Dodge RamCharger Central banner

1984 Dodge D50 Sport 4x4 : Paint Ideas and Interior work

28K views 136 replies 16 participants last post by  mopar65pa 
#1 ·
The little D50 (known as the PW50, aka Power Wagon 50) is going back on the road again, it'll be serving as my primary 4x4 this winter.

A little background on the truck

1969 "Formula S" 273 Small Block, "587" 360 heads with 1.88 valves, 340 Intake, 850cfm Thermoquad Carb, .500 Mechanical Lift Cam, 10.5:1 Compression, 2.25" Dual Exhaust with 360 Truck Manifolds & Glasspacks.

1971/1984 Hybrid TF904/MA904 Transmission with a Slant 6 Torque Converter (Higher Stall), 4 & 5 Pinion Planetaries, Forward Pattern Manual Shift Valve Body, B&M Ratchet Shifter.

KM100 / NP203 Transfer Case Doubler, yes the truck has Fulltime 4WD. 4.10 Gears, Limited Slip Rear, with 33" Tires.

Other stuff : 2" Body Lift, 4" Suspension Lift, Solid Motor Mounts, Square Tube Bumpers, 10k Winch, Dual 850CCA/1000CA Batteries, Removable Snow Plow Frame, Receiver Hitch, Dumping Bed (stock bed shell mounted to a hinged dumpbed subframe, bed floor is 3/16" steel)

Blah blah blah :p It had originally been built to be a work truck and was then modified to run on 40" Tires. The poor truck has had half a million engines in it, Everything from 4-Bangers to Diesels & big blocks. Don't ask :p

This is what the fugly critter looks like. It's not a pretty truck, but it'll serve well as a 4x4 this winter.









At this point I only have a few things to do to drive it with the 33" Tires :

Install the Tail Pipes (the exhaust is ran back past the axle, just need to install the tail pipes)
Swap the 40" Tires for the 33" Tires
Connect the Choke Cable or install a new Thermostatic Choke on the manifold
Swap the Mechanical Fan for a pair of Electric Fans.
Lengthen & Install the Front Driveshaft

The truck is already wired for electric fans (From a previous engine setup I had in the truck), and I have the fans on the shelf. The 33's are laying in the bed of the truck (still mounted to the wheels) and the choke cable is already in the truck (from a previous engine setup). And the tail pipes are laying in the trunk of my '71 Demon.

As much as I'd love to run it with the 40" Tires, that is going to be a future project. To run the 40's legally I need to extensively modify the front fenders to cover the tires out to the sidewalls (max of a 3" Flare allowed, still need another 2" to be legal) as well as some other modifications to the rest of the truck.

At the moment this project thread is just about getting the truck ready to be my Winter 4x4. Once I'm driving it I'll work at modifying a spare set of fenders for the 40" Tires and other stuff as well. I'll eventually be converting the truck over to a 5-Speed and swapping the axles out too. Also a Rollcage & Rollbar are in the plan too, along with a Removable Spare Tire Carrier (mounted in the bed) with a Hi-Lift mount.

Expect more pics and details on the stuff I'll be doing to the truck. The pics shown (Except the engine) are fairly old, a lot has been done to the truck since those pics were taken.

People used to rag on me all the time for driving this truck (back when it was mostly stock) because it was a D50. Now people actually comment on how long its been since they've seen another D50 and they act like I've got a truck made of pure unobtanium :p Well, they are kinda right... When's the last time anyone saw a D50 up here in the Rust Belt? :p

EDIT :

Tires are swapped, but... I got a lovely surprise when I swapped the front tires. "Hmm the engine block looks wet." Yep, leaking freeze plug. Fortunately it isn't too bad to replace the freeze plugs in this truck. Everything else is a royal PITA, but the plugs can easily be reached through the wheelwells.
 
See less See more
4
#52 ·
ChrisKD said:
Well the truck got screwed by a piece of metal on the road, it came up and destroyed the tail shaft housing/transfer case adapter.

I had a NP540-OD and a NP435 but they wouldn't work due to the shifter location, tried finding another tail shaft housing from a 4x4 MA904 out of another D50 but those are so rare that every junkyard I called (all over the US) laughed and said they hadn't seen one in at least 20 years. Tried finding a NV3500 from a 4x4 V8 Dakota, no luck there either.

Got real pissed off at that point and picked a 50 pound sledgehammer and started walking toward the truck. My grandfather had to drag me away to keep me from destroying the truck in rage. At that point I was fuming mad when he suggested swapping in the 727 and 203 from one of his W100 parts trucks. I snapped at him about the driveshaft being on the wrong side for my truck. He said "Then swap the axles and quit playing games with that shitty Dana 35." (Gotta love his sense of humor)

So when I calmed down he towed a W100 up for me to grab the transmission, transfer case and axles from. After this the truck will have a 100% W100 drivetrain and will be a lot easier to find parts for. 727, 203, Dana 44 and an 8.75". Oh and it's getting a skid plate too
HHHMMMMMM I wonder where that came from? {think} ;D BTW as far as I know that trans was good. It moved the truck around down here. ;)
 
#53 ·
Because of the amount of work involved in the Full Size Axle Swap, it's postponed until I get my other truck (Dakota) fixed and running too.

For the time being, I located a complete 80's 4WD 727 transmission for $125, That'll allow me to use my current Range Box/Transfer Case (Round Bolt Pattern, NP205/208/241 style) and keep the driver's side drop front axle (functioning 4WD) while I focus on getting the Dakota fixed.

Being without a truck isn't something I can do again, especially with winter here.

mopar65pa said:
HHHMMMMMM I wonder where that came from? {think} ;D BTW as far as I know that trans was good. It moved the truck around down here. ;)
You mean that 2WD 727 my friend Nate bought from you? We installed that in his Mazda RX7, along with the 318 he bought from you (rebuilt/hopped up and ready to destroy furds/chebies) months ago.

Once I get the Dakota fixed, I'll start the Full Size Axle Swap on the D50. That won't stop me from doing the small modifications to the D50 though as I'm fixing the Dakota. I'll be picking up the transmission on Saturday, and that'll completely burn through every bit of cash I got as an early birthday present (my birthday is on Saturday), to buy the transmission for my truck.
 
#54 ·
ChrisKD said:
he suggested swapping in the 727 and 203 from one of his W100 parts trucks. I snapped at him about the driveshaft being on the wrong side for my truck.
What about 241 transfer case from 94+ truck with a 727? should be easy and relatively inexpensive at this point
 
#55 ·
R!bcracker said:
What about 241 transfer case from 94+ truck with a 727? should be easy and relatively inexpensive at this point
That would work too, but at the time I only had 727/203 Combos (which a 205/208/231/241/KM100/Dana 300/etc wont bolt to).

My dad and grandfather are going with me tomorrow to pick up the 1980+ 4WD 727 for my truck.

The downside to having to pull the transmission out of my truck? Half of the truck has to be dismantled and the engine & transmission must be removed as a combo, and then unbolt the transmission from the engine on the shop floor :-\
 
#56 ·
ChrisKD said:
You mean that 2WD 727 my friend Nate bought from you? We installed that in his Mazda RX7, along with the 318 he bought from you (rebuilt/hopped up and ready to destroy furds/chebies) months ago.
Wasn't there a 4x4 727 t-case and axles in that frame I bought up to you. ;)
 
#59 ·
kingcrunch said:
Out of curiosity: Is that NP540-OD for a mated or a divorced transfer case setup?
Divorced, it was from a 1950's 2WD 2.5 ton Dodge Dumptruck. It has a unique bell housing that will bolt to a Flathead 6, small block and big block. Has a special flywheel and an antique direct drive starter. I'm going to install it in my 1948 Dodge truck since it'll bolt right to my 218 Flathead 6, since the 48 could use an additional gear.

Picked up the 727 on Saturday. The KM100 range box uses the same clocking and bolt pattern as a Dodge 205/208. The truck will need an additional 2" of lift in the front for the driveshaft to clear the larger case of the 727. Ordered all new seals, gaskets, etc for the transmission, range box and transfer case. Might as well replace them since I'll have it all on the floor anyway.

mopar65pa said:
Wasn't there a 4x4 727 t-case and axles in that frame I bought up to you. ;)
Just axles, steering and a pair of gas tanks.

gray90 said:
Cool project, i havent seen one of them for years.
Thanks. Hard to believe its almost 30 years old, not too many of them left anymore.
 
#60 ·
ChrisKD said:
Just axles, steering and a pair of gas tanks.
Yeah now that I think about it you are right. {hammer}
 
#61 ·
mopar65pa said:
Yeah now that I think about it you are right. {hammer}
It happens. ;D

Short-Tail 4WD 727.

The internals and case are from the 727 I pulled out of my '74 Duster, the tailshaft and tail housing/transfer case adapter are for a 1970's/80's Jeep J10 4x4.

I'm going to attempt to install it tonight, followed by Skid Plates.

If I have time I'll swap the carb too. Found a 625 AVS in a pile of parts, cleaned it up real good and its ready to replace the 750 AVS that's currently on the little 273.
 

Attachments

#62 ·
{cool}
 
#63 ·
Mother of all things unholy! NOW I remember why I bolted the engine & transmission together on the floor and then installed them and reassembled the rest of the truck around them.

The truck sits way too high to use a transmission jack, the transmission is tucked up in too far to use the transmission attachment for the engine crane.  But nooo I was determined to pull the transmission without tearing apart 3/4 of the truck.

I had to remove the entire exhaust system, then I put the truck on the lift and unbolted most of the transmission. The next move was pure genius or idiocy, I'll know for sure which it was when I wake up tomorrow. I propped the 904 up on my shoulder, pulled the last 2 bolts out and then wrestled it down out bare handed, around the suspension and other crap that wanted to get in my way.
 
#64 ·
That transmission weighs more than you do.  :p
 
#65 ·
mopar65pa said:
That transmission weighs more than you do. :p
At least twice what I weigh... I can only imagine what it's going to be like trying to wrestle a larger 727 up into the truck :-\

Considering it took me about 6 hours to remove the 904 from the truck, I figure it'll take at least 10 to install the 727 and put the truck back together.
 
#66 ·
ChrisKD said:
At least twice what I weigh... I can only imagine what it's going to be like trying to wrestle a larger 727 up into the truck :-\

Considering it took me about 6 hours to remove the 904 from the truck, I figure it'll take at least 10 to install the 727 and put the truck back together.
Time to get a second pair of hands before you loose a foot! ;)
 
#67 ·
mopar65pa said:
Time to get a second pair of hands before you loose a foot! ;)
Most of my friends moved away after college because they couldn't find jobs here. The ones that are still here (and capable of assisting) work non-stop... That just leaves the friends you wouldn't trust with a screwdriver, let alone helping to install a transmission :-\ :p

My buddy Nate would have been great for this job (He's the one that has the Mazda that we swapped in a 318/727), but he lives in Chicago now. He was a hulk of a guy, 5'11" like me, but he easily had 100 pounds over what I did. The pair of us carried that complete 318 around the garage like it was a paperweight :eek: :p

I'm going to make some phone calls in the morning, one of my friends is trying to use up all of his vacation days before the new year. He knows enough about vehicles to not screw up, so hopefully he took a vacation day (or can call in for one) for either Saturday or Sunday and I can get some help with the transmission.

EDIT : Forgot I had a picture on my phone from earlier. You guys can thank the various people who decided to call me (back to back, at that) while I was flat on my back trying to unbolt stuff under the truck (prior to putting it on the lift).

It never fails that when you're in the middle of doing something and you're covered in grease up to your elbows that you either A: Have to piss, or B : Answer the phone :-\ Well, since my phone was already dug out of the depths of my coat, it seemed like a good time to get a pic.

Told you all it was a tight fit. Yes the radiator sits directly on top of the winch (with unibody frame steel and rubber isolators separating the two). Yes the fan is that close to the radiator (and the block is set back tight against the firewall). There is no hope of ever installing a shroud or electric fans on this truck...

Yes it has the famous Dodge Anti-Corrosion package ;D As evident by the glossy appearance of every piece under the truck :p
 

Attachments

#68 ·
ratchet straps, can hold the trans in place and even lift it some (think piece of wood under the trans to allow the straps to slip)

and do be careful.
 
#70 ·
Couldn't find any help, so I ended up doing the install myself. At the cost of a few torn muscles and a dislocated shoulder. You guys wouldn't have wanted to hear the stuff I was yelling the whole time.

It's amazing how when someone needs help I'm always there, yet when I need help nobody wants to. (Excluding my friends who were working or out of the state at the time) It sure puts things in perspective, doesn't it?

All in all, it took me 9 hours of cursing, swearing and smashing the floor with a hammer (rage venting/tunnel mods) just to bear-wrestle the 727 up into the truck and install 2, yes 2 bell housing bolts. I've got pics but they'll have to wait, my phone doesn't want to upload them for some reason. The transmission tunnel was actually smaller than the 904, I'm still trying to figure out how I squeezed a 904 in there, it required some extensive rage venting...er tunnel mods to fit the 727 in. And I may have to tweak some cross members to clear the front driveshaft, as well as modifying the front driveshaft. Also the front section of the dual exhaust has to be redesigned, the duals won't clear the 727.
 
#71 ·
fun fun fun.............  :eek:
 
#72 ·




The rest of the pics didn't turn out for some reason, I had some close-ups on the devastation I had to inflict on the front section of the transmission tunnel. This 727 would have never fit in a stock D50, that's for sure

Front driveshaft mods still required, along with 2" of additional lift in the front. Which works out, because the front of the truck has always been too low.

EDIT :

Transfer Case in, Rear Driveshaft in, 2" Leveling Kit (Front) in. First pic is pre-leveling kit, second pic was taken shortly after the kit was installed (I'll try to get a side pic soon)

It has a bit of a Pre-Runner look to it now, (sits almost level) because the wheel openings on the front fenders are higher up than the rears by a noticeable amount (factory design). So it makes the truck look like it's sitting a little higher in the front, even though its not.





It needs bigger tires, the 33's look puny now that the truck is sitting level. Figured while it was in the garage for these repairs, I'd replace the 30 year old head lights with some newer Halogens (I still have to aim them)

She's almost ready to drive again. I know one thing though, if the engine or transmission ever has to come out of this thing again I'll cut the transmission tunnel out and pull the transmission from above... And shove a 440 in it by accident when I'm putting the truck back together ;D
 
#73 ·
Time for some shift lever mods.

The issue I had with the shifter not matching the gear position at the transmission is due to the fact that B&M uses a special shift lever at the transmission for their shifters. So I called my uncle and borrowed the hardware package from Nate's new shifter (my friend/cousin with the Mopar powered Mazda RX7).

Dug through a box of levers to find one close enough to modify without a ton of work and copied the B&M Lever from Nate's shifter.

The Donor Lever ended up being for an AMC 904 (AWD Eagle Station Wagon IIRC). The angle was slightly different and there wasn't much meat around the hole for the cable to connect to, so to alter it to my liking I beefed it up a bit.





After cleaning it up a bit, and opening the hole up to Mopar Linkage Spec size (I like a little bit of overkill) here's what it looks like



Left to right :

340 / 727 Floor Shift Lever, 318 / 904 Floor Shift Lever, B&M Shift Lever, Chris's B&M Shift Lever ;D Yes there's actually differences in Mopar Levers in the same exact vehicles, when comparing a 904 to a 727 (notice the 904 lever is slightly shorter and is mostly flat)
 
#74 ·
It lives. Other than running out of gas it runs awesome. Swapped on a 625 AVS, I need to richen it up though, it's not feeding enough for the 273.

Split my fingernail in half, with multiple smaller cracks, while changing the front shocks. Still bleeding almost 24 hours later.
 

Attachments

#75 ·
But is your finger going to live?  :eek:
 
#76 ·
mopar65pa said:
But is your finger going to live? :eek:
Probably, but the crack will never grow out. My dad did something similar when he was a kid and no matter how much the fingernail grows it the crack won't grow out because it spans the whole length.

Let me tell you, it was a royal PITA driving because of the lockout on the shifter and trying not to bash that finger against it in the process
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top