I'm dropping a 360 in place of my slant 6 and was wondering how the 7 1/4 rear would hold up.

The 360 will get headers, cam, intake, and new carb.
It's an '83 4bbl motor.
From the article I'm following it should put out around 327 hp and close to 400 ft-lbs of torque. (wishful thinking, maybe?)

How long would the rear last under normal around-town driving? Not really planning to race at this time.

If your nice it will live a long time.. Use the power & you'll be on a hook...

depends on what you call normal,granny normal or drive it like you rented it normal.

Kinda figured. Does anyone make stouter components for the 7 1/4? I'd hate to just go to pass a slower car and blow the rear end.

I'm going to try running one in a circle burner 360 (2bbl 9-1 CR class rules) w 4:10 gears in 2nd gear (904 1.45). It'll save maybe 100 lbs over an 8&3/4 (if it holds up). The weakest link is the spider gears and Randy's R&P has them

My 7 1/4 lasted 2 weeks behind my mild 360.
I split the spider gears...I was able to limp it home though, but it made some awful noises going around turns.

Mine lasted a year, and was still good when I replaced it with an 8 3/4. My engine is similar to yours. My 7 1/4 was not a sure grip, and with street tires, I couldn't hook up good enough to do any damage!

2 weeks? lol. Hopefully I can make mine last longer, or at least until I get all the parts to install my 8 3/4.

Actual PUNISHMENT ? ...zip, zero, NADA !!

Hell .. Ma Mopar had major probs with them holding-up in Grandpa's RWD 5th Ave.

70 barracuda 318 2 bbl. 2.76 gears.
less than a year back in the 80s....
Playing a little in water did it, spider gears.

My first 7.25 lasted about 6 months, until I decided to hurry up and NOT get rearended. I sidestepped the clutch and heard a lound bang, then a jump forward and lots of clunking, banging and other funny sounds. Limped it to the side of the road and all looked good. Nursed it home and pulled the cover. Yep, there it was.. all of it... in the bottom of the drain pan. The second 1 lasted 2 months of mostly easy driving. This is with a 318 with a .440 cam and performer intake and a 600 with a 4spd. The 3rd 1 in it now has lasted 8+ years... of course theres no engine in the car for most of that. The engine going in is going to be a mild 360 and a 904. Hope this lasts long enough to let me get some money saved to get a real rearend together. I may just drop in the Ford 8" I have sitting here. All the mounts are in the same place, plus I get the big bolt pattern and a drop out center thats A LOT cheaper to get parts for then an 8.75.

I ran a 7-1/4 behind a mildly built 318 for a while. It was a few years ago when I hecame unemployed, so instead of swapping in a new rear, I decided to run it till it went (which would force me into getting another). But for the next two years I had it, the rear never blew! Sold it that way (told the new owner of course).

I shredded the spider gears on my 70 Dart...7 1/4"...with a slant 6....At the time..I hadn't made too many mods...just a 6-to-1 header, Offy 4bbl Intake and a 4bbl 390cfm, 904 was stock. I left from the first stop sign from my house, just normal driving and the whole car went KA-CHUNK! and the whole rear of the car jumped to the right...I babied her back one block....

I dropped in my buddies 70 Charger 8 3/4, had him rebuild the 3.23's...slipped right into place no cutting, welding, narrowing...

7.25's are about the biggest abomination Chrysler put out...if a slant 6 can kill it....your 360 will annihilate it

It's been too many years to remember exactly how long it lasted when I switched my 318 e-body to a mild 360. But it wasn't long.

When mine decided to go, it actually cracked one side of the ring gear carrier, allowing enough clearance to shoot a spider gear partially through the back cover. It locked up momentarily in the middle of a curve on the way home, causing the rear end of the car to slide sideways pretty violently. If it hadn't blown all the way out allowing the rear tires to spin freely (no power to them anymore) then it probably would have made for a pretty bad wreck.

Save yourself the pucker factor and get your 8 3/4 finished before you put it back on the road.

My first car was a '68 Valiant 100. While a senior in high school, I put in a 360/727 over Christmas break. I did not have the funds for an 8 3/4 at the time, so I left the 7 1/4 in it for about 6 months. It was driven daily and spun the tire fairly easily. When I finally upgraded to an 8 3/4, the 7 1/4 was toast. It never failed to the point of where the car could not be driven, but it made all sorts of noises.
The car was far from fast and never had a sticky tire on it, but I was the 16 yr old loose nut behind the wheel.(Car ran 13's at the track.)

One thing that I do miss...the fact I could go to a local junkyard and find a 3.55 Sure Grip A-body 8 3/4 for $50.

Real world experience here! The 68 Dart GT in my sig pic has a 360/380 crate motor that I installed and left the original 904 and 7-1/4 in place with a higher stall torque converter. I drove it for years with that combo with no problems whatsoever! The biggest issue was the rear gear ratio and lack of suregrip, but that is probably what saved the rear from breaking. It would sure roast that poor tire, though...

I built a detuned 360 4bbl and threw it in my 66 dart and blew the rear pretty quick. I put a 2bbl 360 cam in it and 302 casting heads and ran it through the stock 273 2bbl manifolds. It actually ran faster with the 302 heads than the 360 heads. The suregrip will actually help the 7.25 because it keeps those spider gears from spinning so fast when the one tire breaks traction. I think if someone made a spool for them or aftermarket sure grip it would help them live a lot longer.