'74 T'ette Questions

["Joseph M. Shaw, II" <MikeIIDC@domain.elided>]

Hello, All-

I have a slew of questions concerning a '74 100 Travelette.  I am very
close to buying it, but need to know a few things from one of you T'ette
owners, or one of you incredibly knowledgeable folks.
I have found this '74 Y'ette that is in apparently very solid condition.
Paint is not perfect, but good.  Body appears very solid all the way
around.  Interior is not nice, but in good condition.  It has a 392 with
approximately 180,000 miles on it.  Has never been rebuilt that anyone
knows of.  It was not running for over a year, but they got it started
about three months ago.  Since these guys have had it, the farthest they
ever drove it was around the block, but they said they left it running
for a long time at idle and it never overheated.
Anyway, my questions are these:

If I were to find that it had engine problems, would my 345 swap into it
readily?  I know the mounts are supposed to be the same, but I have a
345 out of my '68 T'all and a 345 out of my '73 Scout II.  Would either
or both of these work on this frame?  I remember that someone found that
they couldn't switch their truck 345 to their Scout due to oil pan
configuration-any weird stuff like this going to present itself?

What about tranny?  I have the 4-speed in my '68 T'all and the 727 in my
'73 Scout.  Would either or both of these swap out to the T'ette?  I
want to make sure I have plenty of options for the future.

What is the wheelbase like on one of these?  Is it exactly the same as a
T'all of the same vintage?  I am just thinking about the possibility of
switching the body onto a 4WD frame in the future.  IS it the same as
any of the pick ups, or are the t'alls and t'ettes different, or are
they all completely different?

Is it possible to raise the front end of these IFS trucks a little in
any way?  I just feel really weird looking down into the road!  I think
they look better with a little clearance, and would like to have the
front end raised up to even level with the rear.  Is this possible or
not?

It only has five lug wheels, so I assume it's a half ton.  If these were
made to facilitate towing, why didn't they make them all a little
heavier duty?  I probably will never need the extra strength, but I'm
into that whole MACHO truck thing, and like to get the meatiest stuff
that I can.

It is being handled under a lien sale deal.  Is there any special
expense involved in buying such a vehicle?  It has not been registered
in two years, but they are trying to tell me that because it is a lien
situation, I am under no requirement to pay extra registration, but
start with a clean slate.  Does anyone in CA know about this for sure? 
What about smog issues?  My '73 was set up for smog originally, so could
I use that engine if necessary to pass the visual inspection part of the
deal?  I think both of mine are safe on pollutants, but neither have the
smog pump on them.  I figure I could put the '73 back into smog shape if
necessary.  The t'ette is from Utah or somewhere, so it was not smogged
at the time.  If I could wait until the first of the year, it would not
need smog, but if it doesn't meet the requirements, I'll have to pay an
impact fee-something like $300.00.  Unless the fact that it is a lien
sale in CA changes its status to a CA vehicle, in which case, without
equipment, I may not be able to register it at all!

So anyway, any of you more knowledgeable than me (which probably
includes everyone on the list, all of their kids and most of their
pets!), please give me a hand with whatever of this you can.  I
apologize for the length of the post, but I need to decide what I am
going to do with this soon.

Michael