55 Fargo

Thanx Robert, I also read your PM, very good advice.....Fred

Here is a guide for tire sizes and comparisons http://www.turbinecar.com/tires.htm

That possibly could be the problem, tire size, but a friend of mine has a 48 Chrysler, with the same size tires, and all else factory correct drive train and his speedo is acurate to about a mile or 2. I don't mind this being out a bit, just was wondering what may be the cause, also was wondering if any of you Guys experienced the same deal......Fred

The nice thing about this engine is this, no cylinder ridge, valve chamber clean, when it was rebuilt in 1956, it had all bearings standard, and .030 pistons/rings, I really believe it may not have that many miles on her, and hopefully will be a good rebuild specimen someday.......Fred

Hi all, brought home the GPS from work, installed on the window of my coupe, then went to see how accurate I am registering on my speedo. At 56 on my speedo, I am actually going 50 mph, at 62 mph, I am actually doing 55 mph. Now I have a 3 spd trans, and engine from a 1951 Plym, my rear end is a 3.73, my tires are P205 75 15= 27.1 inches, the speedo gear is a 19 t, I think, as I have a trans with a 17 t also., so it is either a 17 or 19 t, it is the original that came with the trans Now my engine and trans must have been mated with a 3.73 or a 3.90 rear end , I would think my speedo should be fairly close, given my ratios should be in sinc with a 1951 Plym, witha 3.73 rear end. What other factors would or could cause speedo inaccuracy?................Thanx Fred

Hi Ed, this I can try, can get my woodworking Dad to make round blocks of hardwood in his shop. I will get some liquid wrench, and douse the cyls, and see what I can do. When and if I can free the pisotns, will rebuild this baby anyway, so want to make nmy racing flattie out of it..........Fred

Yah, brute force, I have no problem replacing the pistons, as along as the block,crank,cam are okay. There is no rige on the top of these cylinders, the valve shamber is super clean to with no sludge.......Fred

Yes that will get done, rear main seal jobs are a real PITA to do in-car, may just do the pan, if your referring to my 218 engine. My 251 engine is for eventual rebuilding and high-perfing so to speak, so I will either do this engine or my current in-car engine, I can use a 251 crank,rods and pistons if I want to make a 251 out of the 218, or go with bigger pistons , and make a 228, will still shave head and deck block, go with split exhaust, and a 2bbl Webber carb. But for now I have a good running engine in my car, so I am not forced to deal with the stuck 251, but as an engine it would be a good candidate for rebuild simply because it is a 251 and has the factory full-flow filtration. I also own a running 228 flathead, it is coupled to a 4 spd trans, ina 1955 Fargo truck frame, it has a 70s Cordoba rear end. I hope to find a cab for this and make a truck too.....Fred

Norm, I am pretty sure the 1949 tanks are the smaller square shaped tanks. The exception may be the first series 19498, which are the same as the 1946 to 1948s. Try www.tanksinc.com, they have replacement tanks for Mopar 1941 to 1948, I have this tank installed, it is great, requires some minor mods, but it fits very well. The steel tanks are $215, the Stainless stell tanks are $350, they have 48 Ford poly tanks, for $215, they will fit too............Fred

Thanx for the ideas Guy's, I will try and see what may work. I am not thinking I will get this baby unstuck and then run her as is. I wan to free her up for rebuild. I going to hopefully pull this engine out this fall, easier to store and work on. I hopefully will rebuild her in the not too far future, even if I have to break the pisont sout, I just do not want to damage the block,cam,crank or bearings. I am thinking this would be the best engine for rebuilding. My current engine is a 1951 Plym 218 25 inch block engine, it runs pretty decent but leaks oil out the pan and rear main pretty darn good, but starts very well, has good oil pressure and decent uniform compression. My Uncle put this 218 into my Chrysler in about 1985, he claims this engine was from a wrecked car, originally owned by a farmer, and it had low miles, he just cannot rememeber how many, but no where near a 100000 he says, about 50 to 60 k on this engine, otherwise he would not have installed it into the car to begin with........Fred

Hi all, I have this seized 251 engine ina parts car, it was rebuilt back in 1956, bearings all standard, rings/pistons .030 over. I have the head off, been pouring oil down the cyls, and over valves for quite a bit of time. Today I borrowed a neighbours 3/4 inch socket set, put on the socket, attahced the johnson bar, and I could not get this engien to move, not one bit. My question to you guyus is, should I use as suggested before on other threads, diesel, or penetrating oil, what would be best? I have no idea if it is stuck valves, or rings, and hopefully not a seized main bearing. The trans is coupled with a fluid drive, and M^, don't think they could hold back this engine in any way. I want to free thsi engine, it is my hopefully rebuild candidate, as it has full flow oil filtration, and is a 251 , even the right engine numbers for my car...........Thanx Fred

Lou Earle has added AC to on e of his P15s, seemed to fit right nice, he used the radio and Clock openings for the vents....

Michael, it's all in the " eye of the beholder", I personally have a Club Coupe, but prefer the Biz Coupe look. My car is a 47 Chrysler Club Coupe, I sometimes wished it were a P15 or D25......Fred

Gary, if this engine cannot be used as is, I would dismantle it, have it hot tanked, and have the machine shop take measurements, or do that your self. If you can use standard bearings, and are able to get the valves ground, then maybe you could get oversized rings and be done. $500 is a real tight budget, especially when doing an engine, even if you do it yourself. You will need to plasti-gage the bearings, to see where there at too. How does the engine look now, have you got the heads off and looked at the cyls yet.....Fred

Dennis how's the fishin, gonna be fishin for Greenbacks" AKA Walleye, soon,as they migrate back from the Lake into the Red River in early fall, world class size up to 16 lbs. Channel cats to 30 lbs are caught often here too, in the same water system.....Fred ps you must have Trout or Stripers where you are huh

Darrin, that must be an early morning temp, that is cool, as it does not get anywhere this low in my part of Canada this time of the year. Being ii'ts up in the mountains, would be the reason for the cool overnight temps, here it may get down to 55 at night this time of the year, but normal is about 60 to 64......Fred

Norm's Coupe, the Louisville slugger our trusted Leader.....

Also a Zen Master, aka "master of disaster'.......LOL

Hey Dennis some real nice cars there, being at Big Bear, did it give you some cooler temps, a little break from the Mojave heat.....

Update: This engine is no good, the cyls are way too rusty ona couple of them. The measurements indcate 3 7/16 bore, 4 1/4 storke, so it is not a 218 anymore, possibly a 228. The head is from more modern engine, with the hump for internal water pump by-pass. What a shame, if this engine would not have gotten water into it, it would have no doubt been a good little engine. I will salvage what I can off of it, lik valve covers, oil pan, dizzy alternator bracket,head, maybe internals like cam and crank. I will now concentrate on my 251 full flow engine, it is stuck, butr the cyls look in good shape, it was rebuilt once with .030 pistons/rings. I filled each cyl with oil on this 251, but lots has leaked past into the oil pan. I can rebuild this into a bit of a high-perf 251.........live and learn

Let engine soak for 24 hours with oil in each cylinder, the crank is turning, the pistons moving, but still a bit stuck, must be a valve sticking. Will let soak till tommorow and will see what is what. I will then measure the cyls for size to see what is in there for piston size. Up here in Winnipeg, in the 50s/60s/70s they use to rebuild a lot of these engines, all the blocks would get 251 cranks and pistons, then they would be sold as an industrial 6 cyl engine, this might be such an engine, even though it started out from the factory as a 218 long block, more will be revealed tomorrow...........Fred ps kinda like working on these engines....

Yes fluid drive would be advantageous off the line with higher rgear ratios, but for me I have a dry clutch in my Royal Coupe......

Hey Jerry, that is good to know, wonder if I could bolt in the same type of diff on my 47 Chrysler coupe, my car weighs about 3600 lbs, how about your truck, how much would it weigh?

I like this idea Greg, I have a 3.73 in my 47 Coupe, would be will to try a 3.55 diff when I can find one, as Chryslers with fluid drives and M6 trans came with 3.55 diffs, not sure how a 3.23 diff would work with these cars. I have plenty enough jam to take off with a 3.73 rear end in my heavier then P15 Chrysler, but would this work well witha 3.23, not sure. I live in flat country it would probably be okay, but maybe not in hill country. Does anyone on here have a Dodge or Plymouth witha 3.23 rearend running with a flat head 6 and 3 spd trans, would like to know how it is....Fred

Shell Rotella T has 1200 PPM, of ZDDP in it, even with the new formulation