Worden18 Posted May 9, 2016 Report Posted May 9, 2016 (edited) Just wanted to update everyone on where I'm at with my 51 Dodge Meadowbrook, and give you all some pics to look at. In the last month I replaced the front wheel cylinders and brake shoes (and one new line), repacked the wheel bearings, hit all of the cars grease zerks, rebuilt the carb, complete tune-up, new tires, and oils changed in the tranny, rear axle, and engine. The car really runs good now! To tell you the truth I don't even know how it ran before I tuned it up....the previous owner had the spark plugs gaps set at about .020, and the contact points were NOT EVEN OPENING. A true testament to how awesome these old Mopars really are LOL. They'll run even if the points don't open up and the spark plug gap is half what it should be ha ha. The carb was THE WORST I've ever seen as far as dirt and sediment buildup. I got it all cleaned up and put an extra inline filter between it and the fuel pump, which is also new. Anyway, me and my wife and kids have put on about 1,000 miles in the last month! Its so much fun to drive we take it everywhere. Today we took a lot of back roads, but we also hit Hwy 61 and drove it 55mph up to Wabasha for a Mother's Day lunch. It runs and drives just as sweet at 55 as it does at 40. It does use some oil, but I keep an eye on it and have a stash in the trunk to add when needed. I was really impressed to finally use the Fluid Drive; the car will idle down to 400rpm at a stop sign and not die or chug. Its pretty amazing; I've never had a car with Fluid Drive before, and that was one of the main reasons I bought it. Speaking of which, I still need to check the oil level in the Fluid Drive....must be ok though as it works flawlessly. The car really is whisper quiet; you almost don't know its running sometimes. I'll have to say I'm impressed with the old flathead, and the 6 volt system works just fine; I have no intentions of messing with it. Here's some pics for you guys. I had it up on a friend's hoist when I changed all the oils and hit some of the zerks underneath. Its been a lot of fun so far both working on it and just enjoying driving it. Its all original (well, less the modern radials) and I intend to keep it that way and just drive it. I chose to ditch the collector plates and put a 1951 MN plate on the rear. The state has strict rules on some of these old plates. They wouldn't allow any plate that was all numbers. Well, that's a hard thing to find in a 1951 MN plate. This crusty old plate was the only one I could find on eBay that had at least one letter in it, which the DMV accepted. They didn't care about the condition of it. Neither do I, it matches the patina of the car LOL And oh, I've been averaging 15-16mpg Edited May 9, 2016 by Worden18 2 Quote
rb1949 Posted May 9, 2016 Report Posted May 9, 2016 Great to hear. Having fun is the best part when you have old iron to drive. Quote
1940plymouth Posted May 9, 2016 Report Posted May 9, 2016 enjoy the Dodge and take lots of photos, these old Chrysler products were made to be driven Quote
mopar_earl Posted May 9, 2016 Report Posted May 9, 2016 Sweet! Is it fluid drive or Gyro-matic? Looks a lot like my 52 Coronet, which is Gyro-matic. Earl Quote
DonaldSmith Posted May 9, 2016 Report Posted May 9, 2016 The terminology is rather "fluid". "Fluid Drive" is the general term, and includes the presence of the fluid coupling between the engine and the clutch. "Gyro-Matic is Dodge's moniker for its semi-automatic transmission. Start off in third, and it upshifts to fourth. Dodges were also available with a three-speed transmission behind the clutch and fluid coupling. Drive all day in third. Quote
mopar_earl Posted May 9, 2016 Report Posted May 9, 2016 The terminology is rather "fluid". "Fluid Drive" is the general term, and includes the presence of the fluid coupling between the engine and the clutch. "Gyro-Matic is Dodge's moniker for its semi-automatic transmission. Start off in third, and it upshifts to fourth. Dodges were also available with a three-speed transmission behind the clutch and fluid coupling. Drive all day in third. Yeppy, but fluid drive is what Dodge called the fluid coupling with a standard 3 SPD transmission. My 52 had two options, fluid drive or Gyro-matic/M6. If you got the standard option transmission, your emblems said fluid drive. If you got the semi-auto M6 option, your emblems said Gyro-matic. Not sure what Chrysler and Desoto did. I know they called their M6 transmissions Tip-toe, Desoto and Presto-matic, Chrysler. Maybe they they didn't offer a straight up fluid drive? You could also of had gyro-torque on some cars which is M6 with a torque converter instead of the fluid coupling. Earl Quote
dpollo Posted May 9, 2016 Report Posted May 9, 2016 All the cars* except Plymouth had Fluid Drive which was a fluid coupling directly fastened to the crankshaft with a conventional dry clutch following that. Then there was the option of a three speed standard transmission or the semi automatic (M-6) which included FD. Either way gave a very smooth transmission of power to the rear wheels. * there is a Fluid drive delete which is not that well known. It consists of a special input shaft, throw out bearing collar and sleeve and a standard flywheel and dry clutch. This can be fitted without changing the bell housing or linkages. It is also possible to have Overdrive on the three speed transmission with or without Fluid Drive. 1 Quote
greg g Posted May 9, 2016 Report Posted May 9, 2016 (edited) Hey, I think Chrysler Corporation built and sold these contraptions just so people could independently go where and when they wanted to go. So drive it and enjoy it. Sent you a PM Edited May 9, 2016 by greg g Quote
Stevenlesser Posted May 14, 2016 Report Posted May 14, 2016 I have a desoto that looks almost the same , the fluid coupling is a good thing to check ,it's just a torque converter ,but there's a trick to it ,it has to go up on a lift ,then there's a little hole with a bolt ,you could put fresh fluid in it, as it'll still be working pretty good even if the level is low and its cruddy inside ,look at the manual it'll have a procedure ,the " desotoland "site ,there's endless fluid drive discussion ,the choice of fluid is important to avoid modern detergents and weird goo added to the fluid One easy and great mod is a positive ground 6 v pertronix points eliminator ,boy what a difference that makes at upper RPM's! The speed limit back in the day was 45 mph Quote
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