Get the damn car you want....Even if you have to pay more for it or search longer...

Like I said in the last post, I blame the buff magazines for a lot of the grief unsuspecting car enthusiasts get themselves into. Hot Rod, Car Craft, Popular Hot Rodding, Truckin', all of them do it. Every month they have at least one article, and sometimes several saying how "Easy" it is to swap engines, transmissions, install dropped spindles or convert a car from drum to disc brakes, etc, etc. If your a professional mechanic working in a state-of-the-art shop and have $20,000 worth of your own tools, and access to two post lifts,engine hoists, transmission jacks, frame jigs, welding equipment / cutting torches, alignment machines, brake lathes, etc-yeah you can do pretty much anything with a minimum of hassle. But for "Joe Average" who's not a mechanic and has only basic hand tools-have you ever tried to change a clutch in your driveway? It's a bastard, and that's if your just replacing the disc, pressure plate and throwout bearing on say-a '73 Firebird with stock replacement parts. Have you ever tried to hold up a Muncie 4-speed while laying flat on your back, while your buddy tries to stab the input shaft into the bellhousing? Not fun, or easy. And that's a simple "R&R"-remove and replace, don't get me started on switching from a 4-speed to a 5-speed, or from a stick to an automatic. That's why I'm telling people don't fall into the trap set by the buff magazines. If you want a big-block Chevelle-then step up and buy one. Don't buy a small-block Malibu with the intention of "I'll just drop a Rat Motor in it next summer." Really? First off where are you going to get the "Rat" motor? Junkyards want $1,500+ for 454 "cores" out of '80's trucks that need to be rebuilt. You'll top 5K easy buying and building a "junkyard" Rat. Not me, you say-GMPP's 454HO crate engine that has 425 hp and 500 lbs ft of torque starts at $5995. Right there-depending on the purchase price of your small-block Malibu-I bet another 6-grand could have gotten you a decent SS396!!  But wait-theres more-you've spent six grand for the engine. Now what about a starter, alternator, water pump, power steering pump, fuel pump, all the belts and pulleys and hoses? What about a bigger radiator to cool it? Different front springs to support the additional weight of the big-block. With a good shift kit and proper cooler a TH350 will probably hold up for thousands of miles of daily driving-but if your going to seriously drag race the car even once a month, or put nitrous on it, or just upgrade the cam and heads-to get 500 hp-eventually it's going to break-and then you'll need to upgrade to a TH400. Which means a different crossmember, different rear trans mount,different driveshaft yoke and U-joint,different kickdown linkage,different torque converter. And that's on a Chevy-which is the easiest and has the most interchangeable parts line. God help you if your buying a Ford or a Mopar. I'm not slamming Fords and Chryslers-I'm just stating an irrefutable fact. Let's say just like the above mentioned Chevelle enthusiast-you get a great deal on a 318 powered '71 Challenger-because your going to "drop" a 440 into it. Well guess what?  First thing you'll need is a big-block front crossmember. That's right "A" and "B / RB" engines have a totally different front crossmember. Mopar Performance and Summitt Racing sell them-but it's a pretty big job to change them-better done in a body shop than your driveway. Your also going to need a bigger radiator, heavier front springs, and if you want the car to handle properly-big-block Torsion bars. Basically upgrading the whole front suspension. Chances are the 318 model has 4-wheel drum brakes. Your going to put a 500 hp engine in a car with drum brakes? There's more expense for a front disc brake conversion.  And where are you going to find a complete, from carb to oil pan 440? They've been out of production since 1978. You'll just buy a Mopar Performance 505 Wedge Crate engine? Ok, thats 10 grand.  And guess what? The 904 Torqueflite won't bolt up to or stand up to a 440 / 505. You need to buy a 727 Torqeflite and different trans crossmember, and probably have a custom driveshaft built. And if your going to lean on it-the 81/4 rear end won't hold up. You'll need to upgrade to at least an 8 3/4-and if your changing it anyway, you might as well get a Dana 60. Not cheap. by the time you get done with the suspension, brakes, tranny change and crate motor-you'll rack up a 15K bill easily-and that's in just parts, if you can do the labor yourself.  Again-depending on the purchase price of the 318 model-I'll bet an extra 15k would have easily gotten you a decent 383 or 440 Challenger / Cuda if you looked hard enough. Fords are even worse. A 351W has a different bellhousing bolt-pattern than a 351C. And their different from a 390 / 428, which is different from a 429 / 460!!  So just thinking you'll buy a C6 from B&M or TCI-is not that simple!!  All the tin and accessories are model specific. So-unlike you GM guys who can take a 350 out of a '78 Chevy C10 and drop it in a '72 Camaro, or take a 400 out of a '71 Catalina and drop it in a '77 T/A and not even change the belts-you'll committ hari-kari with a Ford. That's because a 390 in a pickup has a different oil pan, water pump, power steering pump, fuel pump, and alternator, and exhaust manifolds than a 390 out of a Mustang, and the Mustang and the pickup engine are different than a 390 from an LTD, which is different from a 390 in a T-Bird!!  So-the best thing to do is search for the damn car you want, within reason-Don't be an idiot like a guy I knew who passed up a one-owner, contantly garaged, low-mileage, pristine, little old lady owned since new '68 Charger because it had a bench seat and a two-barrel carb on the 383!!!  An Edelbrock Performer intake and matching carb is what-$600 bucks and a couple hours to change,even in your driveway!!  And if he just HAD to have bucket seats and a console-I think Year One could have helped!!!  Dumb ass!!!  Hope this helps everyone out. Mastermind