austinsailor Posted January 9, 2009 Report Posted January 9, 2009 I just found a 1950 1/2 ton. It has a spitfire head, and a fluid drive. The motor has obviously been rebuilt by an after market house due the the non-dodge serial number. Is a motor with a spitfire head likely to have been a factory motor, or is this out of a Chrysler? Was fluid drive offered in these trucks or is it likely the whole package came from something else? This is a straight, rust free truck that just might follow me home in the next couple days. Gene G. Quote
buds truck Posted January 10, 2009 Report Posted January 10, 2009 my friend has a fluid drive truck sitting on his property, it came from the factory that way. real rusty now. pity. Bud Quote
grey beard Posted January 10, 2009 Report Posted January 10, 2009 The spitfire head means you have the larger 25-inch long engine block - likely a 236 cid engine. This is good, for the stock half ton engine was a 218 cid unit. Fluid drive was an option for several years, so that is likely stock, but your engine has been replaced with the larger unit. Lucky you. Quote
austinsailor Posted January 10, 2009 Author Report Posted January 10, 2009 Well, I'm not lucky yet. It's not mine. I'm sure it can be bought, but we haven't talked about price. It's sat in a garage since the 80's (He parked it when they made insurance mandantory). It appears to have no dents, no rust and seems solid. I do need to pull some more junk away from it to check it closer, but I'm thinking $500 will get it. Have no idea if the engine will turn over. I've got too many projects stacked up now, but I'll find it hard to pass this up if the price works out. Gene G. Quote
Merle Coggins Posted January 10, 2009 Report Posted January 10, 2009 Look closly at the head the next time you are by it. As I understand it the Spitfire head was only used on 25", 256 CID engines in Chryslers. That truck, unless it was Canadian made, would have come stock with a 23", 218 CID engine. There were some aftermarket heads that I've seen pics of (I think Reg has one) that looks like "Spitfire" but is actually slightly different, but it fits the smaller 23" engines. Either way I don't think there's anything special about the head, except that it looks Cool. Sounds like a good project to snag. I'd say "Go for it!" Merle Quote
austinsailor Posted January 10, 2009 Author Report Posted January 10, 2009 When I cleaned it up just a bit, I dound there were more numbers and they are actually Chrysler numbers. C38, which is 46 to 48 Chrysler Royal 6 and Windsor 6. The charts I know of don't show cubic inches or anything. I'm going back today and try to see of it is frozen or what. Gene Quote
woodscavenger Posted January 10, 2009 Report Posted January 10, 2009 My spitfire is 236. I repainted the head, used a sanding block to polish the raised lettering and then clearcoated it. Looks cool! One of the best parts of the truck. It's one of the reasons I chose not to rip it out and put a V8 in it. Quote
dmulhall Posted January 11, 2009 Report Posted January 11, 2009 curious...did they make anything like a spitfire head, or anything aftermarket for a 218? if so, I want one, does anyone have one? Thanks Quote
Don Coatney Posted January 11, 2009 Report Posted January 11, 2009 As has been mentioned a SPITFIRE head is a Chrysler only thing and it is a long (25 1/2") block. 46-48 Chrysler is most likely a 251 CI engine. Reg Evans installed this spitSfire head in a vehicle he has. It is the only spitSfire head in captivity to the best of my knowledge. Quote
Reg Evans Posted January 12, 2009 Report Posted January 12, 2009 Don is correct. I installed this 23" long 230 ci Spitsfire engine in my 42 Dodge coupe last year. I also upgraded the oiling system by installing a full flow oil filter decal;) . I discovered I had owned this head for many many years and that it had been hiding in my paint department all along:rolleyes: . Yes, the C38 engine is a 251 ci Chrysler engine. I have one in my 52 1/2 ton. One of these days I'm going to install this stuff on it. Quote
Don Coatney Posted January 12, 2009 Report Posted January 12, 2009 Reg; I am slipping in my advanced years. I fully missed the oil "upgrade":cool: Quote
grey beard Posted January 13, 2009 Report Posted January 13, 2009 Don, Those California "gp-faster" decals may just set a new trend down there in Tennesseeeeeee, what? Quote
Don Coatney Posted January 13, 2009 Report Posted January 13, 2009 Don,Those California "gp-faster" decals may just set a new trend down there in Tennesseeeeeee, what? Not sure what a "gp-faster" decal is but Tennesseeeeee is a trendy place:D Quote
Reg Evans Posted January 13, 2009 Report Posted January 13, 2009 I think he was typing so fast he missed the o and hit the p. Quote
tinlizzy Posted January 14, 2009 Report Posted January 14, 2009 I agree with you Don. Kingsport area is really booming compared to the rest of the country. Lot of old money here. Seen your heading to Charolette. I used to live in Salisbury and familiar with China Grove and Kannapolis. I heard they tore down the Cannon Mills. Have a safe trip and if you get my Mt. Carmel give a shout. Lee tinlizzy Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.