have had it home about 5 days now, still on my kid's trailer. (up out of the mudhole my driveway has become) '85 D100 longbed If it was a few years older I'd guess a "MISER" package truck.
2 tone maroon and white, 8' bed, slant 6, 727 trans (yes I know the difference) 3.21 gear, under 100K miles (yes I know only 5 digit odometer, but condition shows) no AC, solid back window (no slider-yet) maroon carpeted interior....
Very solid cab and frame, yellow painted stenciled numbers still clearly visible on frame.
2 issues; 1) need exhaust manifold, (due to some PO handiwork-- busted studs that hold manifolds together. so they drilled them out thru and thru, now has hole in bottom of exhaust manifold.... which was handed to me separate from the truck. and I wish I had some of the ones I scrapped back in the day, having a little bit of a hard time finding one.....
and 2) body more dented than rusted, old geezer apparently couldn't see well enough (or garage door jamb not wide enough) have some pulling to do on bed sides, passenger door (high on the crown part of the door skin) and the passenger rocker. Very solid, and original sheet metal, hope I can save. Door would definitely be easier to unbolt and replace.... SLIGHT rust over back wheel wells.... bed easily saveable as far as popping out dents in bed sides (not creased)

Ive been watching this truck sit for a few years, not in this area that often, handful of times a year. was wanting to stop and ask about it previously, but never seemed to be any signs of life at this house.... was out there 2 Saturdays ago, finally saw "for sale" signs on it and in the ground alongside of it.... as I drove by, old guy came out of house and we talked a while.... he has a 97 Ranger he wants me to work on, but I think that truck's a lost cause.....
put a battery in it when I got it home, cranks right over with key (not seized-- a good sign) sounds like good compression as intake/exhaust ports exposed/ wide open....
Looks like I MIGHT have a line on a Super 6 manifold stack..... will find out tomorrow. (fingers crossed)
Was hoping for a V8, but that's OK, I'll run the /6, if it's willing once I get a good manifold on there..... have 1/2 a mind to hit the junkyard and see what parts I can scrounge and add a home brew "junkyard" blow thru turbo setup onto this thing..... forgot the possibility of a/6 under the hood, its been so long since I have seen one in a truck (besides my son's '80, that is)
will be needing some other goodies for it, like electronic ignition/ vacuum advance distributor so I can chuck the lean Burn setup.... (have every thing else I need for that on hand) some better shape door panels that don't look like they were painted by a 2nd grade art student.... lots of runs in them..... also a non AC heater control for the dash...…. to start off with.

I have owned several 76-90 Dodge trucks over the years, have been in a Dakota rut since I sold my 83 3/4 ton, (which I should have kept) I love these trucks, and hate the newer ones, cuz I see them (though we have Fords there) at work, all the time... and my new truck has wing windows, cowl vents, the dimmer switch on the floor "where they belong" and wiper switch on the dash not the turn signal stalk.....

 

Getting pissed, can't believe I'm having so much problem finding slant 6 parts. The exhaust manifold has been the same since around 1970 til the end of the slant 6. Been all over the place and still coming up empty. I'm off work today and between Dr appointments for my wife hit another junkyard this morning and the only truck that they had with this engine in it was also missing the same thing as I went there for. Saturday I drove 2-1/2 hours away to a yard that was "guaranteed" to have what I need and they did-- 2 of them-- attached to "good" engines that they would only sell whole. So I left empty handed, just to drive 2-1/2 hours back.

 

Have you consider a new one?

 

I thought about a new exhaust manifold but the only two I could find were over $300 each. Nice parts, but pricey. As for the electronic ignition conversion, I don't know if Chrysler still offers those as a kit. At one time they were talking about going V-8 only. You can get the brain box, distributor and other parts you need at a parts store. You'll pay a core charge but a junkyard part might be cheaper and then turn it in for a rebuilt 225 distributor. When Chrysler quit supporting the slant 6, I bought a bunch of the wiring harness needed and I think I saw a couple recently.


Now, if your search for the manifold comes up empty, I have a friend who has a salvage yard and he prefers to deal in older stuff. Drop me a PM and I'll see if he has anything. Anything from a manifold to an engine. It's across the river in Kentucky, about 15-20 miles from me. I'm off work next week for retirement preparations so I have time next week to see what he has,.

 

rockauto is usually pretty reasonably priced but might almost be cheaper to try finding a complete engine with what a manifold costs or what about just tapping the holes and putting plugs in them? also if you are wanting to do a turbo setup and need to replace the ignition crap wouldn't you need a electronic timing control or something along those lines instead of a vacuum advance which only works when vacuum is applied if you are going turbo? pretty sure i have read or heard /6 are pretty limited power wise mainly because of the heads and only being able to flow a limited amount of air.

 

Yeah I have. Don't want to spend that much yet at least till I hear it run.
On the ignition stuff I have all that I need to get rid of the lean burn setup laying around from years ago.
again not going to tear into that til I get the engine to run otherwise. And if my crazy turbo idea we're to happen I'd keep this original distributor to put back in then.
Ive been a member of the slant 6 site many years longer than here. I hadn't been on there in a few years, found out my old PW and username was still "live". I've been back on there again since 4 months or so ago when my son brought home an '80 step side with the same engine in it.
Ive found a few complete engines, not wanting another one laying around minus manifolds, though the engines I have located are rather cheap. Much cheaper than a new manifold.

 

On tapping the holes and putting plugs in them, the bolts are 3/8" and the hole in the bottom of the manifold is like 1-1/4" and looks like someone just took a ball pein to it. More hole than a plug would fix

 

You would always scrap whats left of the 'spare' engine when you have what you want off of it. Probably get back a fair percentage of the investment as well.....

 

if I had the room I wouldn't mind having another /6 around..... trying to thin out.... if I leave this truck /6 powered, I am sure I'd be looking for a 2nd one to "build up" while I drive it with the one still in it.... but I need to thin out before I can have room for it.

 

Things accumulate to fill the space available.