V8 Donor Car Located

A suitable donor has been found for the Aspen's engine transplant. Of all places to find it, I actually got wind of it at the San Diego Gay Pride parade. While waiting for the parade to start (I used the Mustang to drive one of the "dignitaries" through the parade), I was chatting up with some other members of the Great Autos of Yesteryear car club. One member heard I had the Aspen wagon, and asked me if I wanted a parts car. He had a 1978 Chrysler LeBaron Town & Country wagon that he was looking to get rid of... cheap.

I went and looked at it tonight. The pictures below are from Nick's website. It is a 1978 T&C wagon that has the wood-delete option. It has a 318 4V V8. The motor was replaced a while back with the 318 cop motor from a late 80's Diplomat. The car has been sitting for awhile, it is much dirtier than in these photos. But, it started right up. Engine sounded good. I didn't drive it, it is registered PNO (Planned Non-Operation).

It doesn't fit with my original plan for swapping in a 360 V8, but I'm still going to go this route to start with. The engine has all the smog-related equipment on it, and since this car is based off of the exact same platform as the Aspen, everything is a bolt-on replacement. There are other parts that I will be able to scavenge off of this car as well for the Aspen (just have to re-dye or repaint them); such as interior trim pieces, headliner, weather stripping, power windows. I'm not sure if it has one, but if it does, I will swap out the Sure-Grip (limited slip) rear end as well.

I should be picking the car up sometime this week. I'll continue to post and chronicle the engine swap and other things related to the Aspen on this blog.