Last year for the 440

Everything I read states the last year for the 440 engine was 1978. I've got a 1979 440 engine, ID pad shows T9-440. What's up with this? Another question related to this, I have a '79 Warlock 4x4 with a non numbers 360 engine that's ready for a rebuild, should I go ahead and rebuild the '79 440 and put it in my Warlock?

I seem to recall something about a few being sold for RV use only in 1979? I spoke to an RV manufacturer who used complete Dodge chassis as a basis who said 360 was the best they could get in 1979, and it was badly underpowered for their units.

Last year for production for the 440 at the Trenton Engine plant was 1978. Any vehicle after 1978 received a “banked” engine.
The last authoritive source on the plant dies several years ago. My recollection was they “built out” any inventory they had to build this bank before decommissioning the line.

Look on the pan rail near the starter and see if any numbers are stamped - if so please post them.

Common at Chrysler and probably at other OE’s too.

A more recent example at Chrysler/FCA is the NAG1 trans.
We stopped making it at the Kokomo North plant but cop cars got them well after end of production.

A buddy of mine that's sort of a chevy guy , and well versed/experienced mechanic just picked up a 79 B? 400 cutaeway trans van with a 440. So I know they made em. They are still sitting around mostly.

Love the warlock. If I had all the parts to go big block that's what i'd do even if it wasn't a 79 stamped engine.

That pad is blank and on the other side where the dipstick goes in there is cover or cap that looks original to the engine. I wonder how they checked the oil?

Some BB trucks/vans with a rear sump pan had the dipstick tube inserted into the pan.

Most of the class A motorhome motors had that option, I have several of those NOS tubes and dipsticks on the shelf to use in trucks or motorhome rebuilds.

It could have been built and put in the warranty bank. They would still have needed them for service in the event of failure. One of the latest casting dates I have seen and I have seen a few hundred......

It is a 78 production 440. You go get all the numbers and you will see. There were a lot of motor home chassis already built. They were allowed to sell them as 1979 however the drive line is all 1978. You will never see a factory 1979 parts manual with a 440.

So the 440 in a passenger car ended in 1977? A buddy has a 77 New Yorker that came from a Chrysler dealer and the owner bought what he said was near the end of the line for 440 passenger car production, is that true?

78 was the last year.

As I remember it, trucks rated as a "heavy duty" 1/2 ton or bigger got an emission pass for the 78 model year, but would need to meet emission standards for the 79 model year. I believe all the domestic car manufacturers were allowed to carry the 78 model year on trucks up until the end of Dec 1978. Anything sold after 1/1/1979 had to be a 79 model year and unless it was rated over 4 ton, it needed to meet the 79 emission standards.

Cars didn't get the 78 emission standard "freeze", nor did they get the extended model year. As I understood it, the 440s couldn't meet the "new" emission standards, but the 400 could, so it lived through at least the end of the 78 model year in cars.

I also believe the motor home chassis were purchased in large quantities and carried the year of manufacture for the date they were built into a finished product. I believe if a motor home company had a 440 chassis in stock, they were allowed to sell it up through the end of 1979 mostly because the last Dodge production 440 chassis were built to be over the 4 ton limit.

Also, keep in mind that 78/79 was the time Chrysler went broke the 1st time. The government deal ended Chrysler participation with big trucks, and it ended big blocks. They were allowed to sell whatever was "in stock" but could no longer produce big block stuff.

I was working at a repair shop gas station and we serviced many new vehicles at the time. We had to keep up with the emission standards, even though our area never tested emissions. Gene