CarTech®, Inc.
838 Lake Street South
Forest Lake, MN 55025
Phone: 651-277-1200 or 800-551-4754
Fax: 651-277-1203
© 2016 by Larry Shepard
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission from the Publisher. All text, photographs, and artwork are the property of the Author unless otherwise noted or credited.
The information in this work is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. However, all information is presented without any guarantee on the part of the Author or Publisher, who also disclaim any liability incurred in connection with the use of the information and any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Readers are responsible for taking suitable and appropriate safety measures when performing any of the operations or activities described in this work.
All trademarks, trade names, model names and numbers, and other product designations referred to herein are the property of their respective owners and are used solely for identification purposes. This work is a publication of CarTech, Inc., and has not been licensed, approved, sponsored, or endorsed by any other person or entity. The Publisher is not associated with any product, service, or vendor mentioned in this book, and does not endorse the products or services of any vendor mentioned in this book.
Edit by Paul Johnson
Layout by Monica Seiberlich
ISBN 978-1-61325-353-3
Item No. SA377
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Available
Written, edited, and designed in the U.S.A.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Title Page:
The first Mopar crate engine was based on the 360 production engine but had some performance parts added to increase its output to 360 hp. A few years later, Mopar added the 6-barrel crate engine (still a 360) to the lineup.
Back Cover Photos
Top Left:
The stock Mopar small-block has a secondary oil feed from the main bearing shell to the cam bearings. When building an engine for high performance or rebuild, always be sure these passages are not blocked or restricted.
Top Right:
The A-engine and Magnum are fitted with either hydraulic or mechanical rockers. Production A-engine and Magnum valvetrains look similar because they are both hydraulic and center on stamped steel rocker arms. This A-engine with adjustable mechanical rockers has aluminum roller-tip rockers.
Middle:
The cast-iron Indy A-engine cylinder head uses both exhaust manifold–attaching patterns. The stock one is close to the ports and the wide one was used on the W2 original heads. As a precaution, I recommend plugging the holes that you do not use on the W2 with small Allen screws.
Bottom:
Many Holley-based carburetors have two float bowls and two fuel entrances. With this configuration, you should use a fuel-line setup similar to this. Several kits are available for these Holleys that make the extra plumbing easy to organize.
DISTRIBUTION BY:
Europe
PGUK
63 Hatton Garden
London EC1N 8LE, England
Phone: 020 7061 1980 • Fax: 020 7242 3725
Australia
Renniks Publications Ltd.
3/37-39 Green Street
Banksmeadow, NSW 2109, Australia
Phone: 2 9695 7055 • Fax: 2 9695 7355
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1: Blocks
Special Features and Operations
Chapter 2: Crankshafts and Connecting Rods
High-Performance Street Cranks
Chapter 3: Pistons and Rings
Production Pistons
Aftermarket Pistons
Piston Profile
Compression Ratio
Piston Design
Piston Pins