meet ginger

Glad somebody had a happy birthday. Can't help you much with your dangling wires but I do see a ground strap missing in the 3rd pic. There is supposed to be a braided copper ground strap running from the bottom stud on the wiper motor to the engine. You can see what is left of it under the nut on the wiper motor stud. That washer with the squarish looking protrusion. There should be a bolt in the end of the head for the other end of the strap. As for the bubbling degreaser. Bubbles in a puddle would be air coming out, not being sucked in. Exhaust leaks are fairly common and a minor one is a tossup as to whether it is worth the hassle to fix it for no longer than the engine is going to be in place. To make sure it isn't a vacuum leak spray it with carb cleaner and see if the engine smooths out and picks up a little speed. If it does, vacuum leak. If it doesn't, exhaust leak. If it does not have the drum emergency brake on the tailshaft, you can use the motorhome tranny with no hassles besides having the driveshaft shortened and a new front yoke installed. If the drum is there you can still use it but you will need to have a car output shaft and tailhousing swapped onto it. The 7 1/4" rear will live for a while depending on the abuse level. If you granny it, it should last long enough to find a replacement. There is a springy tab in the back center of the ashtray that holds it in place. Press down on it and let the ashtray drop down to remove the ashtray. If the tab is missing you can find a replacement ashtray fairly easily. Hope this helps...