Engine replace tech info/1940 Hudson

[Deleted User]
[Deleted User]
edited November -1 in HUDSON
NEED HELP/INFO: want to install chevy or ford overhead valve engine in my 1940 Hudson 4 door sedan (currently engineless) looking for anyone who has helpful info/data/experience. I am decent mechanic, and have a good guy to do the installation, but we don't want to go in blind.



Thanks

Comments

  • 53jetman
    53jetman Senior Contributor
    Why ruin another Hudson chassis with a transplanted brand X engine. There is no better engine than a Hudson Six or Eight. That's my two cents worth



    Jerry
  • 7XPacemaker
    7XPacemaker Senior Contributor
    You had better take this post to the street rodding section of the Hudson forum. These people can be BRUTAL!!! The words "hacking" and "Brand X" will get you on the fast track to a heated debate on purists vs. Rodders! In all seriousness, the Hudson rodders know their stuff and should be able to help you......
  • 53jetman
    53jetman Senior Contributor
    The sad part of the story is these "Hudson Rodders" have never taken the time to drive a Hudson before they started "Hacking up" the car, and therefore did not know what a great car they had . I feel sorry for them, really!
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    53 jetman, you are coming on a bit strong here making statements like that. I don't know who pissed in your cornflakes but give us hot rodders a break. I have both stock Hudsons and am hot rodding one and I WILL DO WHAT I WANT WITH MY OWN CAR. Thank you very much. As a matter of fact I know quite a few of the so called Purists out there have at least one modified Hudson.
  • SamJ
    SamJ Senior Contributor
    Have you considered installing a 6? The 300 ci Ford 6 is powerful, plentiful, and bulletproof. The Chev 6 (I'd pick the 250 over the 292) has a cornucopia of interesting speed equipment available. The swap should be easy and the fit clean. Since 1940 is the first year for independent front suspension and centerpoint steering, you should be able to retain the front clip if you don't go too big...my '40 steers straight down the road, hands off, no problem. The '40-sized rad will suffice for a modern 6. The Chevy has great bolt-up OD/nonOD auto tranny choices. A friend has a '47 coupe with the Ford 300-6 and it makes a wonderful, problem-free cruiser...
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    Pete



    PLEASE don't get scared away by other Hudson owners who don't agree with what you want to do with your car. There is room here for everyone. I have owned and do still own Hudsons that are stock and I have some that are modified so I can speak with full knowlege of both sides of the issue. I can appreciate the work that goes into a concours type restoration, and I can appreciate the immagination that goes into personalizing a hot rod Hudson.

    How boring would every Hudson meet be if every car there was the same old big green bathtub Hornet 4 door sedan? It would be like going to a lot of the local rod runs around here... I get tired of looking at 32 Fords. If all these Hudsons looked the same inside and out, I wouldn't keep coming out to see them.

    One of my cars is a 36 Hudson 6cyl. 4 door sedan. When I bought it, it had a hole in each side of the block the size of a football. It had thrown two rods, and broken the crank and the cam into three pieces. Both front leaf springs were broken, there was a huge hole in the pot metal grille, and there wasn't a good piece of glass in it. The trunk floor was rotted clear through the top of the gas tank. This was a fairly solid parts car. Being a young man starting a family, I didn't have a lot of extra cash, so even though someone offered to give me a Hudson eight block, I couldn't afford to build it. Bearings alone were $1300 dollars. I street rodded it, and caught a lot of flack from some of the old timers. Thats a good way to chase away club members.

    I just put a Chevy 350 in my daughters 54 Super Jet. She's probably going off to college somewhere next year, and when she gets to whereever that might be, I don't want her to have to try and find a retired Hudson dealer mechanic to change the oil in her car for her...



    Enough ranting for me...



    Love,



    Dany
  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User]
    ive already coughed this line up but will again. i bought mine with a ford 6- the smaller 144-250 it fits reasonably well and with a 2v head will beat a 302 cleveland- but mine was poorly executed so another swap was on the cards. i had no idea of what way we were going, talk of windsors and nailheads- because i could- but then i ended up getting my hands on a 308... my quest for something different brang me back to something original, well close enough!
  • Uncle Josh
    Uncle Josh Senior Contributor
    Rumor has it that the Ford 300 six, was designed by Hudson engineers. Any truth to it?
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    Pete,



    I have seen a fair amount of "rodder bashing" on this board. (A rodder on this board is just about anyone that doesn't have a 100% pure Hudson product.) It seems to be some sort of "initiation" process, but the end result is that you will find some real knowledge here. I have had three Hudsons now, two that were original, and the one I have now is modified.



    I was very apprehensive about going to the Western Regional Meet this past June because my Hudson is modified. I went, took my car, met a lot of great people, and was surprised at how many modified Hudsons were there.



    Like Dany said, don't let anyone scare you off, I'm sure there will be some members speak up soon with information that can help you. Their knowledge has saved my butt (and car) a couple of times already. Most people here don't care if it is original or modified as long as you drive it.



    Good Luck,

    Terry
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    First of all welcome aboard and second how about some pic's of the '40? :) Third, The power plant choice should come from your gut and wallet size, just about anything will fit under that hood. If you are going to keep the hood down and not care what people say or think then just default to a SBC, it's generic but the most proven motor ever built and the longest in production so they need a little credit for that. Sort of depends what is available though also.
  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User]
    At one time, I read (can't remember where) that Hudson was trying to develope an overhead valve 6. Regretfully it was too little too late. Anyhow, What I read was that when Bernie Siegfried left Hudson to work for Ford that He took the only prototype of the Hudson head with Him. I don't know if that is true or just rumor, but I do know that the 300 ford 6 that is going in my coupe has almost the same dimensions as a 308 and the intake/exhaust are on the right side and the exhaust looks very close to being able to use the Hudson headpipe.
    Jetman, I have driven a stock Hudson, and Yes, I do love the way it runs and drives. It is a 54 Hornet Special with 36K on the odometer. I have no plans whatsoever to change it, but I do get tired of going into a parts store to find a part and being asked WHO MADE HUDSONS? by some Kid who wasn't even alive 30 years AFTER the last Hudson rolled out of the factory.
    My 54 Hornet Coupe is getting a Ford 300 6, (if I live Long enough) with a C-6 trans and will be driven daily. These modifications should have no effect at all on the ride quality. Also intend to put a La Buds disc brake set-up and PS/PB and Power windows.
    If that offends anyone then they are welcome to their opinion.
    My opinion is that it will be a neat Hudson to drive, and be safe and reliable.

    Bob
  • junkcarfann
    junkcarfann Expert Adviser
    Which engine you put in your 1940 depends upon the model of the car. The 1940 Hudson came in short wheelbase version, a medium length, and a long length.



    The short wheelbase came only with six cylinder engines. The longer ones have both sixes and eights.



    If your car is short wheelbase, it will be difficult to put in a Ford 6, or a Hudson stepdown six. Those engines will fit right into the longer wheelbase cars, but not without a lot of surgery on the short wheelbase cars. That is because the wheelbase difference between the short car and the two longer cars is in the hood length, so the engine compartment is shorter.



    The 1940 wheelbases are as follows:



    Short car: 113 inches.



    Medium car: 118 inches.



    Long car: 125 inches.



    A Ford 302 V-8 is a good choice for the short car, as it is shorter than the inline sixes. Also, it is several inches narrower than the popular Chevy V-8. I have seen a 1941 car with a Ford 302, and it fit right in with no modifications to the chassis or steering box due to its narrowness.



    Also the Ford 302 is very light, about 140 pounds lighter than a Chevy V-8, so it weighs about the same as the Hudson 6 of 1940, so no spring work is necessary, plus the distributor is in the front of the engine, so it can nestle back against the firewall.



    Good luck with your car.
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