1946 Dodge Power Wagon - SOLD
The Power Wagon legend is big, and while a Cummins turbo diesel seems like the ideal match for the vintage off-roader, there’s a good reason why they aren’t all running around with 550 pounds of torque—the 5.9 liter, 24-valve turbocharged mountain-mover just doesn’t fit. Yeah, maybe you saw that hacked-up one on the internet that some guy cobbled together in his back yard, and maybe that odd-looking one where they just threw an old Power Wagon cab and bed on a modern Ram 3500 chassis, but none—NONE!—are as fully finished and OEM-looking as this one. Fully engineered and built to a very high level, it runs, drives, steers, and hauls like a real truck and thanks to the ministrations of Power Wagon expert Dan Mininger, it’s a no-stories machine that all the experts said could never be done.
The foundation of the truck is a very clean, rust-free 1946 Power Wagon that’s been pretty much restored to new condition. The cab, hood, and fenders are all factory-issue and fit together better than any Power Wagon we’ve ever seen. No need to slam the doors, just a gentle push makes them click shut, and the hood opens and closes without a wrestling match. All the things you’d expect from a high-end restoration are complete, including the crank-open windshield, headlight guards, cowl lights, and massive bumper with a winch (more on that in a moment). It’s so pretty that it makes you forget what it is, but that’s where it gets you—nothing so pretty should be this brutal. Bright red paint looks great on the Power Wagon’s industrial-strength body, and it features a fresh cut and buff on the paint for truly show-stopping star impact. Of note, the bed is finished with oak planks and stainless rub strips, but experts will note that it seems a little bigger than a stock bed, which is true because it’s custom fabricated for this truck to match its proportions (it’s actually about 9/8 scale and dwarfs even the beefiest stock Power Wagon). The tailgate is an original piece beautifully restored with bold DODGE letters on its face. The original headlights, signal lights and cowl lamps remain, with both the signal lamps and cowl lamps wired in as turn signals. It’s one hell of an attention-grabbing truck, no doubt about that, and driving it draws more eyeballs than that middle-aged guy driving a bright orange Lamborghini with the fold-up doors. But in a good way, if you know what I mean.
One of this Power Wagon’s more noteworthy features is the winch, which isn’t some wimpy electric spool, but actually driven by the engine itself via a power take-off, or PTO. As an integral part of the truck’s charm, it just wouldn’t do to replace it, so during the build a complete Chelsea PTO was installed with a custom driveshaft running up to the winch. Now, before you go thinking this is just a plug-and-play operation, dig the photos of the intercooler, which was custom-fabricated for this truck, complete with a hole for the PTO drive shaft. We didn’t install a cable, since we figured any future owner would want to install his own according to his tastes and plans for the truck—serious off-roaders will want one type of cable while someone just showing the truck might want something else entirely.
The interior maintains the no-nonsense Power Wagon attitude. You want cozy leather seats? Go get back in your fluffy little Lexus SUV, Nancy. The guy who built this one insisted that it look as authentic and as stock as possible, right down to wrapping the original bench seat in some distressed-looking top grain American leather. Obviously the floor and firewall have been rearranged to accommodate the massive engine up front, but the work is first-rate and you should have no problems getting comfortable behind the wheel. The small-diameter wood steering wheel certainly helps, and you don’t need the big original helm to manage this truck thanks to the power steering it carries today. The gauges are from Classic Instruments and include everything from a tach to a boost gauge to a clock, all of which are fully functional, of course. The wipers work, the lights work, the turn signals work, even the accessory Arvin under-dash heater puts out enough heat to roast a Thanksgiving turkey. It all simply works like a brand new truck, and perhaps most remarkably, there are zero squeaks and rattles inside, so it’s very well bolted together.
There’s also a trailer brake control module under the dash, because this rig really does work as a real truck with a 2-inch receiver hitch, even if you’ll never use it that way. They even went the extra mile to enclose the shifters, E-brake lever, and steering column in lovely custom-made black leather boots with bright red stitching. There are now five gears marked on the shift lever and a two-speed NP205 transfer case is managed by the second lever. Open the original glove box and you’ll find a Kenwood AM/FM/CD stereo head unit with remote, and a pair of speakers mounted up high on the corners of the cab. You’ll probably never use it just because the big rig sounds are so much more entertaining, but it’s there if you take your wife out for dinner or something. And that toggle switch on the center panel that you’re wondering about is for the fuel pump; consider it an anti-theft device for the guy dumb enough to try to make an escape in a bright red, 7-foot tall, 7000-pound vintage pickup truck.
But the real reason you’re here reading this and looking at all those photos with a magnifying glass is the hardware. Don’t E-mail me asking how to build one yourself, because I already told you there’s a reason this is the only one in the world. I don’t know the secrets, I’m not going to take special photos so you can reverse-engineer it, I’m just going to tell you that this truck flat-out works like it should. The 5.9-liter Cummins is a 24-valve HO unit from a 2003 Ram 3500 that met its maker at about 13,000 miles, so the powerplant’s fresh and barely broken-in. If you’re not a Dodge guy, I’ll tell you that this is the one to own if you’re looking for a reliable, powerful late-model diesel. It fits in there with decent service access and all the factory wiring is intact, including the ALDL under the glove box, so it can be diagnosed and serviced by your local Dodge dealer—just watch their shop empty itself when you pull up out front, it’s a very cool trick. Forget about glow plugs, this one starts almost instantly and idles perfectly thanks to the wonders of modern computer controls, and with a giant custom radiator and electric fan, it stays cool no matter what, so you don’t have to worry when you’re slogging through the mud in the middle of nowhere.
The transmission is a heavy-duty NV4500HD 5-speed manual, but with 550 pounds of torque on tap, you’ll really only need the top three gears. In between the transmission and the fresh Dana 60 axles, you’ll find an NP205 2-speed transfer case, which is more than adequate for, say, pulling aircraft carriers out of the water at the local boat launch. There are 3.55 gears fore and aft, so this Power Wagon cruises easily at highway speeds and if I’m doing the math correctly and your cojones are brass enough, it’ll run right up to around 125 MPH.
Fortunately, the entire frame has been boxed and reinforced to handle the power, then finished in durable black epoxy, so even though it’s pretty, you don’t have to be afraid of getting dirty. The driveshafts are heavy-duty, there are big disc brakes up front and giant drums out back, power assisted of course. The 4-inch exhaust system sounds like a big rig at idle and at full throttle it’s like Valhalla during a Saturday night bender. 16-inch Hutchinson Border Patrol custom Hum-Vee aluminum wheels with bead locks wear correct military-style Michelins, which are difficult to find, but nothing else looks right on the Power Wagon, so that’s what it wears.
So how does it drive? In short, this Dodge is insanity on wheels. The bright red paint is a warning to the foolish, including the guy who opens the throttle more than halfway before he’s in third gear. If you want to make expensive tire smoke, this beastie will do it better than your brother’s clapped-out Dodge Charger, and will probably do it with all four wheels spinning. In third gear, if you wick the throttle, make sure it’s pointed where you want it to go because once the boost comes up (that turbo sounds like God inhaling before smiting you with some kind of holy swear word) things start to happen in a real big hurry. Remember that this is a 7000-pound truck on tall tires, but suddenly there’s enough momentum to push the moon out of orbit and you’re desperately hoping that the brakes are strong enough to keep the Honda in front of you from becoming another dead fly on the grille guard. Fortunately, the big disc brakes ARE powerful and with the lighter Ram 3500 springs (well, lighter than the bricks that suspend stock Power Wagons, anyway), it keeps its composure just fine in traffic. Just be careful because this is NOT a truck for the terminally stupid. If you’re the kind of guy who’s prone to lapses in judgment and who says, “Hey y’all, watch this,” with any kind of frequency, don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Call any of the big Power Wagon shops (including the distinguished Mr. Mininger) and ask them to roll you one of these, and they’ll tell you that A) it can’t be done, or B) it can be done if you start making it rain C-notes in their shop, or C) nothing, because they’ll burst out laughing and drop the phone. Or D) you can simply buy this one and start having fun today with no waiting and no hoping those guys can reinvent the wheel. But please, stock Power Wagon guys, don’t bother calling us to nit-pick it, because that’s not really the point. Don’t tell us that it’s too expensive, either, because it’s really a screaming bargain for the most brutally masculine machine ever built and you’re only bummed that you can’t afford it.
Maybe you’ve been watching the Barrett-Jackson auction from Scottsdale this week, and that’s good, because you probably saw a few other Power Wagons sell for big money. One was a modified 1941 with a late-model frame, gas-powered V8, a yesterday’s tech carburetor, and a 3-speed automatic transmission that brought a very impressive $82,500. Another was a later ’62 model that’s arguably less attractive and powered by a smaller 4-cylinder diesel that sold for $88,000. The third is a restored one that looks very much like the amazing truck you see in these photos, but keeps its original 113-horsepower 230 cubic inch flathead six and 5.69 gears, so it’s pretty much limited to low-speed runs and playing in the dirt at a crawl—nice, but pretty limited as a hobby vehicle. We’ll see what it brings, but I wouldn’t expect it to be cheap. Why do I mention this? If you’re serious about a fun, authentic-looking Power Wagon with big power (300 horsepower and 550 pounds of torque) and no compromises (overdrive transmission, power steering, power disc brakes, trailer hitch, and fuel injection), this is it, the best, the only one with the power to go anywhere and the comfort to travel cross-country at 75 MPH, all while looking almost 100% original. In short, if you’re looking for the best, this is it. And now that you know what the good ones cost and that we’re not crazy for asking what we’re asking, it’s time to make a bid and start having fun with your new truck.
So if you CAN afford it, and this particular kind of insanity DOES appeal to you, well, please come drive it. It’s got just around 100 shake-down miles on it, so it’s fresh, fresh, fresh. And I’m positive that the first guy who shows up at our shop with his big boy pants on and gets behind the wheel will take it home and not even think twice about what it cost. THAT is a special kind of crazy, and this is the truck built for it.
Harwood Motors
1333 Highland Road, Macedonia, Ohio, 44056
Phone: 440-565-5335 / Fax: 440-565-2352 / Email: [email protected]
www.HarwoodMotors.com
