Stand alone motor and drivetrain.

[jimharold]

47' complete but old.

Hello All,
You may remember this truck from a few months ago. Has been mine for nearly 30 years. Time to get it up and running! I am working on the flathead 6 right now in the garage and will add a 46RH overdrive trans to it.

But the question? Would I be better off with a complete system from a newer vehicle that parts are easy to get, highway speed is easy and reliability is most important. I have a 64' Chrysler 300 with a mean 413cid for speed and fun. The 68' D100 has a 318cid but I have all the parts for a 383cid swap. So big engine and power are not my target. Drive from state to state while I can afford gas is.

I am open to leaving the Dodge family too. Will not have the hood up at drive-ins unless someone asks. Auto is a must for the wife to drive. She can drive a manual but refuses to. I have always owned Dodge/Chrysler products until recently so my knowledge base is limited.

Dodge 2.2 from a Dakota? Don't know if available with auto? Toyota 22R? Jeep 6 cylinder? Or even a Slant 6 Dodge? Can they have overdrive trans?

Stand alone is very important. I want to stay away from massive wiring harnesses and black boxes. And I have money just not stupid money. Don't suggest an LS swap with 8 speed auto costing 10K.

So if you have time to think about a combination for me while you relax with a cold one I would be thankful.

Jimharold

[Kaegi]

is it a 218 or a 230?

[jimharold]

218 and I found a company in Oregon who have an adapter to fit it onto an A518 trans. I also want to fit an A518 onto the 318 in my 68' D100. It would be nice to have matching trans for parts and learning about them.

[Kaegi]

I have built many many 23 inch flathead mopars. They are a great engine. they already have hardened valve seats. slant 6 never did. I usually shave .075 off the head, put in modern cam grind and clean up all the ports, larger jet in carb or 2 barrel. all that results in a very woken up engine. they drive just like a modern engine with those mods. they are very smooth running in stock form but under powered but with changes accelerate really well. the stock cams are designed for 70 octane fuel. so 89 in a flathead is like race fuel. An old friend used to drag race 230s in early 50s dodges and run in the 14s.
the bottom ends are tough. forged crank and full oiling. I vote for flathead with mods. ;/)

[Wildergarten]

I have built many many 23 inch flathead mopars. They are a great engine. they already have hardened valve seats. slant 6 never did. I usually shave .075 off the head, put in modern cam grind and clean up all the ports, larger jet in carb or 2 barrel. all that results in a very woken up engine. they drive just like a modern engine with those mods. they are very smooth running in stock form but under powered but with changes accelerate really well. the stock cams are designed for 70 octane fuel. so 89 in a flathead is like race fuel. An old friend used to drag race 230s in early 50s dodges and run in the 14s.
the bottom ends are tough. forged crank and full oiling. I vote for flathead with mods. ;/)

Fascinating report. The only flatheads I've ever worked on were a pair of straight-8 Hercules, each with dual updraft cast iron Zenith carbs. If I recall correctly, they were 400cid. I found a used replacement exhaust waterjacket for one of them in Ohio by phone, so I can't be mistaken about the manufacturer, but I just looked around on the Internet for something about them and found nothing. They were in a 38ft Chris Craft.

[Kaegi]

and parts for the 218 and 230 are dirt cheap! The engine was used world wide for many decades (and still is in some countries running various machines). in production from about 1934 into the 70s. a set of pistons is under 100 bucks. everything else off the shelf in parts stores. i just paid over 400 for pistons for a bb mopar! I have my cams reground and heat treated here in WA

[Seanreisk]

I had a 1948 Desoto 4-door with the Chrysler / Desoto 236 (straight 6). It was a heavy car, but the vehicle was not underpowered. It always surprised me. With its gearing it would only do 65-70 MPH before revving out, which meant that cars on the highway were always passing me, but whenever I hit either side of Snoqualmie or Stevens pass the car raged up the incline without slowing, and this monstrous boat of a car would pass everyone who passed me on the flat. Sometimes it felt like the car didn't know it was on a hill. Fun times.

The engine was surprisingly quiet - with a good balance and good muffler you could even say it was smooth. Never fussy, unless you flooded it on a cold morning. And with the engine pulling all that heavy sheet metal (I swear, the body was made out of 16 gauge steel) I could still get low 20's at highway speeds. It makes me wonder if we haven't learned that much with our over-complicated modern engines.

Be careful if you buy the old Desoto blocks, though, because some of the post-war Desoto's had a fluid coupling (an early form of automatic) and the earliest ones used a different interface for the transmission. You can wind up with a block that doesn't fit anything.

[Conductorblg]

I think I would try to find a ratted and/or rusted out, but running, early 90s pickup with a 12 valve Cummins and automatic, then graft in the engine, trans, all the running gear, and maybe even the frame. You could then run down the road all day long at highway speeds and get around mid 20s MPG fuel economy doing it. Probably more than a few to be found out there in eastern Washington.

A lot to be said for the modern suspension, disc brakes, and power steering that could result from such a change. I'm sure the wife would love it if it just happened to have cruise control also.

[Conductorblg]

If you already have a viable 46RH on hand, why not put it behind the 318 in your 68. If it already has an automatic, the most major changes would be shortening the driveline 2 3/4", adapting the rear mount, and possibly changing out the flexplate. Having just completed the change from a 727 to an OD trans in my 68 (complicated by adapting it to a 383, requiring an aftermarket bell housing), I've got a ton of pictures (not yet posted here because I haven't taken time to resize them) and can lead you through the labyrinth.