clhyer@cox.net wrote:
: Evening all,
: We are kicking around the idea of doing a restify with a Duster. Probably not a total, but front disc brakes and a new fuel injected engine. We have been coming up blank when doing a web search. Has anyone here done one? Know of anyone who has? Websites? Any help to get us out of the planning and into an active search for a donor, etc. will be greatly appreciated.
: Thanks,
: Cal & James
I haven't done a Duster per-se but I might be able to help you out with
some info, or maybe help point you in the right direction anyway. :-)
Brakes:
There are a few companies out there who offer front disc
conversions for various Mopar musclecars. Two that come to mind
are Master Power Brakes (www.mpbrakes.com) and SSBC
(www.stainlesssteelbrakes.com). I'm sure there are others out
there too; you should be able to find ads for them in most any major
Mopar magazine. Mopar Collector's Guide is very good for this type of
stuff.
If you would prefer to save some money you can go the DIY route.
Basically this involves using off the shelf parts for later model
Mopars which will interchange with the earlier stuff. This won't
give you Brembos the size of a loaf of Wonder Bread, but will give
you an OEM quality front brake system for not a lot of money which
will stop a lot better than the drums. (And is easier to service too.)
E-Booger and the folks over at Mopar Action magazine practically have
this swap down to a science. You can check it out at:
http://www.moparaction.com/Tech/archive/disc-main.html
Since my Cuda has drums all around, I plan on going the DIY route
myself someday. Hasn't really been a priority yet since the drum
brakes have been working fine and I will need to make a wheel and tire
decision at the same time so I'm procrastinating. :-)
Fuel injection:
There are a lot of options out there nowadays, basically depending
on how much work you want to do versus how much you want to spend.
I have a Holley 900cfm throttle body fuel injection setup on the 440
in my Cuda, which is controlled by the 950 Commander ECU. The ECU
will actually run port fuel injection as well, but the kit came with
a TBI throttle body so that is what I used. This is a generic kit,
basically intended to be able to run any engine within a certain
horsepower range. They did include some base maps for some Chevy
and Ford engines, but nothing for Mopar. IIRC, I started out with a
Chevy 454 base map and tweaked from there to get the car running,
then took it to a shop with a dyno to get it tuned more precisely.
I documented the process on my web site, feel free to check it out at
www.jonsteiger.com/barracuda.
So anyway, the route I took, an EFI conversion kit is one way to go.
Its not exactly cheap, but its certainly not the most expensive
either. Check the sites like Summit, Jegs, etc. for these systems;
there are a number of manufacturers selling them for various vehicles.
Some are generic like mine was, others have some Mopar specific systems
available. (I believe Edelbrock has a Mopar kit or two now which
includes the plumbed intake manifold and everything. Getting up into
the even more expensive stuff, there are shops like Rance EFI
(www.rancefi.com) which will sell you a bolt-on package, but it certainly
doesn't come cheap.
Down at the other end of the spectrum is once again, the DIY route. :-)
There is a fuel injection system called MegaSquirt. I guess the best
way to describe it is the automotive equivalent of the homebrew
computer movement back in the 70s and 80s. There is no company involved,
just enthusiasts (albeit enthusiasts with engineering degrees) ;-)
who have put together a very capable fuel injection system for a very
low price. It comes as a kit which you solder together, or there are
also people who you can pay to build it for you and sell you the
completed unit. As I understand it, this system uses relatively
inexpensive off the shelf parts such as GM injectors, etc. I don't
have any firsthand experience with this system yet (just what I have
read on newsgroups, mailing lists, and in magazines) but I am planning
to use this when I rebuild the 383 in my '67 Coronet. You can check
out MegaSquirt at (www.megasquirt.info)
If you haven't already, I'd recommend checking out the Mopar Mailing
List (www.moparmailinglist.org). Lots of knowledgeable and helpful
folks over there for all things Mopar. (Something like the brake
question would be right up their alley.)
I hope that is basically the sort of info you were looking for,
hopefully there will be something helpful in there for ya. :-)
Best of luck with the Duster project!
--
-Jon-
.- Jon Steiger --- jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com -.
| 67 Dodge Coronet, 70 Plymouth Barracuda, 76 Peugeot TSA |
| 78 Dodge B100, 90 Dodge Dakota Convertible, 92 Dodge Ram 4x4 |
| 96 Dodge Dakota, 96 Suzuki Intruder 1400, 96 Kolb FireFly |
| 99 Jeep Cherokee 4x4, 2001 Dodge Ram 3500 CTD |
`--------------------------------- http://www.jonsteiger.com --'
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