1974 Dart Swinger

[Button]

Well today I picked up the rear tires for my sons car. It seems that AAFES had to special order the front tires and they won't be in until Tuesday the 7th. But in the mean time I mounted the rears on and love them. I'm glad we went with the BFG TA Radials over the Firestones. More of a "muscle car" look for the particular period of car. A few comparison pictures, the wheels before and after a good polish and wax. There is also some shots of just how close a stock 14inch wheel with 225/70R 14 tires fits inside the wheel well with respect to the leaf springs and fender lip. The Dorman 1/2-20 lug nuts and locks came as a package deal from Auto Zone for $27.05 including tax. The 205/70R 14 TA's that I pick up in a week cost $187 for the pair to include mount / balance/ road hazard/ free ballance and rotation/ and a disposal fee for the junk old rubber.
The cars come a long way in just 18 days of ownership.

 

[sneke_eyez]

Those definitely do compliment the car well!
I like them a lot!
Definitely an upgrade from the whitewalls!

My Dart is going to need new tires eventually, probably next summer.
Ours have good tread but have some dryrot.
They actually handle pretty well though.

My father and I want to upgrade the wheels when we upgrade the tires though.
I'm thinking TorqueThrusts!

 

[Burntorange70]

Nice work! I love the new stance.
and it is allways cool to see a father/son build up. To cool.

 

[Button]

sneke eyes,
Torque Thrusts would be cool. My 1st car was a 1969 Dodge Polara that i bought in 1979 for $300. It had the same 318, 2-barrel carb. I ran aluminum slots, (American Racing if I remember correctly) with G-60X15 Road King, raised white letters on the rear and small 14's on the front. If this Dart didn't have these stock ralleye's already on it, I would have pushed my son to get Cragar S/S's. I loved those wheels and to me they were the epitome of what a muscle car needed to have for that extra sharp look. However these ralleye's were a strong selling point for us buying the car. They are a little rough but hey, it's going to be a 16 year olds car, not a concourse restoration. My son has his journalism class check this web-site to see his cars progress and even his teacher likes the car.
To many baseball games this weekend to do much if anything, (youngest son plays on a traveling team in tournaments) but the front tire should be mounted by Wednesday and I'll have new pictures then. I also have a long weekend next weekend with no sports scheduled so alot should happen that weekend with the old Dart.

 

[70dart]

Comin' along nicely, looks good!

 

[Punkmastadart]

The stance looks pretty awesome! looks kinda like my 74 custom except i lowered the front like a crazy person lol. Oh i ordered the same tires for the new vector rims im waiting for on my 73 swinger I went to a 15 tho and i got the 225/60 profile lol. Man im way excited to see your progress on this Swinger!! makes me wanna get a third job to buy the same setup for my custom lol

 

[Button]

What a busy weekend, and that was with my youngest baseball tournament. Two days and 4 games so my oldest and I didn't get much time to work on the Dart till Sunday evening. We put the front of the car on jack stands and removed the front tires/rims so I'd have them ready to mount the new TA Radials on Tuesday. I took the trim rings and center caps off and polished out the rims a best I could. It looks as if these rims weren't rotated much with the rear rims as they are in worse shape due to years of brake dust. However once they are all together with the new rubber, I'm sure they'll look much better. Once installed I'll post more pictures.
I took a picture of the Build Sheet we found behind the rear, upper backseat. The glare is caused by the lamination I used to preserve the sheet both front and rear. There was also a build sheet under the springs of the lower back seat but it virtually fell apart upon touching it, so I left it tucked into the springs where it has been for the first 35 years.
The build sheet lists the "Road Wheels" as code "21". I know they are 14inch, but is there anything else special about these rims? I've noticed from looking through many MOPAR Muscle magazines I've collected over the past 10 years that most ralleye wheels don't use these cenetr caps. Were they only used durung certain years, 73-76?
Next question, I'm looking to possbly replace the old 2-barrel carb with a new unit that can bolt right on useing the same lines / connections. Are there any suggestions?, I want to stick with a 2-barrel for now.

 

[gatorthebuckeye]

Alright boys to men, the dart's look'n sharp!!! When do we put in the stereo

Jeffery, please charish all the interaction you are receiving from your Dad. And thanks for all your help when your out at the ranch.

I'll get my van out there soon and start working on it... look for my thread to start in the future.

Gator

 

[2 Darts]

Looks like you have a great starting point. I'm really impressed with how well the paint responded to TLC. You have a bunch of folks around you who are good resources for parts. Ron Stitt at Texas Acres in Harker Heights, Hidden Valley Auto Ranch in Belton, and Dr. Mopar in Niederwald. I've used 'em all and they are fair dealers. Mr. G's in Fort Worth can probably do an exchange for you on the dash panels provided nothing is broken.

You may want to check the rims for a stamping that will read something like 5 x 14 JJ. That first number will tell you the width. Check what you find against the Goodyear or BFG website for sizes that have an installable range that includes the width of your rim. A 215 will work on a 6 inch rim, probably not on a 4.5 inch.

The easiest thing to do with the carb is to go on-line at http://www.autozone.com and see if they have a re-man 2bbl Carter (may also be called Ball & Ball). Should be a direct bolt on if it's for a 74. Most concern I would have is not the fuel lines but that vacuum lines are in the right number and place. The stores won't carry the carb. Delivery time is reasonable.

 

[Button]

72 Demon,
Thanks for the info on the carb, we'll be sure to check it out! I want to keep the engine basically stock so "bolt-on" replacement is exactly what I'm looking for. I'm also hopeing to get to Texas Acres this weekend and check it out if possible.

Gator,
We're anxious to see the van, however since it's a "cheby" you might have to find a discussion group that shares that interest. I found this site by Googleing, Dodge Dart.

I picked up the front tires this evening right before the shop on post closed and hurried home to put them on before dark. I don't like leaving the car on jack-stands in the drive-way for very long. My son and I scrubbed the blue off the letters and mounted them onto the car. The 205/70-14's make the rear 225/70R-14's appear even bigger. I'll be posting a picture of the car in better light but I decided to take a night shot anyway. Not the best shot but it reminds of what a car like that would have looked like cruiseing the streets on a friday or saturday night when I was growing up.
I believe new trunk rubber seals are next as the rain we got last night leaked into the trunk some.

 

[Punkmastadart]

?? I think the rain your getting isnt from your trunk seal...well ok maybe lol but also it could be from your rear windshield. I replaced my trunk seal and i still get it all in my trunk from the window. Just trying to help

 

[pettybludart]

Keep up the good work!Car seems to be coming together.It,s nice to see father son projects,I,m sure he,ll remember this for life.Now be a good dad and go get that crate motor!!LMAO just kiddin.:clock:

 

[7071DartGTReg]

The Rallye Wheel Center Caps you have are correct for your 1974.
I stuck with the same size tires on all 5 so they can be rotated.
As for the trunk leak; it is probably from the rear window seal.
You can temp fix that with clear silicone carefully put under the trim.
Later,
Bruce B.
This is my 74 Dart Police Sedan Thread;
http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=43689

 

[Backtobasics]

:cheers:
Awesome progress.

Definately shows what wheels and tires, + stance do for vintage mopars.
The cleanup, plus Tires and wheels, and air shocks, make a MONSTER improvement in the appearance of the car.

Well Done:cheers:

 

[Button]

OK, here's the car with the new tires mounted in day light, (225's on rear and 205's on front). The rubber and stance gives the car a whole new "attitude". The air-shocks are inflated to 65-70lbs and the air valve is mounted in the license plate but will eventually be moved to inside the trunk.
This weekend we plan to re-primer the roof for the winter months. That will have to do until $$$$ becomes available on down the road for a gloss black paint job.
We want to get "Classic Car" plates and have them possibly say, "74 DART". Are there any other ideas out there that might prove clever and / or unique?

 

[Bigmacdak]

Lookin' good man! Its amazing what a good set of tires will do for a car!!!

Its great that you & your son are doing this. I bet he's stoked!!

 

[Punkmastadart]

Oh i forgot to say that these cars look sweet and clean without the gremlins

 

[Joe Mc]

Hey Button - WOW!!!=D> What a transformation and too boot the son & dad time.

As I was reading and viewing I noticed one picture showing the side rear of the car and just have to note when you get the dual exhaust - you have absolutely got to find the "MoPar" stock tips. Not only do they look correct they make the exhaust note "sooooo sweet". A thought on the roof, instead of having it painted gloss black (Texas sun + gloss black = "wow it's really hot in here!!!") you may consider the stuff used to coat truck beds. Autozone, and the like, sell it in cans, quarts & gallons I think? and it rolls on with a textured roller, leaving a textured (vinyl like finish) very tough finish. If you go this route, I'm pretty sure you can choose colors other than black too - you may want a med/dk green to match the car, but black would go with the interior too, so it's a toss up? Additionally, to get that real vinyl top look, mask off the center of the top, 6" +/- from the sides (you can check the distance with another Dart) roll on the outer edges first, then mask about 3/4" onto the cured sides then roll out the remaining center area overlapping the sides. This "overlap" will give a "look" just like the original top seams.

Man that is really a sweet first car! I'm sure your son is very proud of it and loves the heck out of good ol` dad. These things he and you are doing together on this car will be never forgotten and cherished forever. So, recalling those credit card commercials where they list the price of this item and that item and finish with "Priceless", what ever you guys spend in money is "Priceless" in memories/time spent.

Enjoy!!! And keep the progress reports & pictures coming - I really like your son's car, tell him I'm sooo jealous.

 

[Button]

Sunday, my son and I hope to get the roof of the Dart re-primed so that it doesn't rust any further until we can get it repainted this next year. These are pictures of how bad the surface rust is on the car without it's vinyl roof removed. We placed an old "easy-up" over it to keep dew of the cars roof during the night so we could get an early start. More pictures to follow once it's painted.

 

[Button]

Today my son and I were able to mask off the car and apply grey primer to the roof to at least temporarily seal the rust for the winter months. It also helps the looks of the car quite a bit as well. We've made good progess for not having had the car a month yet.

 

[Button]

I thought I'd include this seqence of photo's showing the progress we've made in 29 days. Not shabby considering its humble beginings. Now the work won't quite be as noticable since it will mainly consist of window and trunk rubber replacement.

 

[Button]

I thought I'd include this seqence of photo's showing the progress we've made in 29 days. Not shabby considering its humble beginings. Now the work won't quite be as noticable since it will mainly consist of window and trunk rubber replacement.

 

[Button]

A few days ago my son and I picked up an inexpensive car cover, ($29.99) from Auto Zone. It is called a Valuecraft fitted car cover. It's made by Budge and is a size 4 which fits cars that are 19' or 228" in length. It doesn't fit to bad either and I thought those of you out there looking for an inexpensive cover might just be interested in seeing how this one fits.

 

[Button]

OK, we've waited just over a month to post an "Avatar" because we wanted the car to have the right look for a good picture. Well here it is, with my son who is the proud 14 year old, second owner. This weekend we plan to replace the radiator hoses and thermostat in what little time we have. Soon to come will be new window rubber and replace the carburator.

 

[Button]

Jeffrey and I spent Sunday cleaning out his engine bay. We got started about 1030am and finally finished around 630 this evening. First we removed the air filter houseing, radiator over flow tank, the windshield wiper fluid tank and the battery. Then we covered the carb opening, vaccuum pump, and distributor with bags before we applied two cans of engine degreaser to the bay area and engine. Thirty five years of crud was what we were attempting to remove.
The first picture was from when we went to see the car the first time. The next 2 pictures were taken before we started today. Up till today all we did was repaint the air filter houseing. You can see just how filthy the wheel houseings, firewall, and radiator frame were. Once we "gunked" the engine and rinsed it down, we used a scrub pad, (three to be exact) and dish soap to scrub the entire engine bay. Once that was done we hand toweled it all dry as best we could and started waxing the painted surfaces. We even unbolted many items from the firewall and wheelwells to be better able to wax around and under them. We unbolted the battery tray and its hold downs and spray painted them gloss black before putting everything back in place.
Next weekend we'll put in the new radiator hoses and thermostat we have and I think we'll also repaint the fender supports and fan blades gloss black. Many of the hoses and lines will be replaced as well in the near future. We also plan to dress up the engine with chrome valve covers, air filter, coil, new wires and distributer cap, brake resivior cover, etc... The head-on shot of the engine bay doesn't do justice to the overall improvement of the engine bays appearance. Two of our neighbors came over and commented on the appearance and work we've put into the car. Both said how lucky Jeffrey was and he just grinned.
More to come as we make progress.