Recent content by Dart Advantage

If you decide to change valve stem seals, it is not necessary to pressurize the cylinders. You remove a spark plug, feed white, cloth-type clothesline into the cylinder until you have the cylinder pretty well full of line. Then turn the crank by hand, wrench, or fan, so the piston comes up and...

This is why I like points. You can open/close them with the ignition on and SEE if current is getting through the dash, switch, ballast resistor, ponts and ignition all in one little glance. Once you've determined that on your solid-state version, you must have a good ground on the outside...

Yes. You can use the Ford rims. I don't have dimensions, but a good memory. If you employ elbow grease and a curved side hand file, as I did in 1982, it will take you about 20-30 minutes of work per wheel. One is still I wee bit "tight" and I have to kick it loose if it ends up on the...

With cop 15" rims on my 71 swinger set up to handle and corner hard, I ran into sidewall chew with 225 60R15 tires, and settled on 215 60R15s with complete satisfaction. Mostly was the rear tire outside gettting chewed. 50 series tires guarantee bent rims here in Chicago.

I am an electrical engineer, and I keep my all my Mopars point-type ignition. Because they work by following the laws of physics, they can be broken, but never ever confused. I like the keep it simple method. When a solid-state ign dies on the side of the road, you better have spares...

Chrysler did some stunt in at the intro of the alternator, where they started the car, took out the battey and made some big drive to point out the reliabilty of the alternator. That was a mechanical voltage regulator, not the solid-state. THE MAIN REASON for dim lights, low charge at idle...

For many good reasons, the secondary (hi-voltage) circuits were kept as short as possible, and ON the engine. One end of the coil's secondary is usually the case, and electrically, "wants" the see the best possible path back to the outside of the spark plugs. This is ideally through a well...

Diodes can fail 2 ways. Opened or shorted. We don't see the shorted example nearly as often as the open. When all 6 work, the alternator is strong, but if one or more open up the alternator works but is weak, and a unique whine emanates from the alternator ( can be heard in the car). This...

My '65 Dart GT has an aftermarket under-dash A/C I stilll keep working. (Many repairs) But it never had a heater control valve like factory cars. So I added a gate valve in the heater line, and just shut it off in the summer.

I did this all back the '80s, in steps. First was the 8.75 , and I had the original shaft shortened. Then was the 727, and the original could not be re-shortened. They did re-use the front yoke, but put the bigger Spicer yoke on the back end of the driveshaft and I have the "converter"...

Back in the early 80's when I put the 1 1/8 ADDCO bar on my '71, I didn't like the angle, and my father, who was a machinst, made some brackets that bolted on like the ADDCO angle brackets, to the shock bolt. They extended downward to a point approximately where the factory tabs were, but had...

If you can find booster coils that go on TOP of the rear axle, between the frame and axle, the load won't be on the shock mounts. You used to be able to get them at camper/trailer stores. It will pick up your rear a few inches, but will ride kinda bouncy. The 1500 lb JC Whitney leaf...

For 20 years or more I've used 1980's Corvette front shocks on the front of my Darts. Either the ones with or without the outer tubes. You just pull out the "bar" in the lower eye, replace it with the bushing from your old shock, and it's a bolt-in. The tight valving is excellent for handling...

North side of Chicago, originally from NW Indiana. 3 Darts '65 GT L6 in Plum Crazy, my daily driver with 188,000. '72 4-Door L6 in "Grandma Green" with 52,000, '71 Swinger (now just a Dart) 340/727 in wild bright Yellow. 303,000 miles and resting in the...

I have 2 "Hi-House" hamburgers from the last week of May 1979 stored in a little cardboard box that I have resisted opening since then. They rattle a little bit in the box, and I WAS going to wait until they were 30 to open them but now I'm really tempted to see how they're doing. If I do...