I am Hell-bent on putting a 440 & Torqueflite in my '56 Dodge. OK, the engine may be a little late model for this forum, but only a little-it's a 1966 440. Has anyone done this swap and what advice can you pass along? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Mike
I was doing the very same thing on my '56 Plymouth wagon, but I sold the car. I know that the heater WILL have to be either modified or deleted altogether, since it intrudes into the engine compartment at the right head. I also had a '72 Nova disc brake subframe, which made things kinda hard to sort, too. The stock front end will accommodate the 440, again, with the heater mod needed. The way I had measured for the radiator, I had a little over 3/4" between the water pump and the radiator, but that was because of the Nova sub. Sorry I can not be of more help for you, but this will get you started.
i have a 440 also that i had thought about putting my 56 plymouth. i have been wanting to update the tranny to a torqueflite, i would have to buy an adapter to hook it to the 277. that is why i have been kickin around the 440. would like to know if there are a set of headers that would work or would i have to use manifolds.
I'm going to put a 383 in my 56 dodge.(Which is the same size as a 440) I have been told that it will go in with no problems. The 315 Hemi that came stock in a lot of them is biger than the 440 or 383. I have heard of there being a problem with the 727 fitting at the hump,but than others have said they did it. so I would say it will work. I'm planing on this 383 out of a 64 Sport Fury and a 727 out of a 62 Chrysler. This way I'll retain my pushbuttons. The 727 is a 3 speed so I need to find a trans button unit out of a 57-59 Dodge Pickup as they had a 3 speed button set up in the same format as the 56 Dodge. Good Luck. MoPar to yah!!
...hate to spoil your plan, but...... The '62 trans will not work with a post-62 engine, different crank/converter arrangement. Yes, you can use a '63 or '64 if you don't mind the trunion assembly, or, you can use a '65 trans with a slip yoke but then you will have to use a '64 valvebody to operate the PB drive. Good luck with the swap. Be sure to post some pics! .
Thirty years ago I put a 361&trans out of a 61 Plymouth in my 56 Suburban ( station wagon) I used the 61 mounts they had a flat area where they bolted to the frame. The rear mount fit the 56 cross member and I used a combination of 56&61 throttle linkage. I used the 61 ex. manifolds and header pipes. There were no clearance problems if I remember right. I found out that the Ply. was a California Patrol car, the 56 run strong for a wagon. I used the 61 radiator, it was a bolt in. Lee
OK you threw me off for awhile. The change was in 1961. the crank is differnt on the 1961 and older.but the crank on the 62 does bolt up to the the 727 A. I had to do some research somewhere else to come up with this. But hey thanks anyhow because it made me check in to it more.
Heres a picture of the differnce . I met this guy named John Kunkel on another form: Moparchat. He posted this picture for me and explained it to me. top crank is the early one.
There is some confusion regarding the exact timing of the change over. As with many changes and the apparent usage of 'left-over' parts, there are examples of each design found in 1962 so the safe bet is as I described. Mother Mopar has never made it easy for us.... .
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