From: "'John Lazenby' via Chrysler 300 Club International" <chrysler-300-club-international@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, 20 Jul 2021 14:32:43 +0000 (UTC)
CHRYSLER C300 & 300 B DELTA WING OIL BATH AIR CLEANERS by John Lazenby
I was asked by Andy Mikonis to write this article in reference to questions and replies that were in recent e-mails on the club’s list server. First I must state that I’m sure I don’t have all of the facts as things are constantly being learned regarding our Letter Cars. Keeping that in mind this is what I can offer. The common name for them is “Batwing”, but Delta Wing is actually correct.
First, I’m fortunate to own examples of both a C300 (3N551881) produced April 13, 1955 and our 300B (3N561382) built February 17, 1956. Now for comparison the C300 is just about mid way through the production numbers of the ‘55 model where the ‘56 is around 35% through the run of B’s.
It always amazes me on how many people think these cars are pretty much the same except for the fins being grafted on the B. Over my years of ownership and having these two cars sitting beside each other in my garage I’m constantly finding differences. Some very suttle and some not so. I guess I could write many stories about each of these, but for this one I’ll just stick to the Delta Wing.
In the process of restoring our B and having at that time just purchased the C300 I was working on both at the same time. I ended up taking both Delta Wings to my painter at the same time for metal work and paint. It was not until we started looking at each piece that the differences came to light.
Now I’ve pretty much been of the opinion that the B is a better car than the C300 simply because there was time to work out issues with the earlier example. Hey C300 owners don’t get me wrong as I love those also. Andy uses this same theory on the F / G relationship and refers to the F as the “proto type G”. I still hold to my opinion on this with the exception of the Delta Wing.
The difference is not in the wing, but in the pods themself. We discovered at the paint shop that the two pieces of the pods, an inner and outer will not interchange year to year. Also it was discovered that the guts of each was vastly different. The C300 is more detailed in the construction and the actual filtering contents seems to be much thicker with far more construction to hold it in place. I guess from a performance standpoint maybe this is why the change was made as it might have been more restrictive.
The wing itself is the same from everything that I’ve been able to learn. Delco produced these units for several cars during this era. They were Caddy Eldos, Packard Caribbeans, De Soto Adventure’s in 1956 only and certain Chevy’s. Possibly there are more, but these are the ones I’ve personally seen. The major visible differences in all of these is the wing. Only the Chrysler version has the four ribs running fore and aft. The location of the pod holes are different and also the necks to the carbs and the spacing associated with them. Makes me wonder what the inside of the pods look like. Next time I encounter any of these at a swap meet I’ll do my best to look and report the findings.
Other interesting facts are that some examples are mounted 180 degrees from what the Chryslers are which looks really strange I think. Also they used a variety of attaching hardware that looks like it should be in a 1950's kitchen. In closing I would say the next time you find one of these rare items be sure you know what you are buying before you realize it won’t work. Happy hunting !!
On Monday, July 19, 2021, 06:45:33 PM PDT, 'Andy Mikonis' via Chrysler 300 Club International <chrysler-300-club-international@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Model year consultant John Lazenby is the guy for this question. He did a detailed article for the Club News on this topic years ago. With photos. It should be in the website tech pages
I'm looking to find out the differences between the '55 and '56 Batwing air cleaners. I picked one up (supposedly from a '56) recently and there's some differences between it and the one that came on my '55. Specifically, differences in the filter canister and oil tank.
A person that's had a bunch of these air cleaners thought that reproductions may have been made at one time.
There doesn't seem to be a lot of information online about them. I wouldn't mind documenting the differences for the Club if I can get good information.
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