Picked this thing up about a year ago from the guy who bought it out of a barn at an estate auction. I’ve been on and off hunting a pre-war Mopar for a few years now when this one fell in my lap. The car had been parked since 1970. Doing a little auto archeology and I found that the original engine had been replaced with a 218 in 1951 with a genuine Mopar crate motor. The tag is still on the block. The car was repainted once before in its life it’s original black color. The dash has a radio from a later ‘47-‘48 radio, I think. A Chevrolet heater hangs below the dashboard on the passenger side. The seat and door panels had been recovered in what was originally a silver color vinyl. The front rubber mat, which was junk unfortunately, was from a ‘46+ Plymouth as well. The original 16” wheels and hubcaps were long gone, having been replaced with some later 15” wheels and full wheel covers. The guy that rescued it did little more than throw some tires on it and get it running halfway off of a lawnmower gas tank. All that was needed was new plugs and a fuel pump, however it wasn’t running well. I’ve done little work to it since acquiring it, as I’ve had other projects in the way. So far I’ve swapped in a Langdon 12v distributor setup, finned Thickstun valve covers, and a Thickstun intake with two matching ‘41 spec Carter Ball&Ball carbs. I’ve also replaced the water pump, and checked out the water distribution tube in the block, it was like new. I have spent a lot of time scraping the dirt caked under the hood and suspension off of it, but definitely have more to go. Move also been collecting parts for it as well, which has been a lot of fun. Longterm, I want to keep it a fairly period correct car. I’m not wanting it to look like a car that somebody with money built, but rather a car that a high school kid may have put together back in the 1950s. Anyway, here are some pics…
Great looking car! Have you gotten it back driving since swapping on the new intake and exhaust? The '40 had much nicer rear lights than the postwar cars....
So I have not gotten it running since the dual carb swap. It needs a fuel tank and I’m re-wiring the entire car. The Branson Road Rebels plate is an actual club plaque from Branson Missouri. It’s never been mounted, so it still looks like new. I live in NC, but since my last name is Branson, so I figured I could get away with running it. As far as the PLMMMMTH cap goes, I actually have a full set as well as the oem 16” ribbed trim rings and a set of 15” ribbed trim rings. I’ve got a set of late ‘40s 15” wheels, but am wanting to find a set of 16” ‘39-‘46 wheels. So if anybody has some, I’m shopping. Also I’m hunting a decent rear bumper and I’d like to find a ‘40-‘41 Desoto or Chrysler front bumper for it as well.
The PLMMMMTH caps are great, and these cars look great with the 16" wheels too. I had a very similar 40 a few years ago. I might still have a set of 16" wheels scattered around, I'll try to look.
I asked Ryan about that. It is part of the program and unavoidable... I hate those dinky pictures. even when enlarged they are half size
That is a great score, that car is pretty sharp. I really like the THICKSTUN intake and exhaust manifolds and finned side valve covers!
Cool car. Good luck finding one of those front bumpers. They are rare as hen's teeth. I have a 40 Chrysler on the front of my 41. Don't know what I'd do if it got hit. I have an original heater, if you're interested.
Back in 1972 I bought this '41 for $25, drug it home and put a sbc with tilt front end in it. My buddy down the street has a '40, so had a lot of fun rodding together....low budget, big hopes, great memories.. Your car is AWESOME...go have fun!
Damn that’s a great looking car. I was raised with ford cars, I started building model cars when I was very young and when I got older I built several 41 Plymouth models and I really became fond of them. All from a little plastic model.
The ‘40 Dodge is a good friend of mines. I tried to buy it for years, but he won’t sell it. it’s currently in the process of getting a 383/727 /8.75 conversion. I’m also re-wiring the car for him.
I love those cars. My first car was a '47 Plymouth I hopped up and raced (and beat ) every '48 Ford I ever race. I would put a Gearge Asche 200HP 6 in it and run the hell out of it
ive never heard of a manufacturer misspelling their name on a hubcap before, id love to hear the story on these hubcaps.
@The_Cat_Of_Ages “misspelt “ hub caps of all brands are aftermarket caps skirting copyright/trade mark lawyers. my favorite are the early ford caps that actually read fool
thats amazing, so there have always been knock off wheel covers/hubcaps, i kinda want the misspelled ones for the novelty of it alone.
Yea repo caps have been made since the 30's and maybe earlier. Sometimes the name is misspelt or if no name on the cap, the logo will be different, but at a glance looks correct.
Let’s see now. You’ll need a split manifold, two 97’s, a three speed, an AOD transmission, Glass pack exhaust, wide whites, steelies w/ caps and rings, and at least one jar of “white lightening “ he he.
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