Gentleman, hello. New member here.

I just found this site and already I've found some great information, but I do have some questions. sorry if some of them are redundant, I'm reading the old posts as fast as I can!

Some background: A few years ago, I picked up an '81 Dodge D150 pickup with the "Lean Burn" as a "weekend beater" for trips to the Home Center and the dump, etc. It needed some TLC, but most of the "fixes" consisted of correcting repairs the PO (Previous Owner) had done wrong! During that time, it has sometimes been cantankerous and ran poorly, but it always has started and ran.

The more I tinkered with it, the more I came to suspect that the engine may not original to the truck, and had been swapped out. It has solid lifters and I've been told that the '81 would not have them. Is that correct? If so:

Question No. 1) - Can I tell from the Engine number (7C114-9) what year the engine is?

The carb doesn't seem to be original either, the emissions sticker shows the carb having many more vacuum nipples then there are on the installed carb. (most of the emissions were striped out by the PO). Currently the carb is a Holly 1945, R-9131-A.

Question No. 2) - Is the R-9131-A an earlier version of the Holly 1945 carb?

Question No. 3) - and is there a way to tell what carb was supposed to be on the truck originally?

Question No. 4) - Are there any better manuals then the Haynes (which I have)? Anything Onlne?

Well that's 4 crossed off of my twenty questions list! Thanks for your time!

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'81 D150 with "Lean Burn"

Welcome on the board!
Yep, that is correct. '81 and newer slant-6s have hydraulic lifters.
The number to check is stamped on a pad at the top of the block, facing the sky, just below the bottom of the cylinder head, under the frontmost spark plug. It's just inboard of where the coil/lower alternator bracket bolts to the block. You'll usually have to clean away the gunk to read the numbers stamped there. Tell us what you find.
R9131A is the original carb for a 1981 Dodge truck/van with 225 engine and automatic transmission, with Federal (non-California) emissions.
Definitely. The Haynes books are not useful. Look into getting a factory service manual.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Thanks for the reply.

So, with the solid lifters, it probably has been swapped out.

As near as I can make out the number is: 7225R 10 12 E (They are all pretty clear except for the last "E")

The Haynes says to look for the engine ID on a vertical flat on the passenger's side of the block at the back just below where it meets the head. That number is 7C114-9. Is there any significance to that number?
So, the R9131 is original ..... That is strange, the emissions sticker shows 9 ports but I can only find 6 on the R9131A
I think I have a line on one from Paul. Do the factory manuals include wiring diagrams? i.e are they self contained or are they split up in volumes? Anything to watch for when buying? I'd hate to by a manual only to find it is incomplete or I need something to go with it.

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'81 D150 with "Lean Burn"

That number decodes this way:

7: 1977 model year
225: Engine displacement
R: Passenger car engine
10 12: Built on October 12, 1976
None. That's a good example of Haynes books being full of it.
Some of what look like ports on the diagram may in fact be Wye or Tee fittings that connect two hoses to a single carb nipple.
All in one. There's no particular "gotchya" to watch out for.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Thank you, So it was swapped out.

Any significant differences between a Passenger car engine and the engine in the truck it replaced? i.e. Is there a "Truck Engine" designation?

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'81 D150 with "Lean Burn"

There is/was a truck engine designation, but only the great big heavy duty trucks ever got significantly heavier-duty components in their engines. There's no problem running a passenger car engine in an ordinary pickup like yours.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

That's what I hoped was the case, Thanks

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'81 D150 with "Lean Burn"

i wonder, would the engine being a passenger engine explain why the timing tab above the crank damper only reads to 12º (The emissions sticker wants 16º with the Auto tranny)?

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'81 D150 with "Lean Burn"