Hudson Eight Ride

37 CTS
37 CTS Senior Contributor
edited November -1 in HUDSON
Saturday night I drove my 37H8 sedan around the side roads. Never had I driven the car at night. It was cold and I noticed the auto choke works great no stalling, it drove like it was fuel injected. The dimmer switch I found on the floor where it belongs! My fender lamps are converted to turn signals and do they ever FLASH! I opened the doors of the heater.

In the dark I listened for the Eight cylinders engine sounds and it was mute, I never did hear it running. Instead the noise of the tires rolling and normal HUDSON gear growl and whine is all I could hear.

The lights of the instrument panel are white and look old, and it is cool to see the "NOT" generator llight come on at stop signs.

And the shifting of electric hand cannot be duplicated.

So after all this fun I pulled in the shop and put the car away.



The next morning was 4 inches of fresh snow!

It will be awhile before I go HUDSONING again.

Comments

  • Unknown
    Unknown
    Sounds familiar. You can predict rain and/or snow by when I wash a car. LOL
  • SuperDave
    SuperDave Senior Contributor
    Those who have not experienced the smoothness of the Hudson 8 are really missing something.
  • Park_W
    Park_W Senior Contributor
    I couldn't agree with you more, Sheldon and Dave. Last week I did the initial run-in of my just-rebuilt '47 engine, and it's just like one observer said a while back ... "Sounds like it's just an electric motor in there!"

    Park
  • Richard E.
    Richard E. Senior Contributor
    Interesting engine test stand, Park. I would love to see it from the other side??
  • 2manyprojects
    2manyprojects Expert Adviser
    its always nice to buy a vehicle already retored, glen kellogg and the late del crawford spent alot of time,money and love to make that car what it is today .glad your enjoying it.
  • Park_W
    Park_W Senior Contributor
    Richard E. wrote:
    Interesting engine test stand, Park. I would love to see it from the other side??



    Here you go, Richard. Note the hi-tech radiator support system. I made the stand from two standard rotisserie type stands. Sketched out the additional support pieces and had a local shop make them up. It will hold the engine alone, engine with tranny, or engine alone on rotisserie (supported at both ends).
  • oldhudsons
    oldhudsons Senior Contributor
    interesting "test stand" for the radiator, LOL
  • frank spring
    frank spring Expert Adviser
    oldhudsons wrote:
    interesting "test stand" for the radiator, LOL
    That is just to keep it running "cooler"
  • Browniepetersen
    Browniepetersen Senior Contributor
    Just the ticket for engine break in.... Great looking stand.
  • ivanz62
    ivanz62 Expert Adviser
    Park,

    I'm surprised no one has mentioned the extra exhaust pipe. Did you add a divider in the manifold to separate the manifold?
  • kamzack
    kamzack Senior Contributor
    Park;

    I also would like to know how to do da ex. manifold. Looks to be better and easier than trying to create headers. What year is it going into? My 254 still lives at the machine shop, into second year now. One hold up is removing studs from block. Rather discouraging. The purr of a 254 is what made me jump at the chance to acquire my 50 Commodore.

    Thanks for the pics and encouragement.

    Kim
  • Park_W
    Park_W Senior Contributor
    ivanz62 wrote:
    Park,

    I'm surprised no one has mentioned the extra exhaust pipe. Did you add a divider in the manifold to separate the manifold?



    Ivan, I did do a "sort of" divider ... wanted to block most of the connection, but not totally. I positioned the butterfly in the closed position, and added some heavy sheet metal "wings to it to almost close off the passages into the carb heat section. Won't know how it really sounds until I get it in the car with a full exhaust system. Back in my teenage years I had an eight with a "splitter" on it, but it was completely divided ... cut into three separate pieces! It sounded great to me at the time, but was a bit noisy when I wound it up and backed off the throttle. Loved it then, but not so much now! (You know you're getting old when ....)



    Kamzack, it's going into a '47 sedan (photo). Manifold was done by Kraig Kinnamon a few months ago. E-mail at HETgreen7wood@hotmail.com (remove HET first). See thread on split exhaust manifolds.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    Park W wrote:
    I couldn't agree with you more, Sheldon and Dave. Last week I did the initial run-in of my just-rebuilt '47 engine, and it's just like one observer said a while back ... "Sounds like it's just an electric motor in there!"
    Park

    Some how my last post on this was lost. The quick reply option not working?

    What improvement do you expect from the dual breather pipes, or is that standard for that year?
  • Park_W
    Park_W Senior Contributor
    Pat, the dual breathers were standard on all the engines through '47. They went to a single tube in '48.
  • Lee ODell
    Lee ODell Senior Contributor
    Park W wrote:
    I couldn't agree with you more, Sheldon and Dave. Last week I did the initial run-in of my just-rebuilt '47 engine, and it's just like one observer said a while back ... "Sounds like it's just an electric motor in there!"

    Park



    Park you have a nice engine stand. After looking at your picture I have a question perhaps you or someone can help me with. In the photo of your engine I noticed the starter bendix drive looks like it is messed with the flywheel teeth. Is that normal? How does the bendix drive gear engage and disengage the flywheel teeth? My motors manual shows the bendix having one external drive spring and two internal springs. One being a meshing spring and the other a anti-drift spring to keep the drive gear away from the flywheel. The engine stand makes it possible to see how the starter works. The reason I'm asking is because in getting my fixer upper 47 pu ready to start I was turning the motor over at the flywheel with a screwdriver and the bendix was turning to. Any help is appreciated. Lee
  • Park_W
    Park_W Senior Contributor
    Lee, the reason the Bendix is engaged in that photo is that I had been using it to turn the engine by hand, to get the distributor points wide open for measuring the gap. I've found that if the starter is installed, using the great mechanical advantage of its gearing with the flywheel is easier than turning the flywheel with a prybar or screwdriver. If you want to de-mesh the Bendix, just turn the starter shaft in the opposite direction from normal, and it'll back right out.
  • Lee ODell
    Lee ODell Senior Contributor
    Park, thanks for the information. Lee
  • Lee ODell
    Lee ODell Senior Contributor
    Park, thanks for the information. Lee
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