1948 3-window Dodge Business Coupe

[Dale Wray]

New here and new to car restoration. Just purchased a '48 Coupe and was wondering how to cross the old wheels to new wheels. Also have a ? on if I need to put a lead additive into fuel? Original flat-6. Looking forward to soaking up all the vast experience that I have seen so far from reading these posts.

Regards to all,

DEW

[Plymouthy Adams]

these stock engines already have hardened valve seats..lead is not needed....as for the wheels..I assume you are speaking of what newer rims may go with your car..there are a multitude of wheels to choose from..the modern Mopar and Ford plus others still run 5 x 4.5 only it is expressed in millimeters now. Later model cars use a bit diferent offset, usually more positive..on the front this is a problem as the tire now comes closer to the steering linkage and most times will rub..even with older passenger tires you may need a spacer in the front. I used a set of 88 Chrysler 5th Ave wheels and wire baskets with radial on my 49 for a super nice look and ride but had touse a thin OTC spacer on the front. The choice of wheel and the adapters you use is going to be a call you must make deopending on what you like and how you intend to drive your car. Other factors on modern alum factory wheels can be the smaller centers of the front wheel drive cars and the fact that the bearing nose of the drum will not pass through..now you need to open this hole on at times mill the area around it flat to mount a stand off for fitting a cover or spinner, again, your choice. There are a number of wheels out there from the mid 80's that are close to bolt on but again you will be srestricted to rear wheel drive cars for the most part to get the proper hole..as an added note, these wheels are also hub concentric and thus pay close attention to that when fitting. I have some very modern wheels on some of my cars...factory offered aluminum...couple are not offset and some are extremely offset..suspension changes front and rear can make these also a bolt on but only a a very involved upgrade..the one car I built specifically to run a particular wheel unmodified..also keep in mind that on the modern wheel the use of the acron nut with the enhanced seating area of the cone is a must..for the Dodge that already has the lug bolts this is of no bother..but a Plymouth with wheel bolts..well it gets a bit tougher finding these bolts ( as in not)

[Dale Wray]

Thank you for the heads up. I want to leave it as stock as possible, so the info was most helpful. I'll be starting on her this weekend and will for sure uncover alot of unknowns. I do my best to read and discuss to try to help myself as much as I can. I am a machinist so I am able to do some things. I need a floor pan for front and trunk so I will be trying to locate those as well. Once again, THANK YOU, Dale

[Plymouthy Adams]

if your idea is leaving it stock..just ensure the integrity of your factory wheels...the caps require the clips and thus they need to be intact and servicable..you can go tubless and modern tire on these wheels so you really have no major choice here except look and profile of tire (bias/radial) and rim condition, proper color paint, pin striping and set of nice hubcaps..maybe some optional beauty rims..

you will find with this car and well just about any car that any one small mod will have its tradeoffs and increase your time and effort plus additional cost..mods are more in tune to those that "dare be differnet" lot of folks just have a phobia of parking their car next to a car that look just the same...nothing against stock purist..it just a form of personalizing your car to suit the individual.

[james curl]

A lot of us have upgraded to Disc brakes on front. Some of us feel that it is necessary to do so if your intention is to drive the car in modern traffic during high traffic times as the large gap that must be left to safely stop invites gap shooters to fill the space needed to stop safely.

[Andydodge]

Dale, gidday from sunny Sth Grafton NSW Australia.........these guys are the best on the net for mopar 6 info and help.......glad to have you aboard......have attached a pic of my 1941 plymouth coupe with aftermarket Wheel Vintique Chrome Smoothie rims on the original brake drums using the stock wheel bolts to attach the rims......I had to remove the locating pin rivet that all old mopar brake drums had to assist in mounting the stock rims but other than that the rims are a straight fit......they are the same as Ford bolt pattern.........anyway regards,from Oz....andyd

[Dale Wray]

Thanks guys. A lot to ponder... I am open minded on mod's for safety, so I will make sure I gather all info on doing what will be the best to that extent. Again, I am a Junior Member and all that I do is count on everyones experience.

DEW

[Dale Wray]

Dale, gidday from sunny Sth Grafton NSW Australia.........these guys are the best on the net for mopar 6 info and help.......glad to have you aboard......have attached a pic of my 1941 plymouth coupe with aftermarket Wheel Vintique Chrome Smoothie rims on the original brake drums using the stock wheel bolts to attach the rims......I had to remove the locating pin rivet that all old mopar brake drums had to assist in mounting the stock rims but other than that the rims are a straight fit......they are the same as Ford bolt pattern.........anyway regards,from Oz....andyd

SWEET car!!!

[Rusty O'Toole]

For many years Chrysler products used a 5 bolt on 4 1/2 circle pattern (except Imperial and limousines). Plymouth Dodge DeSoto Chrysler and Dodge pickups all the same.

Also Ford, Mercury,Studebaker, Hudson, and Toyota pickup trucks and possibly others as well.

For some of these you will have to drill a hole for the locating pin. 5/16 if I recall but you can check this on your wheels.

Your engine was built to run on low octane, low lead or no lead gas of 70 octane or thereabouts. No need for lead additive.

Although a shot of Redex or upper cylinder lubricant in the gas can't hurt. You see it is a long stroke engine with high piston speeds and anything you can do to ease ring and piston wear is a good idea.

O ya don't forget, you have LEFT HAND THREADS on the left side wheels, and posative ground battery.

The brakes were state of the art for the times and still work fine if they are in top shape and adjusted properly. The adjustment is the difficult part, when replacing brake linings you must align the shoes so they make full contact on the drums. After that normal adjustments for wear are a cinch but they must be set up if they are to work at full efficiency.

One more thing. Your car has a flathead engine, also known as side valve or L head in the old books. Flat engines are found in VW (flat 4) Porsche and Corvair (flat 6) and BMW motorcycles (flat twin).

Edited September 1, 2011 by Rusty O'Toole

[greg g]

Several of us are running new steel smoothie style wheels from wheelvintiques, these feature a dual lug pattern meaning they can be uses for the ford mopar Amc 5 x 4.5 as well as the GM 5X5 pattern. They are availabel in several widths, I am running 5 inch with e 3.5 inch back space. They come chromed, unpainted or powdercoated in several colors. they accept baby moon caps but not stock style as they rely on clip mounts.

You need to watch the backspace or there can be interference with the tie rod ends, and or the rear springs. Several folks have said it is possible to run up to 7 inch wide rims (police model style) with no problems. you can check out the style on the wheelvintiques website. There are also several other that have similar styles.

I am running 15 x 5 with 205 75 15 radials up front and 225 75 15 on the rear of my plymouth business coupe.

Welcome to the group enjoy your project.

[mrwrstory]

Where are you?

How 'bout a coupla pics

[Dale Wray]

Where are you?

How 'bout a coupla pics

I'm in Marysville Ohio. Will get pictures when I bring her home. Picking her up tomorrow evening. Had to get a car hauler. The left hand and right hand threads was a great tip. My FIRST Mopar, so...very greatful.

[greg g]

Also with fluid drive you have no machanical connection between the engine and the transmission so no compression braking when the engine is off. make sure your parking brake is fully functional or that you chock the wheels when you are parked on anthing but level ground. You don't want to have your new aquisition visiting the neighbors unannounced.

Have you driven the car yet?? Is it a three speed or the dodge version of the semi automatic? If you have not visited the main website that hosts this forum you need to visit and read the information there.

If you aren't schooled in fluid drive, check it out.

http://www.allpar.com/mopar/fluidrive.html