good cheap v8 car

curtis73 wrote:

novaderrik wrote: what is "non GRM" about a GM 7.5 rear end? any F body rear made from 82-02 is a bolt in swap, and 99% of the G bodies and S series trucks (the 1% being the oddballs with 8.5 rears) and every Astro van that you see in the junkyards are potential differential and/or gear donors..

Sorry... what I should have said is,

Keep 20-30 spare 7.5" rear axles around if you plan on more than stock power levels or more than stock traction.

With the exception of the rare-as-hen's-teeth 8.5" G-body rear, there are no bolt-in upgrades. It either takes some pretty extensive modification or big money. The 7.5" (or 7.625" variation) is not a strong axle. They survive forever in a stock G-body because the most HP you could get was about 200. They survive forever in a stock F-body because regardless of a 345 hp LSx under the hood they are very traction-limited. A good set of sticky tires and you can pretty much kiss it goodbye. My buddy's 84 Firebird blew the posi into the trunk after swapping to a T56 and some sticky Toyo RA-1s. I don't mean to say there aren't GRM *parts* and *interchange* possibilities, I just mean that there aren't any GRM *upgrades*

like i said in my previous post, don't add a lot of instant traction and they are good to go... but i've seen plenty of G, F, and H bodies with more than double the stock available power under the hood that were abused like crazy (side step the clutch at 5000 rpm, do big smoky 1 wheel burnouts then just let off the gas and let the tire glue itself to the road- things like that) and never actually seen one blow apart even tho they probably should have. there was that one Monza with a high winding 355 and a 4 speed that had the end of the axle where the C clip goes that broke off during a donut, but he got out of it before the wheel made it out past the quarter panel. granted, none of the cars i knew had sticky meats on them, but they did get mercilessly pounded day after day for months on end because we were 16 to 18 years old and didn't know they were supposedly bombs waiting to explode at any minute.

if you don't like to pretend you are 16 and need to do burnouts everywhere or don't dead hook with slicks at the drag strip and use one in a road race type situation, they hold up really well. which is why they kept using that axle design in F bodies right up until they stopped making them in '02...

i have seen a few 9 inch rears that blew their differentials to pieces behind wheezy smog era 351W's that were getting the same kind of abuse as the weak little 7.5's- and those are supposed to be bulletproof...

volvoclearinghouse wrote: I said 2k for a reasonable, running, not rotted out V8 A body. I didn't say "A 72 Demon with a 340 and a 4 speed with mint paint and an interior still covered in plastic." People are so picky these days.

A 318 Duster would be fine... they made a ton of those. Nor would I expect a 4 spd car or even for it to be totally rust free. My point is GA is 900 miles away. No matter how cheap it is, the car would have to be worth the effort. None posted would be worth the effort to drive back to PA. Towing back would be out of the question.

I commend those of you who have the patience and persistence to sift through crappy CL ads day after day, week after week... I really don't know how you do it. I spend 10 minutes on CL and it pisses me off. No amount of money is worth that much frustration to me (and hence why I'll never build a Challenge car...). Oddly enough, the only way I could have built a Challenge car would have been if my ex-g/f had been interested in it. She is great at finding deals. But with her hatred of FL and the Challenge being in FL, it was never going to happen.

Ian F wrote:

volvoclearinghouse wrote: I said 2k for a reasonable, running, not rotted out V8 A body. I didn't say "A 72 Demon with a 340 and a 4 speed with mint paint and an interior still covered in plastic." People are so picky these days.

A 318 Duster would be fine... they made a ton of those. Nor would I expect a 4 spd car or even for it to be totally rust free. My point is GA is 900 miles away. No matter how cheap it is, the car would have to be worth the effort. None posted would be worth the effort to drive back to PA. Towing back would be out of the question. I commend those of you who have the patience and persistence to sift through crappy CL ads day after day, week after week... I really don't know how you do it. I spend 10 minutes on CL and it pisses me off. No amount of money is worth that much frustration to me (and hence why I'll never build a Challenge car...). Oddly enough, the only way I could have built a Challenge car would have been if my ex-g/f had been interested in it. She is great at finding deals. But with her hatred of FL and the Challenge being in FL, it was never going to happen.

Dude, you've changed criteria like 4 times now. Point is, for the OP, there are Mopar options out there, especially if he wants to fly n drive.

In reply to tuna55:

Ian F wrote: Seriously... Find me ONE early 70's Demon (or hell... I'd take a Duster) in running condition with minimal rust anywhere in the effin' country for under $2000 and I'll do a fly n' buy.

Hmm... I disagree.

Ian F wrote: In reply to tuna55:

Ian F wrote: Seriously... Find me ONE early 70's Demon (or hell... I'd take a Duster) in running condition with minimal rust anywhere in the effin' country for under $2000 and I'll do a fly n' buy.

Hmm... I disagree.

Ok, we're venturing off topic here. There were several links of them, you said they were too far away, not old enough, or too ratty. None of which were in your original criteria. I can see why it was suggested that you aren't going to find a cherry 340 4 speed with perfect interior.

Anyway, this isn't about you, it's about the OP - now more data points have been added - ONWARD.

Well... if we want to go back on topic, as much as I love them, I diagree an A-body can be made to handle for less money than any of the other options.

For the OP's original request, I stand by my first post: cheapest Vette you can afford. Dollar for dollar, it'll go faster and handle better for less money spent overall.

Corvettes around here seem to hokd value to well. Even high mileage c4 vettes are 6-7k

Ian F wrote: In reply to Javelin: I'd need a hell of a lot more info than those sh1tty pictures... what the hell is up with CL posters? I wonder why they berkeleying bother... Plus... not interested in a Dart or Valiant. Demon (preferred) or Duster. Pre-emissions only ('73 or older). I'm just too old to be effing around with cars I don't want ... The E30 taught me that.

Seriously man? I found you a rust free, running, driving, V8 Dart for $2000 and you want to bitch about CL pictures that actually have a car in them!!!

Fine, here's some cars to ponder:

70 Valiant with a 360/727 for $1800

74 Dart Sport with a 360 for $1500

TWO AMC Javelins for $2500

In reply to Javelin:

That Valiant looks like an awesome project.

In reply to Javelin:

I suppose you ignored the part about it must be driveable. Hauling home something that can't or shouldn't be driven more than maybe 100 miles will kill any deal. Doesn't matter if the car is free, I can't have anymore non-running cars - I've got two now.

The Valiant sounds like a good project and I've always loved those Darts with the Hang 10 option, except see above... ...and my signature below.

If you want an insanely good deal your gonna have to turn a wrench and burn some steel. Otherwise classic muscle is not even an option.

FranktheTank wrote: If you want an insanely good deal your gonna have to turn a wrench and burn some steel. Otherwise classic muscle is not even an option.

EXACTLY!

The OP didn't ask for what you seem to want, Ian. I understand and get it, I really do, but the OP is asking a question where the two main criteria are "V8" and "cheap", so VCH proposed something from Ma Mopar - a valid, by the OP's estimation, solution.

Now, since I've given you a hard time without really contributing myself, I'll come up with one.

I LOVE the GM stuff, but from that era (80's) the small block wasn't that special and the rear ends were crap. Ma Mopar may not have the swapability or power potential, but they did often get better rear ends. Fords have the distributor on the front of the engine, which is super great, but the Fox body has... issues, and there really isn't another great solution from the Blue Oval.

If it were me, I'd look for oddball stuff. You're going to have to do supporting mods to something anyway, so a Gremlin is going to have the same basic issues a Mustang has, but be much cheaper to start with. if you want something mainstream (F body, whatever), you're still going to have to do stuff to it, but you're also paying more up front. An Olds or AMC or something that you like the lines of might be a better place to start.

In reply to Ian F:

You missed the 73 Dart that is drivable, as are the Javelins. You rejected it for being not clean, so I found an even better, and more legit, muscle coupe. I give up, you'll never find what you want.

FranktheTank wrote: If you want an insanely good deal your gonna have to turn a wrench and burn some steel. Otherwise classic muscle is not even an option.

Hence why this is 'grassroots motorsports' and not 'big pile o' money motorsports'.

;-)

I like those Valiants...the boxy front end contrasts with the 2 door styling of the rear window. They're funky, and cool.

I paid 1800 for my running, driving '74 Satellite. It had some rust, but nothing terminal. A buddy of mine got a rust-free 70 Duster with a good running /6 drivetrain for scrap money...find a rusty model with the 318 and do a swap. They even make kits for that.

I just found a running, driving '69 Newport convertible in the baltimore CL for $1500. With the 383 big block, and the usual fuselage rust. No it does not have any handling...but that sure would be a fun beach car until the subframes rot out, and then you've got a great big block drivetrain and about a ton and a half worth of scrap money.

curtis73 wrote:

novaderrik wrote: what is "non GRM" about a GM 7.5 rear end? any F body rear made from 82-02 is a bolt in swap, and 99% of the G bodies and S series trucks (the 1% being the oddballs with 8.5 rears) and every Astro van that you see in the junkyards are potential differential and/or gear donors..

Sorry... what I should have said is,

Keep 20-30 spare 7.5" rear axles around if you plan on more than stock power levels or more than stock traction.

With the exception of the rare-as-hen's-teeth 8.5" G-body rear, there are no bolt-in upgrades. It either takes some pretty extensive modification or big money. The 7.5" (or 7.625" variation) is not a strong axle. They survive forever in a stock G-body because the most HP you could get was about 200. They survive forever in a stock F-body because regardless of a 345 hp LSx under the hood they are very traction-limited. A good set of sticky tires and you can pretty much kiss it goodbye. My buddy's 84 Firebird blew the posi into the trunk after swapping to a T56 and some sticky Toyo RA-1s. I don't mean to say there aren't GRM *parts* and *interchange* possibilities, I just mean that there aren't any GRM *upgrades*

Amen to stock GM axles being trash. I've smoked A LOT of F body and G rearends in my time. As a former owner of a LS swapped third gen and a 2000 trans am(381hp at the wheel btw), I know how fast you can DESTROY a 10 bolt Fbod rear. With my TA I was just rolling in 2nd gear around 3500 and punched it on street tires and it just grenaded. Went with a ford 8.8 on a 4 link setup before I sold it. bottom line here is this: Most RWD fords are the best for cheap and easy to find strong rear ends.

As much as all the old mopar makes me drool its not what im looking for at the moment. Maybe someday but for now im looking for something that is cheap to buy and run for a season or two then a cheap v8 swap

In reply to JacktheRiffer:

Where are you located, what's your budget, and what kinds of V8-swappable-cars do you like?

JacktheRiffer wrote: As much as all the old mopar makes me drool its not what im looking for at the moment. Maybe someday but for now im looking for something that is cheap to buy and run for a season or two then a cheap v8 swap

You just mentioned that you're using a 280ZX as a daily driver... those aren't a bad candidate for V8 swaps themselves.

Or a 302 T5 FC RX7? It's a very well documented swap 944 V8 can also be done cost effectively

JFX001 wrote: Lincoln Mk VII LSC, with a 5 speed swap.

Hey, I wasn't the first one to say it for once!

How about a '91-'93 Thunderbird? It's a Windsor 5.0 with an AOD in the MN-12 chassis. There are a few drawbacks; 5 x 4.25" lug pattern, weight, etc...

Well just found out my ZX needs a E36 M3 ton of work. Some kind of goo clogged the fuel lines and injectors so i wont be building/buying for awhile...thanks for all the input though should help with future projects.

A Miata with an LSx swap? Buy the Miata with a bad motor, buy a donor wrecked Chebby sprinkle with Flyin Miata kit and voila!

No?

How about a Monster Miata? With Ferd Powa!

Or a LSx swapped Porsche 944? Again, buy the parts, install, tweak a bit and enjoy.

Hell, put a V8 in a Volvo and have a nice sleeper. Jagsthatruns.com has info on those swaps.

Of course 1st/2nd and even 3rd gen RX-7's are great swap candidates as well.

All of the above have good or great aftermarket support, can be had relatively cheap as rollers and will handle as well or better than a Fox Body out of the box.

Or just buy a Corvette and spend money on a few upgrades/maintenance and enjoy going to events.

If your motor is toast just cut it out of there and do the swap now....

just pick up a Corvette.

FranktheTank wrote: If your motor is toast just cut it out of there and do the swap now....

I'm with this guy. Again.

My V8 swappable car is having engine trouble and I want to buy a V8 swap project car.

Uhh - you already have it.