{"id":1750,"date":"2016-03-17T17:25:00","date_gmt":"2016-03-17T08:25:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/?p=1750"},"modified":"2021-05-20T13:27:55","modified_gmt":"2021-05-20T04:27:55","slug":"ford-model-a-engine-swap-l-head-4-banger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/2016\/0317\/1750","title":{"rendered":"Ford Model A Engine Swap – L Head – 4 Banger"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Last Month I had the opportunity to swap out the original L-Head Engine on a 1931 Ford Model A Sedan with a souped up Rebuilt 4 Banger. \u00a0It was a bitter sweet experience because the car use to be mine, and it was something I always wanted to do but couldn’t afford. \u00a0To understand how I felt, Imagine yourself working at a really expensive jewelry shop, and all of a sudden your ex-wife walks in with her new man and they pick out the biggest Diamond in the shop and she walks out with it on her finger and smirk on her face. \u00a0Yeah, that summarizes it pretty well I think. \u00a0Ha, Ha!!<\/p>\n

The car was in really good condition to begin with, but the engine was getting pretty haggard. \u00a0No smoke, but no power.<\/p>\n

\"imageOriginal1\"\"imageOriginal2\"<\/p>\n

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Once completely out, take advantage and inspect your frame and suspension parts. \u00a0Replace any parts that are worn out and make any repairs to the frame as required. \u00a0I applied rust converter and primer over all the exposed metal parts because Japan is a killer when it comes to Rust!<\/p>\n

\"imageEngineOutFront\"<\/p>\n

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\"imageEngineOutCabin\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I made room and carefully set out all the parts I removed. \u00a0I like to use cardboard to lay parts down because it keeps things from sliding all over the deck.<\/p>\n

\"imageOriginalParts\"<\/p>\n

Then I inspected all my new parts and made sure I had what I needed to continue.<\/p>\n

\"imageNewParts\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The new Floating Engine mount installation manual was unclear about using the front engine mount. \u00a0I found out that it is absolutely necessary. \u00a0Not really sure why it’s called a floating engine mount if it’s not really floating, but oh well, you live and learn. \u00a0Below you will see what I am talking about. \u00a0The front mount isn’t even included.<\/p>\n

\"64-23641\"<\/p>\n

The original bell housing from the old block was used to mount the new Mitchell trans to the Upgraded L Head.<\/p>\n

\"imageBellHousing\"<\/p>\n

The humidity in Japan is really bad, so everything must get a coat or two of paint.<\/p>\n

\"imageNewEnginePreparation\"<\/p>\n

Then the real fun. \u00a0Time to drop it like it’s HOT!<\/p>\n

The pressure plate and clutch were pre-installed by the guys over at H&H, so I just slapped on the bell housing and new Trans and off I went. \u00a0Notice the angle I have the engine at. \u00a0Really helps when setting it in doing this alone.<\/p>\n

\"imageNewEngineHanger\"<\/p>\n

I used fender covers while lowering the engine just in case, but they are not really required because of all the room you have. \u00a0Just remember to have the rubber donuts and hardware for the engine mounts handy. \u00a0If you can get someone to control the engine hoist during this step, it will make your life allot easier.<\/p>\n

\"imageNewEngineDroppedIn\"<\/p>\n

Once it’s sitting pretty, Time to check the radiator clearance. \u00a0If you are using a 4 blade fan, be aware that there are two types of fans available. \u00a0One has the blades that run flush to the front of the pulley and the other has an offset that pulls the fan blades back about 1\/2 an inch. \u00a0You want the fan with the offset for Roadsters, Coupes and Sedans. \u00a0The flush type fan is for Trucks, and it will rub on the Radiator. \u00a0Unfortunately the radiator mounts are not easily modified on this particular car, so I recommend getting the right fan blade. \u00a0Also make sure the fan is not cracked, it will cause you more pain and hard ache later if you install a cracked fan. \u00a0Just take my word for it.<\/p>\n

\"imageEngineInNoThrottle\"<\/p>\n

Another part that required special attention and fabrication was the throttle assembly. \u00a0I made one out of scrap metal I found lying around the shop.<\/p>\n

\"imageThrottle1\"<\/p>\n

Mounted nicely and works as intended. \u00a0What more could you ask for!?!<\/p>\n

\"imageThrottle2\" \"imageThrottle3\"<\/p>\n

Be sure to check that the rubber block is still in place between the rear cross member and the rear mount.<\/p>\n

\"imageTransMount\"<\/p>\n

Stay tuned, next week I will go over replacing the ring and pinion for higher speeds and better acceleration.<\/p>\n

-Moon Garage<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Last Month I had the opportunity to swap out the original L-Head Engine on a 1931 Ford Model A Sedan with a souped up […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":1756,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[67,66,17,18,65],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1750"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1750"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1750\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1771,"href":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1750\/revisions\/1771"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1756"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1750"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1750"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mooneyes.co.jp\/moon-garage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1750"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}