Whats your guys take on a front end conversion

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amcervantes

amcervantes

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I've been looking around at the guys who converted their 73-76 dusters front end to the 70-72 front end. I have a 76 with a nice front end but I also have a 72 swinger with a nice front clip. the rest of the body is a story for another time. Im on the fence on what I want to do or what looks nicer. I have a snorkle hood on the 76 now but I also have a Hemi style hood on the dart which I like better. So whats everyones opinion on this swap. Thanks guys.
 
Well if you want to convert the front end to a 70-72, the rear will still be a 76. So I say convert the tail panel and bumper as well
I prefer the look of the 70-72 duster front and rear
 
I say go for it! :thumbup:

I prefer the look of the 72 and earlier cars myself. Which is my my '74 is turning into a '71 Demon tribute, I already have the entire '71 front clip.

As far as the rear end, you lucked out by having a '72 front clip since the sidemarkers are the same. You could easily just leave the the '76 tail panel alone. I would swap the rear bumper though, since the '76 will have that monstrosity of a shock mount bumper back there. I just converted my rear bumper over, you can check out my build thread here, the bumper conversion is at the bottom of page 3

http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=198098&page=3

I don't really see any issue with swapping just the front. Sure, it may not "match", but on yours especially the rear bumper and tail panel would be the only things different, the side markers would still match and wouldn't take any extra work. To be factory correct you'd need a Demon tail panel, but no matter what you do it will still be a '76 Duster, regardless of the sheetmetal it wears.

I'd just swap the front end and see if you can track down a 73 or earlier rear bumper and brackets.
 
Well I just looked at the car and either the rear bumper has already been swapped with a 73 or its an actual 73. the front bumper has no crash pistons??? Could someone have swapped the dash and front end and called it a 76 when it was actually a 73 or am I missing something.
 
VIN matches what? A '76? Or a '73?

Its possible that someone else already converted it to the earlier bumpers. I'd check all the VIN locations. Should be able to check the one on the dash vs. the one on the radiator support and the one on the rear package tray. And of course the fender tag and door sticker, if it has them.

And take a close look at the rear bumper, if the car has the large holes in the lower panel for the shocks, or the captured nut in the frame about 8" back, then it could have just been converted over.
 
here's some pics
 

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Well it certainly looks like a '73. Without a good picture of the rear bumper where it meets the quarter, or underneath at the lower panel where it attaches it will be hard to say for sure if it was converted or not.

But it also doesn't have the aluminum panel on the back that the '76's would have had, and that's not a '76 grille either. Those things are easy enough to change, but since ALL of them match a '73 I'm leaning to it being a '73. Do you have a title? Does it match the VIN on the dash/cowl/radiator support/package tray/doors etc? Maybe someone swapped in a '76 dash and didn't change the VIN tag?
 
Yeah I just went and checked it out. The whole front end has been changed and the dash matches the title saying its a 76 but does not match the rear tray. there are no other visible numbers anywhere else. It looks like the car was built from 3 different cars and the 76s VIN stuck with it. Guess ill find out when I go to the DMV in the morning.
 
Well it sounds like one of the cars was used to fix the other for some reason. Next I would try and figure out where the '76 "ends" and the '73 "begins", to see why the swap was done and if it was done correctly. Depending on where and how it was clipped it might be worth taking it to a frame shop and having it checked.

The other question would be the legality of the whole thing. But if you have a title that matches the VIN on the dash, and that matches the VIN's on the rest of the front clip, I'm not sure you have a big problem.

Officially, you can't legally remove a part of a car that has a VIN, but package trays and other parts with VIN's do get replaced all the time. How that gets handled varies state to state. When I registered my Challenger, which came from out of state, they checked the VIN on the dash, door, and fender tag. They didn't even check the radiator support, which would have been easy. And of course, the fender tag and door sticker are the easiest things to remove and change. I've had a couple vehicles need an inspection here, no one has ever checked the package tray.
 
Looks like you already have a clean slate to work with being it has already been changed up. I would do it. I am converting a 75 Duster into a Demon.
 
Yeah I'm going to continue with the swap. The front clip on the dart is in good condition so I'm pumped. Im going to keep the rear panel the way it is. Hopefully Ill have this beast driving by next fall. Drivetrain, Interior, suspension, ect. Have a long road ahead of me but it should come out looking sweat.
 
Here's the donor car almost everything that can be used is going to be used even the wiring harness.
 

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Know what? Go for it, As long as your doing it to be happy and not to clone someone else, like the 73+ swap to 73- because your scared what people think.

You own a Chrysler, your already different, so be different, don't be the same different as everybody else, if you get my meaning... So tired of seeing the same old same old..
 
No I don't care what people think of the 73 I have both front clips I just like the 72 more. Nothing wrong with the 73 plus. If I get tired of the 72 I'll switch back to the 73.
 
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