Long-time Mopar guy but new to Ebodies - '72 Challenger

[rmchrgr]

Hello everyone, my name is Greg and I'm from Stamford CT. Some of you may recognize me from of the other Mopar message boards and I'm sure there will be some familiar "faces" here as we're all a big Mopar family. Glad to be aboard either way.

So I have a '72 Challenger in triple green. It's an original base 318 car with air. I bought the car in August of 2023. I nearly bought the car in late 2017-early 2018 but for whatever reason I just didn't. I ended up buying a '68 Coronet that May that I "fixed up" and drove regularly for the next five years. I regretted not buying the Challenger though and told myself I'd go after it if it came up for sale again. Sure enough, I saw it was back up for sale in 2023 and I sold the Coronet to buy it. My plan was to drive it as much as possible. Simple right?

I won't go into great detail here but I got the short end of the stick on this deal as the car did not turn out to be as advertised. It ran but barely. It didn't take much to figure out the motor was completely trashed inside. Things did not go well after that with the seller. I tried to get some money back for the blown up engine but he wouldn't budge claiming no knowledge of any issues. (right). 

To be clear - it was completely my fault for not inspecting the car beforehand. I had known about the car since 2018 and knew more about it than the seller. What I didn't realize was that between 2018 and 2023 it went through a few different hands. It seemed to be the same as when I first saw it as I saved pictures and everything matched up. Basically I rolled the dice and lost. After several civil attempts to get something back from the seller I tried my luck small in claims court but came up empty there too. That's life. 

Unfortunately, the car has been sitting since then. After looking at it taking up space for a year and half, I decided it was time to start working on it. I have big plans for it but some more underlying issues have been uncovered that I need to grapple with before I move forward with anything else. That's why I'm here.

Don't mean to be a Debbie Downer here - I still love the car so it's all good.

Thanks for reading.

Introducing the Triple Pickle.

[JH27N0B]

I sure like that color green!    I've never owned a green car, and I'm hoping my next one is either light green or dark green metallic.
Sorry about the engine problem, but from the pictures the car looks solid?
Rebuilding or replacing an engine is a lot easier than restoring a body!

[71GranCoupe]

Welcome aboard and there are several members who can help steer you in the best direction. The car looks to be fairly straight and the paint is decent looking.  Time to 

[ec_co]

Welcome! Many moons ago a friend had '70 triple green (dark), bench seat, 318, A01 light package and a luggage rack.

[jimynick]

Welcome to the site from Ontario,  Despite all her flaws, that's still a good looking piece and I wish you well on reviving her. 

[cudamadd]

Welcome a very nice challenger Aussie

[Dakota]

Welcome to the forum from FT Worth, TX.  I got badly skunked on my first eBay purchase for a 2nd gen Camaro that had serious body rot issues.  A dud engine would've been a "better" issue to have.  Good luck with it!

[7212Mopar]

Welcome to the E-Body family. I had a 72 gold white top flat hood 318 AT with AC back in 1980. Don't have the front bumper guards like yours. I drive a 73 now. Changing out the 318 should not be that big of a deal with a crate engine. That is unless your plan is to restore it back to original. Hope you get to enjoy your car soon.

[rmchrgr]

Welcome to the forum from FT Worth, TX.  I got badly skunked on my first eBay purchase for a 2nd gen Camaro that had serious body rot issues.  A dud engine would've been a "better" issue to have.  Good luck with it!

For sure but there is some rust. It looks OK on the outside but it's definitely not rust free like I had thought/hoped.

Hidden rust

Welcome to the E-Body family. I had a 72 gold white top flat hood 318 AT with AC back in 1980. Don't have the front bumper guards like yours. I drive a 73 now. Changing out the 318 should not be that big of a deal with a crate engine. That is unless your plan is to restore it back to original. Hope you get to enjoy your car soon.

The original 318 in this car was long gone. Unfortunately the blown up motor was a 398" small block with a 3.79" stroke crank which supposedly was capable of putting the car into the mid 11s. The block was converted to 4 bolt mains, had a solid roller cam, aluminum heads... all kinds of good parts that were literally destroyed by carelessness. 



When I pulled a valve cover, I realized every single valve spring was broken (yes, all 16). Pieces of the springs everywhere including one piece that was jammed into one of the windage tray louvers and even more at the bottom of the oil pan. The head chambers were also destroyed by the debris and the spring pockets were all chewed up - junk. When I pulled the motor eventually I found that the #2 piston had the top ring land broken off. (See below) $1,300 set of custom JE pistons in the trash. I don't know how the thing even ran but somehow it did though just barely.



I've had a 470" low deck waiting in the wings for a while that will go in place of the small block. Hydraulic roller cam, Trick Flow 240 heads... should be fun.

[7212Mopar]

Is that a 400 block build? The combination should generate some decent power figures like 550 to 600 HP? Don't forget the tranny and rear end. Keep posting as we love to follow your progress.

[rmchrgr]

Is that a 400 block build? The combination should generate some decent power figures like 550 to 600 HP? Don't forget the tranny and rear end. Keep posting as we love to follow your progress.

Yes, 400 block. Scat 3.91" stroke crank, Diamond 10.6:1 dish pistons. I believe it should make in the 550-600hp range. I know it's capable of more but it's a 100% street engine that I don't want to put valve springs in every year. Holley EFI will be controlling everything.

Transmission will be a 4 speed with the Passon "Hemi overdrive" gearset. There was a RMVB 727 behind the small block but automatics are boring on the street and manual valve bodies can be annoying to drive sometimes. I've already started the 4 speed conversion.

Right now the rear is an 8 3/4" with 3.91 gears but I'm not sure of it's viability. When I got the car there was fluid coming out the vent which seemed ominous. I have not taken it apart so who knows what's going on with it. It's probably overfilled at the least. I have a complete '68 factory B Body Dana 60 ready to go in anyway, just need to purchase a set of Dr. Diff offset spring hangers when they are back in stock.

I purchased frame connectors for this thing as I figure there will be a good deal of torque acting on the chassis with this new combo.

Like I said, should be fun when it's up and running.