Customs 1949 Mercury, I hate flatheads.

Maybe you AOD haters need to read up on them a little more,I recommend www.clickclickracing.com almost all O.D. transmissions take some tweaking to work in a swap.There are plenty of complaints on the web about 700R4's,if you have time on your hands you could look it up on Google and stay busy for hours.Both the 700R4 and AOD's prior to 1987 had a lot of factory bugs that were corrected which is why 1987-1992 cores are preferred in both transmissions for a build since those years had all the factory upgrades and were still non-computer.The adapters to put a 700R4 on an SBF will set you back a few bucks that could be spent on AOD upgrades.Not a HAMB friendly Ford but a good example of an AOD set up right:http://www.clickclickracing.com/forums/showthread.php?9990-9-sec-pass-with-a-AOD!-Video-included!

 

I prefer the flathead od combo myself

 

Gonna hafta report some of you to the N.A.A.F.H.

 

Here are a couple of photos the rest are in my album, I am still sitting here looking at the hair line crack and weighing my options????

 

Dunno,its your ride but I just see it as trading One set of problems for a whole
other set of problems. For me the flathead makes the car and in my experience with my 49 Hudson with 4.55 gears and an OD a great roadable
ride.Sure,I hurt a piston on the way to Viva this year but in previous 2800
mi. roadtrips I used two qts. of oil and got 17 mpg. I'm pulling my engine
tonight and hoping for the best,but whatever I find I'll deal with and be
back on the road this year better than ever. Rowing through those 3 gears
and backing off for the OD to engage defines my car to me and is one of the
things I love about it most.

 

Welp, you asked for an easy fix and even though there are a ton of SBC haters here, I'd go with a 350/700R4 combo. Almost a bolt-in and parts are reasonable...and available all over the world.
I'd keep my flathead/3 speed O.D. for a lighter project, like a bucket T...the merc cranks are going for 250-500 bucks depending on where you live and its' condition.
The rest of the engine [except pistons, clutch and bellhousing] ] parts are same as ford.

 

I personally think it's a shame to yank that motor, but I'll take it off your hands if you're getting rid of it. I'm serious. Sweet looking Merc BTW.

 

Killer Merc, do what works for you. Keeping it on the road is the goal, not everyone needs to know the drivetrain. Good luck on the swell ride. ~sololobo~

 

Defiantly change that tired flatty to a SBC how would people like me build Hot rods on a budget without this kind of mindset. (That’s were my motor came from)

 

Well my advice would be to fix it. I have 4 flathead powered cars and the problems have been next to nothing. My roadster flattie bit it because of a poor engineering design on the full flow oil system, but that is not the motor's fault. NO HEAD LIKE A FLATHEAD,call Len Hurley and it will all bolt right back in and maintain the value of that pristine Merc. Man it is a nice one Larry. Then at least when you sell it the new owner can sell the motor and let him ruin it..... TBJ
As you know when a flattie blows it is NOT fun...but I replaced it...lol

 

I love flatties, but to me they're like a boat; Nice if someone else owns it!

 

John, I took your advice and spoke to Len, shit it is like talking to you he suggested getting it stitched and machined, or getting a new block and replace the inner parts with my stuff. I jst cant seem to go there. Larry

By the way you have been single too long if you think THERE IS NO HEAD LIKE A FLATHEAD !!!!!!

 

the bottom half of a flathead engine and the bottom half of a sbc are quite the same making a chevy fit quite naturally, but if you have all day a flattie will get you there , maybe.

 

I doubt that.........went thru 4 "good" flatheads when I started my build ...all cracked....went with a 283...my daily driver 47 Ford 239 you have to ignore temp guages when you drive it....been waiting a week for new crab cap to get here......broke down before I got to Road Rocket Rumble......kind of hate them too

 

chevrolet small block , the front sump on the ford hits everything

 

"By the way you have been single too long if you think THERE IS NO HEAD LIKE A FLATHEAD !!!!!! "

Really? A good friend of mine always says : "Don't say 'head' to a married man!"

Of course, you all have heard the joke : "Why does a bride smile while she's walking down the aisle?"

 

sbc way to go

 

I don't think that it's the flathead's fault, it's SIXTY TWO YEARS OLD! I'm sure that Fifty or sixty years from now someone is going to be complaining about a cracked block in the 3800 V6 that's in this old 2004 Bonneville SSEi that they just dragged out of a barn.

Shit wears out, breaks, gets dilapidated, etc. You yourself said the car was off the road for decades, it's quite possible that this is why. You have no knowledge of what this engine has been through over the years. It's also been my experience that a lot of unrestored old cars that have been stored for decades were stored because something went wrong with them and the owner didn't have the heart to junk the thing.

That's what happens with old cars, it's part of their, ahem, "charm".

I would fix the flathead, throwing a SBC in there is giving the car a lobotomy and it's the cheap and easy way out IMO. If you want cheap and easy, come into where I work, we'll set ya up with a new Hyundai with a warranty. Didn't think that's what ya wanted either.

Now, if you were swapping in an early Chrysler Hemi, or an Olds or Caddy OHV? Well, now that would be neat.

A GOOD Machine shop can probably fix your motor for a couple of hundred bucks. Pull it, fix it, put it back together, drive it, enjoy it and preserve it so that 62 years from now someone else will be lucky enough to drive a 49 Merc with its' original flathead V8 in it.

 

Those Mercs came with a 4:27 rear gear ratio.

 

That would be very cool as far as engine options go!

People stating that there is much SBC hate makes me laugh- considering that it seems that every other car here is SBC powered!!

 

Not everyone is smart enough to swap in a Mouse Motor
Chevrolet U.S.A-1

 

Whoo, fellow Canadian I made the mistake of commenting negative on flatheads here once. The feathers came off resonably well but the tar was a bitch to remove.

 

Not all cracks are the same. I've witnessed two successful repairs of cracks just like yours. Drill and pin, new valve seat inserts. Done.

 

Thanks for the info. I will look linto it. I have just pulled it out and have decided to replace it with a good used 50 Merc flattie obtained from fellow Hamber Enfield Joe this past weekend. The other engine will go off to the machine shop for their opinion. Nice pics of your Merc, I enjoyed seeing them. Larry

 

A old popular swap would be an olds or Caddy. A lincoln Y block would also have been done.

if you are thinking late model your easiest swap is going to be one with a rear sump pan. So you may look at buicks as well as any other engine with a rear sump pan.

 

302w and 351w are definitely NOT the same block! There are many diferences including intake manifolds.

 

Good Luck Larry, still really dig that Merc of yours! Will be keeping an eye on it.

 

Joe, Thanks again I will keep you updated, by the way you were right Johnny is a hell of a nice guy he was a great help. Larry

 

flathead-- keep it