The 400 has even more potential than the 360! I have built a few and the main thing they need is compression - in stock form most of them are somewhere around 7.5:1. Cheap way to build it if the bottom end is in good shape is to take .060" off the heads, cut .070 off the intake manifold faces, do some bowl porting on the heads and a good 3 angle valve job. go with a street hemi grind cam 284/484 or even better a more modern grind from Hughes. Run a 750 cfm carb on it and a set of 1 3/4" x 40" headers and you have a VERY stout street engine that will throw that big car around nicely. You can get stroker kits off the shelf for a 400 to take it out over 500 c.i. easily, but that might be overkill.
Just picked up a '55 Fireflite 2 DR HT. Been a car guy for 50+ years. First time i could not find a headlight switch! Help! Where the F is it??!!
It's one of the 3 switches/knobs on the left hand side of the dash. One for wipers, one for headlights, and for the life of me I can't remember the 3rd (heater fan speed maybe??). I'd have to go out and look, but it's snowing and dark out. I can take a look in the daylight.
The car looks great. I had a chance to buy one of these back in the 1980's while looking at a '55 Chevy Suburban in NE PA.
Thanks! I haven't done much of anything to her since Thanksgiving other than wash her and clean a little under the hood. I got busy with my other car, and she had to go on the back burner unfortunately. Here in the next couple of weeks I'll be back full force on getting her on the road though, until then it's sitting behind the wheel and day dreaming, or cleaning up here and there until the funds are built back up. So until then, it's just a whole bunch of this:
Hey I went back and looked at this photoshop you did on this 56 deSoto,and I just wanted to tell you that I sent it to two of my brothers and they liked it alot. anyhow did you basicly move the rear window and roof forward and Stretch the doors like a two door would be? I thinking more and more of seeing what it would take to do this.
Awesome car, congratulations. I might be getting one just like it in the next couple days. Luckily is still has the running Fireflight hemi. I also have a 56 Firedome. It's a shame you aren't in New Mexico. I know a junkyard with a beautiful 55 with the hemi and transmission still in it. And a 55 Chrysler 300 with the engine. Not a hemi, whatever the hell it is.
That car is a real beauty! Lots of potential. I had a chance a few years ago to buy a untouched, all original hemi '55 Fireflite sedan in blue & white, shabby but all there, and pretty cheap. Had to pass as I had just bought my '68 Chrysler a few weeks before..Anyway, good luck with yer ride and finding parts lol
Must be nice to have all those rust free MoPars around...When you find em here, they are terribly rusted out. I know where there is an untouched '57 300 C in the woods out here, but it is more lichens, pine needles and soil than metal now. Also guy, a '55 300 IS a hemi car. A bad-ass hemi car, and even with the original engine long gone, it is worth a small fortune. All '55 C-300's had a 331 hemi with dual-quads, and 300 hp, hence the name. Also, there were only 1,725 of the old girls made...sounds like you need to buy that sucker and get it out of that yard..
Just a bit of info for whatever it's worth. I'm building a 55 DeSoto kustom as well. I swapped the front suspension for the torsion bar setup from a 75 Cordoba, so I've got power steering, disc brakes, and adjustable ride height. A bit of work but not that bad. I also bought a 91 Dodge van and pulled the good running 318 with overdrive to go in it. I'm using the factory fuel injection, as well. I want it to have decent power and good fuel mileage, and I've done fuel injection conversions before. It's definitely easier to put a carb on it, though. Those grill come up a lot more often that you might think. I see them on ebay pretty frequently, although most of the time they are priced pretty high because of the kustom guys (like me.) For the longest time I thought that was a stock Mercury grill...haha. (Forward Look forum is a good place to source info and parts, as well.) Anyway, Just wanted to say Hi and congrats on the car. I wish you the best of luck. Sounds like you have the determination to get it done. Keep it up. BTW, I've been thinking of starting a build thread on mine, but I haven't found the time yet. Maybe soon, though.
Hi there lil lady, I love your car as many of us do. I own two 55 desotos one a driver, one for later days. I love the desotos, I've had mine for 18 years and I'm in the process of doing some changes to her. I just came across your thread and I'm all excited seeing/hearing about your progress and enthusiasm. I love it.. I recently moved so my car is a hundred miles away but I'm in the process of getting my curvy doll back home with me so i can keep up my work. I will get her hear and get you some pics if you'd like. I can't wait to hear more about your car.
Great looking car! Just started work on my wife's 55 desoto this past month. Same deal the guy wanted the engine and trans not the car. She bought it before I could. Hero's is getting a 360 with a 727. I going to keep track of this build.
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