Now this is a lot of fun. My suggestion is a 51-54 327 with the 5 main bearings. That will have less friction, and has a more rigid crank than the 9 main bearing engines. Plus they are readily available and will readily turn 4000 rpm.
It would be very easy to use one of the factory 4-choke manifolds if you did not want to fabricate an intake.
Of course you could use a modern transmission, but I think you would be very happy with a 48-50 Packard 3 speed with overdrive. That will give you five usable ratios and there are no adapters necessary. These trans can be converted to top shifters.
Here is a photo of my roadster built on a shortened 51 Packard chassis, with a 288 (they rev more freely) and automatic for lazy back road cruising.
I'd be pleased to build an engine for your car.
Attach file:
r6.jpg (318.38 KB)
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