Odd things you have done to solve a car problen.

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BigWhip

BigWhip

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After reading about all the issues on A-Bodys with header and exhaust manifolds it reminded me of what my uncle did to a old Triumph TR6.

The TR6 looked great but had a blow ed motor. He pulled the motor and trans out and replaced them with a 400ci sbc with a turbo 350 trans. Needless to say it wasn't a good fix. With the exhaust manifolds on the steering linkage was blocked by the down pipe. After some time he solved the problem by mounting the manifolds on the opposite sides they were designed for. Both manifolds dumped to the front and the steering linkage went right in. I don't know what the muffler shop said but I am sure they didn't do that type of work often.

Whip
 
Not even Mopar related, but a clever repair non the less....

When my Sister first started driving I had gotten her a `71 VW Beetle to use. She was attending Mt. St. Vincent college in Riverdale, The Bronx. Her school was in a decent area, but she had to drive through the south Bronx to get there. The south Bronx is never in the Visit NYC travel brochures....


It was after a night class about 9:30 when I hear my sister pull into the driveway with the VW's engine running at what sounded like 4,000 RPM. I walk to the door to see my sister waving me outside. As I walk out she has the engine lid open is pointing saying "Look what I did!"
The throttle cable snapped. Figuring out what made the engine accelerate she used a band-aid and a chunk of gravel to raise the idle enough to drive on the highway home.

This happened about 30 yrs. ago and I still talk about it..... brilliant repair!
 
The alt went bad causing the battery to die on one of my vans so I stuck a portalble battery pack under the hood bungied it closed, (open about a foot) and drove it across town to the shop. Got a few looks on the way.
 
fiat 124 the roll pin snaped on dist drive gear found a nail on the side of the road beat it in there with a hammer and off we when.
 
Broken throttle cable in a 69 Corvette. I took the speaker wire from one of the rear speakers and tied it to the carb throttle plate. Then I removed the drivers T top and operated the throttle by pulling on the speaker wire. I was driving it without a hood because of a single 4bbl tunnel ram or it wouldn't have worked.
Oh yeah, the car was a 4 speed! Made it home though!

George
 
03 Mopar Nats.....

Guy with a 65 Coronet on trailer behind his small Class C Ford RV blew transmission on I-270 in Columbus.
Rather than having it towed to local Ford dealer, he backed the back end of car off trailer, slid ramps in, pulled forward about 3 feet, chained down car and while his buddy steered and braked RV, owner used Coronet for power.
 
It was my first 65 Barracuda; /6 with 3 speed on the column. My best friend sold me a 318 and 904 for it, but I didn't have a V8 gas pedal or throttle cable for it. My best friend suggested safetywire so I ran it from the carb through the firewall to the column shifter lever since I wasn't using it anymore with an auto; it worked great for a few months till he found me a V8 pedal. I had an 8 1/4 with posi at the time so I could do two tire burn outs with a hand throttle.
 
yellowdartdave said:
03 Mopar Nats.....

Guy with a 65 Coronet on trailer behind his small Class C Ford RV blew transmission on I-270 in Columbus.
Rather than having it towed to local Ford dealer, he backed the back end of car off trailer, slid ramps in, pulled forward about 3 feet, chained down car and while his buddy steered and braked RV, owner used Coronet for power.
Click to expand...


Can we say "Americas Most Funny Videos"!!!!!

I would have loved to seen that!
 
I had a 66 WV Beetle with a bad starter. The commutator had a bad spot, it was like Russian roulete. To start it, I opened the door stuck my left foot out. I used my foot to roll the car back 3 feet, then forward, using my right foot on the clutch, bump started it in second. I could do that in a level parking space. I was in my 20's.
 
After converting my Dart from 3-on-the-tree to floor shift, I went through about 5 cheap floor shifters and eventually rounded the shafts on the side of the transmission. I was a hundred miles from home when They finally got beyond repair. I talked a marina into lifting the back of the car up with their forklift and loaning me a welder (this was in 1986 when people were not as worried about lawsuits and more willing to help a kid out). I tacked the shift levers in place and welded vice-grips on as well to make sure they didn't break off. When I got home, I made my own shifter from 2 flat bars,"skelitonized" on the drill press. I welded the bars directly to the shafts coming out of the transmission. I drove it like that for the rest of her first life (they are still on the dart). The cool thing was that no one else could drive her. First gear was by the dash, you had to pull it down to neutral, grab the other stick, pull it to the seat for 2nd, push it up to the dash for 3rd. Worked great once you got the hang of it, and got plenty of attention!
 
Just thought of another one. My new fuel pump went out on my '79 scout. I was about 9 miles from pavement and alone. I emptied out a Lucas trans-treatment bottle, duct-taped my siphon hose to it, the other end to the top of the carb and slowly squeeze my way home. It seemed like 100 refills to get back to the road and 100 more to get home. That also taught me to spring for the lifetime warranty on fuel pumps. Trash in the tank ate about 6 fuel pumps, but I only paid for the first 2.
 
We were on a youth trip to disney world YEARS ago. Fan belt on the church van broke and left us stranded on I-75 south MILES away from an exit. Only thing in the van was a couple of old metal coat hangers. I wired them together and made a fan belt that got us to the next exit where we got a belt and fixed the van. I was 12. The van was a dodge, too.
 
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