So I'm looking to replace the flathead in my 53 Mercury with a 303 or 324 olds rocket. I like to stay period correct but I want more horsepower. (Which reminds me, if anyone knows where I can get some script that says "Monterocket" let me know.) Now I'm pretty bright when it come to engine and body work but I've never tangled with steering. It falls under the same category as wiring right now (until I learn about it I'm ***uming its all done by black magic) I was talking to someone the other day that told me he tried to fit a 303 rocket into his 53 merc and everything went pretty well except he couldn't figure out how to change the steering since the olds motor sat right where his steering column used to. You guys have been a wealth of knowledge over the years and I'm wondering if anyone can help me out on this. Thanks!
This is a much bigger issue than you're making it sound like. When doing an engine swap, you've go to plan around things that can't be altered. Steering is one of them. You can notch frames, move crossmembers and the like, but if you're going to use the steering the car came with, messing with the geometry is not something you just do. The steering in your Mercury is not like the style of later cars with a steering shaft with rag joints and a forward mounted steering box or rack. It's a straight shot from your steering box to the wheel in your hands, and unless you front clip the car with some kind of sub like a Camaro or Mustang II, that box is going to have to stay where it is. There is no reason the Olds motor can't fit in the car with the stock steering with good careful planning. It won't be like dropping a small block chevy in, but with careful planning you should be able to make this work. Remember, you should be offsetting your engine placement about 1/2"-3/4" off the centerline towards the p***enger side. Measure twice, mock up, take your time
Just because a car came with a steering setup where the steering box contained the shaft and then the column mast slipped over that to make essentially a one piece unit doesn't mean you can't modify it. I have cut them apart, Machined the stub on the box to a Double D, shortened the shaft and machined it as well and then put U joints in between. Just a thought
Agreed, but it shouldn't be necessary for installing an early Olds in a Mercury. It's not like he's shoving a 430 Lincoln or a Keith Black Hemi in there.
Rev, I have modified a few boxes and colums to use the double d borgeson joints I can help ya out if you need... Wayne.......
Wasn't disagreeing with you, just throwing out another idea, probably too advanced for this application.
If I remember correctly, and that is rare these days the Olds starter wants to fight with the Merc stearing box. There used to be adaptors to move the starter to the p***enger side but they will be rare now. I believe it is easier to put the Olds in a Merc than a Ford though. All that being said I don't think this is "Rocket" science (been waiting to use that one, sorry!)
Yes i saw a right hand starter/flywheel cover in Oregon my friend had he said it was made for that reason
I took some pics of a 52 to 54 Ford wagon with a 303 Olds. This car uses the old Fenton 303 cast iron manifolds...which is why I took these two pics:
i did that post referenced a couple years ago. lots of good info. i think they make a small starter that will eliminate the need to move it to the p***. side. i contacted the hot rod ins***ute and they said they would make it work for me but i haven't been able to get my car up to them in rapid city. since then i bought a 53 monterey hardtop and plan on dropping the 303 in that instead of my 53 tudor post. keep the ideas and applications coming, this is really good stuff. offsetting the engine, using the small starter, and maybe the U-Joint system might do the trick. thanks.
A few years ago, I bought a 303 from a guy who had just removed it from a '51 Mercury coupe and was replacing it with a Ford 400 M smog engine from a mid '70s F150 (yeah, I know, but his loss was my gain, especially since it had a stick flywheel and Hurst mounts). The only real interference point was the LH exhaust manifold to the steering gear, which the original rodder solved by making a custom manfold. It still had the starter in the stock location, too---close, but it cleared.
I had a 303 Olds in my 49 Chevy as a kid....had to lenghthen the steering arm to clear starter was only steering modification....and a buddy installed a Desoto Hemi in his 51 Merc...NO steering modification needed....as 57joefomopar said, it can be done..plan ahead
When I dropped a 392 Hemi in my old Rambler there was no amount of motor offset that was gonna make it work. In my case the motor was just too big. So I ended up taking the approach of dropping the motor in and building everything else around it - including the steering. I used the stock column, but shortened it around 14". This was the only way I could leave the wheel where it originally was. By doing this I placed the first "u" joint on the driverscompartment side of the firewall and the column p***ed thru the firewall at an angle - this also placed the "path" thru the firewall in a far different place than original - I moved it over and down as needed. I also found a box that mounted on the OUTSIDE of the frame. This combination resulted in a column with a certain amount of "Z" in it - which isn't a bad thing. You may or may not find yourself needing to change the box - my point is - that IF you do - it's certainly not the end of the world.
This is all great info! I'll check that other thread too. I went hunting but with the huge number of threads on the site these days I didn't find much.
Unisteer joints are better. They have the ability to turn at a greater angle, the pinch bolt design is better (in my opinion ), they are stainless steel, and if you shop Ebay (Gearhead ) they are less expensive.
Ross Racing Engines has a number of speed parts for the early Olds motors, including a mini starter. http://rossracingengines.com/c/34/Oldsmobile-Rocket-Speed-Parts-High-Torque-Mini-Starters/
on my 39 ford truck with 351 and mustang headers i used a dampner on the rack, thru a 3/4 hiem to another u-joint and hiem...finally a u-joint on the shaft...so 2 u's, 1 dampner(with u attached), & two hiems...it was black majic cause i didnt have a clue as to how to do it either...thanks....b
Joe is on the right track here. We were putting Olds motors in thos old hoopties long before anyone was using little U joints to reroute the steering. There is little difference between the Ford and the merc. When the Caddillac engine wasn't being used to make a fordillac the olds engine was the next popular choice even after the advent of the SBC (and this comming for a chevy man). You may have to offset the engine a tad or not set it as low in the ch***is to clear your exhaust. You may even have to cut or dent the steering mast housing a bit for clearance or offset the engine a little bit. That's hot rodding done the old fashoined way. Don't over think it just get your shoehorn out and shove that ****** in there. Sure you can do it the hightech way but it was being done way before high tech. You just have to juggle what you have to make it work.
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