65 Barracuda daily driver

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I've had some issues where the car stalled while driving. And then it wouldn't start for a bit. Very similar to something that happened a couple of years ago and back then it was the ECU. I still had the faulty "Chrome" box and started gutting it after seeing folks putting HEI modules in them. I had tried HEI, but I couldn't get the wiring right back then. What I like about the hidden installation is that you don't have to change the rest of the wiring other than the ballast. From the last install I also still had some aluminum plates that should function as a heat sink. I read that 1/4" aluminum was recommended, but I only had 1/8", so I just doubled it up. I used that thermal paste on all the surfaces that are touching. I didn't even bother drilling new holes, but I had to cut it down a bit to fit in the box. I had to find a longer to bolt the HEI module through the aluminum plates into that now defunct capacitor. The other bolt that goes in the capacitor holds the aluminum plate in place as well. A good ground always seems important, so I soldered a wire to the housing that then is bolted through the module with a self-tapping screw. That's it for today, it's late and I will bolt it to the car in the morning and see, if it works. It's possible that I fried the module last time I tried to install it, but luckily I also have a brand new one, if this doesn't work. Stay tuned!

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I still haven't giving up on HEI, but I'm also not quite sure how to to troubleshoot it/ fix. But I needed the car to run, so went and got a cheap Mopar ECU from O'Reilly's for now. Now the car runs without stalling again - woohoo! Unfortunately I had messed up the carburetor idle mixture settings - thinking that it was stalling because it was too lean or too rich. But I didn't really know how to, so in the end it was misfiring a lot. Then I watched a couple of youtube videos and realized that I had vacuum gauge that i found in one of my old cars. I wasn't quite sure what port to use on the BBD, but I have a port in the manifold for the a/c, so I hooked up the gauge there. I remembered that it was supposed to be around 15 and not fluctuate and I think I got it to a pretty good spot and now the car runs great again! It was never really set up and I had just bolted on that carb straight out of the box. I think there might still be some room for improvement, but the gauge was a great help and I will try to learn more.



Also, I realized the wiring is so bad that most of it needs to be redone. Yay, more work and no time, haha.
 
Be sure to coat the back of that GM module with the supplied heat transfer grease . It needs a good heat sink to last .
 
GGs66GT said:
Be sure to coat the back of that GM module with the supplied heat transfer grease . It needs a good heat sink to last .
Click to expand...

I did - there is thermal paste between the HEI and the aluminum plates and also to the casing. It couldn't really have gotten that hot yet since the car didn't actually run, haha. But the ECU gets pretty hot where it's mounted (somewhat close to the exhaust manifold, so I should maybe move it somewhere else when I rewire it.
 
65barracudaLA said:
I did - there is thermal paste between the HEI and the aluminum plates and also to the casing. It couldn't really have gotten that hot yet since the car didn't actually run, haha. But the ECU gets pretty hot where it's mounted (somewhat close to the exhaust manifold, so I should maybe move it somewhere else when I rewire it.
Click to expand...
Mines mounted with a tiny GM coil to the top of the passenger side inner fender on my 65 Picnicuda. No heat problems, and short wire run to the distributor part of town.
 
Instead of finishing what I started I decided to take on another project... Currently I have an amplifier under my seat that I can connect to through bluetooth. It works, but I have to adjust the volume on the phone and to connect to the phone it makes annoying sounds etc. I always wanted to be able to control the volume with the original radio and turn it on with the knob. So I bought this cheap ($23) bluetooth amp thing and started gutting a spare radio that I had, that didn't work and that unfortunately has some pitting on the pushbuttons. The radio that's currently in the car actually works and the buttons are mint!

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I see this one as a prototype and if it works well I will get those buttons rechromed or I'll try to find better ones. Anyways, I also still wanted the radio to light up and keep the channel search mechanism to still function. Basically I want it to keep the original appearance.

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I took apart the original volume poti and I will have to somehow attach the stem to the amp's poti, because it's not long enough to go through the faceplate. I still have to figure out how to actually do it, but I have an idea. I also took this clamp (see arrow) off the poti and that will actually hold the amp unit to the faceplate. I plan on soldering the original connectors to the amp, so I won't have to change anything under the dash. I'll keep you posted.

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Also, I want to invest in a compressor and a paint gun etc. I have to repaint the hood, the deck lid and some other areas, but in the end I want a setup that will allow me to paint an entire car, so I don't have to upgrade at a later time. What are y'alls recommendation. CFM, HP, gallons? Models? I'd appreciate your input. Thank you.
 
65barracudaLA said:
Instead of finishing what I started I decided to take on another project... Currently I have an amplifier under my seat that I can connect to through bluetooth. It works, but I have to adjust the volume on the phone and to connect to the phone it makes annoying sounds etc. I always wanted to be able to control the volume with the original radio and turn it on with the knob. So I bought this cheap ($23) bluetooth amp thing and started gutting a spare radio that I had, that didn't work and that unfortunately has some pitting on the pushbuttons. The radio that's currently in the car actually works and the buttons are mint!

View attachment 1715683069

I see this one as a prototype and if it works well I will get those buttons rechromed or I'll try to find better ones. Anyways, I also still wanted the radio to light up and keep the channel search mechanism to still function. Basically I want it to keep the original appearance.

View attachment 1715683070

I took apart the original volume poti and I will have to somehow attach the stem to the amp's poti, because it's not long enough to go through the faceplate. I still have to figure out how to actually do it, but I have an idea. I also took this clamp (see arrow) off the poti and that will actually hold the amp unit to the faceplate. I plan on soldering the original connectors to the amp, so I won't have to change anything under the dash. I'll keep you posted.

View attachment 1715683071
Click to expand...
Cool project!

I can't tell exactly without seeing the original pot stem, but I think you could carefully drill into the bluetooth pot then mill down the original pot stem to fit tightly inside it. Optimally you could tap both sides with threads, but you could also probably epoxy it in there or use a clamp of some kind.

Does yours light up with the headlight switch only? I think that's how mine works.

I'm intrigued now and I'll be looking for a donor radio to try on my 72 Dart.
 
65barracudaLA said:
Instead of finishing what I started I decided to take on another project... Currently I have an amplifier under my seat that I can connect to through bluetooth. It works, but I have to adjust the volume on the phone and to connect to the phone it makes annoying sounds etc. I always wanted to be able to control the volume with the original radio and turn it on with the knob. So I bought this cheap ($23) bluetooth amp thing and started gutting a spare radio that I had, that didn't work and that unfortunately has some pitting on the pushbuttons. The radio that's currently in the car actually works and the buttons are mint!

View attachment 1715683069

I see this one as a prototype and if it works well I will get those buttons rechromed or I'll try to find better ones. Anyways, I also still wanted the radio to light up and keep the channel search mechanism to still function. Basically I want it to keep the original appearance.

View attachment 1715683070

I took apart the original volume poti and I will have to somehow attach the stem to the amp's poti, because it's not long enough to go through the faceplate. I still have to figure out how to actually do it, but I have an idea. I also took this clamp (see arrow) off the poti and that will actually hold the amp unit to the faceplate. I plan on soldering the original connectors to the amp, so I won't have to change anything under the dash. I'll keep you posted.

View attachment 1715683071
Click to expand...


Or these might work:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MCYKHP8/?tag=fabo03-20
 
@dartnlo Here are some more photos showing the original poti post. It's actually two pieces, originally for tone adjustment and volume. It'll only be on/ off and volume, but I want to make sure the other is still able to turn independently. I think I know how I'll do it. I'll cut down the post to the length I need while leaving like an extra 5/16" (that's how deep the slot is) and file that down to where it fits in the slot of the amp poti and epoxy that in there. I'll use part of that sleeve to wrap around it. Unless someone pulls on the knob with force it should stay in there. That way I don't have to buy anything and I'm making sure everything fits.

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Often I like to look for alternatives when futzing with creative stuff. I jumped on Digi-Key, added a couple filters for you, and here is a link that should allow you to find a suitable replacement pot.

Potentiometers, Variable Resistors | Rotary Potentiometers, Rheostats | DigiKey

First you need to know what the original pot resistance value is, which requires an ohm meter connected to the 1 and 3 posts of the pot. To make sure you have the correct 2 pins, turn the pot. If the value on your meter changes, you have one of the pins wrong. Select that resistance value in the filter window, then click "Apply All".

Next, you can filter your shaft length. You can keep adding filters to reduce the 4950 selections down to a page or 3. Hope this helps.
 
mpgmike said:
Often I like to look for alternatives when futzing with creative stuff. I jumped on Digi-Key, added a couple filters for you, and here is a link that should allow you to find a suitable replacement pot.

Potentiometers, Variable Resistors | Rotary Potentiometers, Rheostats | DigiKey

First you need to know what the original pot resistance value is, which requires an ohm meter connected to the 1 and 3 posts of the pot. To make sure you have the correct 2 pins, turn the pot. If the value on your meter changes, you have one of the pins wrong. Select that resistance value in the filter window, then click "Apply All".

Next, you can filter your shaft length. You can keep adding filters to reduce the 4950 selections down to a page or 3. Hope this helps.
Click to expand...

That appears to be a great resource, but since the bluetooth amp already comes with a pot I'm not gonna mess with that.
 
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I guess that's the risk of daily driving... On the way home from the grocery store a car ran a stop light as I was turning left. The front of the other car smashed into my fender right at the wheel (knocked the cap off), then continued to hit a parked car before stopping. Luckily it appears only the fender got destroyed and not much else. No injuries. I hope that the suspension is not affected after I just spent a lot of money replacing like everything on the front end. I hope the insurance comes through. At the very least I'll need a new passenger fender and trim - anyone got one in the socal area? Or surrounding areas? I could also use a hood and driver side fender, but not as urgently. I guess it's time to finally get that paint setup.
 
Man sorry to see that! As long as the person didn't take off and had insurance you have a hope of getting it repaired., But as most insurance companies go they will try to weasel out to pay as little as possible.
 
Bummer the guy ran into you, but it looks like it might not have damaged the frame. Sounds like you have a great attitude about it and are looking forward to new paint!!

I commend you again for driving your Barracuda daily! I'm out in mine nearly every weekend, but I'm concerned about yahoo's hitting it in the parking garage at work.
 
65barracudaLA said:
View attachment 1715704689

I guess that's the risk of daily driving... On the way home from the grocery store a car ran a stop light as I was turning left. The front of the other car smashed into my fender right at the wheel (knocked the cap off), then continued to hit a parked car before stopping. Luckily it appears only the fender got destroyed and not much else. No injuries. I hope that the suspension is not affected after I just spent a lot of money replacing like everything on the front end. I hope the insurance comes through. At the very least I'll need a new passenger fender and trim - anyone got one in the socal area? Or surrounding areas? I could also use a hood and driver side fender, but not as urgently. I guess it's time to finally get that paint setup.
Click to expand...
Sonofa! Its rough out there in the streets. At least the headlight ring was spared!
 
66fyssh said:
Bummer the guy ran into you, but it looks like it might not have damaged the frame. Sounds like you have a great attitude about it and are looking forward to new paint!!

I commend you again for driving your Barracuda daily! I'm out in mine nearly every weekend, but I'm concerned about yahoo's hitting it in the parking garage at work.
Click to expand...

I learned a long time ago that there is no use crying over spilt milk. Figure out what needs to be done and do it. No need to make myself or others feel bad.

I just can't get myself to daily drive anything but a classic car. The newest car I've ever had was an '89 BMW 325i convertible - fun car.

Anyways, I already found someone in the Early Valiant & Barracuda Club that said he had a fender nearby. Let's hope that works out!
 
DANG IT!!! :BangHead: Before you write that fender off for good, get a paintless dent repair guy to look at it. Both passenger doors on my Dodge quad cab looked as bad as that, and a dude here where I live fixed them. I know where they were dented, and know what to look for and how, and it is undetectable! To beat all....my truck is the same color as your Barracuda. :eek:
 
No paintless dent repair will ever repair that. I’m in the industry, I’ve seen smaller dents like that not come out. Sorry if I burst some bubbles. :(
 
The photo might not show it, but the fender is pretty mangled in multiple places. It will take a lot to get that straight again. I already have leads on used fenders, so I will probably got hat route. I plan on doing it all myself and even finally getting a paint set-up.
 
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Still dealing with the insurance (ugh), but at least I scored two solid and straight fenders nearby from a member of the Early Valiant & Barracuda Club!

I started to prep them for paint and hopefully they'll be fully primed and blocked soon. I decided to get a Fuji Spray Mini-Mite 4 HVLP setup to paint the fenders and another deck lid I started on as well as the hood. Technically the entire car needs to be repainted - even though the paint job is only like 5 years old. I know a lot of you guys will hate it, but the Fuji Spray turbine setup seems to be the best option for me. I doesn't need a lot of space, runs on 120V and that's what I'm limited to. My garage is tiny and the only way to get power there is a looooooong extension cord.
 
Back a few decades ago I ha a young guy that did my body/paint in his spare time, he sprayed with a turbine and it was perfect, in a one car garage, poor light and all.
 
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