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I am a new member but have been building a 54 FFPW for years. My question is are the 230 flat heads the same between car and truck. I have a 58 and a 56 both from cars. Thanks for the help.
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NJ,
I do not know the answer to your question.
Did you do a search for this topic using the search tab at the top?
That is very helpful I have found.
Another search site is Joe Cimoch's forum archives:http://www.t137.com/archives/wwwboar...s/3130552.html -
You should be able to interchange the blocks . Some of the bolt ons may be different like the dist or carb ( maybe the oil pan not sure) .
There was a change in fly wheels in late 55 or 56 when the went to 12 volt which change the tooth count so be sure you have the correct starter or swap fly wheelsComment
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I have a '53 Power Wagon with a 230 out of a '56 Dodge Coronet in it. The basic engine is the same, but there are a couple of important differences. It has a different carb, a different pan, and puts out 130 hp as opposed to the 90 of the original power wagon engine.
The 56 Coronet engine, which is a D-62, has a 2 barrel manifold and is equipped with a Stromberg WW 3-144 carb. I had to make up a different throttle linkage as the stock power wagon linkage won't mate up.
The D-62 engine, and this may be true for other car engines, has the sump of the oil pan in the center rather than at the rear end as in the truck engines. As a result, the pan will knock on the front differential and on the brake line that runs over it. It is easy to change it out for a rear sump pan. You need to change the oil pickup tube, the oil pan, and of course new gaskets. Rear sump pans are not too hard to find. I got one from VPW.
The engine number, located just below the head on the front left end of the engine will tell you what sort of engine you have.
see http://www.t137.com/registry/help/ot...herengines.php
for a good discussion of this.
Hope this helps.Comment
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230 flat head
Thanks for all the help, both of my flat heads came out of FFPW's so I have the correct oil pan and carb linkage. The one is a 58 from a dodge coronet sn LP6* 78I8* needs to be rebuilt but complete from fan to pressure plate and the 56 is out of a Plymouth car sn P28*I88543* it run when removed also complete. Not sure what one I will use. I am the type of person that rebuilds everything that way I know it's ready to go.Comment
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Ready to go? Where is the adventure in that?Comment
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If you could use the car engine (assuming it is a more powerful engine), it would be great performance-wise for you.
The stock 230 is rather anemic at 94 h.p., even when rebuilt and fresh. I see that every time I drive "Kirkwood", my '52 stock truck who's engine I had rebuilt.
I had a chance at the Iowa Rally a few years back to drive Tim Ellis' pw that had its 230 hopped up with headers, a dual carb set up and other mods? It was significantly more perky than the stock engine, you actually had the feeling it was accelerating!
The other thing that helps with top end speed is either 4.89 diff gears or a Dennan overdrive.
I have the overdrive and love it. It gives me a "5th gear" so I can drive 50 without the engine screaming. Also I can do gear splits which helps on hills.
But, if I had the more powerful engine, I would simply switch to 4.89 diffs to get the extra speed.Comment
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Car/Truck 230's
Chrysler truck engines got some extras for heavy duty use that car engines didn't. Supposedly the blocks had sleeves, the cam was more conservative, valves were higher quality. The higher Hp car engine had a 2BBL manifold and a better flowing head, I've done writeups/pics that are in the archives. The car engine also had an 8:1 compression ratio with the 1957-9 head, which combined with the extra flow made the difference. Your '58 head may be the better one, if you post the casting #, I can check.Comment
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230 flat head
The casting number on the head is 1676337-1 it also has a 10-3 about 5 inches before the casting number. Thank you for your help.Comment
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Head casting #'s 1676337-1 and 1676337-2 are 7.9:1 compression ratio. Head casting # 1821682 is an 8.2:1 compression ratio head.
For some reason, Taxicabs got heavy duty clutches, brakes, special carbs, and the uprated heads. You'd think fleet owners would stay away from high-maintainance race parts- but not in the 50's, apparently.
One of the problems of sidevalve engines is that you can't get high flow AND high compression unless the head is specifically designed for it. Since the valves are located away from the cylinder, the fuel air charge has to pass thru a transfer area. When you plane the head to raise compression, you lose transfer area. If you open up the transfer area, you lose compression- a lose-lose scenario.
Another problem is valve placement relative to the cylinder. Since the valve pocket also counts as compression volume, you want it close the cylinder and as small as possible. The Hudson car and Indian motorcycle engine are examples of excellent flathead combustion chamber engineering. Harleys are awful, and the Ford/GM/Chrysler are somewhere in the middle. The '57-59 head tightens up the valve pocket, and the transfer area is shorter and deeper than other heads.
The casting #'s quoted are the only ones that have these features. Other head #'s were produced up to the end of the flathead era, but they won't produce the same results. You will likely have to correct warpage by some planing, but don't overdo it. You'll lose flow and blow head gaskets if you start going much over 9:1, and 97 octane will also be required. 8-8.5:1 will be max for most.
The high Hp numbers quoted for cars were at 3500-4000 rpm, which is way too high for practical use. Fuel consumption increases dramatically around 2000 rpm, and the crank oiling system doesn't like rpm's much over 2500- #2 & #5 main bearings tend to seize unless you cross-drill the oil passages to insure a complete oil circuit thru the crank. Use the compression and cam to get Hp around 1800 rpm, then gear for higher road speeds. You don't want to scream these engines, they won't take it very long.Comment
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