The Fifth Ave is ten times the car a miserable Baretta is. You will have better luck installing a bulldozer track on an airplane.
The 5.2 uses a carburetor. Maximum fuel pressure is 3-4 pounds. The Baretta is fuel injected with a pump pressure of at least 15 pounds. The pump is in the tank. The 5.2 has a pump on the side of the engine. How are you going to remove the tank-mounted pump and get a fuel supply to the 5.2?
The 5.2 weighs twice what the Bareta engine does. You can't buy front coil springs strong enough to hold the front end off the ground.
The 5.2 is about 18" longer and a foot wider than the other engine. Are you prepared to remove the firewall to make room? The belt driven alternator needs its external firewall-mounted voltage regulator; it won't work on the Baretta without running wires to the external circuitry and the ignition switch.
The radiator will need to be replaced to meet the demands of the engine. It will have to be twice as big. You could use the radiator from the Fifth Ave. If you don't mind it dragging on the ground. As an alternative, you could cut the front of the hood off and let the radiator stick out the top.
It might be better to remove the bumper to make room for the radiator because otherwise it will butt up against the exhaust manifold. Remember, the 5.2 is from a rear wheel drive car and the Baretta is a front wheel drive. You will need to remove the left front strut to make room for the exhaust pipe. Without the strut and spring assembly, you will either need to get rid of the left front wheel and tire, or weld the lower control arm into one position. It will ride real rough over twigs, but it's worth it.
The Baretta transmission will not bolt up to the 5.2. If it did, one half-throttle acceleration will tear the clutches out, so you'll need the beefier Chrysler transmission. Since it's a rear wheel drive transmission installed sideways in the the Baretta, it will stick out about a foot past the left front tire.
Your heater core in the dashboard will need to be removed to make room for the 5.2's right exhaust manifold. You won't need a heater anyhow. Just be sure no plastic dash board parts are near the exhaust manifold or they will melt.
The air conditioning compressors use different drive belts and hoses. You will have to get custom hoses made.
Have you decided if you will run the car with no hood? The 5.2 oil pan is 4" deeper than the Baretta's, and the engine is another 10" taller. You will need to raise the driver's seat about 12" to see over the engine. That means raising the windshield and roof too. You will also have to raise the steering column and have a custom extension made. You will have to extend the wiring harness too. Don't worry about the wipers. There won't be room for the wiper motor.
I think you would have better luck transplanting an outboard motor from a boat. It's much smaller, and you can run the rope for the pull starter into the car and hook it to the key!
Sunday, March 29th, 2009 AT 3:25 AM
