does anyone know what year motor you can just put in with the stock transmission that can in 51 chevy cars? i know that you can put a 54 235 in it but i was wondering at what year change can you no longer just swap out motor and nothing else? also i was wondering if i just put a 54 235 in should i do the rear end as well?
i put a 54 235 in my 49 and didnt change anything but the motor really. i used a new clutch and throwout bearing with the old pressure plate (new one didnt match). i left everything else (trans, rearend, torquetube). its an in town car for sure. ill smoke a v8 thru 1 and 2 but then they get me. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/album.php?albumid=7703 dont know if that helps.
Any 235 or 261 will go in there, except some of the early ones with the side mounts ('52?). Have to drill a couple holes in the front plate if I remember right so it will mount up. In this case the rearend change isn't a bad idea particularly if it's a powerglide car simply because A: you get rid of the Huck brakes, which you could just do the backing plates but it's not a bolt on easy swap, they moved the mount location of the plates.. and B: a Powerglide car has a lower gear ratio which will let you cruise down the highway at a lower RPM and put less stress on the motor.
Theoretically, anything from 37-62 has that bellhousing pattern. A really good swap if you can find one is a 261- it's the best Stovebolt Chevy had to offer. Especially if you swap rears with a 'Glide car. That said, if you can find someone "hot rodding" a tri five(55-57 Chevy) car, you'd have the makings of a real fine driver... Engine, trans and rear. You might want to swap out the rear springs though, if you go open, as the stockers aren't designed to carry the load the same way as they do with the torque tube. I know my old 49 got a 56 Olds rear swapped in after I got rid of it- but that's another story. Good luck, JK
Seems to me the '49 rear was 4.10:1 gearing. A stock '53/'54 PG car had 3.73:1. The power-glide rear is a much better ratio for a driver, IMHO. I'm just finishing up a set of engine mounts for my '56 261 (in a '54 sedan). Once I get the mounts done, I plan on posting plenty of pics, as this has been a topic of conversation before. Here's a teaser for you.
well i was going to get a 235 because my 216 took a crap and i was wanting to upgrade. I wanted to keep it a 6 and hop it up a little bit. I have had people tell me i should try a 292 but i don't know a thing about thoes. it has the original manual transmission in it, would a powerglide rearend work with that as well as the torqetube and all that? Im in a cunundrum to re do all the underworks of my car and have it be off the road for god knows how long or just fix the 216 and wait to do the revamp until i can exchange everything .....
292 is the newer style and would require a bellhousing change, at minimum. If you go that route, go full bore and swap to open driveline, the trans behind a 216 just isn't up to the task. Any post 54 235 (pressure oiled) or 261 would be the ticket, and the least amount of work. If you go that route, get a Patricks catalog or go to their website, they kinda detail what you need to do as far as waterpumps, generators, etc. Your mileage may vary. JK
i got a 230 but it's from a 68 cameo so i need to change the bell housing if i go this route will all my stock stuff be alright? also does anyone know what bell housing you can switch to make something like that fit the original transmission?
I'm at work so I can't find the link right now, but do a search- this topic comes up very often. Let me put it this way... look at the size of the trans in your car now, then look at even a Saginaw 3 speed that would have come with the 230 and your own question will be answered. Personally, I wouldn't do it. If you're gonna use the 230- go all out and swap the entire driveline... unless you never plan to get on the throttle OR spin the tires. The trans just isn't up to the task- at least not on a regular basis. JK
Lolita, The easiest thing to do would be to get a '53 PG or any '54 engine, or a '55 1st series truck, because they will have the same type of water pump that you stock engine has, plus they are full pressure motors. You will need to drill two holes in the front motor plate, but you use your original engine as a pattern, so no big deal. Next easiest would be a 55-62 engine. Still need to drill the holes, but you will also need to do something about the water pump. Either shorten the pump and use a long pump SBC pulley, or get an adapter plate that will allow you to reuse your stock pump. You will need to drill and tap two holes in the motor when doing this. In both cases everything else stays the same. As for a little better highway speed, a 50-54 Powerglide car rearend has 3:55 gears rather than the 4:11's you currently have. If you find one fron a '50, be sure to swap out the brakes as they are not the same as what is on your '51. Or you could just change out the TT section if you prefer.
Actually all you have to do with the later 235 swap is install the radiator with the mount flanges ahead of the cradle flanges instead of behind them. It will clear and give about 1" clearance to the fan, hoses work fine. A little harder to get the bolts in is all, but there's ways to fix that. Best of all, it costs ZERO dollars. No fancy short pump, no fancy adaptors, that's how they did it back in the day. I'd be happy to post a picture of my '56 235 in a '50 Chevy with a stock '55 water pump on it for any non-believers out there.
I used a 57 235,bolt in after drilling 2 holes in the front mount plate to use all the stock mounting....buy the $40 water pump adapter plate from EBAY,it allows the use of the stock 216 water pump,balancer and all the pulleys,then the water pump stays in the center of the radiator and the correct distance without moving the radiator forward...if you use the 235 pump you will have to push the pully back,cut the shaft off and never be able to use an off the shelf water pump anymore,plus the fan is 3 inches lower with possible overheating issues....my $.02...Ken
I know Drugasm has a 216 for sale that he pulled out of his 49. That thing ran like a champ before he pulled it out. The only reason he pulled it was because he got a sweet deal on a hopped up 235. PM him if you're interested. I know he'll give you a killer deal.
I have suggested this in the past, but it didn't seem like the kind of thing she is looking to do as for cost, if you have access to a press and are willing to go to the salvage yard, you can do the shortened pump thing for the price of the used pulley. The adapter plate costs $40. They are all viable options...
I put a '58 235 in my first '53 Chevy years before anyone sold conversion water pumps or early to late adapter plates. I made my own short water pump, found a pulley on an old 283 that worked, and redrilled the original fan blade. I ran it that way for seven years, and never experienced any overheating issues.
250 is a completely different motor, I don't know what good the pictures of a 235 stock water pump clearing the radiator will do you. When you take it apart just slide the radiator back in like I described and you can see what room it gives you. Now if you hit Chevytalk.org or search on here a guy just put a 250 in one of these and posted some photos of that install, that would be of more help to you.
so many decisons to make maybe for right now i will fix the 216 and save up the money to do the swaping of everything that sounds like the best thing to do for me right now thanks for all the info it has been quite informative