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turbo propane get interesting for sure, not typical at all. lots of thread all over the inter net on how to do it. i can help you out but mines it a 4 cyl
 
That 360 can make plenty of power if you want it to. Rebuild it, bump up the compression, good heads (factory dog leg heads are actually pretty good with some valve work), a good intake and cam and there's no reason it can't keep up with a 5.3.

Yes they're a fairly large block and kinda heavy compared to newer engines but they can make some decent power. The weakest point is the oiling to #4-5 main bearings and there's relatively easy solutions for that. Honestly I think propane and low compression ratio are really killing any power output that engine is capable of, bump it up to 10-10.5:1 and drop the propane. Should be able to get 3-350hp out of it without really doing any major work.
 
Y'all missed the easy button. Find a 'K' TH400 case and swap the guts out of the AMC TH400 case. Nothing fancy there, and shouldn't be too difficult to find. Now he's got a Chevy bellhousing bolt pattern. I'll bet that the converter isn't odd or unique, so keep it too. Cost of a K case is way, way less than the rare AMC case that he's got. Possibly even enough so that it will offset the cost of having a pro do the swap of the trans guts.

Then a BBC or SBC bolts to it w/o issue, and an LS bolts to it with a small spacer of some sort (never done it myself).

While you're at it, get the t/c cover specific to the K case and the braces and engine mount plates. These will stiffen up that whole engine-trans assembly.

Really surprised that I'm the first to mention this.

As to what engine I'd bolt in front of it, that's easy. A TBI 350. The engine management is stupid simple (it's ECU is also not terribly 'smart' by modern stds but that doesn't matter), can get 300HP out of it w/o leaning on anything too hard, and the system's wiring and plumbing needs are also very simple. It is NOT fancy or modern or super-duper zippy, but it's easy to diagnose in the field, needed spares are limited, and it works well. My old TBI truck ran fine from sea level to 12,400' It didn't make sea level HP at 12.4, but neither did I!
 
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ironman_gq said:
That 360 can make plenty of power if you want it to. Rebuild it, bump up the compression, good heads (factory dog leg heads are actually pretty good with some valve work), a good intake and cam and there's no reason it can't keep up with a 5.3.

Yes they're a fairly large block and kinda heavy compared to newer engines but they can make some decent power. The weakest point is the oiling to #4-5 main bearings and there's relatively easy solutions for that. Honestly I think propane and low compression ratio are really killing any power output that engine is capable of, bump it up to 10-10.5:1 and drop the propane. Should be able to get 3-350hp out of it without really doing any major work.
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Been checking this basic concept out figure I’m $3000 in before fuel injection.. so dumping the propane doesn,t work seems like the guys I wheel with all end up dumping the stock type EFI stuff for holley etc. and spend $1500 plus, now I.m back to LS type expense
 
chaplinfj60 said:
turbo propane get interesting for sure, not typical at all. lots of thread all over the inter net on how to do it. i can help you out but mines it a 4 cyl
Click to expand...
Think I saw your 1st run 22r turbo video on the tube.. Called got propane and was amazed they sell a kit for that motor for $700. If I could figure out how to do something similar to the 360 for that price range, that would be pretty appealing…
 
Stumbled across and AMC 360 that appears to be a strong running good power plant.. Look like the the maximum compression ration on this era 360 was about 8.4 to 1... Any idea how much effort it would take to get something like this up to a 10.0 - 1 compression ratio? Could this be accomplished through shaving the head? Guessing you would need new pistons, cam etc...
 
Just bumping the static CR without regard to the rest of the components usually doesn't work out well. Granted, if you're going to run propane then you're going to want more CR than you would with gasoline, but develop the engine as a whole, don't just change some things at random.
 
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