1956 Chrysler: Chirping Sound in Engine

Assuming a hot tank, try to convince your shop guy to rotate the block several times in addition to flipping end for end to give all of the crap a chance to escape. This might save you from removing the one inside galley plug at the intermediate gear.

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Why, should drill a little hole in it anyway....

 

In 1953, there was only an extended bell housing. It won't match up with your tranny. Contact hot heads in NC and they can give you some tech help. Also, you might look at their swap page. Lots of guys in this country with parts etc.

 

Of course an .060 pin hole is a good idea but many have been rebuilt without. Depending on the shop doing the work, they may not have the patience, or interest, to remove the plug so just offering an option...

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I thought I'd share this picture of my daughter I took while we were taking out the crankshaft.

I think it speaks volumes.

 

Rebuild the poly and be happy. There is very little difference between the poly and hemi Chrysler, and that is mainly in the exhaust valve area. According to 1956 road tests there was little or no difference in performance below 80 MPH. At high speeds the hemi would walk away thanks to its superior breathing.

 

On the other hand if you wanted to you could put the hemi in your car if it is the 54 up model, or you could put the hemi heads on your block.

 

Can someone please explain to me how one reads a dipstick showing one quart of oil in the pan? Maybe post a picture of a dipstick with increments from full to one quart? I'm a Chevy guy, and the dipsticks I'm used to seeing don't show anything after the oil level is more than two quarts low. Then again, this thread is about Mopars, so maybe it's different. Meanwhile, the chirping I'm hearing sounds more like turd birds. As in bullshit.

 

You should stick to SBC threads.......and leave the mopar to the devoted ones.

 

That's what I'm doing. I've found a few 331 Hemi engines around, but none of them will work with my transmission I'm finding.
I've also been looking for a spare 311 Poly locally to maybe avoid having the crankshaft machined, but so far I've not located anything within driving distance. The cars I have found are far too nice to scavenge from.

I did look into a Hemi conversion. The I'd have to change out the crank and pistons as well according to the site I read. The added torque causes the crank to become unbalanced.

 

311? Did you mean 331?

I think 331 poly crank and rods are the same as Hemi. I'm pretty sure the rotating assembly is the same except for the pistons, which are obviously of a different design to work with the Poly heads. You just have to watch the years of the 331 cranks because early and late 331 had a different tail length. I bet if you got the part number off your crank you could cross reference it to either Poly or Hemi. And I think a 301 crank would have been the same as well. Stroke was the same. 301 just had a smaller bore.

 

Oh thhhpt. Yes, 331, not 311.


I'll have this sorted out soon. I'm going to first attempt to find a replacement engine. If I can't locate one in the next few weeks, I'll just rebuild the Spitfire after having the crankshaft fixed. Having a Hemi isn't a big deal to me. I just thought it would be neat.

I'll keep posting on here as I progress.

 

A stroll through Scooter's Hemi Tech Index will reveal that all that is needed is the complete head assymbly, push rods, ex mans, & pistons. Any tranny that'll bolt up to any 61 & earlier V8 will bolt up to your engine (or early hemi or "A" Poly) except for those pesky long tail 51-3 331s.

 

I found a cheap 331 Hemi with a short bell-housing today and bought it. I've been searching for a long time for parts for the Poly, but haven't found anything locally. It turns over nice and smooth, but won't start for obvious reasons. This project has taken a sharp left turn.
I'll be going slow with this as I diagnose it, clean it, and build it back up.

 

Very nice!!! Congrats on the hemi purchase.

 

Cool! Keep us posted!

 

Did later 331's have the water cross over in the front of the heads like that? I woudl have said that was a 354 . . .

 

1955 331

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Cool, I learn more every day - never come across a late 331 that wasn't an industrial. Thanks.

 

After much struggle and four lettered words, my '56 Chrysler has an engine again!

I just about destroyed myself doing it.

 

Nice upgrade!

 

Haha, it's hard to resist those big "Chrysler Fire Power" valve covers isn't it. Nice find.

 

Nice.. Were you able to compression test the hemi before you put it in ??? Cool car btw ...

 

I love those 56 Chrysler body styled and congrats on the replacement engine and getting it installed. I got a 331 in my coupe and it had sat for 7 years that I knew of before firing it back up and it runs fine. It's really great that you can share a project like this with your daughter, it creates even more of a special bond.
As far as your back problems go, I had 3 bulged discs in the lower 5. Some days I felt like Quasimodo, the hunchback of Notre Dame. All twisted up and the pain from the pressure on the sciatic nerve was just unbearable at times. After having a discectomy and waking up in the recovery room I could feel the difference and that was 12 years ago. Don't know if you have ever discussed it with your neurologist or if that's an option you would want to look into.

 

If it's not one thing, it's another!
I reconnected the starter today and had my friend turn over the engine to make sure everything was working correctly. Nothing else is connected, nor do I have a carburetor yet, but I filmed it just for fun.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16HN0jlPZ_k

That's when I noticed the distributor is wobbling.

I checked the hold down plate and bolt, they appear to be tight and secure. I can't move the distributor by hand in that manner either.
Could the shaft be bent or perhaps something is wrong with the oil pump?

 

Ouch! I've been doing everything I can to avoid going into surgery for this.
I just got the huge hospital bill paid off for the MRI I had done in October.
It's not that I won't consider the discectomy, it's mostly that I'm terrified of surgery, and the hefty bill that comes after it.

I have been recovering well though. I have taken up bicycling and jogging with my son. While I'm not pain free, it is a lot more manageable. I've been taking it slow.

 

Oh boy

 

I took the distributor out of the Hemi today. The shaft was bent causing it to wobble. So I used the distributor from the dead Poly and rebuilt it, then reinstalled it back into the Hemi.
It works fine now!

 

Update

 

I'm waiting on a new set of plug wires and I got a Holly 650CFM off of a '69 Charger the other day.

Other than that, not much to report. Well, that and my friend gave me some Crager rims and tires off of his '57 Chevy he just bought. He didn't like the way they looked on his car.

I like the way they look on my car. (Ignore my daughter's funky lamp in the corner).



I will update again just as soon as I have something worth posting.