Amc 304 Worth Saving?

The ‘72 rust bucket parts donor Jeep has a broken (hole in the oil pan from connecting rod, I think) 304 in it.

I’m in the process of stripping the usable parts off the Jeep before hauling the frame && tub to the scrapyard, and wondering if I should save the whole engine. Maybe I could tear it down to see if there are salvageable pieces?

Mrs. B. suggested repairing it and putting it in the Willys wagon instead of the weak Ford 260. Hmmm… Will a T15 bolt up to a Dana 18 t-case?

Please, let me know what you think. I may just strip the engine and junk it, too.

Jon B.

 

Folks are always looking for 304's . Put an ad in OWF as well with a right price and have someone else do the hauling off.
Wouldn;t be a bad motor for the Wagon; but are you ever gonna go back to it?

 

Yes, it will if you have a "big hole" D-18. A dana 18 can be built in a dana 20 case that was attached to a T-15. The dana 20 case is aways a "big hole case". All you need is the 2.46 matched gear set from a D-18 plus some other small internal parts. Dana 20 cases are plentiful.

 

Absolutely, keep it all. the heads and timing cover are very sought after, and the crank if it could be reground. Many of the parts can be interchanged with the 360 and the 401. So someone is always looking for parts. If I were closer I would come in a minute for it.

 

I just threw a 304 in the scrap pile after listing it of facebook for $200. I pulled the crank for my 360 and saved the bolt ons. Block, heads and intake went away. The timing cover was rotted through the water passages.

 

Nothing wrong with the 304 per se, but if the rod came loose, that's a lot of damage. I would pull the pan off before I made a decision - sounds like it might not be a great core to rebuild.

The 304 is a 360 with a smaller bore and heads with smaller valves (to clear the smaller bores). The usual solution for a bad 304 was to replace with a 360 - that's a significant upgrade. Dunno, maybe complete 360s are getting scarce and 304s have more value than they did.

The block, pistons, heads, flywheel and balancer are specific to the 304. Has nothing in common with a small block Ford. Adapting using the T-15 sounds like a good plan if the engine is not too far gone. The T-15 would be a big upgrade over the T-90 in your WW, if that's what's there now.

 

But…
The wagon has an offset rear differential, so I kinda need the 18 output style. I have a 20 in the donor jeep, but can’t likely use that, hence my question regarding the T15.

I’d have to find a centered, wider rear axle in 5.38:1 to match the current one if I used the Dana 20.

Jon B.

 

True, you need an offset rear axle if using a D-18. What I was saying was to take your D-20 big hole case and turn it into a D-18 to match your rear off set axle.

 

Yes, put the guts of the Dana 18 in the Dana 20 case to make a big-hole Dana 18 that's compatible with the T-15.

 

Actually, the later Wagons had a nearly centered rear axle, like 2” or 2-1/2” offset, with a D18. I’ll have to measure the one in a rolling chassis I have at my jobsite. With the long driveshaft, you could use either a D18 or D20.
As to the 304 with a rod through the pan, pull the pan to see if the rod took out the bottom of the cylinder bore. About 99% of the time, the lower cylinder skirt has been taken out by a broken rod, making the block scrap.
Save the heads, crank/rods, timing cover, flywheel, accessory brackets, pulleys, etc. as these are getting hard to find. I might even be interested in the flywheel myself.
-Donny

 

A 304 simply costs too much to rebuild for what you have when it is done. I don't even keep them anymore. People are still in love with the thought of a 401 but rarely want to spend any money on them. Even a good 360 is hard to find a home for these days.

 

LMFAO!

 

My ‘53 wagon has a 6” offset in the rear. One axle housing tube is 12” longer than the other (13 & 25”).

I guess the 18 innards all go in, and the rear output shaft comes out of the 20 case in the same location as it was in the 18 case…

A guy called today about a complete power & gear train in a ‘77 Suburban. That whole setup would cost way less than repairing the 304. I’m guessing he’s asking around $700-800. Haven’t called him back yet. I was on the phone with my sister (today’s my 70th birthday) when he left a message.

Jon B.

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!

 

X 2
Happy Birthday!

 

Well, thanks! When I registered here, I used a false DOB, since people use them for identity theft…

Jon B. (officially a geezer)

 

Oh! Oh! Me, Me I'll take one or two

 

I measured the diff offset on my ‘62 Wagon yesterday. I have a 2-1/2” difference in tube length side-to-side, so 1-1/4”offset, so its nearly centered. This is with a D18.
As far as that ‘77 Suburban as a donor, the engine and transmission would be good, but the axles are way too wide. Those axle put most of the tires well outside the body lines.
Also, Happy Birthday!
-Donny

 

I was looking at my intermediate CJ5 with the tub off the chassis. The factory Dana 20 with the rear output shaft up so high, the drive shaft has a really steep angle going down to the centered rear axle. Also it has a couple inches with the TC output shaft off to the drivers side of center too. making it a compound factory angle. This arrangement gave no problems at all, ever. Now if the transfer case were changed to a Dana 18 with the output down lower and to the right of center, it appears that the angle of the driveshaft would be the same or even less if it were attached to the centered rear axle. One would think this arrangement should work just as well. A driveshaft does not care whether it's angle is right and left or up and down, so long as the TC output shaft and rear axle pinion shaft are in the same plane and the angles are not so sharp to cause vibration. Just my observation, could be missing something. Has anyone tried this or have opinions?