Your first car upgrades? (Electrical/Mechanical)

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Woodys_Cuda

Woodys_Cuda

Ontario, Canada
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This can be for running project cars, or like in my case a driver quality done by the P.O. or even a restoration you purchased. Body work/paint interior are a separate category.

Anyways my first changes were an MSD ignition and distributor, repairing a damaged carburetor (broken mixture screw) and going from 2.76 gears to 4.10. I paid a shop to beef up the 727 transmission as well.
 
My first repairs or upgrades are always the fuel system to get it running if it has engine and brakes. Even if it's not running, brakes are pretty high up on my list.
 
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The year was 1971. I bought a 69 Coronet R/T with 1300 miles on it. It was ordered dealer installed 440 six pack 4 spd with 410 Dana. The first thing I did was Hooker headers , 15 inch wheels and slicks and bought a lift off hood.
 
63 Econoline Van, swapped out the VERY TIRED 170 inch i6 and 3 on the tree for a 289 V8 with C4 trans and Ford 9" rear. The rear was a bolt in, the engine and trans needed major fabrication to get it all to fit! That was a fun van!
 
Gotta laugh... first thing on my last acquisition was to tear OFF the MSD and reinstall the stock-type electronic ignition- 1000% better, for whatever reason that particular MSD would not run worth a hoot no matter what I did with it. Not hatin', just sayin'. Then got some vacuum leaks taken care of, sorted out the butchered kickdown linkage, and tuned the carb. Cleaned up all the bulkhead connections. And the usual tune up, of course. Then full brake inspection and fluid change.
 
Professor Fate said:
Ya gotta go with what works for you and what you're comfortable with!
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Yeah I guess it depends on intended use. The car has a big (unknown cam) 3800 stall converter So I was looking for low end help. The MSD was for a better burn at low RPM and having a rev limiter. It's all good. :thumbsup:
 
Brakes
Tires
Suspension / steering
Shocks
General tune up/ evaluation
Fuel system
Electrical evaluation/ repair/ upgrade
 
Being at or below the poverty line when I was 16-

1- Rock and Roll radio station bumper sticker.
2- Raise headrests all the way up.
 
Professor Fate said:
Gotta laugh... first thing on my last acquisition was to tear OFF the MSD and reinstall the stock-type electronic ignition- 1000% better, for whatever reason that particular MSD would not run worth a hoot no matter what I did with it. Not hatin', just sayin'. Then got some vacuum leaks taken care of, sorted out the butchered kickdown linkage, and tuned the carb. Cleaned up all the bulkhead connections. And the usual tune up, of course. Then full brake inspection and fluid change.
Click to expand...
Well, I'm hatin. I cannot STAND MSD. lol
 
My Dart GT was running/driving when I bought it. However, the very 1st thing I did was adding a front disc brake kit. Drum brakes were fine 50 years ago, when everyone else had drum brakes, but not today when 4-wheel disc are becoming the norm. I wasn't going to risk the safety of my wife and kids with drum brakes.
 
Literally too many cars and trucks and “first things” to list.
Very first thing on my current Mopar was tighten everything up.
Absolutely everything was loose when I bought the car.
Plugs were even only finger tight.
 
I have a friend who is a machinist and works on a limited number of old Mopars as a side gig. Before he will do any upgrades to the drive train, he insists that the first order of business is to upgrade the brakes. Depending on the projected future of the car that might mean factory style front discs, or an aftermarket kit and the best rear drum rebuild that is available.
 
IMO MSD is a "bit much" but swapping in a factory ECU system is right up there with a factory disk brake conversion.
 
In all honesty for me, the very first thing I do on every Mopar I've ever owned is remove the seat track spacer disks because I NEED that extra 3/8" of headroom.
 
1. Brakes up to snuff, 10" drum or disc.
2. Clean fuel system, electric pump, new filter, rebuild carb.
3. Factory electronic ignition, Taylor Spiro Pro wires, platinum plugs, new cap, new rotor.
4. Everything else.
 
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