CMP engine swaps

[Phil Waterman]

Hi All

Engine change not necessarily for the purest, but there are times when it is the only way to keep the criter on the road.

I've got three CMPs one I've tried to keep as original as possible, because it was basically all there when I was lucky enough to find it. The other two have none original engines. One because the original engine had not been protected from freezing and had frozen and had numerous block cracks.

Yes, I have welded and sealed all the cracks but would it be a reliable engine, probably not so it got a 1952 216cu.in. engine and will be getting a 235 which is ready to go in.

The other had a good running original 216 but to drive it on the road with a truck that weighs in at 11,000 lbs just was to slow to be safe. So it got a 261 which gave it about as get up and go as the 234 in wheel base and 60+ year old brakes can handle, it will out run any WWII vehicle in the club. The original engine has been pulled complete, set up on a test stand ready to run, should I or the next owner ever want to go pure original.

My point in this post is NO ONE SHOULD FEEL DIMINISHED if they need to put a none original engine in to keep the truck on the road.

I applaud Keith for starting this thread to help people explore what will fit and what will work. So I look forward to reading more posts.

Cheers Phil

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by Phil Waterman

My point in this post is NO ONE SHOULD FEEL DIMINISHED if they need to put a none original engine in to keep the truck on the road.

Personally I prefer to see a few non-original motors in CMPs, provided the vehicle presents outwardly as original. It would be a very boring world if we all did the same thing, and these days there are enough restored CMPs to accommodate a bit of variation/experimentation, particularly in the interests of improved performance.

The other point about engine swaps is that there's a whole spectrum, ranging from highly conservative, eg. later model Chev 6 cyl, to highly radical, eg. Rolls Royce jet engine! (yes, it's been done). Hence we can't generalize about the practice - each conversion must be judged on its merits. Personally I hardly consider a Blue Flame motor to be "non-original", because without driving it I can't perceive any difference. And I even consider the jet-powered CMP to be a worthwhile exercise, purely as a spectacle. I'm only sorry I missed it!

As a purist myself I'll be sticking with the flathead, but I'm glad there are others who push the boundaries in search of performance, because there's always something to be learned from the exercise. For a start, I'm curious to know how fast a CMP can be driven safely!

[Darian Carn]

Hello All,

Yes, Just a wee young lad, so the jingle certainly eludes me. I was still in primary school in "81 !!

Yes it is the same Truck.

I dont have any recent photographs, only when it was loaded on our truck to bring it back to SA in 2007. Not a good picture, I will try to find the photographs from when we were down in Tasmania, there may be a better picture amongst them.

The truck is now in the shed, in the dead vehicles isle, along with a F30 and a C60X. All are in a rather sad state but at least undercover.

Photo of Truck at Corowa in "81 from a post from Mike Kelly back on 28th March 2007.

Regards,

Darian.