Slow, Driving Rustoration 1972 Dart
Well I'm getting closer to completing stage 1 of this driving rustoration, which is - make it a reliable daily driver - in theory if not practice. Thing is I really don't do too much daily driving lol. I work from home 95% of the time for my "real" job. I only drive 2 miles round trip for my evening job as achef line cook. I'll probably leave her locked in the garage during the winter and avoid more rain, snow and rust.
I've been driving it around town to assess the mechanical needs better. It's still having the occasional cold start problems fuel/air wise. It seems to get flooded fairly easily in the morning. Once it starts and I drive it though, it starts super quick with barely a flick of the key. The transmission will need attention sooner than later. It's leaking, it is cold blooded and slips like crazy till it's ran for a minute or so. I've never adjusted the carb (except for idle speed), points or timing since I met her. I thought the radio was broken, turned out the speaker was bad. Heater works great with the fan hot-wired to a toggle switch and adjusting the vent control manually. I need to lubricate the window regulators, especially the driver's window. So a few big things and lots of little things to get done for this stage.
This weekend I'm planning on doing some long overdue maintenance. I never changed the oil in Iowa when I bought it, I've never even looked at the spark plugs, the pertronix ignition is still in the box, and I have a filter kit and fluid for the trans. I'd like to get all of those things done this weekend, basically change all fluids and do a tune-up. I'm planning on taking a short trip (about 50 miles) to Wichita to see Bohemian Rhapsody on Sunday. I figure it would be cool to go in a car that likely saw the rise of Queen in the 70s. So I hope to have her running even better than she is right now.
I have a dual speaker bracket ordered from FABO member 74-sport.399 and a new stereo i'm mounting in the glove box that accepts digital input. I'm hooking the AM radio to the speakers as well in case I want to use it instead. It will be nice to have some tunes!
So as I get close to the end of Stage 1, I can say I'm very pleased. I've gone over the body and unibody and all of the rust is very manageable. I know I'm in for a transmission rebuild/purchase down the road, just hopefully until next summer while my bank account catches up from Stage 1. I think the engine itself is very strong. I still haven't heard any unusual noises from it.
I think she's already a head turner and with the crappy roof paint job I did, she just looks like a solid survivor, which she is.
Well I'm getting closer to completing stage 1 of this driving rustoration, which is - make it a reliable daily driver - in theory if not practice. Thing is I really don't do too much daily driving lol. I work from home 95% of the time for my "real" job. I only drive 2 miles round trip for my evening job as a
I've been driving it around town to assess the mechanical needs better. It's still having the occasional cold start problems fuel/air wise. It seems to get flooded fairly easily in the morning. Once it starts and I drive it though, it starts super quick with barely a flick of the key. The transmission will need attention sooner than later. It's leaking, it is cold blooded and slips like crazy till it's ran for a minute or so. I've never adjusted the carb (except for idle speed), points or timing since I met her. I thought the radio was broken, turned out the speaker was bad. Heater works great with the fan hot-wired to a toggle switch and adjusting the vent control manually. I need to lubricate the window regulators, especially the driver's window. So a few big things and lots of little things to get done for this stage.
This weekend I'm planning on doing some long overdue maintenance. I never changed the oil in Iowa when I bought it, I've never even looked at the spark plugs, the pertronix ignition is still in the box, and I have a filter kit and fluid for the trans. I'd like to get all of those things done this weekend, basically change all fluids and do a tune-up. I'm planning on taking a short trip (about 50 miles) to Wichita to see Bohemian Rhapsody on Sunday. I figure it would be cool to go in a car that likely saw the rise of Queen in the 70s. So I hope to have her running even better than she is right now.
I have a dual speaker bracket ordered from FABO member 74-sport.399 and a new stereo i'm mounting in the glove box that accepts digital input. I'm hooking the AM radio to the speakers as well in case I want to use it instead. It will be nice to have some tunes!
So as I get close to the end of Stage 1, I can say I'm very pleased. I've gone over the body and unibody and all of the rust is very manageable. I know I'm in for a transmission rebuild/purchase down the road, just hopefully until next summer while my bank account catches up from Stage 1. I think the engine itself is very strong. I still haven't heard any unusual noises from it.
I think she's already a head turner and with the crappy roof paint job I did, she just looks like a solid survivor, which she is.
