help please

[cruiser3042]

Hi i recently bought a 63 Valiant with a 225 six/3 speed.I have a 360 to put in it but i need a 8 3/4 rear,833 4 speed,bell housing ,all the 4 speed shifter components to complete this.
I got it for my son for his graduation.I dont have alot of money to spend so if anyone can help me locate these abody parts at a resonable price i would certainly appreciate it.
thank you for your time
Craig

[65Val]

You're also going to have to massage the firewall to fit the rear-mounted V8 distributor, as V8's weren't available in the '63 A-Bodies. In '64, they redesigned the firewall slightly to compensate for this.

[cruiser3042]

actually no ,i joined the local mopar club here and they have several they v8 them. all they did was swap the tranny mount around and it clears the fire wall. i got everything covered except parts.

[65Val]

Originally Posted by cruiser3042

actually no ,i joined the local mopar club here and they have several they v8 them. all they did was swap the tranny mount around and it clears the fire wall. i got everything covered except parts.

'cept now the engine sits farther forward, requiring add'l mods.

...but , it's your car.

[mcnoople]

An early A with 360 sounds like a bad idea for a graduation present. Powerful lightweight car with absolutely no safety features. What is the condition of the brake system, suspension system, electrical system, frame? These cars can be good reliable transportation or hot rods, but they require patience and knowledge to maintain and upgrade.

Honestly if the original engine ran I would swap it back in and do a driving systematic upgrade of the car. The money spent buying a 833 with all its pieces and an a-body 8.75 could be used to upgrade the brakes and suspension. These old cars have some serious rust prone areas that can make a casual drive turn scary real fast. Throw an inexperienced/distracted driver into the mix is a disaster in the making.

So basically I am asking for a complete rundown of the cars current condition and what has been done to it.

[cruiser3042]

Well sounds like a really bad idea. After reading your valuable insight i talked to my son and we agreed to swap cars . I will continue with the project as a father son thing but ill give him my 01 v6 convertible mustang in its place.
Honestly your post scared me. And i know the mustang is safe. It has been well cared for.
As far as the 63 the only rust is floor boards and surface rust on the top and sides . I had a friend that owns a body shop look at it before i bought it.
I have all the parts to upgrade to disc in front,front end is rebuilt with poly bushings,v8 torsion bar . The 8 3/4 should have 10 inch drums. I also have all the hardware to convert it to power brakes.
My friend at the body shop will install a 8 point cage and the brace to catch the front of the drive shaft in case it sheers.
The cage will also be reinforced on the bottom just in case . I have racing seats and five point harness for both front seats with the appropriate tie to tie rear frame supports .

[65DartGTConv]

Wow, he took that really well...

[Robbie2734]

Originally Posted by mcnoople

An early A with 360 sounds like a bad idea for a graduation present. Powerful lightweight car with absolutely no safety features. What is the condition of the brake system, suspension system, electrical system, frame? These cars can be good reliable transportation or hot rods, but they require patience and knowledge to maintain and upgrade.

Honestly if the original engine ran I would swap it back in and do a driving systematic upgrade of the car. The money spent buying a 833 with all its pieces and an a-body 8.75 could be used to upgrade the brakes and suspension. These old cars have some serious rust prone areas that can make a casual drive turn scary real fast. Throw an inexperienced/distracted driver into the mix is a disaster in the making.

So basically I am asking for a complete rundown of the cars current condition and what has been done to it.

Good one! This is the best advice I've seen here. That car needs a lot of updating before you do any motor upgrades. Frame reinforcing, brakes and then the suspension. It was only built to handle 100 HP.

[65Val]

Is it the car in your avatar? If so, you're flushing alot of money, cause 4 doors' don't bring much at re-sale. I'd find a 2 dr to put all your goodies into.Best "bang-for-buck"

Just my opinion....let the flaming begin!

[cruiser3042]

To each his own i say. And i think i covered all the updating well. If you read my original post it was to locate parts.
Trust me im not new at this

[cruiser3042]

And as far as a 4 door goes . I have never seen one done this way. Since i will never sell the car resale has no bearing here.

[mcnoople]

A newer mustang convertible sounds like a good choice for a young driver. It should have abs, definately has airbags, 3pt harnesses, and a reinforced structure. I don't know your son and he could be a great kid, but I have heard too many stories of parents buying their children classic cars and the kids proceed to trash them and not appreciate what they have. You could still have your son help on the project and he will learn what is involved in older cars.

The trans you are looking for is specific to 1964 and 1965. The later trans 66+ will bolt in, but has speedo cable differences to pre-65 cars.

[Bill Dedman]

Originally Posted by cruiser3042

And as far as a 4 door goes . I have never seen one done this way. Since i will never sell the car resale has no bearing here.

Here's a '64 "done that way" (performance mods.)

Something a little different...

[412 Stroker]

"Here's a '64 "done that way" (performance mods.)"

Holy Crap!!! Bill that is a thing of beauty, 4 doors or not who cares nice job Bill

[cruiser3042]

Very nice !
My son is in little rock goin to college.
That is exactly what i picture in my head for my 63. Except it will have a stroker 360 compliments of my best friend at C&D Performance. If says it will be a 406 Cid. Topped off with a duel plane intake,Edelbrock 750 carb,and a 75 horse nitros.Should rock and roll. The estimate off the build on his horsepower calculator is around 500 to the rear wheels. He is donating a fire suppression system ,cage and seats for his banner on the side of my car . Safety is first with me .So every piece of the car will be designed by myself and some of my friends that have raced for decades.

[Bill Dedman]

Originally Posted by 412 Stroker

"Here's a '64 "done that way" (performance mods.)"

Holy Crap!!! Bill that is a thing of beauty, 4 doors or not who cares nice job Bill

Thanks for the kind words! Most people just think we threw our money away by putting a 6 into a 4-door sedan...

We just wanted someting different (I already vae a 360 in an A Body, and so does my partner.) We wanted something different...

I really appreciate your nice comments!!!

Here's my other car...

[Bill Dedman]

Originally Posted by cruiser3042

Very nice !
My son is in little rock goin to college.
That is exactly what i picture in my head for my 63. Except it will have a stroker 360 compliments of my best friend at C&D Performance. If says it will be a 406 Cid. Topped off with a duel plane intake,Edelbrock 750 carb,and a 75 horse nitros.Should rock and roll. The estimate off the build on his horsepower calculator is around 500 to the rear wheels. He is donating a fire suppression system ,cage and seats for his banner on the side of my car . Safety is first with me .So every piece of the car will be designed by myself and some of my friends that have raced for decades.

That will be quite a ride!!!

My '72 Valiant has 445 RWHP and is a handfull on the street. Low 11's with slicks at the strip, so you should be well intto the tens...

Like this slant six car...

Turbo Slant Six 10.74 @ 127 mph 7-19-10 - YouTube

Turbo Slant Six 10.74 @ 127 mph 7-19-10 - YouTube

I hope our car runs something like that.... but we haven't finished it yet.

Talk's cheap.... we have to get it to the strip before we'll know anything.

Our car is in Little Rock. Tell your son if he ever wants to look at it to email me at Billdedman@hotmail.com and I'll take him over and show him the car.

Thanks for the interest!!!

[cruiser3042]

You are welcome,i have a long way to go . Right now i am trying to find drive train parts. Best deal i found on a 833 is at brewsters.Around 1500 for trans and linkage. They also have bell housing s for 250 . Only prob is i think that limits me to a 9 inch clutch.
Once i get the car rolling ill have to make a road trip to see my son. He would get a kick out of another motor head rockin and rollin with us .
Nothing better than having a stroked 360 with flow masters bellowing in front of the rear tires.

[cruiser3042]

If memory serves me right my car is a few hundred pounds lighter than your 72. Ill say this i do like the way you did it up . I love the sleeper look. The 63 i bought was parked in a barn since 83. Was a chore to get running. Everything was ruined except the drive train.I bought it from a 91 year old lady. They got it in 68 and it has all the servicing records he kept on two notebooks. The 225 was rebuilt in 81 . The motor runs good and drives but after 10 min the darn oil pump started to leak from the worm gear plate. Sighs
So if i have to pull the motor to fix it the 360 is going in. Sucks butt that is life. Was planning to drive it with the slant a few months and gather parts.
I have had it two months and i really want to get it goin. I have a donor 360 out of a dodge van. And a motor to build up. This way ill have a 200 or so horsepower motor to make sure i got everything right before i put serious ponies to the frame etc.
During that time ill perfect all the safety features,interior etc

[Bill Dedman]

Originally Posted by cruiser3042

If memory serves me right my car is a few hundred pounds lighter than your 72. Ill say this i do like the way you did it up . I love the sleeper look. The 63 i bought was parked in a barn since 83. Was a chore to get running. Everything was ruined except the drive train.I bought it from a 91 year old lady. They got it in 68 and it has all the servicing records he kept on two notebooks. The 225 was rebuilt in 81 . The motor runs good and drives but after 10 min the darn oil pump started to leak from the worm gear plate. Sighs
So if i have to pull the motor to fix it the 360 is going in. Sucks butt that is life. Was planning to drive it with the slant a few months and gather parts.
I have had it two months and i really want to get it goin. I have a donor 360 out of a dodge van. And a motor to build up. This way ill have a 200 or so horsepower motor to make sure i got everything right before i put serious ponies to the frame etc.
During that time ill perfect all the safety features,interior etc

I think your car is probably 250 pounds lighter than my '72. That's just a guess...

Back in 1973, I had a '64 Valiant 2-door post with a 340 and a cast iron 4-speed in it, headers and glass packs, but no tail pipes, with traction bars and it weighed 3,105 pounds. No power anything. It did have an 8.75" A Body rear end.

Tomorrow, we're taking the '64 /6 car to a truck scaale to weigh it. I'll let you know what we learn. I'm guessing 2,850, because it has a lightweight fiberglass hood, no front bumper, no rear seat and we replaced the front bench seat with two lightweight fiberglass buckets.

We did add roll bar, a B-body 8.75" rear end, Cal Tracs, and a driveshaft loop.

We have no upholstery panels on the doors and some lightweight carpeting with no sound-deadener.

It may be heavier than I think; we'll know tomorrow.

Your car is gonna be WAY fast...

Keep us posted.

[cruiser3042]

Also,i need some headers that are not fender well ones. Can yall tell me where and what kind work the best.
And do yall know where a reasonable priced a body 8 3/4 rear end is ?

[Bill Dedman]

Originally Posted by cruiser3042

If memory serves me right my car is a few hundred pounds lighter than your 72. Ill say this i do like the way you did it up . I love the sleeper look. The 63 i bought was parked in a barn since 83. Was a chore to get running. Everything was ruined except the drive train.I bought it from a 91 year old lady. They got it in 68 and it has all the servicing records he kept on two notebooks. The 225 was rebuilt in 81 . The motor runs good and drives but after 10 min the darn oil pump started to leak from the worm gear plate. Sighs
So if i have to pull the motor to fix it the 360 is going in. Sucks butt that is life. Was planning to drive it with the slant a few months and gather parts.
I have had it two months and i really want to get it goin. I have a donor 360 out of a dodge van. And a motor to build up. This way ill have a 200 or so horsepower motor to make sure i got everything right before i put serious ponies to the frame etc.
During that time ill perfect all the safety features,interior etc

This is that old '64 340 car I had in 1973... ran mid-12's with slicks...

[Bill Dedman]

Originally Posted by cruiser3042

Also,i need some headers that are not fender well ones. Can yall tell me where and what kind work the best.
And do yall know where a reasonable priced a body 8 3/4 rear end is ?

The only company that makes a legitimate header for an early (1963) A Body/small block V8 that I KNOW of is TTI, and they are very proud of them. Getting them on the car takes two men and a boy, but they ARE "nice." I have TTI's on my '72 and they fit like a glove. I have never had any sort of problem with them (except for paying for them.)

The market for 8.75" A Body rear ends is the reason our car has a B-Body rear end in it.

We got a 1967 Coronet 8.75", drum-to-drum with a good 2.73:1 third member from a junkyard near Searcy (Arkansas) for $250.00.

Occasionally, I see a "deal" on an A-Body 8.75", but they are usually priced out of my range.

We cut the the spring pads off the housing, and moved them in toward the center... a half-inch on each side and they line up with the springs. Then, we ordered some cutom back-spaced wheels from Stockton wheel company in California and we were in bidness... The wheels weren't cheap (and, they're steel- read "heavy") but it was a lot cheaper than going with an A Body housing, overall.

If you can find one at a reasonable price, go for it.... we just didn't have the time to shop around.



I'm 73 and my partner is 74; we wanted to finish this thing while we were both stilll alive, if possible.... LOL!

We MIGHT git-r-dun...

I'm the idiot in the white coat...

[cruiser3042]

So the width is ok on a b body just the perch has to be moved over ?

[cruiser3042]

Maby sometime we can talk on the phone. I could use your wisdom on this one.