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Art & Inspiration Drivin Dads Dodge

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by derbydad276, Feb 18, 2019.

  1. derbydad276
    Joined: May 29, 2011
    Posts: 1,336

    derbydad276
    Member

    After years of looking ....finally found.... { as close as I could find } to the Unicorn my father owned ...in the mid to late 50's while he was dating my mother ...
    Plan is will be to take my mother for a ride in it as soon as I can My father passed away 9 years ago
    a 1953 Coronet coupe Ive seen 100's of sedans
    { I see 10,000 53 Chevy's and Fords to 1 of these }
    his was a Red Ram Hemi car with a Gyro-Matic this one is a flat head six 3 speed
    the family I'm buying from tells me they made fewer than 5000 coupes in 53
    the initial plan is to drive the hell out of it ... on the Back to Bricks Promo tour this summer
    its a barn car , the story goes ... it was parked in the barn while the owner was sent to Korea in the Army and left it there when he got back ... guesstimate it sat for 50 years until is was resurrected as a father & son project it only has 33 k miles on it
    when I went to look at it it was a little rougher than I wanted it to be until I saw the licence plate topper from AAA the company he worked for ,For 39 years ...SOLD


    so I'm calling on the extremely knowledgeable member of The HAMB to help me find the proper era period correct parts I need for it to wake the Flatty Up
    I already know about Langdon ..
    and the Montana Guys ... Eggy
    I'm looking for a Edmonds intake ... OD trans or conversion and suggestions
    IMG_0654.JPG
     
    Tim, Cosmo49, AndersF and 9 others like this.
  2. oldiron 440
    Joined: Dec 12, 2018
    Posts: 3,299

    oldiron 440
    Member

  3. Cool car and even cooler story! Congrats on the car and post pics of taking your Mom for a drive.

    Jim
     
  4. sevenhills1952
    Joined: Mar 14, 2018
    Posts: 956

    sevenhills1952

    I'd love to see more pictures when you get a chance.
    So nice seeing something different, nice memories for you, your Mom and family.

    Sent from my SM-S320VL using Tapatalk
     

  5. Frankie47
    Joined: Dec 20, 2008
    Posts: 1,877

    Frankie47
    Member
    from omaha ne.

    It'll go faster if you take that cheesy Ram hood ornament off and mail it to me...LOL.....less drag ya know.
    Seriously nice car and I hope it makes your Mom happy!
     
  6. ... Nice ride! .. hope to see it on the street ... :cool:
     
  7. 41rodderz
    Joined: Sep 27, 2010
    Posts: 6,540

    41rodderz
    Member
    from Oregon

    Neat looking era correct car. Ahhh back in time when cars were cars.
     
  8. low budget
    Joined: Nov 15, 2006
    Posts: 5,566

    low budget
    Member
    from Central Ky

    Neat Car! Have to ask, Whats the difference in a sedan vs coupe in these?
     
  9. derbydad276
    Joined: May 29, 2011
    Posts: 1,336

    derbydad276
    Member

    2 door coupe .... 4 door sedan
     
    low budget likes this.
  10. classiccarjack
    Joined: Jun 30, 2009
    Posts: 1,465

    classiccarjack
    Member

    Can't wait to see more pictures myself. It sounds like it is a really nice car.

    Sent from my Moto Z (2) using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
     
  11. plym_46
    Joined: Sep 8, 2005
    Posts: 4,018

    plym_46
    Member
    from central NY

    In 56 Dodge had an optional 2 BBL carb that raised hp from 125 to 132. I believe there are a few of these kicking around. I think the 53/54 were rated at 110 hp at 3600 rpm. Without spending a lot of bucks, you can have the head milled to raise the cr. There are several ways to split the exhaust manifold, if you handy with a hole saw and welder I can talk you through one that doesn't require trying to weld steel to cast iron. Offenhauser still produces dual single barrel intakes. Check out manifoldsbymoose if you want something home grown. The engine should be a 230. Keep in mind these have a 4 5/8 inch stroke and don't want to go much north of 4000 rpm without changes to bottom end oiling, keep them below that and they will treat you well. You can take .060 of the head assuming it hasn't been milled before, this will give you an 8.25 to 1 cr and allow you to crank in 5 or 6 more degrees of initial timing to deal better with modern gas. Exhaust valve seats are factory hardened so no lead additives are needed. You said it is a standard trans, but most Dodges had fluid drive regardless of the trans. Start it up put it in third, put the brakes on and let out the clutch. If it doesn't stall either the clutch is totally toast or you have fluid drive. This is a fluid coupling that allows the clutch and drivedunit to come to a stop while still engaged to the running engine. This system allows you to drive around in third gear just using gas pedal and brake. Or you can row through the gears as you would with a normal clutch, your choice. Make sure you have a properly operating parking brake. There is no compression braking with engine off. If parked even on a slight slope, fluid drive cars like to wander... Wheel chocks in the trunk are a good idea if you are not 100% sure of your e brake.
    Go to the allpar web site and search fluid drive for a better description of care and feeding. Two doors are few and far between. That one is nice example. 33000 is hardly broken in for these engines. Keep the temp down and oil pressure normal 35 to 45 psi at cruise, and you will have a dependable and fun if not fast ride.
     
    Last edited: Mar 4, 2019
    loudbang likes this.
  12. classiccarjack
    Joined: Jun 30, 2009
    Posts: 1,465

    classiccarjack
    Member

    Fluid drives also require 10w non detergent oil. I built a couple, they are actually decent Transmissions. Just not what you want if you want to drag race...

    Sent from my Moto Z (2) using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
     
    loudbang likes this.
  13. 53 hemi
    Joined: Jan 8, 2009
    Posts: 501

    53 hemi
    Member

    Yep! Awesome car! Its getting easier to find parts, finally. IMG_20190219_150035_889.jpeg

    Sent from my SM-G950U using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
     
    Truckdoctor Andy and loudbang like this.
  14. derbydad276
    Joined: May 29, 2011
    Posts: 1,336

    derbydad276
    Member

    hey 53hemi ... I want your Visor
     
  15. 73RR
    Joined: Jan 29, 2007
    Posts: 7,174

    73RR
    Member

    The guys over ay www.p15-d24.com have a couple centuries of experience with these engines so consider joining.

    .
     
  16. derbydad276
    Joined: May 29, 2011
    Posts: 1,336

    derbydad276
    Member

    few more pics for you guys to drool over
     

    Attached Files:

    classiccarjack likes this.
  17. classiccarjack
    Joined: Jun 30, 2009
    Posts: 1,465

    classiccarjack
    Member

    The car looks fantastic!

    Sent from my Moto Z (2) using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
     
  18. derbydad276
    Joined: May 29, 2011
    Posts: 1,336

    derbydad276
    Member

    found this nugget in the glove box ... Original Owners manual ! ... only 35 pages ... my 2008 escape is over 300
    IMG_0726.JPG IMG_0730.JPG IMG_0729.JPG IMG_0727.JPG
     
  19. classiccarjack
    Joined: Jun 30, 2009
    Posts: 1,465

    classiccarjack
    Member

  20. derbydad276
    Joined: May 29, 2011
    Posts: 1,336

    derbydad276
    Member

    update....

    Just took it on a 1100 mile trip..from to Detroit to Sault Ste. Marie and Grand Marais
    17.5 mpg only used 1 1/2 quarts of oil

    IMG_0884.JPG BJVN1164 (2).JPG IMG_0884.JPG
     
    53 hemi and Tim like this.
  21. derbydad276
    Joined: May 29, 2011
    Posts: 1,336

    derbydad276
    Member

    Michigan has great secondary highways ..ran 55 60 mph ... the 3.90 rear gear needs to go IMG_0913.JPG
     
    53 hemi and Tim like this.
  22. derbydad276
    Joined: May 29, 2011
    Posts: 1,336

    derbydad276
    Member

    Took the 53 To The Gilmore Museum Cruise In this week
    IMG_0979.JPG IMG_0981.JPG
     
    Peanut 1959 likes this.

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