[recondo]

guys im wanting to make a classy ratrod with my pioneer and want to use a low mile but ugly 4 door68 imperial 58k, miler as the donor

440 engine and trans and drive train
cold a/c
elec windows& seats
disc brakes
etc

does anyone know of a place to compare subframe dimensions and other specs to determine if
1. its a bolt in.
2. its insanity
3. lot of fabrication

Im not afraid of fabricating but sometimes you guys know if its just not worth the effort for the payoff.
are the wheel widths similar etc. I d love to do necessary subframe mods to just bolt the 68 subframe onthe 60 unibody but if theres a huge difference in width and wheel well placement then its probably out the window, and could the rear end swap as well. As you can tell im just getting into the what ifs. gonna buy the cars this weekend if you tell me some good new. am buying the pioneer regardless and will drop in small block stuff even if you nix the imperial(its only 800 bucks and runs/ drives with cold a/c) If you dont know the answers but have ref material that would be a great start. thanks in advance

 

[dana44]

Welcome to the forum, and it is a pretty easy swap. Look at some of the engines available for the 60 and you should find the 361 and the 413 were optional engines, along with some other wide block A engines, and when you see 361 or 413 is an optional engine, it is then a direct bolt-in, I would not try the swap of the Imperial subframe to the 60, there are a lot of differences between the dimensions and would be much more work than it is worth. If you want better handling, go with larger diameter torsion bars, which I do the swap myself for much better handling over stock sized torsion bars.

 

[recondo]

thanks much, was afraid the sub swaps might be very heavy duty work. but having been out of the mopar world for a while dont you think the 68 imp is worth 800 bills just for the engine drivetrain components not to mention the ac/interior products and body stuff that could be sold. or is that stuff dime a dozen. Its straight and clean inside but the paints peeled down to the sheetmetal all over

 

[dana44]

There's a little bit of money in the parts, some of the other large Mopar websites are always looking for parts, so scrapping everything is not really a good idea, large straight, rust-free sheetmetal is also a good thing to see who needs it, rust can be a problem even for a boat like an Imperial, so if it is good, there are guys actually looking for it.

 

[dana44]

At the same time, are you aware of the rareness of the car? Less than 14,000 made, and it is a one year car, so its value is greater as a stock car than a slammed bagged rat rod. Granted you don't have an engine or transmission, but you may want to keep it a little more restification than you originally thought. Restification is modifying whatever you want, as long as it doesn't require cutting or welding, and original pieces can be put back into its place without damage.

 

[recondo]

thanks dana, both are worthy trains of thought, esp with the dart. i could always sit on it until i find some resto stuff. Im actually thinking about doing a 318 instead of the 440 . there are probably trannys with the push linkage still available. i really want to use that. my old dart had pushbutton, think i had a pontiac with it too(venture maybe), sorry to keep leaning in you but been out of the loop. would ya shoot me some sites that i might be able to peddle the imp off on. its very solid. told you it was 800 but its 1200 so might not be a really great buy. got a ton of clean solid leather interior and chrome trim all over etc.

 

[dana44]

Cable trans are around, so that will be easy to find and will bolt right up to an LA 318 (or 340 or 360, even a stroker 318 or 360), so that is a simple thing, and I saw a straight one that didn't run and had been sitting sell for $4K, so there are people looking for them. Try a site called cbodydrydock.com, seems to be a place you are looking for, big land yacht site. Not a member, but have referenced it before.

 

[recondo]

thanks again.

 

[covertopps]

Sorry to but in. The swap all depends on what the Dart had originally. I had a 60 Pioneer two door post car and it was a slant 6 with a three on the tree. If your car was a V8 car the swap is straight forward, but if it was a slant car that's a whole different deal.