340 engine appraisal

[Jimmydee]

I’m looking for help to appraisal on this 340.
The ad and the details were written by the seller. I kept it to have record what was done. It’s from a 72 challenger.

[scottieb]

340 's a sweet engine, especially in a smaller Mopar like a Dart/Duster.

[evilfishsticks]

My dad had a '71 Challenger in the early 00's that had a 340 that was bored out to 370 with the shaker hood, cam, headers and exhaust... it was such a fun car (except for the terrible brakes).

[Jordan]

Pistons? Heads? Intake? Carb? Where's the rest of it? Also, without receipts and proof any of that was done, I'm always skeptical. Seen too many "built" motors with stock parts and a fresh paint job.

[Moodog]

Offer what you think would be reasonable for the base cost of the block - bearings, cam, rings, etc. are all sunk cost by the seller. In my experience, everyone puts engines together incorrectly and lies about what they put inside of them. Dunning-Kruger blows up thousands of engines every year.

[Jimmydee]

This is all good to know

[Heavy_D]

My Elbow looks cool in your photos lmao

[DocsMachine]

Going with the above, I agree it's a case of "check for yourself". Assume any unverified engine is a "core"- if I bought that, I'd very much go through it and check clearances, reapply assembly oil, etc. Ads for components doesn't mean those components were actually bought and installed.

AND... even if it's from a "name" builder, I'd still check first. I have photos around here somewhere, of a guy's small-block Chevy. Simplest engine in the world to hotrod, right?

Nope, never ran right. I watched the guy drive it into the shop, then pull the intake and heads. It had either standard-bore pistons in a .030 over bore, or .030 over pistons in a .060 over bore. I could literally slip my machinists ruler- known to be .022 thick- in between the piston and cylinder wall, with room to spare.

Worse, the "FRONT" arrows prominently stamped in the dome of each piston? Faced towards the back of the car.

And that was from a local well-known, long-time so-called "race engine" builder.

Same guy built another SBC or another friend: Lasted less than a thousand miles before it grenaded, and never ran right from the start. Turned out every single valve went into coil bind and lightly bent every single pushrod- almost certainly the very first time it was turned over. Never ran right, and wiped out the cam in short order.

And, of course, the builder blamed it on the owner- you didn't break it in right, etc. No, sorry, coil bind doesn't just appear- that's "baked into the cake" type stuff.

As we speak, I'm preparing to go through an already-partially-assembled engine, built by somebody I knew well and trusted. But I'm still going to break it back down and check for myself the bearing clearances, torque values and so on.

Doc.

[Shane-O]

340 are getting harder to find without paying premium prices. If all those parts are in it and the proper machine work done (They real key here)easily 2500-3500. you have to kind of watch around your area for local prices, we really cant tell you online very well. I would drop the oil pan and check the main bearings and rod bearing at a minimum before buying.

[Rainmaker]

Let's talk about how you plan to swap it into that Toyota Sienna

[Number six]

Until it runs, you're buying engine parts. As some have stated before, I wouldn't spend much more on it than you would any engine that you may have to rebuild yourself. If you can do that sort of thing in your spare time, the cost and risk is a bit more acceptable.

[Melrosejedi]

I agree with the above on checking it out yourself. The rod and crank bearings are standard size? New crank? Pistons? No one rebuilds an engine without going over size to clean up bearing surfaces on crank and bore cylinders for proper fitment. Just be careful, 340 engines are rare and are perfect for a scam if thats intended.