deceased motor

[Nick ALFANO <71amx@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Tom,

Too bad you are not closer to Kenosha, WI.  I have a
built up 258 with a 480 lift cam, header, 650 4bl carb
that is a very strong runner.  I also have a 68,000
original mile 79 Concord with a 258 that runs great. 
It is a little rusty but the interior and drive train
are all perfect.

Nick

Date: Thu, 19 Jan 2006 23:33:50 -0800 (PST)
From: Tom Jennings <tomj@xxxxxxx>
To: AMC List <mail@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: deceased motor
Message-ID:
<Pine.LNX.4.58.0601192318260.15083@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>

Welp it had to happen sooner or later... the old tired
motor in our 
1972
Hornet has crapped out. This is the 232 that was
originally in my '70
Hornet; back when Ron owned it, the '72's 258 decided
to vacate some
parts out the side of the block, so Ron swapped the
70's motor and BW
auto trans into the '72. We've been driving the tired
thing since.

It's had an intermittent ticky lifter for some time,
that's recently
gone full time, and now sounds like bent pushrod time.
"Luckily" it's
#1 cylinder, so I can see the rockers, and the exhaust
rocker
is barely moving... about .2" of lift! The tick
coincides with a
non-contributing-cylinder lump, it's lost a lot of
power too. Where's
that warranty when you need it? Isn't it 33
years/200,000 miles? Ahem.

There's umm no oil in the top end, so it's succumbed
to the chronic
problem these early sixes have, crud-plugged oil
passageway from the
block to the head, so this isn't exactly a surprise.
We changed it
excessively often on the theory that oil's cheaper
than motors. This
one stopped subscribing to that one! It liked to drink
it also, a quart
every 1.5K or so, with slightly fluffy plugs.

The trans is very tired, the fluid is basically black,
though it does
shift OK. (It's not my car...)

So while I could probably squeeze some miles/months by
rebuilding the
head, I think I should find a 258 or 232 +
Torqueflite, that it 
originally
came with.

I know the 4.0 swap is current-fashion, but it ain't
no "drop in" and
this is a car repair to me, not a project. I'd more
likely put a 2.5L
in anyways, since it'd be a LOT cheaper and economy is
more important
here than performance (I know the dance about
underpowered may be less
economical, etc).

I'd really rather have a 232 or 258 and a TF, I just
rebuilt the 
steering
column and column shift, don't want to mess with
mounts, exhaust,
shifter linkage, driveshafts, radiators, fans,
head:firewall clearance
(that even the 80's 258s have with these early
Hornets) blah blah.
Maybe if I had a garage; working outside even in LA
winters is No Fun.

The good news is, the mortgage co. was escrowing too
much cash, so we 
got
a kilobuck back in the mail today. So we know where
that check is 
going...

If anyone in So Cal has a good-running 72-up six I've
got cash and an
immediate need!