Dodge51coronet

Thanks for the feedback everyone. Much appreciated!

Yes your right. It was specked in the original '51 shop manual for 10W non- detergent for the Gyromatic tranny. It should be 30W non-detergent for the engine. Is that what you use for your engine or do you use modern standard detergent motor oil.

Just wanted to know what type of motor oil that fellow 50's Dodge owners currently use in their cars? I own a '51 Coronet flat head six, and it is specked for non-detergent 10W engine oil. I appreciate your feedback!

Hello! I'm looking for an operable kick down switch for a 1951 Dodge Coronet four door sedan, D-42 with Gyromatic Transmission. When I purchased the car it was missing the switch so therefore I have been unable to downshift from 4th gear into 3rd when needed. The car is still driveable, however I would like to have better control of the acceleration and deceleration capabilities of the car. The kick down switch is part of the Stromberg Carburetor and engages when the accelerator pedal is quickly pushed to the floor. The kick down switch is wired from the carb to the transmission solenoid under the floor board which then completes the circuit. If anyone can help me out with this part it would be greatly appreciated. You can also contact me via email: dodge51coronet@aol.com. Thanks very much!

Thanks for the heads up Joe, however I searched eBay and wasn't able to find anything. Attached is a photo of what it looks like.

Hi! I'm looking for a pair of left and right rear back up chrome bezels with gaskets and lens for a 1951 Dodge Coronet D-42 four door sedan. I have the NOS conversion kit with wiring, connectors, switch and bulbs. I understand that this will be a tough one to find, however I would greatly appreciate it if you can contact me if you know of anyone that might have this hard to find item. Perhaps a parts car? My email is dodge51coronet@aol.com. Thanks!

Yeah I checked O'Reilly's, as well as all the other auto stores in my area but to no avail. I was able to find a tractor supply store that carried a 2 gl. container of non-detergent 10W for $28.00. The only problem was that I had to drive 29 miles to get there! At least now I will be able to use the correct specified oil for the transmission. Well anyway, that quantity oughta hold me for a while.

According to the shop manual, my '51 Dodge Coronet's Gyromatic transmission calls for 3 qts. of 10W motor oil, and if that weight oil cannot be located, 20W is "acceptable." I am the third owner of the car and I am quite certain that the tranny has never been serviced in the past 65 years. The seals are all starting to leak. I am planning to drain and reseal everything, however I am having a difficult time finding 10W oil in smaller quantities. So far all I have been able to come up with is a 5 gl. container for $68.00 from a tractor supply store. Napa carries 30W non-detergent motor oil for $3.99 per qt. It specifies on the label that it is designed for early model cars. Due to the fact that I will be driving the car in the extreme Florida heat, I was thinking that non-detergent 30W might be a better option for me to use anyway. I was hoping to get some feedback from other fellow flat head six, gyromatic owners. Thanks for any advice you can offer!

Can anyone please tell me what type of parking brakes that are in a 1951 Dodge Coronet D-42 sedan with Gyromatic transmission? Did they come equipped out of the factory with the internal expanding brake shoes that fit into a drum on the rear of the transmission, or the external contracting brake band type? Thanks for any help you can offer.

Thanks Larry! I appreciate the help.

Could anyone please offer their advice on how to best install an under the hood light in a 6 volt, positive ground system in a '51 Dodge? I may also like today install a trunk compartment light and glove box light as well. Although this might seem like a simple task for most, electrical work is not my forte by any means! I really only need the under the hood light to operate while the hood is open for aesthetic reasons. I will use a shop light if I need to do any mechanical work on the engine. I see that lights on some cars turn on and off with the opening and closing of the hood, trunk, glove box, etc. I wouldn't necessarily need for the lighting to operate that particular way. Would it be better for me to install some kind of toggle, on/off switch that can be hooked up in order to manually control each individual light? Does the wiring hook directly to the 6 volt battery in the car? If so, what prevents the battery from draining while the hood is open and the light is on for an extended period of time while the engine is off? Thanks in advance for any help you can offer.

Thanks for all the advice. I am certain that I installed the thermostat properly. It does sound like it may be a water distribution tube issue. It may be just clogged or more than likely corroded. Besides removing the water pump, will I need to remove the radiator as well in order to gain access to the tube? I will first try removing the freeze plug and try flushing that out to see if this helps. I see one freeze plug on the right (drivers side) of the block. Are there any others? I have a suspicion that I will still need to replace the water distribution tube.

Recently purchased a '51 Coronet with a flat head six. It was driveable, however after years of maintenance neglect, I began the process of replacing the engine coolant fluid as well as all of the hoses, clamps, etc. Prior to doing any of this work, I noticed that the temperature gauge was showing that the engine was running slightly hot. I chalked this up to weak, neglected coolant. I drained the old coolant and added a container of coolant system cleaner along with water to help remove any old dirt and sludge,and ran the engine. As expected, after draining the fluid, it came out fairly dirty with some of the sludge and dirt removed. I then flushed the radiator, reversed flushed the block, and put in a new thermostat. It is at this point where I am having the problem! When I tried to fill the radiator with new, fresh coolant it only allows me to put in approximately 5 quarts of coolant. The specifications call for 15 quarts of coolant/water mix. Apparently it is only allowing me to fill the radiator and there is no other liquid traveling any further into the block. I tried starting the engine hoping that the fluid with travel through into the block but to no avail. After five minutes the gauge showed that it was running very hot and then I shut it down. After a while, some of the fluid eventually ran out of the overflow on to the ground. Can anyone please give me some advice as to what might be the problem? I am by no means a master mechanic, however it is obvious that I am doing something incorrect but I can't seem to figure it out! Is there a reason why it will only take a third of it's fluid capacity? Although the engine was originally running hot, the water pump was obvious working properly prior to draining the original coolant. The car never overheated. It just ran a little hot according to the gauge. I just assumed that this was happening due to the years of neglect. I know that running a little hot is quite common with these cars. I used to own the same model/year car and although it used to run slightly hot, I never had any of these issues occur with not being able to add the proper amount of coolant. I am certain that I am missing something here and I was hoping that some of the more experienced Mopar guys out there can help me out? Thanks!

Just a gentle "bump" to see if anyone knows of a 1951 Dodge Coronet for sale? I'm looking for at least a Condition #3 car. Thanks. Much appreciated!