37 Plymouth coupe chassis is done and body further along than picture but decided to keep it all Mopar and yank the belly button engine. Trouble is I know NOTHING about a 440. It has a scatter shield, mini starter, finned aluminum valve covers, and a 4sp with shifter. For sure the tranny has to go in favor of a TKO 5sp OD unit. Now the problem; car is tubbed so some big meat will fit and should I get a 500 0r 600 TKO? Have no idea with a 440 but since only got $800 tied up in the Mopar set up maybe should leave the belly button in.
If the work is done right leave it in. I agree with you about putting a Mopar in a Mopar but what the heck, no use wasting a lot of time and money if it's already done.
A small block Mopar would be a pretty easy swap for the sbc, the 440, not so much. The 440 is a lot bigger and a 150 lbs heavier. There may even be firewall interference with the 440. What your looking at is the equivalent of pulling the small block Chevy and installing a 454, except instead of the biggest Chevy, your doing the biggest Mopar. The trans attached to that 440 is worth what you paid for the whole combo. If your replacing it with a 5 speed, get the most heavy duty 5 speed you can find. It will still be a wimp compared to the current 4 speed. If you know nothing about Mopar, and you have no history on your current 440, your in for a pretty big learning curve. You may want to stay with your sbc for now. I'm a Mopar guy, personally, I would sell the 440 and invest in a new magnum or a new Hemi to replace the Chevy motor. Might not be HAMB friendly, but they would be a better swap for your current small block. Gene
Those Mopar 4 speeds are plenty stout, I'd only swap it if you had to have an overdrive tranny. Big Mopars are just a slightly upscaled SBC, biggest problem is the starter is usually where the pedals/column goes but it's not impossible to overcome. I put a Mopar 383 4 speed into a narrow Model A chassis so if you can't figure out how to make it work in that big ass chassis hand over your car guy card.
Just saw this this morning, a 36 Plymouth with a 440: https://sacramento.craigslist.org/cto/d/1936-plymouth-coupe-hot-rod/6303700623.html Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
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