Projects Picked up a '53 New Yorker today

Of course, actually measuring it is the BEST course. But, that said, I believe the axle width, wheel mounting surface (WMS) to WMS is about 60" inches or so. I base that on having a few Mopars, including a '55 Chrysler that is in the 60"/61" range.

There are a number of axles that are in that range and that have 5 lug by 4 1/2" bolt pattern.
Many Ford 8", 9" and 8.8" axles.....Quite a few Mopars, including Jeep, but get one from a Mopar with rear axle parking brake, not driveshaft brake, in case you eventually upgrade the transmission and lose the current parking brake.

 

Full of questions tonight.....I am also looking at the scarebird disc brake brackets and it happens to be the only mopar product they have that doesn't have a discription that lists what all is needed. has anyone here ever put these brakets onto a chrysler? What did you do for a master cylinder? This kit and all the pieces to make it work are probably cheaper than buying all the pieces to rebuild/replace the original brake system.

 

Reminds me of a story.
Back the early eighties in eastern North Carolina, a fellow airman in the Air Force came across a unique 1954 Chrysler Windsor 4 door in an old tobacco barn. It took some time to find the actual owner because there was no home on the land. Eventually, he found the owner and was able to get a good look at it. It was unique because it was hemi powered. It seems the owner had a nice 51 New Yorker and rolled it back in the early 70's. He found the 54 Windsor in good condition and swapped the chassis from the New Yorker to the Windsor. He also swapped out the interior. After a few years, he parked it in the barn until my friend found it. So, to make a long story short my friend was able to purchase the Windsor and get it back on the road. When he left the service, he took it with him to Ohio. If you run into a light blue Windsor with a white top and hemi, it might be the same one.

 

No. I was saying seals are used on the intake valves only. Ex valves effectively hang upside down & oil can't run up the stem. Oil could get sucked by if there was enough wear on the guides, but it's more likely that either the intake seals are worn or more likely being overwhelmed by oil if the drains are clogged up as mentioned above, and/or..the rings are stuck/lost their tension if you're acting like mosquito control instead of a little bit of smoke on start up.

 

Well, that is what I was suggesting as a possibility....that oil could run down the exhaust guides if oil was collecting in the heads/rocker covers due to the drains being clogged.

That was in addition to, not in place of, other potential causes of excess oil burning.

Ray

 

You might also try AAJBrakes.com for disc brake upgrade. Roger is the owner. I used his "stuff" on my Desoto and it turned out great.

 

Except for the short tracks and them pesky 55 SBC Chevys....... As mentioned you want to run the car on the road for a bit before tearing into the engine... Despite clean oil you may want to drain it and add fresh oil...Once the oil is drained you can stick a wire into the drain hole and see it it comes out covered in sludge...

 

Don't forget about www.rustyhope.com for disc swaps stuff. Charlie is a good guy!

...as to the rear axle, I have measurements on my web site.

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I can run down the in stems, still can't run up the ex stems.

Apparently AAJ is up for sale. Posted @ www.forwardlook.net If anyone is interested in purchasing and resuming the production of any of our kits, please contact Roger at 503-890-1469.

 

George,

By my calculations, unless the valves on a hemi are spread 90* (45* either side of cyl centerline), and they may be, I am not at my shop to measure a set in a cyl head, then the exhaust stems are not quite horizontal, with the head end being a bit lower than the stem end.....and if I am correct about that, it is 'downhill' to the cylinder/port and gravity, combined with any pressure in the crankcase/valve cover, could push pooled oil down the stem.

Now, I admit, I may have to retract this 'theory' after examining a head, but until I do, I'm leaving this post in place. Tomorrow's menu may contain a big slice of 'humble pie'...stay tuned

Ray

 

There may be another source of the smoke. I own a 1954 Chrysler New Yorker Deluxe. The car was constantly getting low on brake fluid and when parked on a slight incline, there would be a fluid spot under the left rear floorboard. Well that is where the Vacu-Ease power brake unit is. What was happening is that the brake fluid would leak through the booster seal and get sucked into the engine. One day the seal finally went south, and the car smoked like crazy. Brake fluid was emptying faster than I could put it in.

So, you may want to remove the power brake vacuum hose from the intake manifold and see if the smoke goes away.
Good luck

BTW: I will take my Powerflite over the fluid drive any time. The torque converter stall ratios are the same, and you don't have the tip toe shift time to worry about.

 

Sooooo Nice!
Reminds me of our current 49 Ford project. A two door car like yours. Not started for about seven years. We are bringing it back to life. At the shop today getting a beefy front sway bar.
Keep us posted and good luck.....

 

Picked up a set of 53 dodge pickup 16 in rims last night. They are getting the old tires pulled off tomorrow and dropped off at the powder coaters. Going to run a 245/65-16 radial, one coil cut out in the front and a thin block in the rear to lower the car a little. It'll never be anything but a cruiser and the budget isn't there for new coils yet or fancy wheels. Maybe some day.

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nice ride

 

Thank you. It's a good place to start but has a long way to go.

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What is wrong with the axle you have now?

 

Did you check the valve stem hole on those 16 rims, MOPAR used some with an OVAL hole in that period, current stems won't seal for tubeless?

 

Whats wrong with the axle under it now?

Think like the kid on the street corner in 1954. Think what he thought as he watched that car go by in his hopped up Model A beater made from junkyard parts. "Man what I could do with that car!"
Lower it, it's already low. No need for any of that. Would he try to use a bunch of modern day mix mashed junkyard parts? I don't think so.
Fix it like it is and hot up the engine.
That's my opinion.

 

Nothing currently wrong with the axle, just to wide to fit anything more that a 6in wheel with an 800 tire between the brakes and the quarter. Yes I did jack it from the frame. Also I am not a fan of the tapered and keyed axles/hubs. Brakes can be better also.

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Finally going to be home long enough to do something with this car again. The truck rims were a no-go since they are only 4 1/2 to 5in wide. Next idea is to ship these off and have the centers dropped into some new outer rims so I can keep the look I want and get the width im looking for also. I am also planning to pull the heads and have them rebuilt with hardened seats and new guides since I need to replace the valve seals anyways. Last thing i am kicking around is swaping in an overdrive mopar 518 with a hotheads adapter...the price for the adapter is a little shocking but nothing is cheap for these hemis.

 

The heads should have hardened seats/valves in them. Seals on intake valves only.

 

Two thoughts:
If you use valve stem seals then be very cautious about the stem to guide clearance. If you have too little clearance then you should expect a stuck valve, and potential damage. These engines simply do not throw oil all over the place as do so many of the brand 'x' engines.
As to the trans adapter, and even though it is an extended block, the price should not be 'shocking'. To me, 'shocking' is a price that says "look for another engine"...
Have you checked with Pat McGuire?

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If he plays usually with SBCs it might be "Shocking"!

 

Several years ago I bought a 39 Dodge PU. It was rough and all stock except that at some time in its past someone had cut in one of these gauge clusters. Always wondered why. Hated to let it go when I sold the truck. In hindsight I should have kept it anyway.


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Oops, double clutched.

 

The shock of $600 for a flex plate and a flat piece of aluminum just seemed like a lot of money for a little to show for it. My fluid drive is still working so it'll stay in place a while longer. As for the chevy comment, I've actually only owned 3 in my life,
compared to 30+ mopars. I'm used to paying a premium.

As for the head's, aside from rebuilding them or rebuilding the entire engine, I'm out of ideas to stop the smoking. It's clear at idle but is just a solid blue cloud anything above idle. I've ran the engine for hours now at different rpms and let the engine heat cycle hoping something would seal up but so far it's a no go. Figure rebuilding the heads will need to be done any direction I go, might as well get'em done and see if that fixes anything. If not, the engine will get yanked and freshened up.

 

If you have plans/needs to rebuild the engine and desire using an A-500 then this is the time to look for a later engine. You will have more choices on the engine rebuild parts as well as transmissions.
Additionally, this also allows you to drive the car during the rebuild if that is of any importance.

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Due to a change of job coming up.....this car is now for sale in the classified sections