Hey y’all, here is my very neglected 39 Plymouth or what’s left of her. I know they are a pain to find stuff for, but I’m wondering if anyone on here has done some reconstruction or custom fab stuff to one. She’s sat in the same place since 1956, so I’m in the process of tearing into the motor to see if it’s salvageable, but so far I’m not convinced. Although the oil is still clean.. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
My 1955 Fargo pickup. LA 318 with swirl heads, A998 trans and Mopar 8 1/4 3.23 gears. I just swapped in this setup, love it and its very quick for a low HP engine, at least compared to a 237 flattie dual carbs and exhaust it used to have.
Looks nice enough to get back on the road ! They made those flat sixes' all the way up to 1959 - and used those engines longer in industrial application - we had an airport aircraft tug into the 80's - it always cranked and was available when needed !! Get on it !
the oil is not clean. when they sit that long all the dirt settles to the bottom, and the dip stick looks like new oil. have fun with your new toy!
I had a 39 Plymouth business coupe. I added disc brakes, relocated the upper shock mount to the frame, installed a modern rear axle with 3:55 gears, then added a 3.9 V6 out of a Dakota with its auto OD trans. The car wasn't real fast, but the V6 had more HP and more torque then any hopped up flathead ever had. it was fun to drive, would run down the interstate with the traffic, and actually got decent gas mileage of around 22mpg if I kept in around 70 mph. Unfortunately, I had to part with it when I needed to put a motor in my snow plow truck one winter. My current 48 Plymouth business coupe has a 3.9 V6 in it as well, but the 48 has a 5 speed trans, its much more fun to drive. Gene
@Moparmaniac79 the oil is clean because everything has settled out of it the past 65 years. Drain it and pull the pan to verify.
That’s a great looking car too! I’ve thought about the Dakota v6 a couple times especially with a 5 speed behind it would be a great trip car. I’m still picking through it and looking at the amount of rust that’ll have to be cut out but for sitting so long it’s not bad. Especially for having most of the glass busted or shot out. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
My 39 was fun with a 318 an run fine. It did have a butt load of rust but you can get replacement parts but not chrome
Would you mind letting me know where to get some replacement parts? I’m using the heck out of eBay but not finding any door skin or floor pans other than a toe board. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
When you finally get to the engine/trans you have plenty of Mopar options, some not to be discussed 'round these parts. But, a B-RB would be a hoot and not require anything but a stock build. .
Nice score. Two door sedans seem to be scarce for Mopars. I see mostly four doors. You look like your starting out with more then Dad and I did. Here is a before and after of our 37 Dodge.
We got several parts from SRPM (https://www.srpmstreetrods.com/ )and Plymouth Doctor, but plymouth Dr looks to be no more. We used a universal floor from this place Absolute sheetmetalhttp://absolutesheetmetal.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Ford-Cars-Catalog.pdf. see page 8
I live in the rust belt, I don't remember ever seeing an old car that has been around here most of its life that doesn't need floor pans. For what a 48" x 96" sheet of 18 gauge costs, I just make my own floors. The bottoms of the doors are not that tough either. Its only metal, learn how to cut it, bend it, and weld it, and life with old cars gets a lot easier. It may not be as pretty as the "store bought" sheet metal when you first start out, but after you find out you can do the entire floor pan for about the cost of one store bought panel that is less then 1/2 of a front floor pan, pretty goes right out the window, especially for floors that usually get covered with something. Gene
Reviving an old flathead six Dodge. This is a 51 but basically the same motor. Like reviving a mummy from an Egyptian tomb and getting it to dance
Good point. Most of the rust this car has would’ve been prevented if it hadn’t been used for country target practice and most of the glass busted out. My outer door skins are still strong, it just rotted out from behind. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Yeah I was really surprised to find bunches of parts cars that were 4 doors. Every other time I’ve had a four door it was the exact opposite. But these have great lines with just two. Yours are good looking! Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I know where a 4 door is in SE Iowa but it'd be almost a shame to see it used for parts. It is pretty solid.
Yeah I saw an ad for a four door up north in PA that the top had been cut off but the shipping would be horrible. Usually the stuff in the scrapyard is better than what I have or drive haha. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Those old flatheads can be good reliable engines and pretty cool looking pieces if you are building a period correct car. You just will not be winning any drag races with them unless you are racing another. With the right gearing or a mid 50s overdrive transmission or 5 speed they will run down the highway with the flow of traffic easily. If you need to rebuild look for a 230 from a later 50s Plymouth or Dodge that gets you started in the 135 HP range. Throw some speed parts on and you are over 150 easy. Not only that they look cool. Just depends on what you want. My previous 48 Plymouth with 230 flathead and R10 overdrive. And my current 37 Plymouth with 360 Magnum (which has been cleaned up some since the photo) and 727.
Man those are both beautiful cars! That flathead looks way cooler than mine currently for sure. I’m still going to attempt to free up this motor and see if she’ll run but I’d be lying if I didn’t think a v8 wouldn’t look good in there. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
If my rusty memory does not deceive me a V8 swap is not that easy on those due clearance issues with the steering so unless you want to go for all out performance I agree with hkestes above with one twist: try and find a late 265, it's slightly longer but that you can work around by moving the rad and you can get 180 hp and loads of torque out of them relatively easily. That plus a 5sp or o/d box and you'll have a car capable of staying with modern traffic all day long.
To use the long block 25 inch motor you also have to notch your crossmember because the crank pulley will want to reside there. One thing to think of is if you want "speed parts" on your flathead there is a lot more available for the 23" than the 25". For a V8 swap you can do one of two things to get around the steering box. One is to offset the engine about 1.5 inches to the passenger side which is what Chrysler Corp did with their V8 A bodies for years. The other would be to fab up some rack and pinion mounts or if you don't want to or have the skills to Fatmans sells a kit. He also has dropped spindles if you want to lower it.
Thanks for the heads up. I’m considering the fatman kit although I’ve got a bit of time before I get there with all the sheetmetal work awaiting. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
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