Sol's '54 R112


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Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Mon Dec 30, 2019 9:06 pm

Re: Sol's '54 R112

Unique engine choice; and, very likely to have unsurpassed reliability. Very cool!
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Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Tue Dec 31, 2019 10:02 am

Re: Sol's '54 R112

what tranny will you use with that motor? same one that was on the car?
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Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Location: Wichita, Kansas

Post Tue Dec 31, 2019 8:37 pm

Re: Sol's '54 R112

Just noticed the wood floor in the bed. What's left of the original steel floor will be under it.
Dean
Lifelong Kansan
Grew up with red paint
Moved off the farm 33 years ago.
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Rusty Driver
Rusty Driver

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Location: Charles Town, WV

Post Wed Jan 01, 2020 9:56 pm

Re: Sol's '54 R112

I'm going to have to sell the ford transmission I already bought as nobody makes an adapter/bellhousing for it.

The 2 most popular options are the 6 speed from a Nissan 350/370z but it requires a $$$ custom clutch and bellhousing or the 5 speed from a pontiac solstice/Saturn sky/Chevy Colorado. It is actually an updated version of the manual box that would have been behind this engine in a Supra back in the day which means almost everything to use it is off the shelf parts, no crazy expensive custom parts. The nissan trans seems to be the more durable option if putting down big power but I dont forsee going that nuts here. Plus off the shelf parts make me happy.

The car I got the engine from was an automatic. Lexus stopped putting manuals in them the year prior. Even so, the trans they used in the SC cars was barely up to the task at stock power and I do plan on bumping it up a bit.
-Joe
'54 R112

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Wed Jan 01, 2020 10:47 pm

Re: Sol's '54 R112

Look at the transmission from an H3 Hummer, they had a 5 cylinder in them.
1956 S-102 Short Bed BD240
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Rusty Driver
Rusty Driver

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Post Thu Jan 02, 2020 10:31 am

Re: Sol's '54 R112

KSever wrote:Look at the transmission from an H3 Hummer, they had a 5 cylinder in them.


That is the same trans I mentioned as being in the Colorado and solstice/sky. It is an updated version of the R154 Toyota had used. The GM bellhousing is a direct swap over to the Toyota one then a mix of toyota and gm clutch parts to make it work. I'm leaning heavily this way as the parts and transmissions are easily sourced.
-Joe
'54 R112
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Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Location: Wichita, Kansas

Post Thu Jan 02, 2020 10:58 am

Re: Sol's '54 R112

I like the direction you are going with the drivetrain. I expect the end result will be very good.

Dean
Lifelong Kansan
Grew up with red paint
Moved off the farm 33 years ago.
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Rusty Driver
Rusty Driver

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Location: Charles Town, WV

Post Thu Jan 02, 2020 7:57 pm

Re: Sol's '54 R112

Jumped on car-part.com this morning to see what was out there for transmissions and a yard 40 minutes away had a Colorado trans sitting on the shelf. Ducked out of work early and scooped it up.

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Sold some dirt bike stuff for $275. After shipping it left me $264 in paypal. Pulled up a website that had the Toyota bellhousing I needed and the cost after shipping was.... $264. Obviously I had to buy it, fate and all that lol.
-Joe
'54 R112

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Location: Canada's left Coast

Post Thu Jan 02, 2020 8:57 pm

Re: Sol's '54 R112

I wonder if you could use the Ford Crown Victoria wheels. The bolt pattern should be the same. The Police Crown Vic, in Canada, had steel wheels and a hubcap similar to the Old IHC cap. The wheels may have tabs.
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Ford Crown Victoria wheel
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Rusty Driver
Rusty Driver

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Location: Charles Town, WV

Post Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:57 am

Re: Sol's '54 R112

Some parts have been trickling in. I got this engine from a junkyard and did not get any accessories with it. The factory replacement parts weren't too expensive but they were bulky. I decided to go with an GM power steering pump (remote reservoir) and a Sanden SD7 a/c compressor (about 2" shorter than the oem Denso). Also received the new intake plenum and the pile of parts to build the exhaust manifold. This engine is super popular to turbo charge but I wanted a simple log manifold and there aren't too many companies producing them so DIY it is. While obviously not equal length, it will still be good for 500+ hp.

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I couldn't find anybody making accessory brackets to fit this combo of parts so I cut out some cardboard templates until I came up with a bracket I liked, then transferred it to some left over 3/8" plastic to see how the stuff fit in the chassis.

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The factory non-turbo intake wraps over the top of the cylinder head and would be directly over the turbo. This new plenum replaces the upper half and points it out the front now. I have since taken a scotch bright pad to it and knocked down the polished finish. The flange that is on it is for a 90mm Mustang style throttle body, which is probably a bit excessive for a street driven vehicle. Most folks are either making an adapter flange or welding on a new one to fit something more reasonable.

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-Joe
'54 R112
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