Hi...
I purchased a '66 Valiant Signet beck in '06 with the idea of doing a V-8 conversion. I am finally ready to begin (in other words, I have gotten a few bucks together). The car is a two tone tan with silver rocker panels, two door hardtop with bucket seats, manual steering and a slant 6. The body is in pretty good shape, and except for the front seats, the interior is pretty nice also. By the way, it is a black interior.
I already have an 8 3/4 3.55 limited slip rear end out of a '66 Baracuda. I have a 360 block out of a '76 Cordoba and a small block 727 that needs to be rebuilt. I have a floor shift and console out of a '69 Dart...even though it seems strange, I was told it would be a good fit. I have a floor shift, manual steering steering column for the car. And finally, I have a set of stock exhaust manifolds out of a '64 Dart with a 273 in it. I don't thik I'm ready to tackle the expense and possible hassles of instaling an engine with headers or working on an engine with headers
Is there any way to update to disk brakes and still retain the small bolt pattern (it may seem strange, but I REALLY want to keep the small bolt pattern). I am looking into radiators and into having a set of leaf springs made for the car. I'm really worried about being able to get the rear wheels to stay on the road. I am also hoping to do a stroker conversion on the 360. I will probably need to go to the engine section, but I will be looking for recommendations on buying a crank kit. I would also like to buy a set of .202 aluminum heads or a set of "X" heads for a 340. (That should work shouldn't it?) Again, I f I could get a set fo "X" heads, I would sacrifice the weight to keep the old school apppearance.
Anyways, I am generally looking for advice, common pitfalls to watch for and shortcuts to avoid. This will be the first A-Body I've really worked with, although I have owned a '69 Dart GT that had been converted to a 340 car and a '70 Duster that had been converted to a 318. I really miss having a small block A-Body and am pretty jazzed about this project.
Thanks for your patience with me, your advice and your guidance as I go along!
Steve
I purchased a '66 Valiant Signet beck in '06 with the idea of doing a V-8 conversion. I am finally ready to begin (in other words, I have gotten a few bucks together). The car is a two tone tan with silver rocker panels, two door hardtop with bucket seats, manual steering and a slant 6. The body is in pretty good shape, and except for the front seats, the interior is pretty nice also. By the way, it is a black interior.
I already have an 8 3/4 3.55 limited slip rear end out of a '66 Baracuda. I have a 360 block out of a '76 Cordoba and a small block 727 that needs to be rebuilt. I have a floor shift and console out of a '69 Dart...even though it seems strange, I was told it would be a good fit. I have a floor shift, manual steering steering column for the car. And finally, I have a set of stock exhaust manifolds out of a '64 Dart with a 273 in it. I don't thik I'm ready to tackle the expense and possible hassles of instaling an engine with headers or working on an engine with headers
Is there any way to update to disk brakes and still retain the small bolt pattern (it may seem strange, but I REALLY want to keep the small bolt pattern). I am looking into radiators and into having a set of leaf springs made for the car. I'm really worried about being able to get the rear wheels to stay on the road. I am also hoping to do a stroker conversion on the 360. I will probably need to go to the engine section, but I will be looking for recommendations on buying a crank kit. I would also like to buy a set of .202 aluminum heads or a set of "X" heads for a 340. (That should work shouldn't it?) Again, I f I could get a set fo "X" heads, I would sacrifice the weight to keep the old school apppearance.
Anyways, I am generally looking for advice, common pitfalls to watch for and shortcuts to avoid. This will be the first A-Body I've really worked with, although I have owned a '69 Dart GT that had been converted to a 340 car and a '70 Duster that had been converted to a 318. I really miss having a small block A-Body and am pretty jazzed about this project.
Thanks for your patience with me, your advice and your guidance as I go along!
Steve
