Hey all, new Plymouth owner here. I've had over 40 vehicles, (mostly 70's/80's/90's) but this is my first early Mopar and I'm really quite smitten with it. I bought it running ok with a very confused aesthetic with the intention of flipping it, but I've accidentally turned it into "my car". Funny how that happens. I've lurked around here for a while and decided to quit being lazy and join up.
The car is a '55 Savoy sedan with the 259ci/3-speed manual. It runs really quite well now after some basic servicing. Sometimes smokes a bit, but some parts store snake oil always clears it up. Likely worn rings. I drive it to work on 30 degree mornings no problem. I'm interested in bringing the on-road drivability up to more modern standards and would like a bit more power. Would also like a bit more finesse in the transmission department. The current 3 speed has a pretty sloppy shifter making finding first gear a very vague experience, the clutch releases very high, and it does not like to be rushed on the 1-2 shift. I have owned some pretty obscure cars, but this one in particular seems to be quite difficult to find technical info on as far as parts compatibility goes. To give an idea on my personal mechanical ability, I've swapped a couple engines in the past, one was a replacement, one was a different but similar motor (2.0 mazda to 2.5 ford into a Miata), I have a 1-car drive under garage and a 2-car covered carport. I can mig weld ok (I can make metal stick to other metal, not pretty stuff though).
I've heard that these poly V8's can be "converted" to Hemi's for lack of a better term. Wondering if that juice is worth the squeeze. I have also seen a video series in which a young man swapped in a 318 from a 90s ram along with the auto trans. That idea is somewhat appealing but if there were a motor/trans combo from in-period (331 Chrysler?) that could achieve similar performance for similar money I'd rather go that route. If theres some more modern solution thats far easier though, I'd love to hear it. I like the manual transmission, but it's not a must for me in this particular car. This car is a cruiser, an auto could be nice (cant belive i said that out loud, my 16 year old self would kill me). Being able to cruise at 75mph would be bad either.
Realistically, It has body rust, it's a 4 door, so I'm not precious about preserving originality as much as I just want to keep it going and on the road. I'm also open to weird swaps. I've seen so many people dig into a project, get in over their heads, "life happens" and it never leaves the garage again. I'd like to not to go so uncharted that I never finish. I have a 2.5 year old daughter, so the big work may not start until she starts school. Kind of in "knock little things out on a sunday afternoon" mode.
So the goals are:
More power (240hp minimum I'd say. Enough to do a small burnout, makes the kids giggle, etc. With 4 people on board the current old 259 does feel tired, poor girl)
Eventually auto transmission (In the meantime what can be done to tighten up the 3speed's linkage? adjustment in the clutch?)
Brakes, suspension, tires, steering (Going to start with replacing worn bits first. Shocks, tie rods, bushings etc. Brakes should be somewhat self-explanatory as well as wheels/tires. Steering is way slow with significant play on-center, but I think they came that way.
And all of the above in the most economical way possible.
Thanks for reading and I look forward to gaining any knowledge where I can. I'm in my mid 30's so still have a lot to learn. Hoping to absorb and pass on some knowledge to the next generation and keep more of these beauties on the road.
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