So, what about a 1st Gen Old school Hemi in a P15

[plywoody47]

Posted earlier about a modern (3rd gen) Hmei in a P-15, no one seemed to have any hands on experience wiht it. A few neg posts re: authenticity and street cred. so obviously a 331/354/392 has more street cred.

But has it been done with success by anyone here? How much frame mod/firewall mod ,etc are necessary? Assuming of course Tranny cross member swap, new rearend, upgrade brake. Need new steering rack too?

Let me hear about your experiences before pulling the trigger.

[Dennis Hemingway]

If I remember right, Bill Story who used to be on this site was putting one in his P-15.

Dennis

[Normspeed]

Never did swap one but I do have a 54 Red Ram hemi in pieces that wants to end up in my 53 Plymouth some day. They are very heavy engines. Everything's iron. You'll need to work around the stock steering box. Some people just move the motor an inch or so to the right. I've also heard that on some early hemis if you're using the stock iron manifolds, you can use two right manifolds. That places the exhaust outlet in a better spot on the left side.

You might take a look at the Hot Heads and Hemis website. They have a lot of rebuilding info and all the cool parts, like an adaptor to use a SBC water pump.

Also near LA, there's a shop in Camarillo called MikeCo. Last year I met one of the guys, Tom, and he seems like an old hemi guru. You might call, email or stop by their shop.

[BobT-47P15]

Seems like someone once said the Dodge truck engine (i guess its a hemi) of the older vintage may be a bit smaller or some such. Back in high school (1960, 1961) there was a P15 convert I rode around in some with a truck V8 in it. Never did pay much attention....dont know if it was a hemi or not. I don't think there were many modifications made to stuff....truly an old school deal. The only thing I remember was they used a flexible exhaust pipe section to attach to the manifold......and it would pop off from time to time. Would have to get under the hood and put it back on. Of course, now, I wish I had known more about that installation. Have no idea where the car ended up. It was a faded maroon and a bit run down back then....just another old car.

[james curl]

You need to check out a 53-55 Chrysler with Hemi installed from factory. They used an idler arm attached to the front cross member to attach both tie rods as well as the cross steering link from the steering box. With the center link and tie rods you could use a 55 Chev or 65 Mustang steering box that sits over the top of the frame with the steering shaft in a tube that fastens to the frame. You could probably use any GM steering box, not sure about Chrysler or Ford. Early Hemi Dodges also used a center steering link attached to the front cross member simular to the 50's Chevrolets that used a foward drag link like early cars to drive the center link right and left.

[PatS....]

James

I can't quite figure out how a Mustang steering box would work on the 49-54 Chrysler type steering which is on my '49.

The only pic I could find of the Mustang box was from Flaming River and it looks to me like the Pitman arm mount is on the wrong side. The Chrysler needs it inboard of the frame and the one in the pic looks as if the Pitman arm mount is outboard of the frame. Or it has to be mounted upside down.

The column coming out directly into the frame is a problem for better steering.

The Flaming River Mustang Box

[james curl]

From your picture yours seems to use a drag link, moves fore and aft, the same as straight axel cars and trucks of the 30's to 60's. Your center link that fastens to the center cross member is shaped as a 90 degree angle with the drag link pushing on the left side of the 90 degree angle which causes the aft end of the center link to move right and left. The 55 Chrysler that I saw had a straight center link with three bosses in a triangle on the end away from the crossmenber and used cross steer to drive the link right and left. moves fromside to side as the 55 Chevrolet car and the 65 Mustang does.

[PatS....]

OK, so the 55 has a different set-up than mine...darn. I thought I missed something and you had found a decent steering box I could use.

I kinda wanted power steering just to reduce the number of turns lock to lock, but, the stock steering really isn't that bad.

I will have to find a rebuild kit for my steering box.

[james curl]

Go to your local libarary and check the truck repair manuals. Toyota uses an above frame side steering box on the land crusier with a foward link, but on the out side of the frame. The troble with most truck drag link steering boxes is that the pitman arm is on the outside of the frame, you need one with the drag link on the inside of the frame. I looked again at your picture of your steering box. It sould not cause trouble in a V-8 installation. On the P-15"s the entire steering box sits inside of the frame using up any clearance that a V-8 needs for exhaust manifolds. I think your only chance for power steering will be reman power steering box for 53-54 Chrysler. A rather novel idea to mount the sector shaft horizonal on top of the frame so that the pitman arm is inside of the frame. There are probably several Saginaw steering boxes that could be mounted in a maner simular to yours but the direction of rotation must be the same as your original after installation.

[PatS....]

The other problem with my Chrysler is the dash. The dash pod is designed to wrap around the steering column AND I am keeping the Fluid Drive.

(not mine...pic from the 'net)

Ah well, I need the exercise anyway.

That way nobody will want to borrow it

[james curl]

Looking at your pictures it appears that even if you cut the housing just below the shift linkage and installed a bearing in the lower colum there still would not be enough room to install a U joint and short shaft between it and a new steering box. Looks like Chrysler had the ultimate solution to the steering box problem when they installed a Hemi in their cars.

[Rodger S-11]

Hola Out There

The 1957 to 1952 De Soto V8 is an lighter engine than any Chrysler V8 of the same era. The weight is something of 100 + pounds lighter. The De Soto engine is also smaller in lenght or width.

The other thing about using an De Soto V8 is they are all Hemi's. Every V8engine from 1952 to 1957 with an De Soto and spark plug wires going to the center of the head, came from the factory that way.

The two barrel six volt V8's had from 160 to 185 hp. If you remove the spark plug wire covers, the name of De Soto is gone.

This De Soto V8 engine from 1952 on, will bolt to all MoPar transmissions with any common Craftsman tool set.

Rodger & Gabby

COS

[BobT-47P15]

It seems to me that Al Fam is in the process of putting a Hemi into a P15 coupe. Unless he changed his handle, I don't think we've heard from Al for

quite a while.

[Guest 46 desotowolf]

Hello all, I'm new to the site and have been looking for a site just like this. I have been working on a 1946 Desoto coupe for about 4 years now, just now starting to swap the 6 for a 1952 276 desoto hemi, I hope to use the fluid drive, last year my fluid drive coupling started to leak, so I took out the one from the six a changed it with one of my hemi couplings, the diffrence is the clutch dia. a half inch over all, I found out that six and early hemi cranks have the same patern on the end of the crank. this makes me think if I line it all up from the mounts on the bellhousing, all that will have to be done is frount motor mounts, but I belive there will be an problem with the steering, if using fluid drive you need the OME steering colume, i've seen a coupe at a car show where he made a plate and droped the steering box down to clear. any help on this problem is welcome.

[Rodger S-11]

Hola Name-less 46 De Soto Person

The reason for the larger diam of the V8, is the torque of the engine for the flat head six.

Rodger & Gabby

COS

[fredsv8shop]

Stumbled over this engine in someones shed, now it is in my garage and yes I am thinking about it ... My Buzz coupe with this engine !!

The engine came out of a wooden launch boat that whas destroyed during transport, it fell of the truck damaged the boat beyond repair but the engine does not have a scratch on it. The only thing is that I have to change the engine's power take of from the front of the engine to the rear of the engine, and a few more little things....(?)

http://s5.photobucket.com/albums/y185/fredsv8shop/Plymouth/?action=view&current=19b283b7.jpg

[Don Coatney]

Stumbled over this engine in someones shed, now it is in my garage and yes I am thinking about it ... My Buzz coupe with this engine !!

You might check crankshaft rotation on this boat engine as some boat engines run backwards to a car engine. Guess you could install the engine backwards if this is the case.

I recall several years back (possibly on the old forum) reading about a guy with a P-15 who installed a steering gearbox from another vehicle. I do not recall all the details but once he had it in and everything connected he discovered one problem. When he turned the steering wheel to the right the car turned to the left. And when he truned the wheel to the left the car turned right. Anyone else remember reading this?

[Plymouthy Adams]

Don..as pictured this early hemi..(distributor in rear) is facing rear forward it appears by looking at the manifolds and thus rotation has not been altered..I think that later in the game and particulary where there were twin drives the counter-rotation engine came into play. Aslo the outdrive appears connected to lower front crank..

[62rebelP23]

those outdrive and marine parts would finance a restoration if you could find the right customer.

when i first came to Charleston in the Navy in '82 i frequented local marinas in my off time and there was one where a 48' Chris Craft was in the process of being chainsawed to bits.... it had a pair of Chryslers in it that ran excellently.....

and the guy didn't blink an eye when he loaded them into a junk truck for the scrap weight, along with several hundred pounds of bronze....

[Taylormade]

I'm currently putting a 241 Red Ram Hemi in my 50 Wayfarer roadster.

I'm doing the engine rebuild this winter. About half way through disassembly. Getting the pistons out will be a chore. She dropped a valve - probably why they parked her at 81,000 miles.

The valve chewed up the piston but apparently didn't tear up the cylinder wall.

Going to need to be bored out, but hopefully once I get the pistons out she won't need to be sleeved.

I'm lucky - I found a good frame on my parts car as my convert had all the body mounts pretty well rusted off the original frame,

Lots of work to do this winter.

[Rodger S-11]

Hola All

If you want to have an engine that is light weight, some what modern and performed, think of the 3.9 V6 that Dodge used in Vans, 1500 Pick-ups and the Dakota's. They started off as an 1986 2 bbl carb and use the same transmissions as the 273, LA 318, 340 or 360 V8's.

Since the engine is short, the weight on the front is moved to the back some ( no changing of the front spring rates and wearing the front suspension as the Chrysler boat anchors already mentioned ).

But if one just needs to pull the six, ... I still like the 6 volt De Soto V8's that are lighter than any Chrysler V8 of the same era.

Rodger & Gabby

COS

[277 HEMI]

It seems to me that Al Fam is in the process of putting a Hemi into a P15 coupe. Unless he changed his handle, I don't think we've heard from Al for

quite a while.

I have not loaded any new pictures up to photobucket but will try to do so some time this mouth. I think all my pictures are too large for the form and I don't know how to down size them. I just posted some new shots on this form of a P-15 adapter on the 6 cylnder that puts an automic A415 OV on line with the stock engine and rear end (no I don't make any adapters, I bought this one from one of the member some years ago).

One day I will put it all in my blue 48 P-15. You Guys take a look at the bucket site.

AL/277hemi

http://s48.photobucket.com/albums/f217/277Hemi/48%20Plymouth%20St%20Rod%20w%20277Hemi%20on%2083%20Truck%20Frame/?start=20