1940 Ford Tudor Build Thread

[M.T.]

Well I tend to be pretty old school when dealing with this kinda of stuff. Id make it roll the eaisest least expensive way possible. If ya fall in love with it... sweet if ya brake a ring slap a hone job in it and put it back together and drive it some more. At least with it rolling in any shape you can move it if needed. Id put that Hemi in deep storage and save it for a Model A some day. What ever that is worth?

[40FordDeluxe]

I have thought about rolling the dice on the hemi. Geeze Bob! Haha One of my friends keeps telling me to just hone it, put new rings and bearings in it, and run with it. He keeps saying the 280hp it had stock is probably more than the car has had in a while. And tell sme to live with it. Haha I know the 377 in it was not 280hp for sure.

[Mike P]

Are you going to have oil pan clearance problems using the Ford engine? As I recall it uses a front sump and the 354 (and SBC you pulled) both use a rear sump.

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[40FordDeluxe]

Are you going to have oil pan clearance problems using the Ford engine? As I recall it uses a front sump and the 354 (and SBC you pulled) both use a rear sump.

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You're correct. the 351C is a front sump. But one of my friends says there is a stock rear sump pan available. The more I think about it the more I'm undecided. I may just use the 354 because I have a lot of the trinkets to put it in. Like a couple of you have said, if it does puke it's guts, I could just re-ring it/fix it when it happens. At least the car would be together then.

[34_40]

I agree with tri-Bob... fwiw.

get it together and drive it. You can always re-do it later 'cause we all know a hot rod is never truly done 'til you sell it..

[M.T.]

It's the thrill of working through all the obstacle and making it all work so one can actually and eventually get to a point where one can actually post up. Its a crap shoot for sure. It reminds me of the Olympics motto. The thrill of victory or the agony of defeat. But I aint complaining cause this is the way it has always been and I keep coming back! Its all good from my view point! Hang tuff buddy and listen to that small voice in your heart. It will lead you to the right decision.

[Bob Parmenter]

Since dragging Bobs out of the woodwork has become a theme here...................
If time and money are the primary motivations/obstacles, all joking aside, the sbc/auto combo is a slam dunk decision, even if you own a 351 core already. They fit the '40 like a glove; no firewall mods needed and a mechanical fan will still fit too. No funky front cross member mods or center X member either (simple bolt in kits for trans mount available). Sure, the sbf can be made to fit similarly after oil pan and pump change, and water pump change, and a couple other little things, but by the time you do that you've covered about half the cost of a rebuild on the sbc. All the whining about the sbc being a "belly button" deal misses the point of the pile of good reasons that made it that way. It saves time and money (which are really the same thing), and it works great. All the other choices are fine, but take more resource.........ya makes yer choices..

[36 sedan]

Plus, there are a ton of after market parts available for the sbc combinations. I personally don't understand what all the fuss is about not wanting to use the sbc in a Ford exc.? After all, it is a hot rod, it's suppose to have mismatched parts. And, it gives everyone something to talk about..

[jerry clayton]

Cost of engine ????????An engine rebuild probably costs less than the paint for the hood-----------along those lines of thought----------build a roadster , save some $$$$$on paint since it doesn't have a roof!!!!!!!!

[40FordDeluxe]

Cost of engine ????????An engine rebuild probably costs less than the paint for the hood-----------along those lines of thought----------build a roadster , save some $$$$$on paint since it doesn't have a roof!!!!!!!!

Wow, the paint for a hood is $4700?

I'd love to build a roadster, but that will be after my current projects are running and driving, or sold to fund one. Haha

[Mike P]

I’ve got to admit I tend to agree with Uncle Bob on the SBC still being a viable option. As the 40 had already been setup with a SBC I would suspect it would be the quickest and easiest and cheapest to reinstall. Besides the oil pan and size issues, small things like the correct location for hoses on the radiator (which will be the same between SBC and HEMI but probably on the wrong sides for most Fords) will also be make life easier in the long run.

If you don’t have one laying around, small block Chevys and transmissions are easy and cheap to find, often just needing a cleanup, paint and a few chrome goodies to look presentable. Also a plus is they are easy to sell if you want to get rid of it and probably recoup your investment when you do get the 354 ready to drop in.

Besides having a Chevy in it will probably keep you motivated to get the HEMI done and in more so than if you have a “correct” Ford engine in it


I do understand you’re feeling about not necessarily wanting to put a Chevy in it. I’m kind of going thru the same thing myself regarding putting a Chevy in the Ram 50 I’m currently building. Even though it’s really just a rebadged Mitsubishi having that big Dodge decal on the tailgate just makes it seem wrong. The thing is though, a BIG priority for the project is keeping the factory AC. After looking at all the options, (hell I even looked at doing a SB Ford), the only V8 that made any sense was the SBC due to it being the only one that the length allowed room for the radiator and retaining the condenser. Sometimes you just do what you got to do.


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[40FordDeluxe]

After giving it some thought while driving to vacation and just thinking it over, I may sell the 351c core to add to the parts bill. I'll just continue on with the Hemi install once I get back working on it. The plan now is to just re-ring and bearing it, new gaskets, seals, oil pump, etc and drive it. Maybe later on go all out on the engine. For now it just needs to be a reliable ride.

As far as going back to a SBC, that really isn't an option for me right now. It is probably the cheapest, yes. But I already built my X member to fit a larger combo, and the recessed firewall is already installed as well. Hopefully before new year's I can be working on it again.

[M.T.]

Love'n the way you guys are thinking here! Keep us posted on the engine progress. Now I can enjoy my tri tip's that are in the smoker.

[34_40]

What year is the cleveland?

[40FordDeluxe]

What year is the cleveland?

70-74? I'll have to get some numbers off it and see for sure. I pulled it out of a 66 Galaxy that was a BB car that I couldn't get a title for.