Aftermarket support

TRADER, AMC did put the 343 V8 in an American in '67.  They built about 500 of them.  There was an "X" in the VIN so they were called the "X" cars.

jpnjim wrote: Aftermarket support/performance parts for the AMC 343 (gen2 AMC): Decent amount 1966-1969 Gen2 AMC engines are left a little bit out in the cold for off the shelf parts  compared to the Gen3 1970-1991's,  but just about any gen3 part can be made to work on a gen2 Intakes ->                 lots and lots available                Edelbrock, Offy, Holley, Indy, tons of intakes were made for Gen2/3 AMC's,                the primary difference being Gen 3 engine blocks have a slightly taller deck height, and                the two inner intake manifold bolts were relocated slightly to keep from swapping                between the gens and having a (slight) port alignment, or sealing issue.                Any machine shop can shave a gen 3 intake slightly and move the bolt holes                to make the more widely available Gen3 intake properly fit a Gen2                It's 2022, and the parts crunch we're in has made almost everything limited of course                sad because theres a newish AMC Victor intake out there, but unavailable now. Cams ->               No difference between Gen2 & Gen3 cams & almost anything you could want is available             In 2021/2022 people have said blanks are nonexistent, I haven't tried to order one lately             but a few years ago I think a custom flat tappet from Howards took under 2 weeks to get             and everyone has (had) off the shelf cams at one time or another.             Roller cams have been a big debate here off and on over the years with good roller lifters             being available, then not available, then solutions found.             I don't know what the current best roller lifters are, or if they're available,             but again, in 2022 they're probably in short supply, or people are waiting for them Aftermarket Heads ->           Indy and Edelbrock both make aftermarket Gen3 heads that work on Gen2's.          Gen 3 heads have 1/2" head bolt holes & dogleg exhaust ports = better           it wouldn't make sense to make an aftermarket Gen2 head (square exhaust port) when the           3's are so much of an improvement and bolt right on (with headbolt centering adapters for           the 7/16" Gen2 head bolts).           Indy also makes a race head with Chrysler Big Block exhaust ports           but it is also designed around the Gen3 head design.           Again, in 2022, I don't know how long you'll wait for any of this stuff. Aftermarket Cranks & Blocks ->                   Aftermarket cranks can be made from Billet up to 4"+ stroke                   Factory 390 & 401 cranks are all forged and drop into 290/304/343/360 blocks                   (clearancing & 390/401 spec rods are necessary)                      Except for some very special (rare!) race pieces,                   all 290/304/343 & 360 cranks are cast iron                   (even the ones with "ArmaSteel" cast into them)                    The cast AMC cranks are decently strong though                    290/343 = 3.28" stroke   304/360 = 3.44" stroke                    FWIW,                    there are two types of factory cranks:                    Flat flange 1966-1971                    Stepped flange (for Chrysler autos) 1972-1991                   Indy makes an Aluminum block, but it doesn't have motor mount bosses                    Gen 3 1970 390 & 1971+ 401's (4.165" bore) have beefier blocks compared to                   290/304 (3.75" bore)  & 343/360's (4.08" bore)                    but 390/401 blocks don't take overboring as well as the 4.08" and especially the                    3.75" blocks.                    There were batches of special race blocks, and Service Blocks with the bottom                    end beef of a 401 block, and the smaller bore of a 360                    but those are all tough to find.                   2022 availability = ??             Aftermarket Pistons ->                Yes, off the shelf 360 cast, or forged Wiseco pistons can work in a 343                 anything else you could ever want is available in custom forged Aftermarket Rods ->                 Factory 290/304/343/360 rods are decently strong for CAST rods                  there's ample aftermarket forged replacements available, for both stock                 replacement, or custom applications                 factory 390/401 forged rods have a different length, pin size and big end width,                 and are designed for 390/401 cranks, so they're not worth the effort to fit in a 343                 unless you were also using a 390/401 crank                 As always. 2022 supply issues can increase wait time on aftermarket rods Almost all non-performance parts have been available aftermarket,  but since we are such a small niche, quality control and availability sometimes suffers. Examples:  Timing chain covers  good quality used covers are the gold standard, some aftermarket covers have worked ok  and some have been machined wrong (distributor hole mostly) and caused issues.  Typical offshore quality control problems mostly I think Timing chain sets  you have to check the location of oil holes, no matter what brand name is on the box Lifters Chrysler spec is slightly smaller than AMC spec (like .904 vs .903), sometimes the clearance  becomes an issue, affecting oil pressure and parts durability Quality control has been a problem as well, but that's not limited to AMC's The world has moved on to roller cams, and it shows in the smaller market of  flat cams getting overlooked as parts quality suffers. Distributor gear sets  Gen2/3 AMC cams have a bolt on distributor gear (and fuel pump eccentric)  just like the timing chains, the factory parts are the gold standard, and aftermarket  can be anything from the wrong pitch, to too hard, to too soft.  I don't know what the current most popular aftermarket solution is,  MSD was held in  pretty good light for a while, but I'm not sure now A nice factory matched pair of used cam and distributor gears still seems the best bet Under normal conditions, Gen2/3 AMC V8's are a pretty decent alternative to brand X engines. They like tighter main and rod bearing clearances,  and the external oil pump in an aluminum housing isn't the design I would have liked. Also, most of the newer engine technology (improved bearing material, roller cams, modern fuel  injection, etc) has taken longer, or required clever solutions to use before it trickles down to us,  but the basic engine design is sound, the blocks are strong (even the 290/304/343/360's),  and the heads are among the best of their times, for small block engines. There's other stuff too,  but I have to go shovel snow outside now lol

when i was reading this ... the words started to metamorphis into $$$  $$$$$  $$$ $$$$  390 $$$$$  cam $$$$ wait 6 months $$$$$  aluminum cylinder heads $$$$$ $    just teasing you .. but like the motorcycle guy from the first mad max...speed is just a question of $$$$

Edited by White70JavelinSST - Jan/29/2022 at 5:33pm