Hi Folks,

I've just registered, though I've been a "watcher" for a while. I'm in England, in the United Kingdom, so access to information and parts for American cars is somewhat difficult at times.

Late last year I bought a '53 F100 p/u in essentially stock condition. It was relatively cheap, but I knew it would require work. To cut a long story short we decided to fit Mustang II independent front suspension, which we hope will improve the ride, the steering and the brakes.

I ordered a Ford F100-specific kit from a local speed shop who imported it from Speedway Motors. Having removed the beam axle, shock mounts, springs etc. the workshop which is doing the work for me has mocked up the crossmember. This seems to fit the chassis rails fine and boxing the chassis should present no difficulties. However, they have had to raise the engine/gearbox substantially to clear the centre of the crossmember while mocking it into place. I'm running the original flathead for the time being which has a single, front engine mount. My question is, do these conversions usually foul the sump of the engine? Is there a recognised way to either avoid this (changing engine mounts perhaps) without changing the engine to a modern V8. I want to keep the flathead for a while at least. The crossmember is only tacked in place for the time being as we want to check whether it will look better eased forward in the wheel arch a tad, so we can make changes at this stage. Any advice from members who have carried out this conversion would be appreciated. I can provide a picture if it helps. Thanks.

 

Welcome to the forum!
It is quite common to move the crossmember forward to center the tire (pardon my American spellings) in the wheel opening of the fender. That's one of those things Henry missed on, and we fix. ;-)

As for keeping the flathead with the MII ifs, that's not so common. There are different shape oil pans from different vehicle applications available that may be helpful. It's hard to say without knowing or seeing just how far off you are. It also may be possible to modify your oil pan to fit the new chassis mods better. If you can share more details, we might have some better ideas for you. You also might check with the guys at the flathead v8 forum here...Ford Flathead V8 .. 1932 thru 1953 • Index page They have more knowledge about the different oil pans available than anyone else in the world.

Good luck with your project.

 

Hi Wayne. Thank you. Very helpful. I realise that most people want to ditch the flathead, but I'm going to do this a step at a time and anyway, I like the sound of a flathead. I'll mosey over to the flathead forum and see what they recommend. I suspect that we will end up modifying the sump, if there is enough clearance underneath the engine itself. Funnily enough my workshop guy suggested, only half joking, that we should install a British Ford Transit diesel V6 into the truck. With petrol (gas) prices through the roof 30-35 mpg is quite an incentive. He's done it on a Chevy 3100 Suburban (Am I allowed to mention Chevy here?) and it fitted really well and proved reliable. I liked the ideas of a Ford in a Chevy! Richard

 

Here's an interesting thread on the HAMB about mounting a flathead on a MII setup. Keep the flathead. We like em all here.

Flathead/Mustang II install update - THE H.A.M.B.

 

Hey I remember seeing that truck up for sale!
Good luck with the build!!

 

Hi Doc. Thank you for your support. Most people I've spoken to reckon I should go the 302 cu in V8 route with an 8" or 9" rear and scrap the flathead. I didn't really want to rod the old girl at all, but I've had so many problems trying to get original replacement parts for the steering that I decided that at least the improvements will add safety, drivability and value to her at least equal to the extra expense. A guy I know over here is advertising a flathead to auto adapter plate that I might be tempted with. I do like autos.

Wolverine, I like the truck shown in your avatar. Is it Steve Lang's old F100, or another one entirely? Good to hear from a fellow Brit. There don't seem to be many mid-Fifties F100s over here. They are mostly GM 3100s and variants. Presumably because the Fords all got used up years ago. Richard

 

Heya Richard,
No its not Steve Langs old truck, I got this one from a guy in Anglesey about four years ago needing everything doing. It was originally imported by a guy in Blackpool and then sat in his garage for 10 years until the guy I got it from bought it off him, and then got it properly registered etc.
It took me almost exactly 3 years to restore her.

Yours is fairly stock if i remember the ad correctly with most stuff still there? Thats half the battle, as the big parts are expensive to ship in!!
pm me if you like and I'll send you my email address

 

hi guys, another uk truck here, i have a 54 with a 460 in kent, although i'm living state side most the time, back in the uk end of october, we'll have to see about a meet around christmas if you like, and if you have trouble ordering bit from the states PM me and i'll see what i can do, i know alot of companies don't like dealing with UK credit cards and or shipping to the UK

 

Hi! Nice to hear from you again. I'll PM you as soon as I work out how! Lol! I'd realised that your truck was not Langy's old one when I looked at your picture album on Flkr. Nice looking truck. You've obviously put in a lot of work.

For the record and the wider audience, mine was a stone cold stocker and to be honest I wanted to keep her that way. The guy I bought her from was also very keen that I not mess about with it. However... always one of those with a new acquisition, eh? ... the problems we rapidly discovered about it demonstrated somewhat scarily that an MOT is not worth diddley squit.

(I'm sure US readers know that the MOT is the Government mandated vehicle safety test that all UK vehicles have to undertake in order to stay legal on the road. It's currently annual and if you don't have one, you cannot tax or insure the vehicle).

My '53 is MOTed until March 12, but the brakes were jammed on, which boiled the fluid and cracked all the brake shoes, the track rod ends were shot, as was the drag link and the ball on the end of the pitman arm. The rear shocks didn't work and there was excessive play in the steering box. I knew from the vendor that the engine was overheating, no wonder if the poor old girl was fighting the brakes all the time, but she's definitely blown at least one head gasket, judging by the water that flowed out when the exhuast was removed. It just shows how useless is a short test drive around the block when you buy and old car or truck. She seemed to drive ok to me considering she's in her twilight years.

I tried getting the parts to repair her from places in the Uk with mixed success, but had to have the rear brake shoes relined over here. All the specialists list drag links, pitman arms brakes etc. but everyone my speed shop friend contacted had them on indefinite back order. We've therefore decided to go the independent front route. I'd half budgeted for that, but it's going to cost me one heck of a lot more than thought when I originally bought the old girl. Especially as much of the engineering will have to be paid for. It's currently beyond my limited skills and equipment. I've done most of the dismantling so far, but I must leave the welding to a professional. I have to hope that at each stage the improvements will increase the value of the truck in line with my expenditure.

I can provide pictures of progress if anyone's interested. Once I've read up how to do it.

 

Ha ha, sounds like your MOT was as good a certificate of roadworthiness as mine was! How I made it back in one piece I'll never know!

 

Just for info as well, Hot Rods Truck parts (Ohio) are happy to ship to the UK and very helpful, as well as Midfifty F100 Parts also no problem shipping to anywhere in the world. You can also phone or email either for advice anytime they will always do their best to advise and help you (its well worth getting their catalogues as well for reference before you do anything else - they will post them to you free)

 

To answer your questions: Yes, IFS installs are a problem with front sump engines. You will likely need to find or build a rear sump pan for your engine. People who want a flathead usually also use the stock style front axle and suspension, so I don't know if anyone makes a rear sump pan. There's an outfit in Michigan that are the flathead authorities, I'd see if they can advise you.

Moving the front axle centerline 1 1/2" forward giving the truck a new 111 1/2" wheelbase is a common modification to better visually center the front tires in the front fender wheel arch. This may also help with your clearance issues.

There is always the possibility of modifying the crossmember, moving the center forwards, similar to notching a frame but done horizontally.

I think Mid Fifty will ship overseas, and they have all the parts you could possibly need.

 

i spoke to the guys that shipped my pickup, and they are happy to ship big stuff like axles, engines and wheels in the container with the vehicle, not to expensive either, PM me if anyone whats the cantact details or want me to sort something on their behalf.

 

Pretty sure Langy's truck went to Australia? (Yet another lurking brit!)

 

Thanks guys. That's really useful. I've loved the shape of the mid-Fifties F100 for decades. I never thought I'd actually own one. I can forgive the old girl some initial teething problems in the hope and expectation that the finished truck will more than compensate for the initial aggravation.

I nearly didn't buy this one. I'd only just bought a really clean looking 1951 GMC half ton p/u, but realised during the 100 mile drive home that the juddery clutch was more serious than I'd been led to believe. I parked her while I investigated the options. In the meantime my Ford had been steadily getting a lower Start Price on the UK eBay, but she never had any bids. There was a long list of problems the owner had or thought he had, which were probably putting off potential bidders. To cut a long story short, I spoke to him, visited and drove the truck and made him a silly offer. He didn't accept that, (I wish he had now I've seen what needs to be done!), but we compromised at a price considerably lower than the eBay Start Price at that time. I had it shipped directly to a friend's workshop where it currently resides. The GMC has gone to a good home, where the clutch let go almost immediately. The problems he's had getting the parts alone would have given me problems, so I'm glad I passed it on when I did. The new owner was aware of the potential clutch problem and now exchanges emails with me on his progress.

In the meantime, I musn't forget my 1955 Buick Riviera Hardtop, or my 1939 Plymouth P7 Roadking Coupe. (How come we cannot stick with one old car? Weird!!)

I haven't posted any pictures on this Forum yet, so I don't know their size limitations, but I aquired some small shots from the vendor and I'll see if I can upload them for starters. I'll break the cardinal rule and go read the instruction book.