meadowbrook

Thanks for the detailed story on your find. I also got a car for free in my 1950 Dodge Meadowbrook. I also have learned lots from this site. You mentioned that the car suddenly stalled the last time it was running, so it looks to me like either the gear that drives the oil pump failed, which would also stop the distributor (thankfully), or the oil pump's own gear. So check the oil pump. By the way, I sometimes find a bullseye headlight on ebay for low prices, if not brand new. Plus someone in this forum has written how to transfer a good bullseye lens into a new European H4 type headlight reflector, which allows you to have the same look with a more modern halogen bulb. And lastly, I appreciated the Squareback pics, I have restored a 65 Karmann Ghia and certainly appreciate these old vee wees. And yes, the flathead engines, and pretty much any component on that Chrysler will weigh MUCH more than the old flat four, I almost killed myself when I dropped my Dodge's rear main bearing cap to replace the rear main seal. That piece alone felt like it would outweigh the VW's crankshaft !

It seems like the normal wisdom is to install a cutoff on the ground side, why is that?

Is ethanol in today's gas really that bad? I have owned a 1965 VW since 1997 and my 50 dodge for some 6 years now and have never had a fuel issue. Could it be the parts I use are ethanol resistant?

I'd have to ask my father. But in short, he simply made a connection between the signal and the amplifier and placed a switch there with a terminal. So all I have to do is plug in the ipod, flip the switch, which then sends the iPod signal to the radio's amplifier instead of the tuner's signal. Works well.

Speaking of restoration, does anyone know of a good reupholsterer in the Philadelphia area? My dad has a 57 Tbird (sorry, not a mopar), that needs the seat redone. Thanks

I have the 803 and my father modified it to also play iPods. He tried to replace the speaker with a modern one and it sounded worse. (Interestingly, the original speaker says 'FoMoCo' on it). I guess it makes sense since the radio is a Philco, which was owned by Ford. Also, he tried to see if a modern, solid state vibrator would work better than the original...it did not. I think the 2 main differences between it and the 603 were more preset station buttons and vaccum tubes on the 803. Not sure the reason for the additional vaccum tube but more is always better, no?

I tried something similar in my d34 and they could not keep it from vibrating so I returned to my ball and trunnions and called it good enough. A little vibration at 60 but that's it.

I think it is over 18, like 20 or so. Need to check again. No dashpot in my carb, for some reason it has a Carter BB. But I don't see how the dashpot would matter just during steady idle. It is currently set to 650 or so and as I said, pretty steady vacuum readings if in neutral. Will remeasure in gear.

Thanks for the responses. My vacuum is steady at idle, but I will check what happens if I place it gear.

Hello, all. A while ago I asked the forum about a possible reason for my '50 Meadowbrook to idle rough when I utilized its fluid drive capability by stopping and not pressing the clutch. I received some advice to raise the idle speed in neutral above the 450 rpm in the spec sheet, which I did. I have never been able to get it to idle as smooth it does in Neutral. (it idles smoothly in neutral or in gear with the clutch pressed, aside from a few misfires here and there. The idle drops from around 650 to 450-500 RPM when I release the clutch pedal while stopped and in gear, then the engine does not sound too happy, running rougher. I believe I have the original Fluid Drive Fluid, the idle mixture is perfectly set to highest vacuum, timing is set to 8 degrees BTDC at idle (I know spec is 0, but it also behaves the same way at that setting and it sure is perkier at 8 deg, with no knocking ). Last bit of info, my plugs are a couple of years old, porcelains look tan, wires are recent, coil is original, but also tried a new one with no difference. Dwell is within spec, no vacuum leaks. The only thing I can imagine is the fact it is an original engine (never rebuilt as far as I know) and the compression is below spec, with cylinders 2-5 at 100 psi and #1 at 85 PSI. It does not smoke, ever, though. Oh, and valve clearances are to spec, I set them with the engine running. Any thoughts?

It happened at low rpm just as the clutch was about to fully engage, the only way to avoid it was to rev the engine a lot higher as I engaged the clutch or to not rev it at all and just let out the clutch first and the accelerate.

Don, I'll have to disagree with you there, at least in the Dodge Meadowbrook, the relationship between the trans and the chassis absolutely affects pedal to clutch linkage. If the items you mentioned were the cause of my clutch chatter, it would not have been solved by simply replacing the engine mounts.

My vibration issue was at idle, which is why I blamed it on the mounts being too hard.

I believe the clutch chatter can occur from the clutch linkage not being properly aligned, which would happen if the trans is not properly located by my squashed engine mounts.

Where can I find a NOS cam sensor for the 230 flathead?

I recently replaced my rear engine mounts with 'new' ones and discovered the following: - New mounts looked smaller in diameter and felt much harder than originals. - As soon as I started the engine, I felt and heard way more vibrations in the car than before. - New mounts seemed to have eliminated my old issue with the trans slipping out of 2nd gear if I did a lot of torque reversals by accelerating and lifting throttle. - My clutch chatter issue also went away. Since the vibration was annoying I looked at the old mounts and noticed the passenger side one was about 1/4" thinner than the driver side. I assume it is from being the one that is squeezed more during acceleration as the powertrain tends to rotate clockwise under power from the driver's point of view. I then swapped positions of the mounts and added 1 large washer to the top of the 'shorter' one to approach the height of the other one. - Now, car is again as smooth as before this whole experiment and the trans still does not slip out of 2nd. - Although the clutch chatter has returned, it is much less than before and I think with a 2nd washer over the 'squashed' mount, it may go away. So, lesson learned on a clutch chatter issue and trans coming out of gear. It may not always be as drastic as one may think, so before you replace the clutch or pull the trans for a rebuild, check them mounts. Is the trans level? Lesson number 2. One changes a stock component at one's own risk for an 'aftermarket' one. The original mounts were a softer rubber with lots of little internal molded holes, I suppose to make it even softer. 'New' ones from Robert's had none of these features, these things were carefully engineered and just a similar looking lump of rubber is not a proper replacement. Anyone know a source of true replacement engine mounts that are just like the originals? I suppose NOS ones would work since aside from the 'squashed' one, mine still seem to work.

Just remember, the 6V starter will sound slower than what you may be used to hearing from modern cars. My '50 cranks slowly and sounds like a 12V starter on a low battery, but it will keep cranking seemingly forever like that if I dry to start it after a very long time of sitting because it has to fill the carb with fuel. I have a new battery, new proper sized cables and clean connections. I actually thought of getting a 6V electric pump to avoid this, but then again, maybe it is better for the engine to crank a while after a long slumber to build oil pressure than to start immediately. Just my 2 pesos' worth.

I seem to remember that Jaguar in line sixes also start to number from the flywheel end.

Hi folks. Can anyone tell me if the 230's cylinders are numbered conventionally, with number 1 cylinder being the one closest to the radiator? I am wondering because the little plug you can remove to check to see if a piston is at TDC is located on the cylinder closest to the firewall, so I wonder if that might be number one.

I suppose I can appreciate my R7 unit more now. My solenoid works in the opposite way, it only activates to DISengage OD, so I guess it is under less stress. It is smaller.

How would you know if your WDT is bad from how the car runs? Would you just start burning exhaust valves and losing compression?

Well thank you for all of the advice but I repaired it. I simply drilled a smaller hole in the stud and tapped it. I then slipped the shock back on the stud and installed a smaller bolt. Since the bolt just keels the shock from walking out of the stud it should hold. We'll see .

Any of you guys ever replace the lower front shock mount on your cars? My D34's broke off the threaded part and I discovered that the actual pin is basically a large rivet. I have to drill it out from the other side and then insert a new one and peen over the tip. What a wacky design. I will try to repair mine, but a quick web search yielded nothing. Anyone know of a source?

I also have the kit from Bernbaum but found that the spring in my kit is a plain spring, not thermostatic at all. Try applying a cigarette lighter to the spring you have, it should start to tighten the coil immediately. If it does not move, it is not the right one.

With some elbow grease, I was able to force the old mounts and place the now ones. Thanks for all the tips, especially the crossections.