Who has put an SBC in a '55 DeSoto or Mopar?

Has anyone here ever put an SBC in a DeSoto? What does the front cross member look like and it’s position? I think they had 354 hemis in them if memory serves; how wide were those?

 

Fuckin' wide man, you should'nt have any problems other than the ordinary stuff... like radiator, motormounts,trans mounts, driveline, linkages, and possibly steering, No problem, right? BTW, why not go with a 318 or 340/360 and keep it all mopar? they are great engines ang parts are easy/inexpensive.

 

SBC on MOPAR!!!

Are YOU CRAZY!!!!!!

 

I know a guy with a SBC in his 56 DeSoto. Don't know much about it, except is has stock power steering. A real oddball box I think. (remember his leaks) Seems to fit easy enough. Car is totally stock other than that......OLDBEET

 

I have an SBC/TH350 in my garage, a bird in the hand...

 

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SBC on MOPAR!!!

Are YOU CRAZY!!!!!!

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I agree, but could not function for twenty minutes...just staring at your avatar...
WOW

 

I'd trade the SBC for a 318 or 360 or ANY other mopar engine.
Chevy in a Mopar.....Yikes!

Then again, it's your car.

 

Not yet, but seriously thinking about getting it.

 

this, no grille...

 

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I agree, but could not function for twenty minutes...just staring at your avatar...
WOW

[/ QUOTE ]

Mp33, Hank Cash and CheatersPete surely do got some nice avatars YEP!

 

[ QUOTE ]
Has anyone here ever put an SBC in a DeSoto? What does the front cross member look like and it’s position? I think they had 354 hemis in them if memory serves; how wide were those?

[/ QUOTE ] They had 291 hemis

 

Putting a SBC in a Mopar,is like......
Washing your feet and putting dirty socks back on.
It may work,but it won't SMELL very good......

 

Whatever, SBC baaad. Is there anyone out there who has done it? I am getting to the point where I wanna do it to piss people off.

 

man, I remember when I HAD the coolest avatar... sheeeet.

A CHEVY MOTOR UNDER EVERY HOOD!!!

(so nailheads & olds become cheep)

 

It got alot of open space. I put a 318 in mine with no problems. had to fab my own mounts but looking back it was really easy.

 

Hey man, the Wolfman IS everywhere and HE wouldn't do it. If you put a small block in it, the billit and tweed and pastels and crybaby doll will soon follow. Get a grip, man!! That's a nice car. Mopar engines, even hemis, are cheap, plentiful and they look bitchen dressed up.

I'm selling my Olds and this is EGGZACTICKLEY what makes me queasy about it. Sheesh!!!

Sorry for the rant, Caballo. Touched a raw nerve there, ya did.

 

At the risk of offending the anti-SBC crowd, I'll admit that we did this swap to my brother's car. Put a 406/TH350 in a 1956 Plymouth in place of the flathead-six and 3-speed.

The original transmission mount didn't look like it could be made to work, so we cut it out and fabbed a simple mount that attaches between the framerails. Still enough room for the dual exhaust to run above the trans mount.

Welded brackets to the frame to handle the side mounts from the SBC. The stock mechanical fuel pump does come very close to the front cross member, but it needs to be that high for the stock chevy oil pan to clear the steering linkage. Running stock manual steering and Hooker tight-fit shorty headers and 2 1/2 inch pipes. Things are tight, but have clearance all around.

He's happy with it. Likes the fact that it makes the Mopar diehards cringe when they learn what's under the hood. Don't get us wrong, we'd love to have a nice little hemi under their, but they're not cheap around here.

Here's some pics:

 

What went in...

 

The finished product...

 

Forgot this one...

 

It seems this thread died a loooooong time ago, but I'm bringing it back! Did the sbc ever get put into the Desoto? I'm interested because Saturday I got a "56 desoto 4-door, no engine, no tranny, no drive line. But I do have a 327 and th350. Do you see where I'm going? Of course I would love to drop an old 330 back in it, or any hemi for that matter, but I have to use what I have. Maybe someday it'll get traded out for an ol' hemi, who knows. Isn't hot rodding all about working with what you have anyways? To me it is. But, the small block Chev and the Desoto, did it happen?

 

If you wanted a Hemi then why didn't you say so? Once you convert it over for Chev, it's gonna be a pain in the rear to swap it back for a Hemi. NOW if you really wanna get crazy and make that thing move like shit off a shiney shovel, throw a Wedge in it!
xx
Brandy

 

That beats parting it out or junking it outright, so why not? And I'm a Mopar guy too. But you guys will want to swap out that rearend and ditch the damn tapered drum setup for something you don't need a puller to get the drums off with. For not a whole hell of a lot more than the cost of the rearend you can probably get a running Mopar and swap in the whole works - in September I got an '89 Ramcharger with a TBI 360 for $50. One water pump later, I drove it daily for a couple months - I'd still have it if I hadn't come up with a Suburban with 57,000 miles for $500 the end of October, and I'd have saved the Ramcharger to build something else with if a guy hadn't given me $400 for it and got it the heck outta my driveway. Not the first running $50 Mopar I've had, either.

Should be able to bolt in a number of rearends - 66-78 Mopar fullsize, some 59-65 Ford 9"s, and some of the GM leaf spring cars all work - just a matter of having the right spacing on the pads and the backing plates the same width or fairly close (narrower lets you run wider tires, there's some fudge factor to both measurements). Probably some of the newer trucks would fit too. There's some info on this over on the Forward Look board - www.forwardlook.net/forums - have a section on rearend and driveline there. Good info, once you get past the goofy BS that goes on. Some of the regulars don't get along very well and one of the "moderators" more or less encourages it (sometimes it seems like it's a WB teenybooper soap opera and not a car board).

 

Your not going to piss anyone off. Your just going to hurt yourself by having a lame run of the mill car with less value than if it had mopar power.

To answer your question, I don't think your the first one to have done it

 

Do you want to sell the grill?

 

yeah - that's what I was thinking too... Put a Slant 6 in there!

 

For all ya'll, that 56 DeSoto Firedome Bowtie has came from yours truely.

Sorry but NO HE WON"T SELL THE GRILL!
No he WONT PART OUT THE CAR!
No he WONT PUT A SLANT 6 IN A GREEN ARMY TANK!

The car doesn't have a motor, trans or driveline currently. It does however have a late model Chevrolet Camaro rearend under it. When I bought the car 2 years ago---to save it from the crushers--- the kid I bought it from took the rearend and drive train out to put in his 34(?) Plymouth. I told him if he made it rollable then I'd buy it. The car is complete other then the missing drive train and a rear windshield -----I bought one for a 55-56 Mopar, but it has too much curve to it so if any of you have a lead on one we might be able to do a swap of some sort...let me know!----I do think, since he is in high school and works at the local Carls Jr., he should do what he can afford. Then at a later date he can start the long haul of re-swapping it for a Hemi. Do what you want Josh, it's your car not anyone else's. And for the record, DeSoto's WERE NOT run of the mill. Chevrolet's and Fords were run of the mill because of the ability to mass produce them. She's a great car and she's gotten a youngin into rodding........nothing more important then that!

Partial to that "Lame run of the mill car"

Brandy

 

MUAHAHAHAHA!! You better not mess with me or Brandy will beat you up! But yes, it is going to take new life via a "bowtie327" , and as Brandy said, NO ONE can have my damn parts! 4-doors are all the rage, for those of you who don't already know. Keep the info coming though, I can use all the help I can get. I appreciate the help, and the criticism, so thanks to all that give it.
-bowtie

 

1955 Desoto production is around 70,000 for the 4-door sedans, and 112,000 for all models and body styles. They had the ability to mass-produce, too, just didn't sell as many.

I wouldn't lose any sleep over a guy Chevying a '55 DeSoto 4dr. Beats being mashed up and sent to China to become some kind of Chinese crap there.

I'd offer you a parts car for cheap if I wasn't the other side of the country away -

Oh yeah, and wth would anyone deliberately put a tapered drum rear into any car... jeeze...

 

It's not a 55 it's a 56. They may not have sold a whole lot of them.......but even less have survived a rusty death.

The rear was put under the car just to get her to roll. I didn't want an ass dragger to drag up a car trailer......bad enough I have to winch her up everytime. I don't know what gets more of a work out, my arm or the come along.....

She'll get there one way or another........STILL MAKES A COOL CRUISER. I'd rather have an oddball DeSoto then a Ford Shoebox that he has and she has and they have and hey look there's 12 more all in the same parking lot. Just me I guess.
xx
Brandy