Hey Guys! I introduced myself on HAMB earlier today and have committed to show you all the progress of my 1951 Plymouth. Just for the newbies who are even contemplating beginning a project, I am not rich and I most certainly do not know everything about old cars. I DO have mechanical background both in personal and career aspects. I am also gifted with a big shop and personal space for my car with air tools and a lift, which some of you might not have. So without further ado, here is my car. And some brief history. I purchased the car about a years ago from an older (not old) gentleman in San Jose, CA. He bought it 10 years prior off of ebay (who does that?) I purchased the car with a SBC 283ci (64 nova) and a 3 speed manual trans (floor shifter) with a 10 bolt chevy rear. The car (when I took ownership) had not ran in more than 10 years. So what did I do? I got that thing fired up. New gas tank, new lines, new pump, and fresh gas and it did the trick. I drove it around for a couple months, went to the Good guys car show in Pleasanton, CA. It was great. UNTIL.... I was ready for more. The engine ran great but 3 speeds isn't very nice on the freeways. When I decided to begin my plan of attack, I started to notice some really cool but not professional "tricks" the previous owners did to make the SBC fit in there. Fast forward to today, I removed the complete drivetrain and am currently setting it all up for a SBC 350 4 bolt main to a T5 manual trans and a mustang rear end. I have learned pretty much everything I can about this particular car and I love it. It's got great bones. I'm insanely particular about my firewall. ***huge side note*** My firewall was modified to put a SBC in and moved back about 3-5 inches WHICH IS A HUGE DIFFERENCE FOR STEERING. I highly suggest anyone do this to avoid any problems with that. I have so much info on how-to and such. Please feel free to ask. The pictures I am posting are a bit cluttered. Some are from when I first got the car and how it looks now. Enjoy!
I can't figure out why the firewall had to be moved so far back. I put a 318 in my '51 and only dinged back a corner about 1.5" to clearance the passenger side valve cover.
WOW, those cars are super nice. yeah, looks like you guys didn't have to modify your firewall but did you guys have to move your radiators forward? or maybe used an electric fan. instead of a mechanical one? what about steering ? do your original steering boxes clear those v8s? I'm going with a rack and pinion on mine.
I guess it's not so much that the firewall HAS to be recessed back. but it helps with steering and also using a mechanical fan if you're opposed to an electric fan. As you can probably tell by my photos, I'm spending a lot of time on the firewall. all of the weld marks will be near impossible to see. I don't want them exposed. I want a smooth, clean, glossy finish.
My 318 was moved 2 inches towards the passenger side to clear the steering column. I did have to modify the passenger side wheel well to access the spark plugs...
I see. I had read about others doing that. very nicely done. I almost went full Mopar on mine but this SBC was easier to access at the time. Have you thought about updating the steering? I'll be doing the rack and pinion swap soon. hey what about your rear end?? what rear are you running with that 318?
Awesome, Chile. Happy New Year and welcome to the HAMB. Sent from my VS835 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I had no issues with the stock steering, converted to a dual master cylinder on the firewall, with a dash hung brake pedal from '62 Studebaker Lark, it had a 727 trans and a Dana 44 rear. The car drove and stopped pretty well.
Mine has the radiator in the stock position with a mechanical fan - cools well. The stock steering drives well with bigger sway bar and shock relocation. As far as other details here is a piece I wrote about it in 2004 :
Mine had both an electrical and mechanical fan. The stock mechanical fan was really low on the radiator so I mounted an electric fan on the top half...
By all means use the sbc, t5, mustang rear. definitely use a rack to improve steering. moving the motor back makes life with these cars so much easier it should be made a requirement. Plus that little move improves handling also. Anything you do to make your ride preform, steer, handle or stop better than the "it's ok" syndrome is what hotrodding is all about. And by all means, do it the way YOU want, as long as it's safe and the work is done well. Good luck on the build.
Years ago, there were several threads on installing rack & pinion steering posted here, before rack & pinion became off topic. The front suspension on your car is the same basic setup as Plymouth used in the 46-48 time frame. I did a swap on a 47 or 48 Plymouth back then (I posted under 50dodge4x4), and there were several threads available. I believe if you go to the archives, you can find "46-48 Plymouth rack & pinion conversion". If you bring it back to the top, it will be probably be deleted, so read and take notes. Its been a long time ago, but I may be able to answer some questions through PMs here. Gene
Cool to see another guy building a cranbrook. I'm currently building a 52. Wish you would have went mopar for the motor but that is me LOL. I get the chevy engines are easy to get but I am not a cross breeding kinda guy but a chevy engine is classic hot rodding. You planning on doing any body mods or leave it as is? I am planning to chop mine when the time is right.
MoparTony: I have not contemplated doing any body mods just yet. I'd love to do some more radical ideas in the future. But for now, it will stay as is. I tried to find a good mopar engine before going with a sbc. I actually went to go look at a 52 hemi motor. It was off of a desoto and period correct. But the engine had been sitting outside for decades and the guy was trying to get rich off his junk. The SBC was a quick and easy purchase. I'd love to see yours , got any pictures? I have a nice pedal set up if your interested - it's a conversion from floor to firewall mounted. I ended up putting 97 camaro pedals in mine. Hydraulic clutch feels way nice.
Mine is fresh out of the barn, got it back in april? I have been collecting parts lately and plan on pulling motor soon. I swapping to a 360 magnum. I'm not sure what pedals I'm going with but will be an automatic.
I’m trying to do a 318 swap into my 51 Cambridge sedan right now but definitely looks like the firewall will need work. Also isn’t the Cambridge frame more narrow than the cranbrook? From what I’ve read and seen they are idk for sure tho but looks like my manifolds are gonna sit on top of the steering and frame. Not sure where to start at on firewall work. I’m not a fabricator but have been wrenching on my own stuff for 35yrs lol also I’ve seen guys mention using a rack and pinion but what one are u guys using? Thanks for any help and info. This car has been nothing but a pain since I’ve gotten it haha
From what vie gathered doing the SBC conversion on my 1951 Cranbrook, you have a couple of options. You can either cut the firewall like I did in the pictures above to move it back some inches so that you can accommodate a electrical/mechanical fan or you can leave the firewall as is and move the engine forward a bit but then for the cooling system, you'll need another solution. I'm not too familiar with the Cambridge so no help there. As for the engine mounts, i just welded mine to the frame, its easier than having to drill holes. plus this thing will always have a SBC from now till death. The cool thing about the way mine ended up was that with the firewall cut a bit and the engine back some inches, the rack and pinion i installed fit perfectly under the sump of the engine. its a perfect fit. My 1951 does not have any front sub frame or anything like that . it has the stock frame. so i had my metal guy fabricate some mounts for me that i found online. they were made for a 1951 Chevy but with very MINOR adjustments, i was able to use them just fine. i can send you pics so you know what I'm talking about. show us your car and post some pics, i love the Cambridge model. Super cool!
The frames are the same from the firewall area forward. The convertibles had an X member. Difference in wheelbase length between models is from the transmission mount to the rear. The firewall modification to fit a 318 is pretty minor, see my pic in post #2 and read the attached PDF in post #11. The use of A body exhaust manifolds and a rear sump truck pan makes it a good swap with stock steering and fan. Been driving mine for 17 years now and still very happy with it.
Here are some pics of mine. Original 54000 miles. I’ve done the scarebird disc brake front end, 8.8 disc brake rear end, and was hoping to fit this 318 and auto trans in there but that’s where I’m hitting issues. Would like to do the rack and pinion steering also but not sure what to look for to make that work.
My motor is from a early to mid 80s Plymouth Fargo pickup so I have the rear sump pan already. I have manifolds from a 74 Dodge Charger also(guessing that’s A body?) Seems my manifolds are gonna sit on top of the steering shaft and on frame on passenger side that’s why I asked if these cars have different width frame rails. I just have motor sitting in it right now nothing has been mounted cause looks like I need to bash or fabricate the firewall. My water pump pulley as of right now will sit halfway into the radiator support or looks to me it will.
The Charger manifolds are not the same as A body cars (Dart, Duster Valiant, etc), with a 318/340. The A body V8 driver side manifold curves around to clear the steering gear. As far as comments about this being only “good enough” swap and not optimal, I guess it depends on the goal and expectations. With Scarebird disc brakes, bigger sway bar and relocated front shocks mine drives great. Of course the geometry of the kingpin style front suspension is not the most modern. As far as swapping a Chevy or any other motor - go for it. In my case I wanted to keep the ‘51 all MoPar because I had received so much grief from diehards because of the 302 Ford/c4 in my ‘53 Dodge panel. The firewall modification for the 318 took only some heating and hammering, a stock Duster radiator was mounted in the original location and used the stock fan, column shift was retained, original floor brake pedal used with an ECI master cylinder setup with a stock floor. In all it worked out as a very good swap, it did take some time to fit the engine just right. I guess, to some, my ‘51 wagon is not really a hot rod. For me it met my expectations, drives very good, dependable, and all MoPar.
thanks for the info and I’m the same as you. I wanna keep it as much mopar as possible and I’m on the lookout for a manifold if anyone has one laying around lol. I’m gonna ditch the stock brake master cylinder and relocate to firewall to accommodate the 4 wheel disc brakes I’m running. Not sure what I will do for a radiator yet if I can’t use mine still. Also running a auto trans I need a cooler for it now and a place to mount it. I still have to have room to mount my AC stuff also.
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