1931 1932 rear end question

Unknown
Unknown
edited November -1 in HUDSON
hi again my 31 seems to have a low gear rear end , tops out around 45mph, rides so smooth 50-55 would be nicer! fella told me i need a 32 rearend .

any suggestions?

Comments

  • Geoff
    Geoff Senior Contributor
    Are we talking Hudson or Essex? The standard Hudson came outwith a 4-7/11 rear end for '31 and '32, with 51/10 optional. and the Essex were 54/10 or 51/10. There was also an option of 4-3/11 for the Hudson, but these are probably as scarce as rocking horse dung.

    Geoff.
  • Jon B
    Jon B Administrator
    I've always wondered why some of the early '30's people don't get together and arrange for the manufacture of "highway" rearend gears. Pat McDonald has repro'd the 3.11 rearends for the later 30's cars. While there are not nearly as many of the earlier 30's cars, you could still keep the price per unit down, if you made multiples.



    I have a friend with a '32 and a '33, and he wishes they made higher-speed rearends for these cars too, because they definitely have the torque and power to move these cars along at a much higher speed than 45!
  • ivanz62
    ivanz62 Expert Adviser
    The McDonald gears for the 33-38 Hudsons and Terraplanes are 3.5:1. The cost of these in the delivered to the US last batch was $800 and I sell them for $850. To get the price at that level, ten sets are made at once to keep the set up cost down. To make them for another application, someone has to front the money for the ten sets. I have sold 8 sets for the 33-38 cars in about ten years. Somehow it seems we won't sell more for the 31-32s.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    it is a 31 hudson not essex.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    that is one reason why i was planning a swap to an 8 3/4 mopar rear. they were made for so many years and came in so many different widths, there is one out there that will work and it wont look out of place when you stick your head under there. its a banjo style rear. really it snowballs. you want to go highway speed? i think the mechanical brakes leave a lot to be desired.
  • frank spring
    frank spring Expert Adviser
    I have to tell you I have given this a lot of thought over the years and have thought about fronting the money since I have several 32 and 33 Hudsons. But I always come to this conclusion. If I make it go faster then I also have to figure out how to stop it.
  • Jon B
    Jon B Administrator
    You have the heels of your shoes, Ed. Worked with your Radio Flyer when you were a kid. Will work on your '32 Hudson, too!
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    yea the brakes do but i just would like the car to cruise at 50 or 55 and the engine not labor as much. the ride is so smooth. it just seems like 55 would be a nice cruise speed on highway. around town it is perfect and pulls hils like nothing i have seen. what year mopar rearend actualy fits correctly?
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    On the matter of mechanicle brakes, we used to drill a small hole in the webb in several places about 3/8 inch from the shoe and 2 inches apart and then hacksaw to it, the hole stops it from going any further and allows the shoe to flex enough to get greater and more even contact area, thus provideing much better brakes, not hydraulic performance by any means but much better than they were. BUD
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