I bought a Dodge NASCAR engine! Mopar R3 W8

I bought a Dodge nascar motor! So fired up about this new project build. It’s a Mopar R3 block with the match set of Mopar W8 heads and 598 intake manifold! This motor has all kinds of features that a regular small block mopar dosnt have! Check it out!

[@derekalexander4030]

Great purchase. Those motors crank the rpm’s. If you have to give the plate back make a copy for yourself, even out of plastic or something so you have the template if you decide to use it down the road. This is going to be a great series.

[@geneticrex]

My brother, along with a machine shop in our area did a 417ci....4.185 x 3.79 W8 many years ago for my back-half Dart that I routinely drove on the street. 9" deck, 48* lifter, 15* Craftsman Truck W8, a 420 intake, Ti valves, Jesel valvetrain and a wet sump (external pump). Sent the heads and intake to MBE to be tuned up for drag racing. Peak intake flow was 402cfm @.800. Nowhere near a max effort engine, but I did run C-12 (cheaper than C-25 lol) on the street due to it's 13.8 compression. Turbo 400 trans, 5.14 rear gear, with an Ultimate 8" converter that flashed to 7200rpm. 400+ ci versions of these engines in max N/A configuration are capable of over 1000hp with a cast single. Brett Miller is an expert on these things and is a guy that could probably help you if you run into an issue. Best numbers on an inertia dyno for our deal with VP C-25 was 898hp @8200 and 657tq that I don't remember the rpm off hand. Eventually sold the car to a good friend who raced it at LVD and in not so great air it ran some 8.60s just as we drove it on the street through Spintech 4" mufflers and on Hoosier Quick Time Pro tires 33x17x15. Car was a barrel of monkeys to drive around.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

My man! Thats a great build! A bit more extreme than I will do but some to aspire to. Thats some serious flow! Thanks for the info and checkin out the vid!

[@geneticrex]

@@SimpsonsSpeedShop Good luck with your project and don't forget.....Brett Miller is on his game when it comes to these big steam W headed engines. If I was going to do another one with current technology, he would be the guy I call. I actually had a set of the Pro Stock Truck version W8s that were completely raw, only cubed.......not even spark plug holes, but I sold them when I sold the car. Now, I wish I had kept them.

[@danielcampbell6146]

You are such a mopar and engine geek I love it.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Guilty as charged.

[@gregkersey6106]

Awesome! Not sure that oil pan would fit in dart chassis. There are adapter plates that go between head and headers. I've just got an R3 motor, with Indy heads. But depending on how much machine work they did on inside of motor, they're probably pretty different. Good Luck!! Looks pretty good.

[@moparnut6933]

Off on a friday and a new SSS video? Hell yeah brother

[@randysmith9636]

Brother i am excited to see this. I have never really got to see the W8. In the 80s i built a W2 head engine. Once you commit to the W heads you are very limited on available parts. Well you was back then anyway. I bought everything through Direct Connection from a speed shop in Huntsville Alabama. They did all the balance, blueprinting and machine work for me. Congratulations, that is a incredible opportunity to buy this engine. Talking about all the tricks, porting, blending and the hundred other little things that these types of shops do. They end up being a one off (or 6 off depending on how many engines they run) searching for that last drop of performance. Seriously this is such a cool find. Cannot wait for more information and and seeing inside. Thanks for the video brother.

[@tjt4036]

Cool. You might want to water the money tree. Good luck 👍.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

lol no doubt

[@ghostrt1608]

Mopar Performance also had some W9 and W9rp (raised port) heads​@@SimpsonsSpeedShop

[@ghostrt1608]

​@SimpsonsSpeedShop ... I've seen fow numbers for those W8's rated at 400 cfm... maybe even 420 cfm

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

@@ghostrt1608 yes Brett miller ports these things way out big time. These are not ported that heavily, 350 ish tho.

[@firstrespondergarage]

Well, you sound like a happy camper. I would be too congratulations.

[@UnityMotorSportsGarage]

OMG... Love it! I will have to finish this vid later

[@RayRayNo]

Congrats! Im building a W2 Indy head motor. 340 stroke to 414

[@Moparmaga-1]

I remember that stuff in the Mopar performance catalog back in the 90s . Badass stuff I should have got some of it back when I had employee discount.

[@nickstephens2913]

I just had one of these engines built last year but with a r1 block and w9 heads . It took all year to build since its hard to gather up parts for these , and diamond pistons taking forever really put off on assembling rest of engine. Badass to see another human being using one of these powerplants !

[@randysmith9636]

Very cool. I just commented on building a W2 engine in the early 80s. It was the beginning of all the W series performance. I spent a good bit (for me anyways at that time) building that W2 engine.

[@user-zz5pt5uu4g]

I have a R5P7 in my 72 Challenger, they are great for the street and are popular in the Land Speed world which is how my Challenger is set up

[@marklottero5345]

If you want the best W8 porting or other work in that engine. Look up Brett Miller racing engines, he is a master of the W8 and W9 platforms

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Yes been following Brett for awhile now. Best in business.

[@dwade277]

BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!! Can't wait to se what you do with it and hear it!!

[@Comet-hn3gm]

We write the installed valve hight down like that so you can make the needed adjustments if needed. Yes, other various markings to indicate clearances, ETC. BTW I am very happy for You, such a cool engine.

[@48northphotography5]

I would be curious which race NASCAR Truck team the engine was purchased from. The combination of the engine and the aero package the NASCAR Dodge Truck teams were running made this combination very formidable. Jimmy Hensley at Petty, Ted Musgrave, Bobby Hamilton, Bob Kesolowski, etc... all ran and won many races and a few NASCAR Truck Championships. Thanks for the update. God Bless.

[@DonEdler]

That's so cool I'm so old I remember this kid running W2s on his small block Chrysler at Norwalk in the 90s . 980s wheels up duster

[@ROBERTBORGESON]

Sounds like a lot of FUN, Best Wishes!

[@Moparmaga-1]

That's a straight up ripper in your dart.

[@FreakOlds]

⁠ I agree with getting a hold of Brett Miller. Even if he doesn’t do the machine work for you - he is the man to talk to. For what you wish to do - I doubt there’s anyone that knows as much as him. Btw - I’m happy you got something special. If I stumble across an R3 at the same time I have the spare coin I’ll jump on it. Realistically though I’ll probably end up doing a Ritter block and that would definitely have me working with Brett as I’m not too far from him.

[@somethinburnin]

Stapleton42 Channel was at the racing museum in Nebraska, one of the directors retired from Comp Cams, they were walking along, there was an early R3 P5 on a stand cleverly hidden in the open. Valve cover off. The Fella from Comp made a statement, that the current NASCAR engines from Ford, Chevrolet, and Toyota, are ALL based similarly off the R3 or R5, i think R5 or R6 because Front distributor.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

I’ll have to check that out. Great channel.

[@roberthill2219]

Congratulations on your awesome find! Before you do anything, you need to contact Joey Arrington in North Carolina, he is the MAN when it comes to these motors and still carrys all the parts for these motors... a local drag racer is running a very similar combination and told me he talks directly to Joey...

[@jackwells1452]

Congratulations that's one hell of a find

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Thanks my man! Excited for the build!

[@ghostrt1608]

Those are some badass small block Mopars... definitely capable of 800+ h.p.

[@rickbatey1548]

I think you need to retain the dry sump oiling to help control the temperature. With the Siamese bores there’s no water and cooling the pile before pumping it into the block will help with temperature control. Plus you don’t need to contaminate the block with chips trying to add drain back holes.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Mostly likely will retain dry sump but add the valley holes. It will a be a full rebuild and done at the machine shop so no worries about contamination

[@craigcontofalsky4387]

And then I woke up and realized it was all a dream!😊 Lots of work ahead but very interesting for us older Mopar racers. My last Direction Connection catalogs only had W5 heads listed I believe. Now I'll have to find them and see how good or bad my memory is? This will be a very interesting build and I hope it meets all your expectations. Can't wait for more videos this year.

[@natemiller448]

Welcome the the W head game!!!! Now get your checkbook warmed up. It gets ugly, but the power can't be beat.

[@79tazman]

That block has the extra head bolts too they are good for boost anyway the R3 blocks are older they have R6's now my buddy runs a R5P7 in his stock car an the thing pushes 850hp with 11.7:1 compression I guess he get's the engines out of North Carolina that's the heart of Nascar Country. I will have to get more info from his since it's been a while since we talked about it but that's a cool engine man that thing will be crazy in the dart for sure.

[@johnolson7430]

That's a badass piece sir ! Great parts those motors are seriously strong. They even put those intakes on some max effort Chevys also. Willing to bet it has Carillo rods 6in with a LA enterprise or kryptonite crank in it ! Those 90s dodge motors were a bad piece

[@kevindoingstuff396]

Hey Joe, stoked to see you making more vids on the Dart. I can't believe you bought another engine, you're absolutely nuts. But I'm excited to see what you do with it. Cheers bro

[@benjaminkadron]

Awesome. I really want one of these.

[@natemiller448]

The Chapman port is good, but we have moved on. W8s are 400cfm capable. The Nascar stuff was good, but they always had a compromise. We have nastier W8 ports now-a-days. 2.20 valves

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Yes I’m well aware of the big flow/power guys are getting with them. Plan is to get everything together in the car running and racing, and upgrade later thanks for watching!

[@dumpsterchicken6287]

Wow That's a score

[@mikedaugharty5544]

It sure looks like a lot of fun you'll get it all figured out show run like a scalded dog love them RPM motors

[@robertkoenig1187]

Congratulations on your new purchase. You have alot ahead to do. I ran those engines in the mid 90's and they were screamers. Down on hp compared to the chevys and fords but I made it up in handling. You need to contact ernie Elliott as he built alot of them for the truck/ Busch series back in the day along with petty/ Arrington. Will be following your progress.

[@circletrack7538]

A motor and mid plate will make a world of difference in transfering power to the chassis and suspension !!! I made the mistake by not going to the plate system soon enough !!! Started leaving with too much torque and twist on a fully caged and framed car and it caused it to start splitting the bell housings right down to the tail of the trans !!! The car left the line squared up and consistently and stopped twisted housings !!! Also went from a turbo 350 to a powerglide trans !!! Made a world of difference !!!!! I still believe you can get that car in the tens NOW with some simple tweeks and adjustments !!! I wish you tons of success my Canadian friend !!!! The Maple Leaf is on your side !!!!!

[@dougpendleton1266]

Now that's what I'm talking about!!!!

[@rong4189]

Super cool! Anytime I’ve seen somebody put a NASCAR motor in their car (not very often btw!) they frickin’ flew! Whole nuther level lol! Hmm, I remember the name Chapman from 30(?) years ago, he might have cast up some serious bbm heads or something? Anyway, take your time on her and we’ll be watching!

[@TsGoodTimesGarage]

A dream build! Will definitely be following along!

[@tmackinator]

Great content.

[@Scott-ec4ux]

Great listening to info re engine 🙂 / - your a purest like myself , enjoying watching your journey .

[@billgoodwin8742]

I have an R3 block 9.2 deck with 3.79 stroke crank. With ported W2 heads.

[@bdogjr7779]

Awesome Joe《☆》Good Luck Brother Definitely way over my head but Extremely Badass once you get it together. DODGE was Kicking Ass in NASCAR✌🏼😎☯️

[@tenthousanddays2103]

When you get the pan off, check to see if the rear main cap has provision to bolt the oil pump on. Some of the dry sump blocks just had a blank rear cap. Not the end of the world though. You can still run it wet sump with an external cogged belt drive oil pump.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Ya that’s the plan.

[@Randysshop]

Should be fun project, also very very expensive with the special engine parts and all the modifications needed to make it fit your car.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Only thing I have to do to car is motor plate, fuel and headers. Not to bad

[@stevenbean9706]

nice find

[@approachingtarget.4503]

Happy for you. That's a great score. These heads are actually better for lower rpm torque production. They shifted back to oval ports on the next gen.

[@moparsareeverything1980]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Thanks for the info

[@brianreynoldson1965]

That's one stout SLM race motor. Good thing it's a future project

[@44hawk28]

The 390 cubic feet per minute carburetor is a restriction I believe on a few tracks, but mostly just for Busch racing, the Cup racers were allowed to use the larger carburetor with the same engine. And with the larger carburetor, these things were turning nine grand RPM at a lot of race tracks. Given the dimensions on that block, I'm wondering if that was made for a mid-length track like a mile and a half or a little bit larger. Where you don't get to the top end RPM. Has been a while since I've been really deep into the NASCAR stuff. But I've always been a Mopar fan. NASCAR engines have been dry sump for most of my life. And the last time I recall, they used a 15 QT sump. Did wonders for keeping the oil fresh and clean incapable of lasting the length of a race at multiple thousands of RPMs. Play Darrell Waltrip said when they come out with all the extra dials to show you what all was happening at different parts of the engine. And he commented that the way he drove you hold the gas pedal to the floor until the end of the race or until all the smoke comes out. That's it! Run a dry sump. The engine is already set up for it and it's a much cleaner way to run the vehicle. It will run much smoother that way. I just thought of something, with the longer stroke and smaller pistons, could be a torque motor for a short track. I'd like to remind you that you're not english, quit mispronouncing the word project. It doesn't have a long o in it. LOL

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Ya I may keep it dry sump all things to be seen for sure. Proooooojectttttt 🇨🇦

[@davidreed6070]

You have a very nice piece. I wonder about the cam being that it was a restricted engine.I think The welding under the cover is what they did to raise the intake port.I think you will find The ex pattern is called the Stahl pattern.

[@smilsmff]

Use that crank and Pistons if you can do so or replacement pistons . i would want to stroke it if i could afford to, but heck im still trying to afford finishing mine, I can think one thing if was mine I would run a camshaft with much higher dynamic compression ratio, Short duration and Massive lift in this next engine, i used to shift 340 block 4.08 bore at 7,000 rpms playing on the street it had forged crank and hyper pistons. I think you will be safe at 8,000

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

I’ll run the cam it has as the cores for these are very hard to find and then custom grind. May change it future tho

[@smilsmff]

@@SimpsonsSpeedShop with low deck and huge bore and giant ports, looks like a god candidate for a Centrifal Super charger

[@curtiswalter86]

Good for you

[@imken2392]

Now you're going to have to figure out how to mount a chute...😉

[@Duster_Garage]

I’m not suggesting you sell it but be prepared to spend a bunch of money. They are the holy grail of small block Mopars but I’ve heard about guys getting $40k wrapped up in one. And I would suggest investing in billet drums and shafts for your 727 or that trans blanket will be put to use. I’d tell you to get in contact with Brett Miller for any machine work you would need but Pennsylvania is a bit of a drive for you. He is the r3/w8 man. He has gotta near 900hp on pump gas. Over a 1000hp race gas. Good luck with the build.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Yes won’t be cheap but wil be worth it! Trans already has a boiler alu drum and bolt sprag. I have a good machine shop who does the bottom ends of these for the entrance team I bought it from. Thank for watching

[@aarvolaredonjunior1032]

If you drop the head and hits near lower front could have had hairline crack, so you cut it out add a plate a little weld then grind and clean up.Then your good looks like it was done right.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Since I made the video I have learned that this was most likely done to clearance the head and timing cover on a decked 9.0 block. Timing cover has been clearenced too

[@zxtenn]

Just wondering how that engine made 600++ hp with a 390 carb? How those heads, cam and intake worked with such little fuel? Hard to believe. Back in the 70's and 80's Holley made that great 500 2 barrel which so many Ford guys used on their 289/302 for a quick bolt on that make a BIG improvement. Any new factory crate engine is FAR superior to anything that was available stock then like say a 69 HEMI, 427 BBC, etc. all now have superior drop ins. I feel a LOT of the HP gains are attributed to the superior AL heads and perfect machining of each port so they match not like the old cast iron heads with misalignment issues, etc. and naturally cam design and roller cams themselves were barely a dream back in 69.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

It’s all in the heads my dude

[@AnDrEw122100]

I love old stock car mills .

[@rontofflemire6165]

My 340 has a 3/600 stroke crank and a 52 over bore and that gives me 379 cu in.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

So a 4.092 bore and a 3.58 stroke? 376 cubes

[@Robs-Garage-experiments]

Congrats!!!! Have fun!

[@mikedean5595]

Very cool engine! Interesting information and I’m looking forward to seeing your journey on this. Crazy that they had to run a 390cfm, what size will you run?

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

950/850

[@slickfish1504]

Cool Stuff Joey👍

[@aarvolaredonjunior1032]

Gonna need a vacuum pump to protect this motor.Oh-engine

[@darylparker5263]

You can get W8 heads to flow just over 400cfm.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Yes they are amazing heads

[@chrisbutt66]

I have a virgin tall deck R3 48 degree block if you ever wanna up the cubes.

[@kevinmerrill8074]

Keep this up and you’ll need more Roll cage points ;)

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

That’s a good problem lol

[@mrmatt3093]

Hey if you ever come across something like this again that’s for sale I’m looking for a r3 combo for my 71 demon , if you could keep me in mind that’d be sick I’m just a Ferry right away 🙏🏻 Super stoked for ya

[@kevinnobody3052]

So your first move is to take it all the way down and magnaflux the block and heads and the crank?

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Ya something like that. It was a running motor, probably clean up heads and then send block rods and crank off to machine shop for checking and work

[@johnmyers473]

Very cool!

[@nukemycorndog]

I run one of these on the street in a dodge avenger backed with a powerglide car runs consistent 8.90s with the craftsman series motor so the 358ci witch is nascars base for ci motor is 100% nothing but fun just watch those Jessel lifters if you get any same with rocker arms seemed to brake a few of them probably cause the motor sat before we used it but just the small thing that could be huge i wanna know what you use for a trans though, with my powerglide we had to make a special mid plate just because of the Chevy crank and the starter location so this motor will have a lot of 1 off stuff

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

You the man! Good info thank you. I will try to get extra lifters and rockers of the race team lol. It has a Mopar crank pattern and I have a built 727.

[@ghostrt1608]

Also look into the W9 and W9rp heads

[@stephenhans189]

Awesome Homer 🙈

[@rong4189]

I wonder if the biggest baddest set of TTI A body headers could be adapted to the W8 flange, or the W8 flange and the first couple inches of header tubes, without killing a ton of power. I dunno.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

I was thinking the same thing. It may be my best bet, tti 1 7/8 to w8 flange

[@moparnut6933]

This wasn't rambly at all, i have no knowledge of these motors and can't wait to see what you do with it.

[@snapon666]

4 bolt mains ...super charger or turbo ? which way ?

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Na for the first go around. Then some boost down the road lol

[@andretorben9995]

I thought these were the older generation of Dodge engines. Didnt they go to the R5P7 engines in the late model cars ?

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Ya they are late 90s. R5 p7 is after these in the 2000s.

[@leoniedunn2457]

the r5p7 had cantered valves

[@drcolster]

Installed heights written on valve cover rail.... Get a Proper shop to do valve seat job if needed... done wrong you will kill heads...

[@DVSNTHERE]

The only thing that could make the motor to the coolest spec would've been if Lee Petty had touched it. Just sayin

[@rickyteague447]

I think it's awesome 👍🏽

[@DJ_Driven]

Why would you want to drill and modify the oiling system of the block that wasn't engineered that way? Everybody that does hardcore racing dreams of going dry sump. If it was me, I would try to buy the whole NASCAR dry some system and adapt it to the 68 Dart.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Some people say dry sump is not good for the street. No oil dripping on cam at low rpm. Stock motor and the other r3 are open in the valley for this reason and to return oil to the pan. To buy an entire dry sump set up that would work the way this motor is now is also very expensive.

[@drcolster]

Nascar never used Keyway lifters, More Drag Motor...

[@davecaresforyou7606]

Wow can I borrow that for turbos

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

lol no way

[@drcolster]

Nascar Cup rule is 9.00" deck height... Drag cars maimly used low decks..

[@adamdelangen8820]

When are you going to the drag strip again

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Hopefully spring time

[@atsidis]

Bet you can’t wait for the rebuild and get its on your friends dyno and wind it up

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

You know it!

[@robertrpenny]

Ok I got it your stroker engine is a 414 SB in the Dart. What is the stroke on that? You could hurt yourself and the shiney DD with that NASCAR engine son.

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Current motor has a 4” stroke. Check out the dyno vid for the full details!

[@robertrpenny]

Ok so thats a long stroke. Hope entire rotating ass'y is 4340 alloy since forces will be very high. Im not a Mopar freak but thats a general statement. But did go to gr. 12 in buddy's 70 Challenger 340. Which was cool. @@SimpsonsSpeedShop

[@manitoublack]

don't swap back to wet sump.

[@robertbreese5952]

W9 head is made to run as cast w8 had a pro port that needed to be machined to use

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Nice 👍🏻 thanks

[@moparsareeverything1980]

You have absolutely zero clue what your talking about so just keep your misinformation to yourself

[@davecaresforyou7606]

What do you mean late model?

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Circle track cars. Super late entry level nascar

[@davecaresforyou7606]

@@SimpsonsSpeedShop I gotta find what super late entry level means

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

@@davecaresforyou7606 super late model is the class of racing. It’s like entry level nascar.

[@Zachsmoparandmashedpotatos]

This set up embarrass the Gen 3 hemi !

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Hell ya brother

[@JohnClutch1]

The only reason why I didn't like the video is because you have 727 likes and I didn't want to ruin that !

[@michaelmerritt7987]

'Promosm' 💕

[@talltimbot]

nascar died when mopar dumped them

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Mopar saw the writing on the wall

[@user-qi9bn2ns2l]

If I were u I'd sell that engine.Not to be Debbie Downer but ur heading down a rabbit hole u prob don't wanna get into. U make much more horsepower than what ur running now ur gonna start tearing it up.The specialty items with those engines are extremely a headache. Just my opinion been around this stuff for a while

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

That’s why this motor is good. It’s near complete. I’m not selling it.

[@user-qi9bn2ns2l]

@@SimpsonsSpeedShop K good luck

[@johnbecker5213]

waste of money

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

That’s a bad attitude right there.

[@circletrack7538]

You have peaked my curiosity with this new engine and I have a rather interesting question !!! First I would like to ask you because your HP is already in the serious range what kind of motor mounts do you have and would it be more feasible to change that system to a motor plate and a mid plate or would that be too much and take away the originality of your gem of a muscle car ??? I do know it would be a better and stronger system for racing then the factory setup !!!! I'm looking for your professional opinion on this my well experienced friend !!!!

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

We’ll have to run a plate on this motor like o show in vid. Sometimes sacrifices must be made lol

[@circletrack7538]

I'm pretty sure that NASCAR engine moves a lot of top end air and fuel but would the camshaft be compatible for the drag strip considering they live @ about 8500 rpm for a long long time and a car like yours lives thru the whole rpm range with that motor probably 4500 - 8500 down the quarter mile ??? Do you believe the cam would have to be changed or just change the degreeing of the cam to increase lower to mid range torque which you know is essential in the drag racing world !!! That 360 just might be able to tickle the 9s then what ???

[@SimpsonsSpeedShop]

Well like I say plan to make it 20 cubes bigger which will help overall. But ya could advance cam some to put power down low or run more stall. Will be a learning curve and the dyno will tell how to set it up. Thanks for watching

[@racebiketuner]

Very cool!