where to begin?

[65 Dodge Dart]

:newb:
Hello and thanks for having this website. I have a 65 dodge dart and i want to start restoring it. it's been sitting for years and the floor is shot on the drivers side. i would like to get it on the road to start enjoying it again. (My first car). since it seems that several of you have done this before i hoped that someone could give me advice on where to start and what to buy. I will be doing most of the work myself. any help would be appreciated.. thanks David

 

[cudamark]

Welcome to FABO! We'll need a bit more info to make any meaningful suggestions. Is your main objective to get it running and then restore it while you drive it or are you willing to pull it apart and do the whole restoration at once? I would start by deciding what kind of car you want when it's done. Show? race? daily driver? etc. Write down what the car needs to make it the way you want. Figure a budget! Start gathering the parts you need first and keep an eye out for things you will need later in case you find a good deal you can't pass up. If you're going to do a complete teardown and build it all at once, I'd start with the unibody and build subassemblies while the body is being restored. If you have to do the work while you keep it on the road, I'd make it reliable first, then plan the most serious work when you can take if off the road for the required time it will take. If you can buy replacement parts and assemblies to restore, it will save on down time. Once you get, say, another K-member with the suspension/steering all done, It would only be a days work to swap it all out and you would be able to drive it the next day. That's a good way to do upgrades too. Get all the parts together, restore them, and then do the installation.

 

[hemitheus]

What I am doing is working on my 64 vally one system at a time. Brakes. When I do the brakes I am upgrading to the 73+ system. once that system is done Wiring, upgrading to HEI, then cooling. If you take on too much at once it gets overwhelming.

welcome and SHOW US SOME PICS MY BROHTER

 

[65 Dodge Dart]

My hope is to have it on the road first. it already has nice upgrades to it, but has been sitting for years (15 plus) and i can see that the windshield has been leaking on the drivers side for some time. I have upgraded to the 273, replaced the transmission with one out of a 70 duster 904 trans. and replaced the rear end with an 8 3/4 hog head with posi 323 gears. and again that was 20 years ago. my finished dream would be something i could drive about and at the drag strip, semi serious. I will post some pictures of the old dart as soon as i get the camera up and running too....lol

 

[hemitheus]

cool. look forward to it.

 

[pishta]

Get a digital camera and take lots of pics, before and after. Not only for reassembly, but for us!