**For those interested in the backstory:**
http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=291896
I was asked in the previous thread what I planned for this Valiant. Seeing as finding a 21,000-mile, pre-emissions 4-door A-body with 3/4 of its original paint still present (and decent) isn't quite the easiest thing to do, the plan is to preserve it as best as possible, and as close to stock as possible. Not necessarily concourse, but with an effort to originality, where reasonable.
At the moment, I'm getting the car to the point of being entirely reliable, before anything else. The no-run condition was a case of flushing the fuel system and rebuilding the Holley 1920, though the problem was more or less due to the float on the carb, which was set too low.
Carb and under the hood, as-found. Dirty little fuel filter there!
After the carb rebuild, an occasional misfire and clattering rockers awaited me. The PO had installed Champion spark plugs with the compression washers still present. The plugs obviously saw some miles and the spark plug tube gaskets were in need of replacement. This is not the best picture, but it sums up the right side of the block:
I was able to pick up a new valve cover gasket and spark plug tube seals today, and had already bought a set of NGK GR4 plugs in advance. However, the lines to the heater core (and the water pump bypass) were rock solid and ready to snap. And they did. They were the originals to the car.
I replaced the heater hoses this morning with later production, NOS Mopar 4-rib replacement hose. While I kept the original clamps at the copper heater core, I chose to use Ideale stainless clamps at the engine. Easier to work with than the factory clamps, especially when working with that lousy bypass hose.
When I went to pressure test the system, I found the tiniest stress crack in the radiator, right next to the filler neck. You'll see where I cleaned the area of paint in the photos below. Just the same, the crack is so small that I can get away with a few test drives without issue, and the system does well holding pressure.
With this done, I proceeded to clean the spark plug tubes, install the new seals, cut the washers off the new plugs and install them, clean the block on the RH side and throw some paint on the head. Couldn't find Chrysler Blue ANYWHERE in town, so I wound up blending some GM Blue with white for a pretty close match in a Preval sprayer - but the mix was way too runny/thinned out. It worked though, and since the paint wasn't that hot, I went ahead and sprayed the valve cover as-is. I'll probably blast it in the future sometime when I want to do it right.
Pulling the valve cover was next - no easy feat with those heater lines in the way. Found the gasket split on the top. Replaced it with a rubber FelPro unit. I found that the exhaust lash was set correct, but the intake valves were more or less at the same setting as the exhaust valves. I set them cold and let it at that. Torqued the valve cover on at 40 inch pounds with no sealant.
The 225 started up perfectly. No clatter (just the nice, even, tractoresque sound of the solid lifters), no misfires, no leaks - except for that bit on the radiator. Took it around the block a bit; did great.
I would have gone farther, but I can't hear myself think when driving - the muffler has a hole in it, which is half the size of the muffler itself. The rest of the pipe is the original non-aluminized system which has turned to solid rust, holes, and epoxy. I'm awaiting on a replacement system from a Dart owned by a forum member here - with any luck, I can get away with cutting 4" off the length to match the 108" wheelbase.
-Kurt
http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=291896
I was asked in the previous thread what I planned for this Valiant. Seeing as finding a 21,000-mile, pre-emissions 4-door A-body with 3/4 of its original paint still present (and decent) isn't quite the easiest thing to do, the plan is to preserve it as best as possible, and as close to stock as possible. Not necessarily concourse, but with an effort to originality, where reasonable.
At the moment, I'm getting the car to the point of being entirely reliable, before anything else. The no-run condition was a case of flushing the fuel system and rebuilding the Holley 1920, though the problem was more or less due to the float on the carb, which was set too low.
Carb and under the hood, as-found. Dirty little fuel filter there!
After the carb rebuild, an occasional misfire and clattering rockers awaited me. The PO had installed Champion spark plugs with the compression washers still present. The plugs obviously saw some miles and the spark plug tube gaskets were in need of replacement. This is not the best picture, but it sums up the right side of the block:
I was able to pick up a new valve cover gasket and spark plug tube seals today, and had already bought a set of NGK GR4 plugs in advance. However, the lines to the heater core (and the water pump bypass) were rock solid and ready to snap. And they did. They were the originals to the car.
I replaced the heater hoses this morning with later production, NOS Mopar 4-rib replacement hose. While I kept the original clamps at the copper heater core, I chose to use Ideale stainless clamps at the engine. Easier to work with than the factory clamps, especially when working with that lousy bypass hose.
When I went to pressure test the system, I found the tiniest stress crack in the radiator, right next to the filler neck. You'll see where I cleaned the area of paint in the photos below. Just the same, the crack is so small that I can get away with a few test drives without issue, and the system does well holding pressure.
With this done, I proceeded to clean the spark plug tubes, install the new seals, cut the washers off the new plugs and install them, clean the block on the RH side and throw some paint on the head. Couldn't find Chrysler Blue ANYWHERE in town, so I wound up blending some GM Blue with white for a pretty close match in a Preval sprayer - but the mix was way too runny/thinned out. It worked though, and since the paint wasn't that hot, I went ahead and sprayed the valve cover as-is. I'll probably blast it in the future sometime when I want to do it right.
Pulling the valve cover was next - no easy feat with those heater lines in the way. Found the gasket split on the top. Replaced it with a rubber FelPro unit. I found that the exhaust lash was set correct, but the intake valves were more or less at the same setting as the exhaust valves. I set them cold and let it at that. Torqued the valve cover on at 40 inch pounds with no sealant.
The 225 started up perfectly. No clatter (just the nice, even, tractoresque sound of the solid lifters), no misfires, no leaks - except for that bit on the radiator. Took it around the block a bit; did great.
I would have gone farther, but I can't hear myself think when driving - the muffler has a hole in it, which is half the size of the muffler itself. The rest of the pipe is the original non-aluminized system which has turned to solid rust, holes, and epoxy. I'm awaiting on a replacement system from a Dart owned by a forum member here - with any luck, I can get away with cutting 4" off the length to match the 108" wheelbase.
-Kurt
