I knew I would reach this hurdle eventually..... now, what to do? 1) Been kicking around the idea of the ubiquitous MII setup and front-mounted R&P , which would pretty much solve all issues. 2) drop in a Mopar front clip; maybe an early Dakota with the R&P steering that's in the front. 3) somehow make use of the stock front suspension system; but I don't see as how there'd be enough room ahead of the cross-member for an R&P + install an anti-sway. As a reference, the radiator surround is inline with the 2 slotted holes right in front of the harmonic balancer. The stock radiator is between it and the engine (although I'll not be using it) any hints or advice from rodders that have been down this road before would be appreciated. Gatz
Move the 331 to the p***enger side about an inch and a half. That will give you the clearance you need, and won't mess up anything else on the car. There is enough movement in the u-joints at accommodate the motor shift. Mopar has been installing the motors off center for many years. Gene
Offset the engine about 2" to the p***enger side and notch the frame about 1" where the steering box bolts up. I did this on my 46 plymouth to make room for a 318 and it worked pretty good. That damn steering box sure does get in the way doesn't it. I had to move the stock radiator in front of the core support and also move the brackets around on the radiator itself to gain enough clearance for the fan. A modern front clip will solve a lot of problems but it will also cause new ones, instead of fabbing motor mounts you'll be fabbing bumper mounts, radiator mounts, steering linkage, etc... but this will give you disk brakes, power steering, cheap replacement parts and plenty of room for that hemi so it's up to you and how much fabricating you want to do.
If you're going to clip it then look at the Jag IFS. The stock front setup really isn't too bad for the year, but nothing like having real brakes up front. .
IF the '40 Chr has the same frame width as the 46-8 Plyms, an early Camaro, Chevelle, Cutl*** front clip works.
Here is a couple pics of how I routed the steering shafts around my exhaust on my 40 ford. I used two shafts , a standoff on the frame and a couple u-joints to get to the front rack.
The 'usual' is 1987 or older in the XJ-6 and IIRC, a bit later in the XJS. There are several swaps in the search ****on, including some that have been closed for seemingly odd reasons. Just search for 'jag' and start reading. They really are a great ifs, the deciding fator will be the track width of your car vs the various donors. Some of the threads will have numerous links for additional Jag info. .
I tried to invision a way to keep the I beam on my Nash, but there was just no way it was going to work with how low I wanted the front end. Had a MII installed and it is night and day in appearance and handling. There is a reason why they are so prevelent, because they work. I would suggest that over anything else on a fat fendered car. The problem with installing front clips from other makes is that you usually don't get the R&P, plus you lose all the fender and radiator mounts which presents additional problems you have to solve. IMO most of them are installed to save money, but in the end most are installed incorrectly or the track width is too wide (or both). Seems like I see more botched jobs than correct installations. Spend the money, you can't go wrong with a correct suspension setup. BTW love the Hemi!
If your front end is in good shape to use, you can put a power Cavelier R & P under the engine. There are disk brake kits for the stock spindles. And if your '40 didn't come with a front sway bar, they are easy enough to find and install. They are the same for many years.
I went the subframe route and still had to move it over about 2 inches. The steering shaft will be straight and only require 1 u-joint though (easy). As for mounts, the only thing you will have to fab is a radiator support and bumper mounts as all the sheet metal hangs off the support. The support does have to be modified around the steering box (camaro) but that was easy and do able. You will be cutting up your inner fenders to clear the heads anyway. There was a great write up here on the benefits of the Camaro subframe verses the Mustang II. They were installing it in a 58 Chevy. Talks about roll center differences etc. from someone who understands geometry better than I. Camaro is a little wider than stock though. I used narrow control arms.
What year Nash and what MII x-member did you use? I have a -37 Nash Coupe and a 341 Hemi. I'm just about ready to buy a Nova subframe but this thread is making me think twice abut the sub frame versus MII
Check into a Mopar F/M/J front suspension ***y (Aspen/Volare/Diplomat etc) from the late 70's/early80's. The whole ***y is one self contained unit, comes out with four bolts. Plenty in salvage yards and parts are still easy to get.
there is a guy over on this site that did a F/M/J/ sub frame in stall on a 54 dodge truck nice in stall great pics i seen it under general topics
Go for the M2 and R&P set up. It will give you a great source of parts, not to mention handling improvements. Perhaps a little more work, but worth it IMHO.
I'd looked those a while back and didn't know if they'd support the weight without problems. It appears from the picture that they use a steering box, rather than a R&P; that correct? Do you happen to know the Hub-to-Hub dimension of these? I'll do a search and see if someone has done a similar Mopar. Thanks gatz
There are a couple of threads over at www.p15-d24.com on using the F/M/J setup, and lots of conversation about the good and bad. The advantage they have is the cross mounted torsion bars. You could use just about any of the Mopar K-frames but you will be fabricating a mount for the back end of the t-bar and the top of the shock. This site http://www.carfolio.com/specifications/ says 57" track width on one listing. .
I have a late B-Body (77 Cordoba) IFS under my 48 pickup, the rear torsion bar mount bolted into those cars and is easy to adapt to the frame, and the upper control arm and shocks bolt to the k-frame, pretty easy to make work if it fits your frame width wise. rear torsion bar mount
Take another look at the Cavalier rack & pinion option with the stock front and some combination of Jeep sway bar stuff. I think it may fit - ask the folks with the Cav rack on p-15/d24 about what they have done. Another tip - The front valance & fenders comes off in one piece, 12 bolts as I recall, so come up with a way of supporting it and moving it in and out for trial fitting.
I've done a 54 Dodge pickup with an F,M & J subframe, followed the Tex Smith article. It was a nice driver, but it was not an easy swap and the track width is pretty wide, mine was done almost 15 years ago already. Today there are a lot more, much better options available. I s****ped my last F,M,& J subframe a few months ago. A Dakota frame clip works much better then the F,M,& J does, especially on the topic cars. I have done a few of this era Mopar cars in many configurations, from GM clips, to Mopar clips, to original with disc brakes then one with the rack & pinion & shock relocation. My current 48 Plymouth has Dakota underpinnings. When it comes to the 39-50s Mopar cars, its hard to beat the original frame (as long as its complete and in good condition) and suspension with upgrades to disc brakes, the upper shock relocation, and the addition of a rack & pinion steering (I prefer a Cavalier rack because I like the center mount inner tie rod connection points). The reality is, if everything is rebuilt and refreshed, the money spent is very close, regardless of what system is used, and if done properly, all make a nice safe ride. The effort required for doing it properly varies on the system used, some are easier then others. Gene
You can compare track widths on this site: http://www.carfolio.com/specifications/ but of course wheel offset affects the track. Later cars have move positive offset than 60'-70's cars so the hub-to-hub measurement can actually be more that the track. .
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