Dads49

So any input on that transmission? How about that block stamp? Any way to tell if that's the original?

Sure does. Never seen a scratch with branches though.

If I'm gonna replace the engine it's gonna be as close to the original as possible, but it's not going to be any time soon. I'll definitely keep your offer in mind. Depending on if this engine is original to the car I might even put the money into having the block fixed. Time will tell.

I thought of that too. There are a couple of pretty suspicious little veins off the main vein though. I would have thought there would be coolant too, but I haven't seen anything yet.

Here's the picture of the crack(s)...

So I went over to the car today; the pictures of the supposed 'original' transmission are attached. The number on the side of the engine is: PI8 295073, followed by some kind of symbol; maybe a star? The casting number on top of the head is: P 1311810-6 The bad news is that when I was scraping the engine number to make it more visible I discovered what I believe to be a crack in the block. Super bummer.

I think it's more of a comfort thing for me. I've had both drum and disc, but I'm funny about brakes; I don't even work on them myself. My old 70's Dodge log trucks and the '69 W200 both had drums all the way around and I had nothing but problems with them. A 4.5 ton log truck with no brakes makes for a fun ride. Perhaps my want for disc brakes is unfounded, but I just feel more comfortable with them. I'll definitely give it some thought though.

I appreciate the kind words and advice fellas. While I do have a fair bit of general diagnostic and repair experience working on my own cars, and on my most recent build especially, I do still consider myself a novice. Obviously I know nothing about the 40's Mopars. I've had a lot of paid help on my '58 Apache project, but lucky for me the shop owner and I have become good friends and he lets me help out pretty regularly and learn. I intend for the Plymouth to be a different ball of wax. This one is a long-term project, one that I can really take my time on and learn as I go. To me, that's honoring the old man.

I most certainly do; and I thought it'd be a walk in the park, haha (kidding of course). I plan on doing a lot of reading; I didn't mean to ask a bunch of questions that had already been answered, it was just supposed to be an introductory thread with a few general inquiries. Great photo, thank you for sharing.

Very, very interesting. Well let me get some numbers and we'll get to the bottom of this! Are the transmissions numbered as well and where might I look? Thanks for the intel...

Thank you all for the information and advice thus far; it's encouraging that there are a lot of people that know about these cars. From what I gather, the '49 model wasn't the most popular, and I must admit that there certainly are more attractive models, haha. I'm sure there is a lot of overlap between the models/years. Regarding the general maintenance recommendations: I certainly plan to change out all of the parts mentioned first...water pump, thermostat, complete brakes, fuel pump, etc. I'm actually working on another truck at the moment that will be my daily driver, and the Plymouth will be my 'Sunday best'. So, I'm not really doing much to it yet but simply gathering information, a few parts here and there, and planning the restoration. I don't know the first thing about depolarizing a generator or cleaning brushes on a starter, so perhaps a little help there...or I'll look it up. The recommendation to grab original manuals is also a great suggestion that I hadn't thought of, so I'll definitely do that. I'm all ears for recommendations on disc brake kits as well. The floorboards are fine; I checked those when I looked at the rockers. As far as the transmission is concerned, I really only know what I've been told up to this point, which is that the previous-previous owner swapped it out for unknown reasons for the current one. Supposedly the one that was removed was the semi auto that allows the driver to press in the clutch once to engage 1st, then pull off the gas ever so slightly to permit the transmission to shift. I will take a pic of it as soon as I can, but the car is at another garage so it might be tomorrow.

Hello to all, I'm happy to be a new member here and hope to gain a lot of knowledge from you. Several years ago, one of the last coherent conversations I had with my Dad before he died was about cars we loved. I had asked him what his first car was, to which he responded "a '49 Plymouth 4-door...that was a GREAT car!". I made up my mind that someday I would restore one in honor of him. Then, about a year ago, I found a Special Deluxe locally and traded my tractor for it. It runs and drives fine, but right now stopping isn't its strong suit without a couple of pumps on the pedal. It also came with a couple of crates of parts. The original 'semi-automatic' transmission was replaced with a period-correct 3-on-the-tree, but I do have the original as well. Overall the car is in great shape and complete except for a couple of trim pieces. I plan to keep it 99% original. The body and frame are very solid with minimal damage and only some surface rust (except for the rocker panels and under the spare tire). The interior has been tastefully and professionally restored. A couple of issues I'm having are the brakes, which I believe to be mostly the master cylinder (but I'll be replacing wheel cylinders as well), as well as starting issues. It doesn't have the original thermal choke anymore and doesn't like to start without a little ether. Carb rebuild? Other than that, it seems to run fine. As a new owner, does anyone have any tips or 'quirks' of the car that would help me out in the long run? For instance, common issues with mechanical parts, repair tricks, etc. Does anyone have any experience with the mustang front disc brake conversions? That would be the 1 and only upgrade I would consider. Also, what weight oil should I use? Thanks in advance!! Jim