Thread: 360 valve valley crack

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I have a 360 from a 95 Dodge and was told that in the early 90s the 360 would get a crack in the valve valley. I have looked and don't see any yet, or was this fixed by 95? I am going to rebuild it to put in a 1941 International Hotrod pickup. But if it is going ot develop a crack I don't think I want to use it. What would be a better year to get?
Thanks for any help Mark

from what i know its the intake manifold itself that cracks ussually not the block.... i've replaced a few in the shop.... i think 95 might be past the problem of that... not sure exactly when they fixed it.... it was when everyone first started using composite intakes, a real big bummer on the consumers....

Thanks that makes me feel better. The intake is not craked. Not sure I will use the stock intake as it is MPI. It would require a computer to run and not sure I have the resurces to do that. Mark

wouldn't be hard to use the computer you could get one from the junkyard for cheap, and if you still have all the sensors in your motor, it'll just be some rewiring and you'd be good to go

Try one of these. 392 ci.

I did consider a 345 because I have one and thought about looking for a 392. The thing is I want a 5 speed with over drive and that would be hard with a IH motor. I know they made one but they are kind of rare.

If budget constraints make you stay with the 360, don't worry. The factory had a flaw in castings for this particular symptom. It lasted less than two years and yet the numbers of failure was so small, the government or Chrysler could not issue a recall or signifigant notice. If you have a seasoned block or have run yours long enough to not notice thes cracks, run it, you'll be fine. If you want some extra insurance, build girdles for it. Suppliers can produce them but can be pricey. I have built my own for Pontiac 400's really cheap.