Inliners International Forums General Discussion MOPAR swapping a 230

hello,

Ive have a 50 Dodge Meadowbrooke sedan with a 230 in it. The 230 is worn out and i now have a rebuilt w/no miles 230 to put in its place.

Is there any specific things i need to be on the look out for as im swapping these engines?

I have already been told about the procedures of using an old distributor shaft and spinning it to ensure oil is flowing throughout...Any other thoughts ???
gary

On the Mopar 230 flathead six engines, the cam drives the oil pump, and the oil pump drives the distributor. Because of this, the oil pump can't be spun to pre-oil the bearings before startup. You can, however, pump oil into the oil galley through the pipe plug at the front drivers side of the block with a pressure tank.

Does your car have a fluid drive transmission? If so, there may be some compatability issues if the replacement engine did not have the same fluid drive transmission. I don't know much about the specifics of the fluid drive, but it's my understanding that they share oil from the engine somehow...

Pete

BlueSkies,

The fluid drive doesn't share oil with anything. It is a sealed unit. Some of the later transmissions did share engine oil but not the fluid drive. I have a '49 Coronet with fluid drive and standard 3 speed transmission.

If he has the gyromatic transmission it calls for 10 weight oil but in 1950 I was thinking the Gyromatic was only available as an option,

Depending how your car has been registered. In my state, Kansas. Where this car has always been it was registered by the engine number. Changing engines may cause you some problems with the registration. The plate on the door jamb is the body number. Some have had their registration changed to the body number. You may also find the original engine number stamped on the left frame rail just before it goes up over the rear tire.

I have the fluid-drive tranny

blue skies......Love your website...have been reading through it three times now..

Graham, i dont have to worry about the registration....I've got it registered in Fl and theres no prob with it. ....Finding the actual VIN is still a mystery....I do have the body number plate on the door jamb....There also seems to be a body plate on the driver side fire wall inside the engine bay.....

When i bought it, due to me being in the military i had to call the police to come out and verify the VIN matches the title i was given. Well two cops and myself crawled in and under the whole car and did not see any numbers matching the actual title. The police officer read the name on the title and knew the guy...so the cop stated that he would have never thought this guy was a crook so the cop went ahead and signed the paperwork saying the title matched the car.....Florida bought off on it...so i'm set for now i guess as long as i dont sell the car of which i dont plan on it.

Back to the engine...I do appreciate your guidance and answers as this is my first build.
Here's before

Heres right now..

On your original engine on the front left side just below the head and above the generator there is a boss cast into the block. There are some numbers stamped there. If it is the original engine is should start with D34. Is this how the numbers on your title start?

About priming the oil pump. I have been told that a lot of guys will place the pump in a can of oil and rotate the shaft before they instal it in the engine.

The best accesory you can buy is the shop manual for your car. I got mine for less than $30.00 from a vendor I found on the www/P15-D24 website. You can also find them on the ebay. There is a lot of information about these old cars at the website referenced and the shop manual.

gRAHAM....im currently at work so i do not remember the vin # on my title....it does start with a D though....anyhow i will have to check that out as soon as i get home tomorrow afternoon.

I have already bought the shop manual and dug into it a few times....Again thanks for the info on the oil pump.