Hot Rods cant decide, flathead 6 hotrod or v8 fuel enjected mopar????

I can not decide if I want to keep my (mostly stock) 1933 Dodge DP 6 with a Flathead 6 or stick a Mopar v8, new trans, new rear end in this car.

its is all original but the engine block, the block is a 53 Dodge 230ci which I have been told is bigger than what the car originally came with.

I have the option of taking out the Flathead 6 and stroking it, putting manafold/dual carb/headers/etc... on and making the car look more stock than if I swapped out a V8 360 (so I can keep the sides of the hood down unless I pop them up)

however, I have access to a fairly cheap short block 360, fuel injected or carbed as my family owns a Jeep Wrecking yard and Mopar v8s come in quite often and I get them for about $200 a block. from there add on the updated transmission and rear end and drive my 33 dodge anywhere.

OR KEEP THE FLATHEAD 6 and either swap out the transmission and rear end for highway speeds or keep the old 3 speed shift tranny and old rear end.

I am really leaning towards Flathead 6 hot rod, new tranny with adapter, and rear end out of a Cherokee.
see what car looks like below.


THOUGHTS?

 

It really depends on your own personal choice, finances and skills and what you want............I've got a 318 poly v8, auto, 4wheel discs etc in the 40 Dodge but I also had a 41 Plymouth Coupe and was building a 230 with twin carbs, finned head, split headers, HEI, Beehive oil filter, a T5 gearbox, chrome smoothies, white whites, lowered 2" all round, Fulton visor, etc and it always got nice comments so if it were me I'd go with the 6 which maybe a little bit more fiddling around but it will certainly be something different and appealing.......heres a pic of the proposed engine I was going to put in the Plymouth and a pic of the Plymouth also...I ended up selling the engine separately to the car, both about 5yrs ago.............duh..........what I dope am I...........lol...........your money & time so your choice.........lol.......Andy Douglas

 

The late BobK put over 200 thousand miles on his Chevy in 10 years. The Dodge Dakota 8 3/4 rearend is the right width.

 

Remember, six in a row can go.

 

Dude keep the inline. Change the tranny like you were planning, also find a later b-body rear end. It seems to be that people change the rear first, then do the tranny swap.
A modern fuel injected Mopar is not for this board anyhow. Maybe a Dodge poly or baby Hemi with a tri-carb setup. Either way the rear will have to go for the hand brake setup.

In a few weeks i’ll Know if the Plymouth I’ve been working on will change directions and it is most likely going to be an in-line 6 all the way.

Also if you go full modern you will end up convincing yourself a MII setup is needed.
Also some stuff sounds cheap at first but you will end up going through the electrics, brakes and basically rebuilding the whole car when you look back.

 

Well I really like those old Mopar flathead sixes as that is what I learned on in high school auto shop. Speed parts can be spendy though.
The 360 and attending pieces would probably be more economical in some respects but if you mention it here you don't mention the FI. You just leave that space blank when you write something about it.
Main thing is what are the plans for how and where you drive the car. Just around the county with maybe one or two 100 to 200 mile one way road trips a year the six will be great and they are reliable. On the other hand if the plans are for serous road trips over long distances to far flung events the V8 or maybe since you have access to Jeep pieces a later Jeep straight six would fit better than the V8 and still let you run with the big dogs out on the long roads. And then you can run a pair of 1-3/4 or 2 inch pipes out to the back with glass packs and guys will go "did you hear that six go buy, whoo hoo".

 

Why not a 360 with a six pack on top? I really would rather that car was kept stockish, but it is your car. No EFI would be best IMHO.

 

I'd keep the flat 6. My cousin had a 50 Ply. with a split manifold, shaved head etc and it was a GR8 runner & very dependable. He ran the snot out of it & it took a lick'n and kept on tick'n.
Dual carbs etc, just my .02. Nice looking car, good luck & have fun, m

 

Hopping up the flat 6, adding a few speed parts and changing the transmission and rear to be better at handling highway speeds if you are planning on taking it on some extended drives sounds best to me, and would keep the car a lot cooler in my mind, atleast over a modern'ish v8.

but this sounds like a good idea as well and will still look cool!

 

What will bring the most joy to you?
What choice will motivate you to drive the car the most?
These old cars are great, but much more fun when they will/can be driven comfortably, without concerns that can can cause stress, therefore, they end up parked more than driven.
I got from your post that you are of the mindset, that the late model V8, will be more reliable than the hopped up flat 6..whether that's true or not, if it's what you believe, it would seem the V8 is the direction you should go.
Living in So Cal, it would be a shame to not take advantage of your year round driving conditions.
Great looking car, by the way.

 

Don't forget what won the first Daytona 500 !

 

5sp and a rear change and drive anywhere.

 

I've driven my avatar over 50,000 miles with a hot rodded flathead six. I've got a Borg Warner overdrive and 3.73 gears. I can run 70-75 all day. Gets a lot more attention when the hood is open than a V8 or a small block Chevy......Keep the six-banger.

 

Keep the six, (it's already in there) new trans,new rear.
If you aren't satisfied with the six, you can change it later.
Depends how you intend to use it also

 

Whatever you put in it for an engine, that's one cool looking car!

 

I'd leave it just like it is and just drive slow.

 

Love the look of the car, hot rod the six, change trans & rear end. AND upgrade the brakes!

 

If you are asking this question chances are you will be happier with the six. First of all what kind of shape is the old engine in? Have you done a compression test? How is the oil pressure? These engines are foolers, they continue to run without bad knocks or bang when in an advanced state of wear and decay. If your compression is below 100 you only have about half the horsepower you started with. Just rebuilding to stock will transform the car. While you are at it, you can increase HP and performance by 25% to 50% with a few simple low cost hop up tricks.

It would be a lot cooler to do this than to swap in a second hand junker engine. And, you would be starting with a new engine.

 

I really appreciate everybody's inside and opinions and I agree I want to stick with the Flathead 6i think it looks cool it's more rare and doesn't throw me in with all the other hot rods than have a standard v8 I'm going to have to find a transmission which is becoming the hard part I think that's why I'm thinking about a modern v8 because the t5 transmission to adapt to at 2:30 Flathead fixed is becoming a daunting task.

However I do feel that a flathead 6 in this car it allows me to drive highway speeds so I can take the car to car shows M car runs would be more exciting so I appreciate everybody's opinion I will keep my eye out for a T5 transmission and will keep you updated as the fun keeps going.

Also thank you all for the comments on the car it is very beautiful I am very lucky to have found it now I just need to get it more reliable because I want to drive it and not have it sit in the garage all the time

 

I'd keep the 6, hot rod it as you can afford or want to.
We don't really do modern motors on the HAMB.
It's a VERY nice car, don't cut it up to put in a modern 8, these cars get more scarce every year, keep it as stock looking as you can.
Unless you are going to street race, why go for a lot of power?
My two cents!

 

I am from the opposite side, I would go modern V8 and drivetrain all the way. Car would not have to be cut up to add some engine and trans mounts, any changes could be undone. In my 41 Cadillac I was even able to use the factory transmission crossmember in the factory location and only had to modify the factory engine mounts to work.

 

It all depends on your usage plans. If much Interstate driving is planned I'd definitely go with a V8 swap.

 

Keep the 6, + 5-speed,Rear... Perfect!

 

Sactownog, perhaps my experience will help.
I kept the in line 8 in my Buick. NOT sorry. I did some work on it. It is more responsive. Runs faster than allowed. And is KOOL. Rear end was changed to 3.36 to 1. Be easier to do so in your beauty. The 5spd would be nice. Like has been said, EVERYBODY has an 8. And nothing , not even my 8, sounds as good as an inline 6 with duel steelpacks.
PLEASE keep us in the loop.

Ben

 

my plans are to drive this car around San Diego, It is nice 99% of the time, but I go so slow on the freeway it takes forever to get around town. also, I want to go to shows in Los Angeles and driving this car there with the 3 speed and rear gears would be a nightmare (not gona do it).

so my plan is to figure out what transmission I need and rear end swap. and I plan to keep the 6.

I will take it out, rebuild it, stroke it, and pump it up a bit, but it will stay a 6. that way it is more towards original than hotrod. its not a hotrod car, its a cruiser, I just want to cruise at a manageable speed.

 

360 v-8. Sorry but flathead 6 hot rod seems strange wording.

 

Sacto..........as you already have a 230 then you are 3/4 of the way there although I'm not sure whether adding more to the stroke is a good idea, I know that the 23" engine can get 60thou over pistons which will help a bit, a milled or a finned head, twin carbs on a still available Offy intake or if you want to retain the single carby look maybe just a twin barrel BBD or similar, headers or a split manifold and a good balance will really help, also would recommend the Langdons HEI, it was the best single improvement I did to the original 201 in my 41 Plymouth...instant starts, ran better, smoother just a much better drive.........I sold the car before finishing the 230 engine which was also getting an S10 T5 and late Oz Ford Falcon rear axle same as my 40 Dodge rear end...........swapping a late rear end is a must or at least better rear gears but what setup does your 1933 Dodge have in relation to the gearbox/bellhousing mounts as my understanding is that they have a similar arrangement to that used on the Pilot House, Post WW2 pickups with a large crossmember which can make gearbox swaps complicated...........then go hunt some Frods...........lol.............regards from Oz.........andyd.

 

Don Coatney put a 5 speed in his 230 powered 48 Plymouth and drives it all over the US at 70 MPH.

Then there is this guy who drives a 51 DeSoto 8 passenger limo with the original flatty, he doesn't mind driving 70 with the stock transmission and 4:11 gears (that's 3600RPM) towing a trailer.
https://www.allpar.com/cars/desoto/suburban-1951.html

 

I will be among the few that much prefer the efi V8, 5 speed, and the modern Jeep rear end. My coupe has a modern V6, 5 speed OD trans, disc brakes, rack & pinion steering, and a modern rear axle. We drive it everywhere, 20+ mpg, will run 80 on the interstate, its just a fun ride. 50,000 miles in 6 summers, I've driven it through 15 states, with more to come. Gene

 

I’m with Mr48Chevy, look into the Jeep I6. You could get the complete running gear from a wrecked Grand Cherokee. The AMC designed I6 is a tough engine, and you could probably use earlier factory parts from a CJ to convert it to a standard ignition and carburetor.