Let me start off with this, I got a good deal so I thought on a cranbrook from the outside she looked great it was used in mann***a VA for parades for years until it was shoved in a barn and a room built to hide it. I loved the car from first sight (because body work was already done). It has front disc brakes on her so that takes care of the old brake system. Now to the bad part sorry to all the hemi gods but I have a sbc with ****** that I got for free. We found a crack in the block of the flat six so she is coming out. Since I got the sbc for free thats what I have to work with. My question is what rear end should I use for this setup. If there is anyone that is running this kinda of set up that can give me pointers on how they did this build i.e. problems they ran into I would be very grateful. I have always been into old motorcycles and have built many customs in the past but 50's style cars is where my heart has always been. So this is my first stab at it.
Where's the photos? You can use almost any rear end, you just might have to modify a few things, like spring perches. Maybe you can even use the original one? I don't know for sure about using the original, but I'm sure an expert will chime in soon enough.
I did a 49 plymouth a few years ago, I used an 8" ford rear end from a granada, you have to re-locate the spring mount perches, but the width is a fit, and they are plenty high geared for cruising road speeds easily.Also, gives you the 5 on 4 1/2" wheel bolt circle pattern, that matches, most mopars. This axle can be found in granadas, mavericks, comets, mustangs ect., but to be truthful, they are not as easy to find as they used to be, time moves on and there is getting to be less and less of these cars around for parts, but if you look in the right places, you can get one reasonable.
My '49 dodge has a '58 edsel 9" in it. It's actually the same as a '57 ford, with the smooth rear end and everything. I didn't even have to change the spring perches, it bolted right in.
There are plenty of posts on here about rear end swaps in cars like yours. I have seen 8 3/4 mopar rears being used as well as ford 8.8 rears from late model mustangs/explorers. Even though my Mopar blood does not react well to your sbc transplant, I get it and you got it free. I wonder if a chevy rear end would work? You need to measure the rear end in the car now, flange to flange and then start researching the same width on other rears. Here is a list of some mopar rear dimensions: http://www.440magnum-network.com/info/tech/rearaxle/moparrearaxle.shtml And here is a list of some Ford rear dimensions: http://www.mustangsandmore.com/ubb/FordRearDimensions.html Remember that if you go to a GM rear end you will have different bolt patterns for your wheels in back than in front. Ford and Mopar use the 5 on 4.5 for most wheels. Also try looking at http://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php There are quite a few great threads on updates to old mopars there. Good luck and can"t wait to see some more mother mopar designed cars traditionally rodded and back on the road.
You're right of course, those of us deeply entrenched in the Mopar realm do not like cars of this nature defiled with brand x drivetrain... Just a couple of thoughts. How long do you plan to keep the car if/when you finish the swap? Ya see, Mopar guys won't have much interest because of the shiverlay, and 'those' guys would rather have a '51 chebby instead of a 51 Plymouth. Just not a good package if you have any thoughts about re-sale value. If you plan on driving this thing for the next 10 years, then go for it. If you have a short attention span then consider swapping the sbc for a sbm. A 360 usually sells for less than a 350 around here. And, as mentioned, you need a different rear axle. No e-brake on the stock piece. .
We used a B-Body (Coronet) 8 3/4 in my 51 Concord 3W. Back 15 or so years ago when they weren't worth a fortune. It's a bit too wide, but everything fit under with 15X7 CHP wheels...
Ok I just got back from hershey and was unable to find any mopar engines at a fair prices most of the guys were packing up. I did find a couple old plymouths and the guys were great to talk to but i was not man enough to tell them what I was doing with mine I do feel really wroung about the motor swap but I really dont have a choice. So you guys say a ford rear end will work? Man this is going to be one mixed personality car. Heres a couple of pics of my car the way it sits now.
my 2 cents.... sell the small block and take the money and find another flathead, they are around and seem to run forever, or buy a small block mopar for it. I have a 49 Plymouth with a sbc in it and if I had to do all over again, it would have a 318 or 360 mopar in it, just too many people h***le you with a mixed breed.
my brother built a 50 desoto for a cruiser and put the sbc ,trans and rear end out of a 76 nova. this setup fit great in his desoto. he also used a subframe out of a 73 nova. to me it realy don't matter what anyone else thinks about what i put in my cars because i own them not them, and you can get a waterpump for a sbc and any parts store on the road. after all isn't about enjoying your car the rest is trivial. you'l find out youl enjoy this old car because you didn't have to spend a wad on it and not want to hurt anything by driving it. also if you measure the width i believe a impala or caprice rear is the same width as the nova. there is plenty of them at the junk yard. hope that helps.
People do almost give away the flat sixes because nearly everyone wants to drop a V8 into everything. What would look good in there if you really wanted to get away from the flat 6 would be a slant 6. Again, not expensive to find.
I concour with you grab a slant 6 head over to clifford performance and make that six=eight. Very, very interesting swap seen on my buddies dart when I was stationed at Ft. Carson, CO. Its a pretty bad *** set up cause from the novice eye it looks like a slant six but it runs like a V8
Yep, there's a Dodge flathead 6 complete with transmission listed for $75.00 on Birmingham, AL CL. Almost makes me wanna go get it, even though I have absolutely no use for it! -------------------------- EDIT: Make that "was available". Guess somebody ******ed it while I was takin' a nap. (That happens a lot!)
Here's another rear end option: a 67 Camaro rear end will bolt in. You will need to fabricat shackle plates and shock mounts.
Ya just my like I found another cranbrook for 1800 no far from me in pa but not a damn penny to spend, once i sell one of my motorcycle this project will be well on its way. I still like the fact that I have the sbc and I still really like that it was free. One question, has anyone found a air ride set up that works well on these. I have two motorcycles that have air ride and it really helped with long trips. Is the same true for cars?
Nuthin' wrong with putting a SBC in there. For one thing, it drops right in - use a 55 Chevy manifold on the driver's side to clear the steering box. In the 60s, anyone doing a motor swap on these cars would in fact install a SBC. That's the traditional swap for these cars. I understand folks that want to keep them all MoPar, nuthin' wrong with that, but you needn't feel bad about using that SBC.
well good new i scored a 52 desoto with a good engine so i will be keeping the cranbrook stock and the desoto will get the sbc hehe lucky me... untill I start on the desoto
glad to hear it will work out. putting in a slant six is actually more difficult than an SBC. If I recall, the inner fender needs to be modified for clearance
how much difference is there between a plymouth and desoto frame. As i type, I have a 50 desoto sitting behind me with a 225 slant six hanging in it and the motor mounts clear the inner fenders and even the insides of the frame rails. Has anyone done this type of swap? Any info would be greatly appreciated. The sooner we get this swap done, the sooner this car gets out of my garage the sooner I get my chevy gets back in for it's motor swap.
If I am not mistaken that Desoto engine is a couple of inches longer. Chryslers and Desotos used long block motors. Plymouths and Dodges used the short blocks. The motor will fit but you will need to tweak the front motor mounts and the radiator mount. The Desotos were larger all around than the Plymouths. EDIT: Never mind the above, just saw that the Desoto has a slant six. Never did like those motors.
move radiator in front of radiator support that allows the longer engines to fit . you will need to drill new holes for the front engine mount as well
Thanks for the input. From what we can tell, we need to cut some fire wall to move the motor back a bit. We have the clearance in the front without having to move the radiator and he's using an electric fan, but the bottom is where we're having problems. The foward oil sump is hitting the steering linkage and needs to go back and down just a bit to get the engine and trans at the height we need. As for the motor mounts, we're using the side mounts on the slant six and making new lower mounts to bolt/weld to the frame. Thanks again for the help and I'll be sure to post some pics once it's in. Cheers, Josh
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