1965 Valiant

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USMCTank_33

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So i have a 65 Valiant 4 door with 273 V8/ auto, factory air conditioner. number matching still has his CB handle on the dash, it was my great grandfathers car Brand New and he died in 1997, 3 years ago when i was 17 my great grandmother gave it to me if i could pull it out of the hole it has sat in since 1976. well i pulled it out and have the keys. its a one owner car, title still in his name with her signature on it now.
ill be honest i have been a bit of a Volkswagen freak for 4 years now, i dont really know where to begin with this car. nor do i have the know how with a Mopar built car to just jump into it. Well during my time in the Marine Corps i would come home on leave to see this poor old car still sitting in the driveway. well about a month ago a huge storm came threw and messed the hood up pretty good. and thats when i decided its time to bring this little monster back to life. i have all original parts to car. motor is locked up. ill post pictures tonight of the car after i get off work.
Any Pointers??????
 
Motor being locked up is not good. You might be able to soak it and free it up. Pull the plugs. I've heard that Marvels mystery oil works. You need to pull the plugs and pour it down the holes. Drain old oil first. I might be wrong on this so everyone feel free to jump in. You need to drop the gas tank and drain it. Send it off to get boiled out. All the fluids will need replaced. The main thing is freeing up the motor. I've heard kerosene also works for freeing up the motor. If neither work it will need tore down. That is the best way to go but, not the cheapest. Good luck. The car is definitely worth saving!
 
Ron Francis has complete new wiring harness kits that eliminate the firewall connector. It is always a point of contention in old Mopars for loose connections and even fire. Might be worth looking into if you want to replace the whole harness. Can you post some pictures of the car? We'd like to see it.
 
that is the only one i have right now, as soon as i get to the house after work i will take updated pictures of it. one major dent in driver side rear quarter panel, under the front bumper where running lights are is bent out, and now the hood is crinkled.
besides that she is straight. interior is immaculate for its age.
 
Oh it's a little more door. That's cool. Keep us posted.
 
51270 miles when it went down. Im thinking my grandpa just made enough money to buy something new
 

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If it's been sinking into a field since 1976 I'd check the frame for rust rot. pull the seat and carpet too and examine the floor pans. That engine looks rough... I'm afraid you may need to pull it and overhaul it. Keep in mind that 4-dr. early Valiants are hard to sell and cheap to buy. You may come out ahead using this one as a parts car. It's a noble-looking little car, but it needs lots and lots of TLC.
 
That is encouraging. After getting a better idea of how much engine work it needs, I'd start by considering what level of restoration I'd want to do, and what I'd like the total budget for the project to be. Do you want it to be light and/or powerful, with better brakes? Kept all original? Brought back to running condition but no further? If you have some time you can refurbish items on the cheap instead of buying reproduction parts. I just rebuilt my '64 Valiant sun visors for next to nothing. You can dolly those dents out yourself. Make a checklist of what the car needs.
 
I have the exact dash for sale in a 65 barracuda has the whole wiring harness all the way to the box any 1 need it 125.00 + ride no cluster or radio
 
Good thing it was sitting in central Texas! Lots of other places it would have been nearly unsalvageable.
Welcome to FABO, and thanks for your service!

BC
 
get that thing to a car wash!!--- cover up the exposed holes on the engine -- remove the debris in the interior & trunk then blast away all the mice droppings.
A cleaner palate to start working from.
if the valve cover has been off & no carb could be issues for that 273.


Lawrence
 
It was sitting on top of cinder blocks, and poles under neither the suspension. thats why a shock is broken and front is bent lol. also under a HUGE oak tree next to our barn.
i have been thinking about it alot and i would love to go with a 318 or bigger and keep my 273 since it is number matching.
Im going to clean out the entire inside tonight, the truck has golf clubs and spare parts in it dated for 1974- 1976. truck is very solid for what it is.
the drums are locked up so i will have to break those loose and/or replace them.
bad thing about texas though is that i cannot find any parts cars or anything.
If anyone knows a place, let me know :) craigslist isnt working well
 
you are on the best place for parts-- take a BFH for the brakes-- might get lucky & that is all that's needed.

clean- up ,then make a plan for your ride & then start looking for parts-- Lawrence
 
new pics
His CB Handle on dash
 

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this is the hood on the 64 four door parts car. Good trunk lid also on this car. if you wanted the whole thing - whole car - $350 U haul.

Mega U Pull in East El Paso also currently has this 65 two door, i posted it while it was being processed, trying to find a home for whole thing, but no interest. Title has been deactivated and turned in to TX DMV.
 

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newmexguy said:
this is the hood on the 64 four door parts car. Good trunk lid also on this car. if you wanted the whole thing - whole car - $350 U haul.

Mega U Pull in East El Paso also currently has this 65 two door, i posted it while it was being processed, trying to find a home for whole thing, but no interest. Title has been deactivated and turned in to TX DMV.
Click to expand...

I bought the fenders off of this 64. Dry, rust free sheet metal in great shape. I wouldn't hesitate on buying that hood.

Dave- too bad on that 65 2 door. Do you still have access to it? I don't think I need anything right now, but that car looks to be pretty intact. Does it have a driveline in it? Slant car? V8?
 
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