opinons on Dodge 230

I have a 230 flathead in my 48' Power Wagon, and I would like to make a little more power with it so that I can increase my gearing with some larger tires. And still be able to pull the smaller hills in direct(4th).

I've looked at the dual carb setups, with the headers, however I'm slightly worried about reliability in cold weather with such a setup. I was kind of leaning toward adapting some sort of larger more modern carb, leaving the stock exhaust manifold in place and running slightly larger exhaust. Possibly milling the head slightly and running Vintage Power Wagon's "high performance cam".

I guess I'm more or less looking for something in the 100 to 150hp range thats reliable enough that I can trust it in the backwoods, subzero temps, etc.

Thanx in advance for any and all opinons.

Dylan

 

use the search function for "flathead six" and "Mopar six" you should get every answer you're looking for.

As for reliability and cold starts, My '50 Dodge 230 is internally stock right now, has an Offy dual intake with two Carter BB's, and a split stock manifold with no heat riser.
pump pump pump, crank crank crank, pump pump pump, crank crank crank. It can sit for six months and will hit the third set every time. If I drive it daily it hits on the first shot.
Did I mention that the car is still six volts, and has a refurbished stock ignition?

 

Interesting, were the horse power gains noticeable.

 

HUGE difference. estimated gains for those mods are 30%. That's significant when you're only starting with 100hp.

A story I've told before about head milling- and again, use the search, this info is here- in 1950 horsepower with 7.1 to 1 compression was rated at 103. In 1959 horsepower with 8.0 to 1 compression was rated at 135. There were no major differences in the engines except the comp. ratio- this is a near 30% hp increase with only a head change. You can accomplish the same results by milling your head around .060"

Now, add the 30% increase from the manifolds, to the 30% increase from the compression, subtract some for overlapping gains, you're in pretty good shape.

 

If the engine is tired you might consider either going to one of the larger sixes out of an actual Chrysler,as well as the before mentioned stuff.

 

www.restorides.com offers an adapter to mount a Holley 2300 to the stock intake. I think a headmill of 0.040" to 0.060" will give you the best useable hp and torque gains. Remember it's a truck, so you're wanting torque increases, not hp from high revs. To this end, I would stick with the headmill, leave the stock manifolds for now, and check the specs on the VPW cam. It's only any use to you if there is a significant torque increase.

 

The 58-59 passenger car heads are the best performing stockers. See if you can find one of those to start with. I'm also developing a new aluminum head for the small Mopar 6. It will outperform even a modified 58/59 head

 

Those things won't stand sustained high rpm, the rod bearings go out. That's why so many of those old power wagons were repowered. Those 5.86 axles are really murder on the old 6's oiling system. I've heard about ways to improve the oiling but I don't know the details, and my understanding of it is that the Chryslers had better oiling systems.

 

the deal is that the 1&2 and 5&6 rods share oil supply. since the #2 and #5 are further from the supply, they get starved and fail. the solution is to cross drill the crank, which means drilling new holes from passage to passage to increase the flow of oil through the crank to those rods. Balanced and crossdrilled motors are capable of 6000+ rpm. Not that you'd ever need it in a Power Wagon for rpm, but it's a great longevity mod too.

 

I have an Edgy that I am going to put on my current project motor, but I'd reconsider if yours was hotter. Hurry up dammit!!

 

dual carbs r as reliable as the single just mor pumping less choking.. mines my daily and it starts every time

 

My 51 Plymouth 218 has edmunds dual carb intake and stovebolt fenton repop dual headers and a huge tractor holthouse coil for lightening and thunder sparks at the sparkplugs. Works great and is a daily chores driver. Very reliable and stilll 6 volts......its important to keep this system in good order for reliability. Good luck

 

I'm kind of in the same boat. I have a 47 Dodge sedan that I want to make a little peppier. First, go to www.p15-d24.com and find the forum. It focuses on a lot of the old flattie Mopars and is a great resource and is more specialized to your application. My plan is to improve fuel delivery and exhaust flow/dual intake and exhaust. Improve the ignition, Langdon Stovebolt's HEI setup. Increase compression/shave head .50. I should be at about 120-140hp. Hoping to be able to drive the car almost full time so dependability is key.