engines had but a standard 440 pump could be fit in place of it. Another great source for B/RB parts and info is www.440source.com Good Luck keep us posted,,,.. maybe bouchillion performance is having trouble with their site. Their # is 843-744-6559
 
#4 ·
POOLinstaller said:
not to sound stupid (although im sure i do) when you say the cooling pump housing ..is this the same as the water pump?
No stupid questions when it comes to auto tech. On the big block MoPar the water pump resides or fits into the water pump housing, this then bolts onto the front of the engine. Some housings had a discharge on the right side some on the left side. Just make sure the radiator inlet/outlet are compatible with the housing's inlet/outlet, thats all. :D
 
#5 ·
as Eddie said there isn't any problem getting the engine in there but with out seeing the 413 engine and trans combo there might be some details that will need to be worked out before just bolting the engine in there.

some of the RV trans had a parking brake drum on the rear of the trans that no other trucks used and would make for some problems of getting the driveshaft to fit and also some of the RV engines used a huge water pump housing that feed water straight into the heads first instead of the block like the stock passenger car engines did.
 
#9 ·
thanks.. yea i did it all myself out in the yard..Im not sure of the running gear.. it has a 318 engine and auto trans..I I will be posting pictures as I pull the motor out and replace it with a 413 I got from a 1971 executive rv.. i just pulled the grill out of the rv..I'm using the aluminum to build a custom grill for the ramcharger. I been working on this for about a year in my spear time i hope to have the motor balenced and shined up near the end of the summer..Im not sure of any problems i will run into Im hoping the motor will go in with out no trouble with the tranny or transfercase. The inside is almost done im still needing a couple more amps, The two 1400 watt amps iIhave now are bridged 1 amp for each of the 1600 whatt jbl subs located in the rear speaker box that also holds my computer loadede with videos to display on the 17 inch screen in the dash and is equiped with full screen GPS with a locater (very cool) ..advanced video card enables me to have multiple screens(not installed yet but i have them). a slimline flexable keyboard is built into the driverside sunviser (couldnt figure out anywhere else to put it) two 12 inch compition kicker reside on each side of the rear seat (not hooked up yet as i need more amps) four 200 watt tweeters located in the four corners of the truck and four 400 what pyle drivers connected with four three way crossovers located with the amps under the rear speaker box..Which slides back in and out thanks to a power sun roof frame I got from a bmw. and so I can watch movies with out having to get out and place them in the computer there is a dvd player built in the dash above the glove box. all the electronics are controled via voice command (like the new fords) thanks to the computer and a lot of late nights tinkering with different programs. I have to shave the door handles still ..they are not functional i just havent taken them off yet..the doors open with remote thanks to a kit I got off e-bay.The diamond plate stuff is all hand fabricated except the floormats..I saw them and just had to get em..lol I have a few rust spots that need fixing (werent there a year ago) and I am going to airbrush some killer graphics on the truck later as I have Gotten really good by Painting flames and skulls and stuff on all my friends guitars why not do the truck right!..anyhow thanks for the comments and ill be posting pictures as I continue hat seems a never ending project..
 
#14 · (Edited)
On the passenger side of the engine block it will tell you the casting numbers and vin# of the vehicle to which it came in starting in 1965 I think,(Fed. Law) on small blocks. On big blocks there will be a 'pad' on the front of the block near the dizzy, it will have some info on that pad such as 440, 413 383 ect.. www.440source.com will give you all the info you need to 'find' out what block and what year you have. B engines are 383,400 or are low deck,(9.998), 413, 426 wedge, 426 Hemi, 440 are raised deck,(10.720) engines. the A-727 is a great small block tranny for Heavy Duty usage. Good swap bait for a B-727 which you will need for your big block. A-727 are becoming harder to find as most small blocks used a 904,(slipoh4)LOL! Very cool project you have poolinstaller!! My Dodge trucks, all Dodge, All manual shifted 4x4 Power! ! :rck:
 

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#15 ·
thanks

thanks for the info..and by the way the tranny that is in the rv with the 413 is an A-727 how do i tell if the tranny in my ramcharger is the same..I would like to keep the tranny thats in the truck so i dont have to mess with the transfercase as the ramcharger is is a 4x4? and on the pad on the front of the block is stamped 413 HT any idea what the HT stands for?
 
#16 ·
POOLinstaller said:
thanks for the info..and by the way the tranny that is in the rv with the 413 is an A-727 how do i tell if the tranny in my ramcharger is the same..I would like to keep the tranny thats in the truck so i dont have to mess with the transfercase as the ramcharger is is a 4x4? and on the pad on the front of the block is stamped 413 HT any idea what the HT stands for?
The A-727 is bolted to the 413? It should be a big block tranny not a "a727' for a small block. The bellhousing is different on smallblocks/bigblocks. Sometimes Chrysler made mistakes on the casting numbers. The HT on the engine pad of the 413 should have a HD instaed of the HT, maybe they stamped it HT for Heavy Duty truck Industrial? Check out the 440 source site they have a whole explanation on those casting numbers and Truck/RV blocks as well, pretty cool info on there!
 
#17 ·
To clarify what Eddie said, the RV tranny should be a B-727 not an A-727.
Your Ramcharger should have an A-727 in it. I don' believe you could get a four wheel drive Dodge with a 904.
Again, as Eddie said, the main difference between an A-727 and a B-727 is the bellhousing bolt pattern.
 
#18 ·
Equipment identification

Thanks ok here is the information i found on a paper in a plastic pouch mounted under the rv on the inside of the frame near the front driverside tire. It looks like the sticker you see on the inside of a door jam with info on it ..but this one is about6" x 8".

LOOKS LIKE PERHAPS INFO ON THE CHASIS BEFORE THE RV WAS BUILT ON IT.

MODEL----WHEEL BASE----VIN-----------------TON
M400------178-------------M4OCN3J000082---W3474626

CODE NO.....................DESCRIPTION
AG1.............................RR AXLE 10000 # SPICER 70 4.4
DC5.............................14 x 2.5 HYD FRT BRAKE
EE1.............................413-1 EIGHT CYL GAS ENGINE
HC5............................EMISSION REDUCTION SYSTEM
HE4............................60 AMP ALTERNATOR
RE2............................17X6.0 5 STUD DISC WHEELS
SL8.............................REAR SPRING 3800 # AT PAD
ZL2.............................BOXED PARTS
TL2F............................7.50X17 8 SUPER HIMILER GDY
CR1.............................FRONT AXLE 5000 #
DG7............................14.12 X 3 HYD REAR BRAKE
FA3.............................TRANS A-727 AUTOMATIC
HC7............................ELECTRONIC IGNITION SYSTEM
HF4............................90 AMP BATTERY
SC5............................FRONT SPRING 2500 # AT PAD
ZE2............................TEMPORARY SEAT & STRG WHEEL
TL2R...........................7.50X17 8 SUPER HIMILER GDY

ON ANOTHER STICKER
MFD BY CHRYSLER CANADA LTD
DATE OF MFG 8-14-72
-------------------------------------------------
This clearly states that the tranny attached to this 413 is code# FA3 AN A-727..? so it must be right? and if being the case,the bell housing must have the pattern to fit in my ramcharger right?..im not trying to be difficult i just want a little heads up before actually doing the swap..and im so glad you all are trying to help..thank you so much.

Well if anything if you ever need to prove that an A-727 did come stock bolted to a 413 ..heres your proof..lol
 

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#19 ·
Regardless of what the paper or codes state, this tranny is currently attached to that 413 correct? If so, then yes it will fit that engine, and this combo of 413 and that tranny in question is going into the RC correct? If so, just make sure the transmission mounts are compatible with the mount and crossmember of your Ramcharger and that it has the 4x4 transfer case rear housing for your transfer case. I am not an auto tranny expert, but you may have a 'problem' with the transfer case rear of the auto tranny. The auto tranny attaches to the transfer case but I dont know for sure if the RV tranny is compatible with your transfer case you have in the RC. Maybe Barc would chime in and set us straight on that. There is also an option of a 'divorced' transfer case, Ive seen big block dudes use the div setup before.
 
#20 ·
transmission issues

Thanks threetwos for your reply

I want to only put the 413 in the ramcharger not the transmission so i dont have to mess with the transfer case. im guessing that the bell housing and torque converter may have to be takin off the tranny in the rv and put in the ramcharger.

i will keep you posted as i begin this process. for farther references i may take photo's.. Ok thanks
 
#21 ·
POOLinstaller said:
Thanks threetwos for your reply

I want to only put the 413 in the ramcharger not the transmission so i dont have to mess with the transfer case. im guessing that the bell housing and torque converter may have to be takin off the tranny in the rv and put in the ramcharger.

i will keep you posted as i begin this process. for farther references i may take photo's.. Ok thanks
Is the current transmission in the Ramcharger a 904? If so it wont last very long at all with big block torque levels approaching 500 ft. lbs. trhats why I was asking about the tranny. :D
 
#22 ·
Check the transmission for a flat pad with lettering/numbers on it. It should tell you which transmission it is. I wouldn't go with what's printed on a piece of paper that may or may not belong to that frame. The assembly line workers would sometimes just stuff build sheets into any body on their car lines and I don't see why the truck, bus and chassis lines would be any different.
I've never heard of a smallblock tranny behind a bigblock. Is there by chance an adapter between the transmission and the engine? You should be able to make the bigblock tranny work by changing out the tailshaft with the 4x4 tranny's tailshaft if nothing else pans out.
Could you snap some pictures if possibe. That may help.
As for the divorced transfer cases, I don't know if there is enough room under an RC for a divorced unit. Though there might be, as I believe I've seen some doublers under RCs in the past.
You might also try looking around and asking on www.ramchargercentral.com There are guys over there that have forgotten more about swaps than I'll ever learn.
 
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