Easy engine swap into a 1951 Hudson??

I am wondering if anyone knows of an easy engine swap for a hudson? I have heard of people putting a Ford 300 or a Chevy 250 or a mopar 225 in them. Has anyone done this? I am open to any type of engine and any help will be highly appreciated.

 

Anything you put in there has to have mounts, so none is going to be particularly easier, although the conversion mounts for later Chevy into a 49-54 chevy might save you some fab work.

I posted before that I have a '48 step down which looks to have had a Chevy motor in it at some point with the stock steering and all, maybe it was a 250 six, it had very simple home made mounts and the trans crossmember was cut for clearance.

 

i'm doing a sl6 swap,i still have to find a truck oil pan & a later ****** dog house cover to clear the 904,i've been told that a ford 300 works good to since the stupid steering cross over is right in the damn way..
i chose the sl6 'cause Press Kale put a 225 slant 6 with a torqueflite in his 49 Super years ago and is still running it. Several members have put a Ford 300 six with the cruise-o-matic in their cars. Sam Tribble and Ken Jones come to mind. Check the roster. They're all here in SoCal. {this from an Email}
i have talked to Press about the swap & he made it so simple i could even follow it,i guess he logged a sh*t load of miles on his, driving it from Cali to the nationals a bunch of times,he said to use a radiator from a full size dodge 360 van to help with towing and in town driving,if i get a chance i'll try to dig up all info i have & send it to you--chuck

 

I understand that what ever I put in it will have to have custom mounts. I was mainly worrying about the size of the engine and having to cut a huge portion of floor out. If you get the time could you please post some pictures of your Hudson?

 

Right on, Thanks Chuck

 

I was going to put my small block Mopar in it but I cant find a rear sump pan for it to clear the steering

 

A couple years ago, I drug home a '50 Commodore with a '50 Olds 303 in it, and it looked to be a pretty trouble free swap with Hurst engine mounts. It did have a starter crossover on it but, with the small starters that are currently availabe, you could probably get away without one.

 

Looks like the pictures are on my old computer. But the trans tunnel was not cut, I don't know what they had for a trans in there, but from what I could see any of the GM automatics except maybe a 700R4 would be a relatively easy fit.

Most of these cars have a pretty tall gear in them, and only the 53-54 cars with a Dana rear are easy to change, so you're going to want an OD trans of some sort if possible. Or change the rearend, but they're quite narrow and the perches are angled so there's a bit of challenge there.

 

i have heard of olds motors being stuffed in these cars-but yet to see one one,
for the folk that don't about the steering cross over, motor mounts should be cake.

 

wasn't it common in early racing to put oldsmobile rockets in hudsons?

 

Yeah the cross over steering deffinetly makes it difficult. My dad had never seen anything like it, the first thing he said was " that's going to be a problem "

 

a 283 fits in anything

 

You can buy a new truck pan for less than 100 dollars. The hudson 6 was pretty alrge externally as I recall, about anything you want is going to go in. Where you are going to run into floor board troubles is transmission, if you stay with a stuck you will be fine but the later autos are pretty large as a rule. The smallest modern 6 and the lightest would be the C-4 Ford unit.

If it is any helo at all I have seen the old Hudsons with a packard V-8 in them before. no headers manifolds.

This is just what I like to do personally on a late 40s-'50s style body for swapping mounts is a Hurst Style mount. They just seem easier to get in there and give you some adjustability when it comes to engine/crank shaft angle. Sometimes if you donot have a perfect situation when swapping an engine it is hard to nail the crank angle first crack put of the barrel.

 

Every Dodge van and PU has a rear sump. In addition to the pik-n-pull, new pans are an option and Melling makes new tube&screen ***emblies.
Remember that the 360 pan is different than the 318-340.

.

 

hey... that looks similar Chevrolets "center point steering". which makes drivers side exhaust in V8 cars a pain in the ****.

 

In '55 and '56 Hudsons came with Packards in them. Big motor.

 

No more difficult than a Studebaker. It looks almost exactly the same as what stude used up into the mid '60s.

 

my 50 starlight had a pint sized 3-speed OD trans and the smallest trans tunnel & drive tunnel i have ever seen. i'm puttin-in one big enough to clear a 6 speed auto.... with a seven inch tall drive tunnel.via
s&w racecars. my 2 sense

 

It wasn't to hard to put a SBC in my Lark. And 4 speed. Yes the stock 3 speed and six were small but it still went in OK. So if the Hudson is like that it should be easy. Although the Hudson 308 is a pretty interesting engine in itself.

 

I had a 53 Hudson Hornet that had a 455 Buick stuffed in it. Used the stock column and shifter and the stock front suspension and rearend. Didn't have to cut on the firewall or the inner fenders. Sent the stock radiator off to Walker and they made me a nice 4 core and it just bolted back in. Now if one can stuff a 455 in there I'm pretty sure you wouldn't have too much trouble with anything else.

 

Thanks guy's for the info

 

What exactly is a Hurst style motor mount?

 

Do a search. Someone like Tommy or Little Wing must have posted pictures of the various conversion mounts Hurst used to sell.

 

these

 

I found a couple on ebay. But none of them had measurements. My neighbor has a 52 Chevy that has all stock running gear that I'm going to check out and take some measurements and see how it is mounted up.

 

I was also told by a buddy that Fatman Fab. has direct bolt in motor mounts for a Chevy 250, but are not the cheapest

 

here's some more reading,should give ya some ideas,{it did for me}

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=619770

 

It is a front mount or a saddle mount if you prefer. It bolts to the front most part of your block, using the timming cover bolts on a lot of engines. You put a couple of tabs on the ch***is and the motor sets on bisquits on the tabs.

Damaged truck,
Didn't see your pics before I posted. Thanks you saved me from looking for some.

 

As for the transmission tunnel, depends on what Hudson you have. The GM Hydramatics were optional in Hudsons for several years in the early 50's. If that hunk will fit, about any late model popular automatic (C4, C6, TH350, TH2004R, Mopar 904 etc.) ought to have clearance.

Ray

 

here is a chevy 292 while i was fitting it in my 53 hornet. it was a real pain. damaged duck was asking me about this on the hudson forum. anything can be done but it was a pain with the drivers exhaust and deep 292 pan. had a stock 3 speed behind it.