Projects 1954 Nash Ambassador

Right; yanking a straight six out of a '54 Nash has got to be pretty uncomplicated.

 

Well...it turns out that they all had to come out to fix some other problems, too. So it saves time overall.

 

From the pictures the engine is almost out. Unbolt the engine at the clutch housing and front mount and some wires and it comes out . The engine uses clutch housing mounts so the trans can stay put.

 

Exactly. No point in spending hours trying to free it up in the ch***is, only to end up pulling it anyway.

 

Ive been looking for a way to post this 455 that sat at the bottom of lake powell for 30 years getting cleaned up and starting. Its engine tech, but I understand if it is pulled. this just blew my mind.

 

Those engines are out there for sale & yes they did use them for more than a year or two!

My Avatar is a 55 Amb***ador Custom Lemans with the same engine. Cool cars

God Bless
Bill
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...ar-transport-hauling-open-or-enclosed.614419/

 

I think you'll find there are significant differences between your 196 and their earlier engine. Here are the tops of both blocks....study for a while....

 

I'd just move it down the road and find something easier and cheaper to throw your time and money at. It's a more door Nash with a junk 6cyl. As far as hotrod material goes it gotta rank right up there with a Trabant.

 

So, we tried putting the car in gear and rocking it back and forth to try to get some motion that way, but it wouldn't give us that resistance of being in gear, it just rolled and made quiet clunking noises, thinking maybe something wrong with clutch...

Also, the motor was full of oil, that's not to say whoever owned it before didn't run it out and add it after the fact. And the photos of the cylinders I posted was after I cleaned the vinegar out of it to show the condition of the cylinders. The motor is currently sitting with cylinders FULL to the brim with Marvel and has been for 2 weeks. We went out and checked it 2 days ago and it hadn't drained a drop.

We are planning to pull the pan and do like CCC said and fiddle with the flywheel, but wanted to post here and see if anyone had other ideas/thoughts/suggestions/screams/yells. Since this is our first Nash also, was looking for other Nashians with more experience.

Pulling the motor is on the list, but like others have said, there's more leverage while it's in the car, I supposed We've been trying to exhaust all of the 'break em free' ideas first.

Also- It is a 3 on the tree.

We live in western Iowa, so if anyone is in the area and has any leads on a possible donor heart for the ol nash, let us know- please and thanks. (Just in case)

As far as swapping with another six. How would you do that with a torque tube driveshaft that's

 

to put in a later six, you would have to swap rear ends out as well. far easier than a frame swap. i got my Henry J home in 1986. My Uncle blew the head gasket right before he went on vacation in 1968 and returned 2 weeks later, and went through all the same steps as you have mentioned, vinegar, Coca Cola, atf, 30 mile an hour clutch drops, and could not free it up. My Dad and I tried again in 86, everything but the clutch drop, and ended up beating the pistons out with a metal pipe. obviously, the six never ran again, , however the contact are of rust that locked the cylinder was minimal.

 

Somebody notify Farna aka Frank Swygert. He'll know where to find an engine that will fit. He's the resident American Motors guru.

 

I'm with the others .... look at the bearings in the bottom end.

 

Leveraging the flywheel teeth could easily lead to looking for a new flywheel.

 

Sorry, my last transmission was cut short..

As far as swapping with another six and an open rear end. How do you put an open rear end in it with the whole suspension and rear end being tied to the torque tube setup?

 

An adapter between the transmission and the flywheel covering or one between the block and flywheel cover.

Ben

 

Depending on what other inline six you were considering, it could be as simple as fabbing an adapter plate to bolt the engine's bell housing to the car's transmission. Would be determined by if the length of the input shaft was long enough to engage the clutch splines and pilot bearing sufficiently.

 

@squirrel Not sure if you were responding to me or someone else, but mine is the same engine (252CU) that was used in 53 & 54. It was raced in the Nash Healeys & did quite well.

God Bless
Bill
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...ar-transport-hauling-open-or-enclosed.614419/

 

Just for reference. This is the ch***is and drivetrain setup on this car.

 

Ok, I see it now....thanks for the clarification.

How hard is it to find these engines?

 

No Problem Sir!

I am a member of several Nash/Hudson/AMC groups on Facebook & I do see them come up for sale from time to time.

God Bless
Bill
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...ar-transport-hauling-open-or-enclosed.614419/

 

Thirtyyears ago I pulled an Amb***ador out of a briar patch in Oakland, CA. I used a pair of Klein side cutters to whittle away at those skin grabbing thorns for about 4 hours. Finally hooked a chain to the rear end of that critter and pulled it free with my pickup. The body was very nice, and the interior so-so. Cost me a hunderd bucks to get the ***le out of a ious owner. It took about an hour to get it running, and it's never looked back. We moved to Idaho shortly thereafter and I sold (gave) that ****** to a young fellow who is still a great friend. He still drives it all the time and it's really a standout. Originally black, he painted it green and chartreuse....It's known locally as the 'Nashacado".....

 

So, my ultimate goal is to convert it to an automatic, get it running and driving and bag it(slam it down) and leave the exterior as is. I love the unique look of the nash. The lack of large wheel wells and being slammed down makes it look like a bumper car/hover craft and I dig that lol

 

Too weird with too many doors.

 

We are a more door family.. We also have a 4 door 59 cadillac on air ride as well.

So as far as the look of this car and how many doors it has, we like it. You don't have to.

 

Weird and many doors is what is so cool about these critters. When my pal Andy decides to take the family for a spin, out comes the Nashacado...... Try fitting a big family into a coupe sometime.

 

I love this.

 

My sons 63 rambler isn’t to much different from these Nash’s. When he got the car it didn’t have the six cylinder or3 speed. Loading the car on a trailer was a real pain in the *** being that the car was a torque tube rear end, with nothing to hold the front of the torque tube the whole rear flopped around like a fish outa water. We fabricated a whole new rear suspension and dropped a sbc turbo 350 in it. Motor and trans was a piece of cake but the rear suspension was time consuming.

 

Any chance you have photos of the rear end and suspension set up you built?

 

Also. I just don't understand, none of the fluid we've put in any of the cylinders has seeped in. We've had marvel mystery oil in every cylinder plum full for 2 weeks and not one has dropped in level at all. If something else other than rings/pistons being stuck/seized was the issue, wouldn't fluid levels be dropping?