Projects Bought 40 Ford cpe w/Desoto hemi

i love this '40. like to know the history about this one.

 

I'm working on it. It was purchased from the son of a fellow that lived in Kennet Square in Chester co PA as I understand it so far. I left a message that I hope will result in some added history via a phone call tomorrow but I think skidmarks knows as much as anybody about the car. He'll chime in with more history if he has it. I, too, am curious about the history. I doubt the car saw much road use as the firewall mod that put the battery on the firewall was very flimsy and was not sealed from the engine compartment except by the back of the battery. Did show some damage from a battery being there but not much corrosion so I doubt it was used much after the engine was changed. Also, that Ford trans roars big time and might have soured them on the project after the work to make the engine change. Who knows? Maybe we'll find out more. Hope to finish firewall patch tomorrow.

 

Now that is nice!!!!!!!! Tom (Tired Old Man)

 

Man everytime i see a 40 i kick myself for letting one go. real nice... good luck!

 

got a 40 coupe that i have been saving a nice little 231 super red ram for. not sure on trans optionhs either. i have a turbo 400 just laying here!!! not sure which way to go. standard or automatic.

 

thats awesome! nice find! im gonna visit this thread often!

 

Great ride.

 

Nice find. The car is looking good. My 40 I used the chassis engineering parralle leafs rear with a ford 9 inch out of a 70 torino. I run without the hood right now and thinking about putting it back on.

 

WOW! Your 40 sure looks good without a hood! Thanks for the added build details, too. I'm using CE and need to ck if old 9" I have that uses 5.5 pattern is too wide with wheels I already have on the car. Be nice to not have to buy more wheels. Finished welding firewall today and smeared it with bondo. Hopefully it will get pretty sometime tomorrow if I get time. Also took stock front seat that was in pretty good condition to upholsterer for improvement. Sides will be black but both cushions will be white. Gonna have to start checking by britches and cleaning my hands before driving the new cpe when (if/!!) I get it a bit more roadworthy. Working on fixing floorboard weaknesses now. "Opportunities" abound!!

No word yet on request for more on history.

Having fun, Al

 

Al,
Go to carnut.com they have rearend dimensions to help you find what donor rear widths will fit.

 

You done good Al. Be sure and check the wheel bearings cause I know you going to drive the wheels off it. Carl

 

Carl, I remember you helping me with a wheel bearing long, long ago. Thanks again even it has been.... I ain't sure... 32 years or so?
Hope all is going well for you. Thankful Al

 

A 241 would even be better... Please keep in mind that the 'little guy' only makes so much power and some autos, like the TH, have high parasitic losses. Smaller trans units like the 904TF, C-4, and (I think) the 200R are better choices.

.

 

Fitted 3 patch panels for the floor yesterday; at least one more to go. Continuing to work on smoothing the firewall patch... starting to look somewhat original. Pics wouldn't show much. Will get pics when more to show. Thanks for everyone's interest. Working Al

 

i like the idea of an overdrive. trying to make it driver friendly where the wife can drive it. all my cars seem to be sticks.
thanks for the info. and your right 241!!! not 231...

 

I was showing a friend my cpe and related parts that came with it and rediscovered a Mallory distributor ( 288A) that came with the car along with a matching mallory coil and full wire set down to having all 8 ceramic ends. Probably ought to get that puppy tuned up and put it on the Desoto engine. Is that the right distributor for my 291? Any suggestions as to who to get to tune the distributor and make sure its ready to run? I'm wondering why it was all in a box and not on the car? Maybe it had failed and they used a stock dist to get it running again? Was the Mallory a good option for that engine? Thanks in advance for the info and added insight. Al

 

GMC Bubba...Lindner Technical Services...

 

Subscribed.

 

Removed the orig 4.11 40 Ford rearend. Found and made deals on a Granada rearend and a S10 5 spd... now to go get them. Hope they are what the sellers said they were. We all know how that goes. Had to buy whole Granada and it runs but the water pump recently started leaking. Anybody in the market for a 77 302 w/automatic or a 4.11 old Ford rear?!? Need any 77 Granada parts?! Should be interesting trip. Planning to get both items on the same trip if both guys are available the same day.

 

Hello Al, MickeyC here from Louisiana. I can relate to the chirping of the tire thing. I have a recently acquired 40 also. It has an olds 371 with a Olds- lasalle tranny. With the single pull rear end (also an Olds) it is hard not to induce wheel spin when applying any throttle above idle. Lots of fun I must admit! The battery in my car is in the same location as yours was.
This seems to be fairly common on cars of this era with large motor swaps. The firewall was cut and flattened with some side pieces added to fill the voids. I hope to be able to bend it into the original position and re weld it. Where do you plan to place your battery? Your car is coming along nicely.

 

I plan to relocate the battery either behind the seat or in the trunk. I did put one under the front fender on my 40 pkp and that worked well, too. Might reconsider doing the same with the coupe. Good luck with you car. Have fun! Al

 

Just completed approx 250 mile trip to get 77 Granada and 5 spd from an S10. The good news is that things went quickly and as planned with a minimum of delay AND we didn't get hurt, hurt anybody, or break nothing! The 5 spd is a 1352-145 which has a first gear of 3.76 which is good. The Granada is in sad shape but it did start and drive onto and off the trailer with the water pump leaking. The surprise is that the rearend is NOT the usual 8 or 9 inch. It has a cover on the back like many GM rearends. Got to do more research to figure out what the heck it is. Anybody got any tips or suggestions?

 

Al ,tin back rear ,not worth a /////////////.....TOOT

 

Hi Jack, thanks for the feedback. It will at least be a beginning to get it running. I've got some 8" and 9" rears laying around but most too wide. I hear there is a Famous fellow around here that can narrow them... have you got his number? I'll give you a call to talk it over. Thanks again. Al

 

Hey Al, I'm right across the water in Hilton in Newport News, I'd love to cruise over one day and check out your rides and soak up some knowledge.

 

New gas tank from Tanks is in. Rear brackets from CE for rear suspension are close to being finished. More to come. Tired Al
BTW, Cornhuskers says their kit WILL work to put the 5 spd behind the hemi! Now where did I lay my wallet?!?
Also, ck out pic of some guy already trying to copy me!! Hope mine ever looks that good!!

 

I'd be happy with that also. What do you think of the Tanks tank? L'd go for the 5-speed.

 

Gonna ?
Hell it is now!
Oh yeah, he could make it a nice shiny color just like everyone else's....

 

I was able to install the Tanks poly tank without raising the body. The tank just does clear if you put the driver's side up in the hole first and keep working it until it clears the bottom frame rail on the pass side. Then raise tank high as possible and slide tank to driver side and it will slip over just enough to raise the tank above the top frame rail on the pass side. Then you can bolt it down. Take your time, it will go. Working on finishing the front spring mounts today. Still working Al

 

Frame is ready for front spring mounts installation but need to test fit rearend to make sure wheels are centered. Opportunities! Tires and wheels?!?! The more I do, the more there is to do. Such is the fun world of car building. Ain't it great?!! Al