Hot Rods Chev V8 into 49-52 Plymouth

Correct Sir. And really pretty damn obvious.

 

I was just answering with my thought on it.

 

Thanks. Thought it might have to do with clearance. Good to learn something new today.

That would be correct. Just like running a rear end with an offset centre.

 

Yeah, they changed the nose in 1951, that was the first year of the next body style. 1949-1950 are kinda in a realm by themselves.

~Peter

 

It took me awhile. I agree that an 8ba would be stupid. I thought I put 318. Then it dawned on me I've used 8ba as a word a number of times in my ph. I think it swapped it on me. Should of been 318 not 8ba.

 

The rear sump 318s from pick ups & vans drop in nicely. Or get the oil pan, dipstick & tube, and oil pick up tube. You'll need to do a little t******* on the inner fenders.

 

I've known Rusty1 for several years now. He probably has a couple Chevy V8s laying around.
I'm a Mopar guy, but as I grow older, the prospect of seeing another old car on the streets over powers the need to have "the correct" drive train in them.

The old Mopars were mostly powered by the flathead 6. As such, the steering box sat pretty close to the inline 6 motor. Most of the time its not the steering box itself that is the problem, but the column between the box and the firewall. Shifting the motor 1" - 2" towards the right side improves clearance between the exhaust on the left side of the motor and the steering column. The main shaft of the steering box also holds the steering wheel, so it is a straight line from the box to the steering wheel. The 1" - 2" shift towards the right with the motor and trans generally doesn't effect anything on the car more then possible belt clearance at the pulleys, inner fender clearance, or possible driver shaft clearance on the center crossmember, it it still has one, any issue is easily covered by slight t******* or minor modifications. Most modern rear axles are offset, nearly every new vehicle has the drive train offset, but if you can't handle the pressure, handle the squeeze past the steering column your own way.

 

The driveshaft on the 49 I had did rub on a big bump. Does anyone know the width of the stock rearend? My son in law wants to change the Duster rear the previous owner put in it, the tires rub on the fenders.

 

Stock rear is 60" WMS to WMS. Jeep Cherokee XJ 8 1/4 rear or 68-70 Mopar B-body 8 3/4" are within fractions of an inch of the original rear. A body rear ends are wider than B body

 

65-68(or so) C body axel bolts into most Mopars from at least '41 & up.

 

its been a while since I have been on the HAMB but im glad someone else is considering exactly what I just did on my 1951 Cranbrook. I put a SBC 350 with a TH350 and it came out super nice. a couple things had to happen though that you briefly touched on , I didn't read much of the others comments, so if im repeating what others have said, I apologize.

To begin, I welding in some simple V8 engine mounts directly to the frame. the p***enger side wasn't an issue but on the drivers side, the steering box was directly in the way of this. So you have one of two options. You can move the engine forward or backward enough to clear the box, OR remove the box all together. I removed it all together because I did a Rack and Pinion Conversion anyways so a steering box wasn't needed.

After that, it's pretty much just leveling the engine, making sure its degreed correctly so that the carb sits "leveled" and fabricating the transmission crossmember brackets and technically speaking the engine is "in". I have many photos to show if you'd like. I JUST finished painting the firewall and frame on my car yesterday so I should have everything back in it this weekend. Good Luck

 

yes, a few pics would be appreciated ,....

 

Hey Rusty1, looks like an old thread but here’s the motor mounts I made for my 52 for the SBC. You may notice the firewall is recessed but it’s not necessary, the car just came that way.

 

^^^cool , thanks

 

I'd like to see how that rack & pinion is installed.

 

I hate to say it but the Chevy small block is an easier swap than the MoPar 318 or 360. The starter is out of the way and you can get an exhaust manifold that dumps forward of the steering box. I base this on having seen both swaps done.

Whether you need to offset the engine to one side I don't know but I doubt it. You do with the MoPar for clearance.

And, it is correct that if you swap the transmission you need to change the rear axle. Either Dodge or Ford, will have the correct wheel bolt pattern.