Thread: 1937 Dodge coupe

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Originally Posted by Easyrider

I am concerned about my ability to get it running in another body, because of the electronics, about which I am clueless.

If you purchase a car that has been hit in the rear or side and is still running, you can use every piece of the wiring, the computer and everything else electrical from that donor and transfer it to your Dodge, You won't really have to know anything, just remove all of it from the donor and place it into your car. You would want to use the dash and steering column, shifter, etc. from the donor to make it all work.

Originally Posted by Easyrider

Another issue, is track width, which is 63". Can you make up for the extra track width with different rims, ie rims with different offset? As always, opinions are appreciated...
Glen

Sure you can, but be aware that you change the scrub radius when you do that. You should google scrub radius and learn the ins and outs of changing it. Moving to a wheel with a deeper inside bowl will increase the negative scrub radius, not necessarily a good thing. You also run the risk of the wheel rim contacting the upper or lower ball joints, not a good thing. Narrowing the control arms or re-positioning the inner mounts on the frame to make the tires/wheels fit into the fender cavity will change the entire front suspension geometry including instant center and roll center and you have no idea how the car will react. My approach might be to use whatever IFS I'd want to use and if it's too wide, build some fender flares onto the car or space the fenders out a little, leaving the suspension and steering geometry alone.

Bottom line: You know for a fact that a Chrysler 300 turned, cornered and braked very well and had excellent transient response. Use it as is, with the factory wheels and tires. Current NADA value of a 2005 300C, with hemi, is $5,700. Shop for one with some body damage and you might be into the whole car for $3,500. You would then have EVERYTHING that you would need to complete the coupe. Stack all the sheet metal, glass and unused interior pieces together and sell them on craigslist at the end of the project to recoup some of the cost of the donor. Bada-bing, bada-boom.

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