1970 Fury I stripper!

[Triple Pickle]

Looks like it was severely overheated, torn down part way and left to sit. Interesting car

It was completely together, and full of antifreeze when dragged out of its resting place of 36 years. It’s a mysterious car for sure. So far, everything looks like a 20k mile car that has sat in a garage since 1986. I have a theory about why it’s like this.
I had a Dodge truck with a slant 6 one time that the thermostat stuck open on. The engine didn’t get up to operating temperature and ran cool. Too cool. It didn’t get hot enough to evaporate the condensation in the crankcase so it built up under the valve cover and in the dipstick tube. Looked like a chocolate shake. I thought it had blowed a head gasket or something. But after taking the engine apart I saw that it was only in the aforementioned areas. Not in the oil pan. I think that is what happened to this one. They thought what I did about my truck and just gave up on it essentially. Over time, it seized from setting. Just a theory.

 

[65sporty]

I was going by the pic of the engine without the head, but your theory sounds very possible or like the other guy's said they never changed the oil.

 

[rags]

More like McDonald’s

seriously though, the stuff was something of a running joke 30 years ago. i pulled an oil pan off a fwd buick v6 in the very early 90's and it was full of the same. showed it to the shop owner and his immediate response was "quaker state". stuff had a very bad reputation for gelling and i still never use it. happy ending is that the shop owner is still running his shop today.

 

[68PK21 440.6bbl]

seriously though, the stuff was something of a running joke 30 years ago. i pulled an oil pan off a fwd buick v6 in the very early 90's and it was full of the same. showed it to the shop owner and his immediate response was "quaker state". stuff had a very bad reputation for gelling and i still never use it. happy ending is that the shop owner is still running his shop today.

There was a Quaker State recall from a bad batch of 10w30 motor oil in the late 70's or very early 80's. The 1976 Plymouth Gran Fury Brougham I inherited from the Livery/Taxi company I serviced cars for had a Quaker State replaced engine in it through the class action claim. I got the car in the mid 80's but knew the fella that was running the cab company when the engine went. The problem with the oil was it would turn to gel at sub zero temperatures and the engine would seize on first cold weather startup, I think the replacement engine was just a boneyard swap and at the time I really didn't care about numbers as it was a *FREE* daily driver. It was a nice car being a Brougham, kind of thing 'Black Car' service like they have/had in NYC back in the day, not a lot of rust on it then compared to what you see today but it had more than my 1977 PK41 cars that I was originally going to swap all the Brougham stuff over too. But it was enough to be a eyesore for the owner of the company as it was considered a high class 'Livery' service not a traditional cab company like the only other licensed competitor in town.

Many people back in the late 60's & early 70's didn't change their oil as a lot would trade the car in for a new model in 1 or 2 years anyways back then. This all changed when the gas prices started to rise and people learned to keep their cars tuned for best mileage, then there were tightened emission inspections. I don't know how many BB Cadillac's that I saw back then that were running on 4 or 6 cylinders and the owners wondering why they were getting 5 miles to the gallon. Heck when gas was 29¢ a gallon, just keep filling the tank was cheaper than a tuneup & oil change.


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[Triple Pickle]

Front brakes are done! I was even able to save the spring things from the original lines and put them on the new stuff. I also used the original line nuts or whatever they are called.

 

[Triple Pickle]

Looks like the rear drums have never been removed.

 

[Triple Pickle]

And here’s what it looks like behind the drums. Unbelievably the bleeders broke loose and I was able to get the rear brakes to at least seem functional. Nonetheless, experience has taught me that they are bound to fail at the worst time. So, all new stuff is on the way!

 

[Triple Pickle]

And now a word from our sponsor,, Sears.
Even the wheel weights bear the Sears name. Gone are the days when you bought goods and services and the place where you bought them proudly displayed their name on the product as a reminder who to contact if you had an issue. And by “contact” I don’t mean call a national hotline to get put on hold forever, or E-mail. I mean physically show up face to face and get things fixed! Also shown is my trusty Sears timing light I’ll be using on this car when the time comes.

 

[furious70]

Pretty sure I have that same light!

 

[3175375]

I have the Penske version that Sears sold.

 

[Triple Pickle]

I believe this radiator is not original to the car. It has provisions for transmission cooling, this thermostatic control (which may be correct??) and, what looks like an “OK” written in paint marker junkyard style. Also a flex hose was on the top. Did the car overheat at some time? Is that what caused the engines premature demise? We may never know.

 

[Triple Pickle]

Pretty sure I have that same light!

Mine has always worked good for me. I’ve taken care of it though.

 

[Triple Pickle]

While I wait for rear brake components, I do some cleaning and take some glamour shots that make the car look better than it actually is!

 

[furious70]

Mine

 

[Triple Pickle]

A more modern tool that I use quite often is this remote viewing camera.
You can look into spark plug holes, drain plugs, or wherever you want to get a look at something that would require disassembly to get a better look. This time I used it to inspect the condition of the inside of the gas tank.
It was not pretty.

 

[65sporty]

Borescope is a pretty cool tool, we had a A/C Delco model at the shop. The owner / my boss traded it off on a new Snap-on unit.

 

[Triple Pickle]

This evenings festivities included removing the gas tank and taking the sending unit out of it. I’ll take it to a shop in town tomorrow and see if it’s salvageable. It had maybe 5 gallons of nasty gas in it and plenty of other crud. Trunk pan looks good under there though!

 

[68PK21 440.6bbl]

Did the car overheat at some time? Is that what caused the engines premature demise? We may never know.

Yea I'll bet they said **** it and drove the car home and cooked the oil.


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[Triple Pickle]

The gas tank is beyond hope so a new one is on the way. While I’m waiting I cleaned up the area above and around the tank with wire brushes, sand paper, etc and treated it to a good rust neutralizer and a coat of paint. Went ahead and ordered some KYB shocks while I was at it!

 

[Triple Pickle]

Police: “Do you feel this vehicle is safe for highway travel?”
Me:”Yes, yes I do.