classic cars

[8bit]

In terms of Mopar I have always liked the Dodge Aspen R/T, Plymouth Volare Road Runner twins, you could still get a 360 ci motor in those as late as 1979 MY. Hard to find today though.

[sh@rp]

That looks nice, cool paint job

[Raiyven]

that IS nice. yours?

[8bit]

Unfortunately not, those cars are really hard to find for sale in even semi good condition. I have an 86' Dodge Daytona CS.
The Dodge Magnum XE of the late 70s had a tough looking front end. I think 1978 MY was the last year for the 400 engine option.
engine pollution controls

[Raiyven]

yeah indeed (pollution controls). though not classic, next summer i'm going to tweak the engine in my saturn. the thing has speed and fuel economy out the wazoo (i drive 40km a day, 20 to and from school, plus city driving), at least 65mph... usually 80 (around 130kph) either way, and i still get 500km to a 40L tank of gas. but i remember going through the mountains in Penn, and having to drop 2 gears just to make it up.
i need to get the steering tightened up too, it's far too loose for my taste. hopefully it won't involve having the front end converted to an expensive sport suspension... i'm hoping the steering box can just be tightened up some. from there it's a new chip, a cold air intake, and then cosmetic mods (i'm not big on sacrificing too much fuel economy, lol). the 01-02 SCs are excellent cars. can you recommend something to throw into my engine (oil-wise) that will blast out all the carbon, besides just an oil change? i change it every 3mo or 5000km on the button, but it's idling a little rough for my taste, and i'm feeling a performance loss off the line and into 3rd gear. i have the fuel system cleaned once a year (injectors, induction system, etc)) though i need a new fuel filter put in (it's part of the induction sys, so the dealer has to do it. megabucks). any ideas? something to clean all the crap out of my engine

[8bit]

Gas mileage is important, especially with the variable gas prices. I was just reading about the 1977 Firebird Formula 4 speed with the then new economy 301 ci V8. They recorded 21 mpg combined city/highway, which was good for those days.
Your fuel filter is part of the induction set up? Often it's located next to the electric fuel pump towards the back of the car. Anyway you can try some of those fuel system cleaners, there are various brands. I haven't used any for quite some time but some people think they are good. I am tempted to say that you might have had a particular bad tank of gas, but, that happens less often these days than it used to.
From what you said did you add a performance chip to the car? If so that might be producing the rough idle and loss of performance initially and into third. Sometmes these chips boost engine power by sacrificing some torque, so the engine feels stronger when you go for high revs, but lower down in the rev range (lower down the power curve) it can make the engine feel a bit sluggish. This could explain why you feel that loss when shifting into third, by going into the taller gear after 2nd the revs drop back and you get back into that sleepy part of the rev range. Also by creating more top end power the chip could have introduced additional idle roughness compared to a stock standard chip. Designing a good performance chip isn't easy.
Could you swap the normal chip back into the car and see if the problem goes away? Alternatively, if the car is still using a standard chip, try another standard chip. It's possible there might be something wrong with the current one in your car. They make so many of these chips that a certian % are faulty.

[Raiyven]

no, i've not put the chip in yet. it does need an oil change, which it will get today, but it feels more like a fuel system issue than anything else, at a red light it almost feels like the plugs are misfiring. if the car were older, i'd say it was just the 4 cylinders firing iin such a way that it produced a bit of a lurch, since i dont have 6 or 8 to give me a steady rhythm, but most if not all cars these days have piston coutnerweights to combat that. i really dont know. mebbe it was a bad tank of gas though

[8bit]

Have a look at the ignition side of things, check the ignition leads and spark plugs.
Yes, you are right 4 cyl engines are very smooth these days, that can't be the source of your problem. Might still be a bad std. chip, I can't imagine there being any mechanical problem on such a young car that is serviced regularly. Puzzling situation indeed.

[Raiyven]

just to resurge this old post, i discovered here on my machine, a picture of our antique green 1968 notchback Barracuda

225 slant-6 'leaning tower of power', 3 on the tree. a booze cruiser, but a damn fun car to cruise for booze in

be warned, high-rez pic! if you have a slow compy, avert your browsin' eyes!

[Raiyven]

8bit: if you're still around, i've been meaning to post a picture of the second addition to our family

1963 Dodge Fargo 100 'Sweptline'
225 Slant-6, factory 391 rear end

...and that's all there is A farm truck, to be sure, but let's just say we're screwed if we ever need non-engine parts for this thing. Interior restoration is the next step, after that might be an engine rebuild.

Speaking of which, pictures to follow when the Barracuda comes back with a shiny rebuilt 225 under the hood! Other than some minor trim pieces, she's a finished project