440 - Best Intake & Carb???

[Mc MOPAR]

Hi guys,

Instead of rebuilding the tired 383 in my 70 Challenger RT, I bought a recently rebuilt 440. It's bored .030" over, has a Mopar 557 cam, 906 Heads, Mopar M1 aluminum single plane intake manifold, Holley DP carb, long tube headers, is claimed to have 500hp/525tq. Previous owner claimed it ran 12.8 in the 1/4 mile in his 69 Coronet. He has decided to keep the intake and carb, so I would like to know what will work best on this engine. It will be used 90% of the time as a cruiser to car shows and local cruise nights and then 10% of the time at the drag track posing as a 383 car. Based on my research so far, I'm leaning toward a Mopar dual plane aluminum intake or the Edelbrock Performer RPM for less hp and more tq. For the carb I'm wondering if I should just run the Edelbrock AVS 650cfm (1806) that was on my 383, or get a Edelbrock Performer 750cfm carb for it? I'm just not sure if the 650 is too small for the 440 seeing as its not stock. One other thing I will have to figure out is which stall speed torque converter to run with this engine...

 

[Daves69]

IMO, a 650 will run out of gas before the end of the quarter. A 780 probably the minimum for a single quad.
I'm partial to the six pack myself and no help with the automatics.

 

[IQ52]

Could it use a bigger carburetor? Sure. But, you already own the 1806, why not run it at first and see if it gives you a big enough thrill? If you use the RPM dual plane you gain a great deal of torque and lose very little horsepower on the top end.

And you are probably going to want about 3,000-3,500 stall. We are running a 3,200 stall on a 3.23 gear, 600 HP 423ci small block with a 950 cfm 4-bbl and it roasts the tires at will.

 

[RUNCHARGER]

Intake manifold: Use the Performer RPM or the Holley Street Dominator. Do not use the performer or the MP Dual plane, they are only as good as a stock intake. I used a 700DP on a 440 with less camshaft than you have and the topend power suffered quite a bit. I suggest a 750 vacuum (Holley 3310) at the least. Or the 800 AVS. You can certainly use the 650 AVS and it will perform excellent with great throttle response but power above 4500RPM will be down.

Sheldon

 

[Mc MOPAR]

Thanks for all the replies guys. I think I'm going to go with the RPM intake, and start out by running my 650 AVS. If it runs out of fuel mid-high range, then I will get the 800 AVS and sell my 650. For the stall, it sounds like I'm looking at a 3200-3500.

 

[moparleo]

Remember that stall speed is relative to the engines torque curve. You don't just say I want a 3000 stall speed convertor. the manufacturer will need the engine specs like you already have to calculate the proper convertor. Remember that the looser it is the more heat you are going to generate in the transmission. Make sure to get an adequately sized transmission cooler to keep the temps down.

 

[mmissile]

That camshaft runs upstairs. You need a similar setup to what was on it. I'd probably run a basic 850 vacuum-secondary carb, with a single-plane. Getting a proper convertor, requires all info of the car. Basicly...the cam, convertor, and gearing are tied together in the pkg.

 

[IQ52]

You have a horsepower bottleneck there with those 906 cylinder heads. That engine is probably making about 400 FWHP and even a single plane isn't going to help it make much horsepower above 5,400 RPM. I would still run the dual plane intake until I went to better cylinder heads.

 

[Mc MOPAR]

I'm thinking I need to change the camshaft with one that makes power between 1500-5500rpm since I will be doing more street driving then drag racing. Low end torque is what I'm looking for. But I still want a cam with a rough idle.

 

[mmissile]

I'd build a good 383....and not have to pose.

 

[RUNCHARGER]

What gears are you running? Also what MPH did the guy run in the 1/4? That 557 is a good camshaft, just use a proper convertor with it. Your car will be very fast but you just need to choose the proper parts. A 12.8 quarter with this engine means to me the previous owner didn't have the right setup in his car to complement this engine, or maybe he has unported stock heads and low compression, hence the question about the MPH he ran.

Sheldon

 

[Mc MOPAR]

I talked to my engine builder last night and we have a plan. We are going to replace the Mopar 557 cam (3000-6700rpm), with a Hughes Whiplash cam (1500-6500rpm). Install an Eddy Performance RPM intake, and use my Eddy AVS 650 carb. We will also install a 3000 stall converter in the 727 trans. Does anyone here have experience with the Whiplash cam? I have only read good reviews so far, and it seems like it’s exactly what I’m looking for. From the videos I’ve watched, it actually sounds meaner then the Mopar 557 cam at idle but then starts making power 1500rpm sooner than the 557. You could almost say the best of both worlds. I think I have 3/55 gears, but I will confirm this.

 

[IQ52]

What is your static compression ratio and what compression ratio is the whiplash cam designed for?

Hughes Engines

 

[Cazbah362]

Of all these threads, the one that pulls the most insight is IQ52's post. I am always a fan of better heads. With changing to better heads, you can improve your flow, calculate compression and better match future parts such as convertor, cam, intake and carburetor. The 557 is not a bad cam, also provides you opportunity to degree it, advance or retard as necessary to achieve better performance. Would also save you money. My 2cents

 

[Mc MOPAR]

@RUNCHARGER
Gear ratio is 3.23 sure grip, and he ran 12.8 @

What gears are you running? Also what MPH did the guy run in the 1/4? That 557 is a good camshaft, just use a proper convertor with it. Your car will be very fast but you just need to choose the proper parts. A 12.8 quarter with this engine means to me the previous owner didn't have the right setup in his car to complement this engine, or maybe he has unported stock heads and low compression, hence the question about the MPH he ran.

Sheldon

Gear ratio is 3.23 sure grip, and he ran 12.8 @ 120MPH. Stock heads with minor porting done. He said its running 10:1 compression, but I doubt its that high...

 

[Mc MOPAR]

What is your static compression ratio and what compression ratio is the whiplash cam designed for?

Hughes Engines

The guy I bought it from said it was 10:1, but I have my doubts that its that high. Whiplash is designed for 9.5:1 or lower, which I would think this 440 would be seeing as it has stock heads with minor porting done.

 

[Mc MOPAR]

Of all these threads, the one that pulls the most insight is IQ52's post. I am always a fan of better heads. With changing to better heads, you can improve your flow, calculate compression and better match future parts such as convertor, cam, intake and carburetor. The 557 is not a bad cam, also provides you opportunity to degree it, advance or retard as necessary to achieve better performance. Would also save you money. My 2cents

Yah the only thing I don't like about the 557 is its power band of 3000-6800rpm.

 

[RUNCHARGER]

If it really pulled 120 MPH it is putting out good power. In that case I would leave the engine alone and optimize around it. A good 3500 RPM convertor and maybe some 3.91 gears if you can live with them with your driving. You'll have a rocketship and you'll want some slicks for it.

Sheldon

 

[Cazbah362]

Yah the only thing I don't like about the 557 is its power band of 3000-6800rpm.

Understood - just a thought, if the power area for you is off, then you can advance or retard the cam to gain the range of RPM's better suited for you? I would suspect you have plenty of valve to piston clearance to do this. And this is a common approach when using the MP Purple cams such as yours. I did it with a 599, worked well and returned great power.

I agree with Sheldon, if this is pulling 120, there is a lot already there. Gears, tires, and a convertor will change a lot in 1/4 times and especially seat of the pants.

Have you checked compression? leak down? or any other test to get a good "true" baseline? Also, if you built a nice set of heads, this would really change all these factors.

And respectfully, I am simply making suggestions before buying "other" parts or going "other" directions - What I have learned is a CL $80 Torker works almost as well as a New $400 Performer, especially with mismatched other parts. Again, my 2 cents.

 

[Mc MOPAR]

I think I'm going to leave the engine the way it is for now with the mopar 557 cam and mopar m1 intake. Try it out and see how it works before changing things on it. Previous owner said it worked amazing, and that I would be crazy to change anything on it. I will have to get a larger carb for it though, I thinking a Eddy AVS 800...