[murrsue]

I just started a 57 chev truck. Planning on a Volare front suspension. I know, I know, old technology compared to the new MII kits but the price is right and it's relatively easy to do. It'll have a mild 350 and probably a 700r4. My philosophy is to use wrecker parts for as much as possible to keep costs down. I'm wondering if anyone reading this has done a 57 truck and knows some possible good donor vehicles for:
- radiator
- gas tank (under box) ?front, ?back and
fill options
- Brake booster and pedal assembly
- 3 pt. seatbelts
- what do do about the park brake
- any other mods that might be good to do

thanks

 

[advanced design]

Murrsue,

I haven't built a '57 Chevy truck but I do remember reading about installing a tank from a '69 Mustang in a '57 Chevy truck. I think it was over at Chevytalk.org or Chevyduty.com.

 

[Deuce]

- radiator

- Brake booster and pedal assembly

- what do do about the park brake


thanks

I had a 55 Chevrolet Cameo years ago........

What is wrong with a stock radiator ? I had a 454 - 450 hp in mine with no problems........

I would use the Volare booster and pedal..........it matches and works well.

What issue with the parking brake........it works on the rear end and even if you change rears (which I would....get a Volare one, that way the wheels will all match).....rigging up the parking brake cables to the stock stuff is easy.....


.

 

[murrsue]

Radiator

I've been told that cooling a 700r4 properly is necessary and poor cooling is a major contributor to the failure of this trans. I assumed I would want a modern rad with provisions for the trans cooling lines. Just wondering what options I would have.

 

[dinger]

Re: Radiator

I've been told that cooling a 700r4 properly is necessary and poor cooling is a major contributor to the failure of this trans. I assumed I would want a modern rad with provisions for the trans cooling lines. Just wondering what options I would have.

Add a tranny cooler. There's some pretty cool looking coolers out there as well as a stock-finned type. Mount under body if you want. Dan

 

[Deuce]

Re: Radiator

I assumed I would want a modern rad with provisions for the trans cooling lines. Just wondering what options I would have.

Those years trucks also had automatic transmissions.......with cooler fittings.

 

[murrsue]

Further on the park brake. I took a closer look at the bare frame today. The mechanical pivot point is anchored to the frame in front of the steering box, pretty well right above the axle. This is where the Volare ifs will go in. Of course, the Volare ifs mounts below the frame but not having seen the Volare assembly yet I'm not sure if the park brake assembly will be in the way or not. Could be problems with steering column to rack and pinion or headers. I'll just have to wait and hope it will work or I'll have to work out something new.

Thanks for the idea for a Mustang gas tank. I replaced one in a 68 once and I remember it's quite shallow and the filler is rearward and in the center. Might fit well between the frame at the back and have a filler behind the licence plate. That would be neat. May have to figure out the ohm difference for the original gauge though.

 

[bullheimer]

i did all that stuff to mine but put it on a 79 4x4 chassis so it's like completely different so i'll spare you.

as for the volare clip, i understand rebuild parts are no longer available so that is the only reason not to get one. as for ride they are great, as they are fully adjustable you can drop it into the weeds or raise it up for dirt roads. as for the availability, i read it in classic trucks mag a couple years back. maybe somebody started makin parts, but i doubt it

 

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I installed a 70s 80s Chevy pickup tank inside the frame rails on my '53. I am running a 200R4 OD and it still fits fine. The frame is a littel different from yours but I imagine yours is at least as wide as mine if not wider so you should be able to do it too. And those tanks are as common as interns abused by Bill Clinton.

See photos here and here. Adapt the old fuel gauge sender to the new tank like this. These are Journal pages so scroll up and down until you find the blurb that pertains.

And your stock radiator will work just fine. If it doesn't have a tranny cooler in the bottom tank, any radiator shop can install one for a few shekels.