Front end removal 39 Plymouth

[JaberJaw]

Can anybody help with some information on where all of the bolts are located to remove my front end of my 39 Plymouth to take the engine out?

The manual is very vague on where the bolt locations are and I am curious if it definitely has to be removed to yank out the engine. Any tips, information or help would be greatly appreciated ✌️??

[Curt Lee]

If I were doing this, I would concentrate on those bolts at the firewall and around the cowl, and those holding the radiator support to the frame, so the front clip can be removed as a unit. The less you tear down, the less you have to re-align to return it to the body. I did this on my shoebox Fords many times to get excellent working room around the engine. Definitely removes the possibility of damaging the sheetmetal should something go seriously awry.

[JaberJaw]

I would rather take it off in one piece so thank you. I located the bolts on the inside of the fender wheel well and there's four bolts on each side when you lift the hood. I know I have to take my bumper off and I will take my rad out of course to get the engine out but also to see the location of the bolts.

My first silly question of the day would be.. do I need to remove the side panels or does that come off as one piece as well? I can get the front of the side panels loose but it seems like there's screws all the way down in behind the door jamb that I can't get to. And my second silly question is.. once I get the radiator out am I able to remove just the centerpiece of the grill as shown in the picture? It looks like there's bolts connecting that together that would be easier to remove. Again any information and help on the easiest way to do it would be helpful because my manuals does not show boly location

[andyd]

Generally speaking you should

remove the hood,

remove the radiator,

remove the bumper with its irons,

then undo the two nuts inside the front crossmember under the radiator support

then undo all the brackets etc holding the headlight wiring to the inner fenders,

then look under each fender at the rear and undo any bolts holding the fender to the running board,

then undo the bolts holding the rear of the fender to the sides of the cowl,

then undo the two bolts on each side hold the top edge of the fender side panel to the cowl,

then undo any wiring like headlights etc from their connectors

then methodically look around the whole front clip for any bolts,brackets etc that may still need unding

then finally with ideally at least one if not 2 friends lift the complete front fender & grille assembly unit off the chassis and gently place it out of the way, being careful not to stretch ,bend, or upset any of the joining areas of the fenders, etc..............andyd  

[Curt Lee]

Definitely more involved a process than my shoeboxes were. But worth the effort to spare the sheet metal and make it easier to access. 

[andyd]

In theory if you have a way to lift the engine straight up out of the engine bay then by just removing the hood, radiator, gearbox and bellhousing then you should clear everything BUT......the reason the front clip or at the very least the grille sheetmetal around the radiator should be removed is that generally when the engine mounts etc are undone and  the engine lifted it will still have to be lifted forward and unless that sheetmetal is removed then the engine will hit the sheetmetal.............OR you have a way to lift 600-700lbs of cast iron STRAIGHT UP to clear the cars "nose cone" and then move either the car back or the 6-700lbs forward dangling in the air above your precious grille & sheet metal...........me?.........i'd remove the sheetmetal every time.........but your choice...........lol.........andyd.

[keithb7]

I pulled the engine out of my ‘38, I left the nose cone on.  The rad was pulled. It can be done but it was certainly precarious to say the least.  When I re-installed the engine I chose to remove the nose cone first. Much better. Much easier. 
 

The whole front end seems to be a contraption of body panels, support brackets, hardware etc. Its certainly interesting. I did not attempt to remove nose cone and fenders all assembled, I’d be interested in trying it some day. I suspect you would likely need a fair number of support points to lift the whole assembly up. 

Edited August 3, 2023 by keithb7