1972 340 engine and 727- is this a good price?

[ClarkWGrizwald]

So I have a 74 cuda with a cream puff 318 +904 trans in it. I plan to make an AAR clone out of it. So I found a guy selling a 1972 340 motor with 360 heads that "he was told" has about 10K miles on its rebuild that occurred about 15 years ago.  He bought a demon that had it in it and he is going a different way with the motor.   
additional info:

Camshaft/lifters/lube kit.
Cam and Lifters, Hydraulic Flat Tappet, Advertised Duration 308/318, Lift .488/.510, Mopar, Small Block, Kit

727sb transmission freshly rebuilt with less then 100miles. Hughes pro street 30 series torque converter. 3000 stall.

he sent me a video of the car running and doing a burnout- sounded healthy and obviously a bigger cam lope.

$3000 total for engine as pictured, the trans and the 3000 hughes torque converter.

I realize I will need to tear it down and look at the bearings and check the cyl walls and freshen everything up. He says he does not have any other info. said he drove it about 100 miles before he pulled it to start the body work on his car.

Most 340 blocks i have found are pretty expensive. This seems like a good deal to me. My goal for the car is closer to 400-450 hp. Would like to put a 6 pack on the 340. As is, it seems this motor would be far better than my 318 with 104k miles on it.   

I appreciate any thoughts or opinions! Plan to go get it on saturday....4.5 hour drive!

[ClarkWGrizwald]

Block numbers

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[Chryco Psycho]

Hard to beat , you cannot build for 3 k for sure , I doubt you need a 3000 stall though , depending on rear gear it will be a pain to drive in traffic
make sure he has reciepts

[anlauto]

Here's my opinion....

1972/73 340's don't carry the same value as the 1968/71's as far as resale value is concerned. To compare the price of a "rebuilt" 1972 340 to say a 1970 "rebuilt" 340 is a little unfair....and that's due mainly to desirability 

Do I think this is a good deal for $3000 ? YES....if your plan was to just drop it in and go...

...but the fact you want to tear it down for inspection, swap out the intake and carb, try boosting the horse power to 400-450 which may require a cam swap or additional head work...I think you're paying for stuff you're not going to use.

Not sure about your area, but around here I like to think you could pick up a rebuildable 1972 340 for less than $750 USD....and start from scratch.
Get the pistons you want, the camshaft and head work required....maybe even aluminum heads and a stroker kit...YES building a 450HP motor will likely cost more then $3K, but you won't be wasting money on things you don't need and you get the exact motor you desire 

[torredcuda]

I agree with most of what Alan said, if you are tearing it down to change a lot of things you are spending $3,000 for parts you won`t use, There are also a lot of unknowns unless he has receipts with work done and part numbers of pistons and such along with specs like deck height etc. If those specs don`t fit your 4-450hp build you will pretty much starting from scratch anyway.

[ClarkWGrizwald]

Thanks for the replies!
I hope its just an inspection, things check out fine and i can drop it in and go. But I have to be prepared for the fact that something could be wrong. And factor that into the cost/ value analysis

As far as the early 340s vs the 72 block: ...I am not really planning to flip the motor so I am not too concerned with that aspect of the value. I do think that building a new motor from scratch will cost alot more- I have been down that rabbit hole before :-) and if the motor makes good power now with this cam and intake, then I will run it as is for a while. Eventually move to a different intake just to complete the AAR clone I am looking for. 

He does not have any receipts. He bout a car with the engine in it and hes passing on the info he was given. No idea whats actually inside the block at this point.

Without any FACTS on the motor- at what price point is it a good deal? I am valuing the trans at a solid $500 and $750 if i can use the TQ converter. So i see the motor as about 2500 of the cost at this point. And i dont know which 360 heads are on it even.

[RUNCHARGER]

If it comes complete with valvecovers,carb and that intake then yes it's worth the risk I think.

[anlauto]

Like I said, it's a good deal to drop in and go, but if you want 400-450HP you're not going to have it out of that motor without a lot of changes...

These 340s in 1972 were only rated at 240HP I believe...

[73chalngr]

If the cam numbers are correct I believe it may already make 400 +hp.   Put some headers on it and take to shop with a dyno and run it. The cam size leads me to think the heads were done too.

[ClarkWGrizwald]

If it comes complete with valvecovers,carb and that intake then yes it's worth the risk I think.

Yes it comes with everything in the pic air filter to pan including an alternator, pulleys valve covers timing cover water pump etc.
Piecing all that stuff together can be a pain too so i see value there and they are to my taste .

[ClarkWGrizwald]

If the cam numbers are correct I believe it may already make 400 +hp.   Put some headers on it and take to shop with a dyno and run it. The cam size leads me to think the heads were done too.

I wish I could post the videos of it running. You can really hear the cam and it sounds like Id expect that duration to sound.  Unfortunately is a FB messenger video and i cant seem to do anything other than share it. Ill come up with a way....

[tparker]

Like others suggest, it is a good deal if it works and you don't have to do anything. Not so much if you have to rebuild it anyways. If you buy it and find you have to drop another grand or two into it, then it gets dicey. My question would be, are you OK with that much money on that engine? You can always sell the unused parts if they are still good.

I'm rebuilding my 340 as a 416 stroker. Hopefully starting in November. I'll pass on my numbers, I believe I was quoted between 1000-1500 for my rebuild. I'm guessing this is with zero parts. Crank kit is about 2000 + other misc puts me at $3500-$4500.

[ClarkWGrizwald]

https://youtu.be/uRXJgFBv98g

Video of a video but it works!

The only thing I am scared of is if it's at max bore. That would piss me off. I could see me putting a stroker setup in it later. I just wanted to keep my AC so a small Block is where I am going to stay. And i love the AAR strobe so having a 340 feels right. I can afford to rebuild it if needed . im not gonna starve or have to sell off the car or anything. I have just seen such good advice on here that i thought id ask your opinion prior to jumping in. I am comfortable at 3k for it. Just hoping for the best

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[wanderlustin]

That sounds like a fun package.  With that cam, that converter is probably right but only with the right diff gear set.  I'd have a blast with that setup in an E-body with 3.91 gears driving with both ends!  Seems like a risk worth taking to me 

I may have missed it,  but what is the compression?

[cuda hunter]

That price is worth it.  Buy it.