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Hot Rods 273 mopar engine looking for info

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by OldBlueOval, Jan 19, 2011.

  1. OldBlueOval
    Joined: Jan 10, 2006
    Posts: 197

    OldBlueOval
    Member
    from Upstate NY

    Saw a 273ci 4bbl eng &a904-la transmission did a tread search did not find anything. Just looking for info good or bad about this set up. Came out of a Valiant Thanks Joe
     
  2. its the itty bitty LA same internals as a 318 (I think) power in stock form isnt much.. but its the same bullet proof LA design.. If its cheap go for it.. (like 100-200 range) if not hold out.. 318,360's are cheap (runners for 100-400 depending) have more cubes, proboally better heads for power, and if your not looking out ya may trip over one...

    Edit.....

    however the one good thing I can see doing with a 273 is maybe a low displacement rev happy turbo boosted mil. to be different... but its gonna cost ya more $$ to get what you could get out of a 318 / 360 for a lot less..
     
    Last edited: Jan 19, 2011
  3. squirrel
    Joined: Sep 23, 2004
    Posts: 55,942

    squirrel
    Member

    yup, neat little engine used in the 60s. Small port heads (like a 2bbl 318), small bore, they work ok in a light car. Think mopar version of the 289 ford. They made a 4bbl version of the 273 for cars like the Dart GT
     
  4. i had a barracuda273 s With its original s engine in it , the diffrence is in the cam and the pistons . The s engine used dome pistons. . but there is no company who make repops of them . So if u do a rebuild and have to bore the engine there is no way araound a set of regular low comp pistons for the 273. May this changed in the meantime but this is how it was a few (5 or so) years ago.
    I realy liked this engine you can rev it til 6500. I only used a edelbrock intake and a 650 carb . If you can get it for cheap go with it. For a engine under 300 cui it is pretty cool. If you wanna go later with a 340 it is a bolt on . With a few exeptions like motor mounts are a bit diffrent and not all converters are interchangeable because some are internal ballanced and other not.
    sorry 4 crappy english :)
     

  5. Deuces
    Joined: Nov 3, 2009
    Posts: 23,757

    Deuces

    Yep! There was also a solid lifter version that put out 275 ponies in the '65 or '66 'Cuda with a 4-speed.. :D A guy I knew in the late '70's had one...
     
  6. hmm 273 with magnum heads, and a 50hp shot of giggle juice... and stuff it in a healy sprite and go huntin sunbeam tigers...
     
  7. I forgot the other thing is mopar sb's are big.. bout 2" longer and wider then a sbc.. so I would say they are heavy too...
     
  8. squirrel
    Joined: Sep 23, 2004
    Posts: 55,942

    squirrel
    Member

    the bore is kinda small for using big valve heads, though, only 3.625".
     
  9. Don't forget steel crank, full floating rods, adjustable rockers are standard equipment on them!! the little motors are hard to kill, we put a 150 shot on one and ran the piss out of it, still runs fine to this day. now the kid is putting a turbo on it and is going to see how much boost it will hold!
     
  10. JOECOOL
    Joined: Jan 13, 2004
    Posts: 2,771

    JOECOOL
    Member

    You know I understand about "it's what I have" , the good old days ect,but if your talking about the same basic dimentions always go for big cubic inches.You can put a ton of money and work in an old small engine and it will never ,I repeat never perfom like a larger one with the same work.
    Every person whom I have known who built a cool small cu. in combo. always regreted it. Just my opinion, I'm probably wrong.
     
  11. 73RR
    Joined: Jan 29, 2007
    Posts: 7,175

    73RR
    Member

    Since no one has mentioned the 273 intake manifold issue I'll bring it up...they have a bit different bolt angle so newer manifolds are not a direct bolt on.
    As previously said, the 360 is exactly the same physical size as the 273...and as mentioned the later engines are cheap, even Magnums are littering craigslist.
    If the 273 is free then stick it in the corner of the shop and hold it for someone restoring a Dart or something.

    .
     
  12. REJ
    Joined: Mar 4, 2004
    Posts: 1,612

    REJ
    Member
    from FLA

    I think the only ones with a different angle on the intakes are the 63-64 or 64-65 model.
    I know for sure it is the 64 as I have one.
     
  13. Deuces
    Joined: Nov 3, 2009
    Posts: 23,757

    Deuces

    ........ Or before it blows up??? That ain't no way to treat a classic motor!! :mad:
     
  14. I had one we put in a 67 barracuda w/ 4 speed, it was a high revving screamer of a motor!
     
  15. Depends on what you want the car to be when it's done...

    If you want to just have a fun reliable engine to get from A to B, then the 273 is just fine, but there really aren't many performance parts made for them any more. It's like someone said - the 289 version of the 302 Ford, for example. Rebuild parts are pretty easy to find for them since they share SO much with their 318, 340 & 360 brothers. Do a decent job of building it and it'll last for-freaking-ever if you leave it pretty much stock (maybe a cam & intake swap). My daily driver 360 has 265,000 miles on it and it has never had the heads off of it! Get a Mopar Performance catalog and see what interchanges and what's available, and post questions on some of the better Mopar forums (moparts, tidewatermoparclub.com, etc.)

    If you want a race car, get rid of the 273 on one of the Mopar message boards or Craigslist and find a 318 or 360 (the 340's are golden to the guys restoring Mopars since they made so few of them, and they can't be had very cheap).

    Again, the Mopar Performance catalog will be a good resource. There's a metric sh!tload of 318's out there CHEAP since they used the "LA" (lighter casting, etc.) since 1967 all the way up to the (so called 5.9 liter) Magnums in the trucks... The 5.9 is just a very "evolved" motor from the "318" that it started life as.

    Find a Mopar club in your area and ask lots of questions at the meetings, or introduce yourself to someone with a small block Mopar at the next car show that you attend. (All "small blocks" have the distributor at the back of the engine, and all of the "big blocks" have the distributor at the front of the engine.)

    Good luck!
     
  16. RacerRick
    Joined: May 16, 2005
    Posts: 2,756

    RacerRick
    Member

    A 273-4brl is a pretty hot little motor. 235hp stock and came with a single plane intake, AFB carb, solid lifters, and adjustable rocker arms. Compression was about 10.5:1 IIRC and they are very hard to kill. The valve covers came with heat sinks to help cool the oil and valve springs, and they had a chrome open element air cleaner from the factory.

    65' or 66' was the last year for the slightly different intake bolt angles (I don't remember which), so all later engines use the common intakes. They are pretty stout little motors, but low on displacement so you have to rev them.
     
  17. llonning
    Joined: Nov 17, 2007
    Posts: 681

    llonning
    Member

    Easy to tell the earlier heads. The early ones used a 5/16 thread and the later used a 3/8 thread along with a different manifold angle.

    Ran into that one on a early '66 engine a long time ago.

    Had to go look but the TRW piston # is L2222N for the 10.5 compression pistons. I doubt anybody makes them any more. I still have the one out of my old 66 'Cuda.
     
    Last edited: Jan 19, 2011
  18. HEATHEN
    Joined: Nov 22, 2005
    Posts: 8,564

    HEATHEN
    Member
    from SIDNEY, NY

    The '64-'65 heads had one intake angle, and '66 on up had another.
     
  19. 69fury
    Joined: Feb 24, 2009
    Posts: 1,452

    69fury
    Member

    There's a chance of it having factory adjustable rockers too.- they're good little motors. The LA mopar mill is a decent piece from the get-go. 6.123" rods, shaft mounted stable valvetrain, 18degree valve angle heads.
     
  20. don't let anyone tell ya those little dodge motors didn't make power..this car ran 166 MPH in 1967!!

    Rick
     

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  21. jbtine
    Joined: Nov 22, 2005
    Posts: 214

    jbtine
    Member

    It's not true that you can't get pistons for the 10.5:1 4bbl engine. Egge has them listed from standard bore all the way to .060 over however the cost listed is $428 for a set. Bad thing about a 273 4bbl engine is finding gas to run in a 10.5 engine. You can build a 318 cheaper and have more power. They even use the same crank, the 273 with a smaller bore uses a much thicker wall wrist pin to make up the difference in balance. You can build the 318 and pull 400hp. Here are a couple of builds.

    http://www.hotrod.com/howto/113_0304_318_small_block_build/index.html

    http://www.popularhotrodding.com/enginemasters/articles/mopar/0667em_mopar_318_engine/index.html
     
  22. jbtine
    Joined: Nov 22, 2005
    Posts: 214

    jbtine
    Member

    Another thing as stated in previous posts is the difference in intake angles. This includes a bolt size change too. 64-65 uses 5/16 bolts and 66 up including 318,340 and 360s use 3/8 bolts. I doubt anyone still makes intakes for the 64-65 engine. If you are lucky to find an Edlebrock the number is LD-4. 66 up engines 273 and 318 uses the LD-4B and many other brands too.
     
  23. wrenchbender
    Joined: Sep 5, 2007
    Posts: 2,337

    wrenchbender
    Member

    I run a 273 with a turbo on it in my 64 afx dart at the hamb drags this last year and it smoked the tires the entire 1/4 mile mine has 340 heads and intake along with a six pack cam also has flat top pistons runs real good and has been super reliable I drive it everyday to work and everywhere else I wouldn't be afraid of running a 273 they are high winding and make good power for a small cube motor
     
  24. REJ
    Joined: Mar 4, 2004
    Posts: 1,612

    REJ
    Member
    from FLA

    Either through Jegs or Summit you can get the 64-65 intake. Be prepared to pay for it though.
    Last time I checked they were around 400-500.
     
  25. OldBlueOval
    Joined: Jan 10, 2006
    Posts: 197

    OldBlueOval
    Member
    from Upstate NY

    Thanks for all the info!! (what a great place) Now I have to decide. There is a complete 440 set up near me, or I can go with the 273 set up? All I want to do with the car at first is to cruise the streets and enjoy the ride and get it on the road!! Thanks Joe
     
  26. OldBlueOval
    Joined: Jan 10, 2006
    Posts: 197

    OldBlueOval
    Member
    from Upstate NY

    With the small block 273 with the distributor in the rear would you have too recess the stock firewall.
     
  27. 73RR
    Joined: Jan 29, 2007
    Posts: 7,175

    73RR
    Member

    Use the 440. In dead stock form it will scare ya.

    .
     
  28. It's so classic we took 5 of them to the scrapper a few months back. But we did keep the formula "S" motors.
     
  29. question was allready answered , so i deleted my post
     
    Last edited: Jan 21, 2011
  30. Pasta
    Joined: Aug 16, 2010
    Posts: 65

    Pasta
    Member

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