1970 Fury III Convertible 126115 miles: Intro & Planned 440/727 Swap

[1970FuryConv]

LS Muffler. TTI is emphatic: don't install clamps until whole system in place

RS muffler

RS muffler and mid-pipe

LS muffler and mid-pipe

Another view. Make sure mid-pipes are pushed all the way into mufflers. They go in further than the inlet pipe. That way, cut less at front pipes. If Mid-pipes are too far forward, front pipes won't install in mid-pipes.

Marked area to be cut with tape
Removed front pipes, 5/8 open end wrench on bolt head, 11/16 sockets on nuts
Left side

Right side

TTI manifold gaskets are junk. Disintegrated after an hour of run time. Replaced with metal ring gaskets.

System installed. So tightly made that I didn't have to do anything to lift system before installing u-bolt clamps. 150"lbs, per chapter 11 of 1970 factory shop manual. 9/16 long socket

Muffler view. Mufflers would not line up perfectly side by side. Think it is because of 2 different types of over axle brackets.

 

[1970FuryConv]

Tailpipes

I don't like the turn down tips that came with system, so I didn't install them. If you have recs for better looking tips that would clear rear bumper, would like to have the recs. Thanks, Ben

 

[1970FuryConv]

Wheel Wells going in
Left Side

With wiring needing organization

Right Side

 

[1970FuryConv]

Purchased factory intake from Jim in Nottingham MD. Bead blasted, tanked, primed, and shipped for $220. Numbers matching 2951736 for 1970. My car was produced 10/23/69, so not date matching, but the 440 is 1969, so who cares? Important thing is that my 1970 dual snorkel air cleaner will mount without hitting the bottom of the hood. Plus, I LOVE the factory markings.

I bought used choke cup for $30 shipped. I could have made a block off plate, but it would not have looked right

 

[1970FuryConv]

Intake Swap
Engine wiring harness: remove wires at alternator, output and both fields; distributor, the 2 wire connector; temperature sensor, ignition coil (3 connectors), electric choke, and spark plug wire number 8. Push wiring harness off to the side and out of the way.
Coil: Flame Thrower is Chrysler factory compatible

Electric Choke

Fuel hose set up: worked perfectly with Edelbrock 7193. Factory dual snorkel air cleaner could mount flush on top of carburetor. However, Edelbrock 7193 is 1.75 inches higher than stock at the carburetor mount, which caused the factory dual snorkel air cleaner to hit the hood when the hood was closed. Fortunately, I closed the hood very carefully and did no damage to find this out. Why not just not use the air cleaner? I had been waiting for 25 years to use this 1970 dual snorkel air cleaner on a 440 in 1970 Plymouth fury convertible. (I bought it at Raceway Park in Englishtown, NJ in the mid 1990s. It's been sitting in my loft since I moved to VA) This has been in planning for a long time. And no aftermarket intake manifold is going to screw up the look I wanted for so long.

So the fuel line would have to be cut down by a like amount to the decrease in carb height, 1.75”, such that the dual snorkel air cleaner still could mount flush on top of the carburetor

Distributor vacuum hose to ported vacuum, remove

Linkage remove, take lots of pictures

The all-important Chrysler throttle linkage adapter, in black. As I previously mentioned the carburetor also has Edelbrock 1481 adapter attached, to place the Chrysler adapter in the right position versus the linkage.

After popping the vertical rod off the kickdown linkage, loosening the accelerator cable mount, so that the cable can be removed, and removing one 9/16 head intake manifold bolt, the upper kickdown linkage will come off as an assembly. Black piece is fabricated to move accelerator cable mount forward.

 

[polara71]

Dats Purrty

 

[1970FuryConv]

Intake swap, continued
Edelbrock AVS 2 carburetor removed, 4 nuts. Also power brake booster fitting at intake removed

Amazing thing about Chrysler engineers in the 1950s and 1960s with big block engines, they actually made the engine easy to work on. It’s a novel concept! But they did it. The valve covers and distributor do not need to be removed to remove the intake from the Chrysler 440 V-8 engine. 7 bolts, 9/16 short socket, swivel, 10 inch extension, 3/8 air ratchet and the intake is gone.

Factory 1970 440 2951736 intake/head mounting surfaces. Less than .005 inches of warp. In other words they’re about as close to perfect as possible for a 50-year-old part.

Valley Pan. Luck: gaskets undamaged.

Factory intake in place

Factory intake mounted, 25-40-40'lbs except left rear

Markings

I think this intake sat for a while somewhere waiting to be on my car. The one thing they didn’t do was tap the carburetor mounting holes and the coil mounting holes. Threads OK, but lots of dust and rust came out. Nothing that a shop vac couldn’t take care of. I believe our intake has found a new home.

 

[1970FuryConv]

Intake swap continued
Factory 1/4" Carb gasket, ebay $14.95

Made in USA

Carburetor mounting studs: I don’t know where to buy factory studs. I do know that the 5/16 coarse thread mounting holes are .75 inch deep. That is the reason for the blue tape that you saw on the tap earlier. It told me “don’t go any farther or you’ll mess up the threads.” The factory gasket is .25 inches high. The carburetor mounts are .5 inches high. The nuts and washers are .25 inches high. So you need something that extends at least 1.0 inch above the carb mounting surface of the intake manifold. I took some studs and nuts from a kit to raise the carburetor height 1.0 inch. I cut the studs down by .5 inch which left plenty of height above the nut, but not too much.

My process was that I ran 5/16 fine thread die down the stud. Marked .5 inch down from the top of the stud with blue masking tape. I held the smooth part of the stud with vise grips. I used an exhaust cutoff wheel (air compressor tool) to cut off .5 inch from each stud. I then used the same cut off wheel to bevel the top of each stud roughly 45°. I use the die, that I had run down the stud, to run up the stud and clean up the threads. I cleaned the top of the stud on a wire wheel attached to a bench grinder. Pic before cutting.

Studs installed: red thread lock on coarse threads and same needle-nose vise grips to turn tight in mounts

Carb Gasket

Clean gasket material off carb base with die grinder and medium scuff disc

Carburetor installed: I installed the carburetor at factory torque spec of 200 inch pounds. This seems like a lot of torque for carburetor mount, but I believe that the factory wanted some crush on those brass cylinders in the gasket at each of the 4 mounting studs. Also the factory carburetors were aluminum just like the Edelbrock AVS2, so presumably the factory would know how to install an aluminum carburetor on their factory intake gasket.

Brake Booster fitting installed

Ignition Coil & Wiring Harness installed

Here you can see why, with line and hose reinstalled for Edelbrock 7193 intake, factory air cleaner will not sit flush now that carb is 1.75" lower.

 

[1970FuryConv]

Intake swap continued
Accelerator Cable adjust: supposed to be .25" free-play at pedal. I adjust with a tiny amount of slack in the cable. I hoped that the cable would reach the linkage from its original mount. It did not. I kept my fabricated mount extender, which was needed for the 7193. I moved the cable mounting sheath all the way back in the mount of my fabricated extender. This gave just the right adjustment. There is probably a better solution, but if you want to use your original accelerator cable/kickdown bell crank assembly, fabricated extender is an option.
Kickdown adjust: following procedure is from Krautmaster, although reworded.
· Pull vertical rod off upper bell crank
· Put 3/16" drill bit through all three holes (one in the bracket, two in the bell crank)
· Pull vertical rod all the way UP & turn the end counter clockwise to lengthen it until opening in top fitting is level with ball on bell crank. I had 10 turns of fitting left on rod after this adjust. I took the fitting off and checked to see # of turns. Reinstall fitting same # turns. Snap fitting onto ball.
· Remove drill bit
· Wife floored gas pedal. Assure carb throttle plates are wide open.
· Wife still holding throttle plates wide open, push the kickdown bell crank at vertical rod all the way down as far as it will go - it should almost hit the valve cover.
· While holding bell crank all the way down with throttle still wide open, adjust length of HORIZONTAL rod so there is no space between Chrysler adapter and back of slot, but no pre-load either. I had 14 turns of slot onto rod after adjust. As you can see my horizontal rod was extended by a machinist, but there is also an Edelbrock spacer that will do the same job.
During adjust

After

Fuel Line Cut Down
· I removed the fuel hose at the 5/16 3/8 adapter at carb, channel locks
· Hold down clip at valve cover: I removed the mounting bolt from the front upper right side valve cover which disengaged the clip. 7/16 short socket, 10 inch extension, ¼ ratchet.
· Fuel line: I loosened the clamp attaching the hose from the top of the fuel filter to the bottom of the line. This clamp is behind the alternator mounting bracket. 7 mm long socket, ¼ ratchet. Holding the fuel line in my left hand, I used a prybar and my right hand to push the hose off the line. I also had to remove spark plug wires 2 and 4 from the distributor cap. I was then able to slide the fuel line out from under the alternator wiring such that I could make adjustments.
· Fuel line: I used an exhaust cutoff wheel to cut 1.75 inches off the top of the fuel line at the carburetor and then bevel the fuel line 45°. I used my vise and my Old Forge tool to create a single flare at the area that I had just cut and beveled. Checking the other end of the fuel line, I found that a ¼ drill bit would slide into it. I used a 7/32 drill bit and then a ¼ drill bit to drill the inside of the new single flare out to correct 5/16 fuel line inner diameter. I then reinstalled fuel line along valve cover and beside distributor cap, and reinstall clamp at hose from fuel filter.
· Fuel hose at carburetor: I cut piece of fuel hose that was long enough to cover the 5/16 side of the 5/16 to 3/8 adapter and mount on the fuel line with the line’s vertical portion laying against the right side valve cover. Install hose and used channel locks to install both clamps.
· Clip at upper right front of valve cover: reinstall on fuel line. VC Bolt: 7/16 short socket, 10 inch extension, ¼ ratchet, 3/8 torque wrench at 40 inch pounds.
· Alternator wiring: slipped between distributor cap and right side valve cover on top of fuel line. Install on alternator.
· Distributor cap: install spark plug wires 4 and 2
· Wire Loom: install on fuel hose behind alternator mount. In other words on upper fuel filter hose. I did this to prevent rubbing and direct contact with the engine.
· Black zip ties: I used 2 of them to attach the wiring harness and spark plug wire number 8 to the fuel line to keep them from moving around.
Results

440 Looks

 

[1970FuryConv]

Trouble in Paradise:
Engine would only run at high rpm.
Full fielded alternator, rated 65 amps. Slowly crept up to 15 output volts. Then engine shut off.
Had alternator tested at Advance, but test machines aren't perfect I guess. Now to find a good alternator.
I should have known from it running better with jumper cables attached when I first started it.

 

[1970FuryConv]

Today
Voltage Regulator replace
If you're like me you can't reach it without help. Truck rim foot stool.

BWD R296

Old VR, paint from PO to cover pitting. Have to admit, it worked OK with 318.

Firewall Ground at ECU

Resistance to ground

• Green ground/control wire: resistance from voltage regulator to alternator .3 ohms
Voltage at VR power wire is near battery voltage. Wiring Should be OK.
Now if I only had rebuilt alternator (arrives AM)

NAPA Gold 2044 Air Filter

 

[1970FuryConv]

1st alternator had a bunged out strap bolt hole. AutoZone ordered another on warranty.
My car got it's face back today. No longer masked. Soon to be out of quarantine.
Level

Putting a bumper and grill assembly back on a car seems like a simple operation: 8 bolts and 4 nuts for the brackets. Actually, getting it even with both the fenders takes a while, because tightening 1 bolt can change position. I work my way thru the bolts, gradually increasing tightness. Front bolts, 20'lbs, rear with nuts, 20-30'lbs.

 

[rags]

440 Looks

Looks? Awesome! you do great work!

 

[1970FuryConv]

Duralast Gold DL75334 Alternator Installed
Fit and Finish perfect compared to first one I bought.

Hood Turn Signals
Parts, right side. Socket screws onto fitting for light bulb, bracket in between

Used 3/8 wire loom because inline connectors are 5/16 OD

Above: I treated the factory clips in Loctite Rust Neutralizer by dipping them and letting them dry on a hanger. They turned black. Used electrical tape to hold loom to clips. Left side wire loom 48 inches, Right side: 54 inches.
Grill Motor installed on vertical support

Clip to hold rod on pivot for HL cover. If the rod won't go in the slot in the pivot, channel locks can provide gentle persuasion.

Valence Installed: 6 bolts. I coated bolts with Anti-Seize for protection. Connected front turn signals.

Test Drive to gas station: I took it pretty slow. Maiden voyage. Needs more tuning. I already advanced timing from 8°BTDC (Ehrenberg Directions) to a more normal 12°BTDC. Might try 15°. Also have not adjusted vacuum advance. Idle mix needs fine tuning as well. Things to do before the car is a BEAST. At least it's back together.
440 running with factory intake

 

[1970FuryConv]

2020-09-12 Tuning & Test Drive
· Trans Lever full forward, turn slotted lever C to adj back of slot to back of Chrysler adapter rod. Reinstall washer, clip, and spring. FSM 21-27

Choke Adj: loosen 3 retaining screws, T-20 Torx. Original position was 1 notch leaner than center. Turn C 3 notches, close choke more fully and lengthen opening time. Helps start up.

· Vacuum: 16 HG. Beginning tune up, end 18 HG

· Distributor: advance to more than 10° above top dead center. Idle speed increased from 850 RPM to 1010 RPM. After reset idle to 850 RPM, timing again 8° before top dead center.
· Idle adjustment by RPM: began 1.5 turns out. Decrease to 1.25 turns, idle speed dropped from 852 to 810. Increase to 1.75 turns. Idle speed increased to 875. More turns out did not increase idle speed. Left mixture screws 1.75 turns out.
· Test Drive:
· Automatic transmission: shift from 1st to 2nd 25 mph. Shift 2nd to 3rd 35 to 40 mph. Kickdown linkage working well.
· Rear end: no noise or dysfunction from 3.23 sure grip or actual bearings
· 440. Starting to show lots of power. Press hard on break at idle when in drive. Highway vary speed from 50 mph to 70 mph the help break-in rings. 40 minutes total test drive time. One burnout, although I’m supposed to take it easy the first 400 to 500 miles. Couldn’t resist. No knock or detonation.
· Coolant: reservoir filled less high than I expected. Fan, shroud, and Spectra radiator working well. Coolant gauge: Needle at halfway when idle long time during tuning. On road needle about 1/3 of the way across gauge face.
Coolant before and after test drive. I thought more expansion would occur.

· TTI Exhaust: rattles intermittently. If it’s not hitting somewhere, Dynomax Super Turbo Mufflers need replace. I hung everything based on where the over axle hangers and front pipes dictated. Disappointing.
· Family: lots of joy at getting to ride in the convertible again.
Tuning

Walkaround

Floor It

 

[Mr onetwo]

"can't do that with a 318"

 

[1970FuryConv]

"can't do that with a 318"

You're welcome.
This is how the story continues
Fuel smell:
Jacked up so 1/2 tank of gas at back of tank

It seems it was not that long ago that gas tank fuel hoses were OK.
Gas tank: fuel hoses blistered and splitting.

Time for sanding pipes to keep ground (80 grit sandpaper) and installing new hoses

2 vent system

This second pipe attaches at top of over axle x-mbr. Goes with pipe on left in pic above.
Clean on wire wheel

A better look

Mid line connector hose already replaced.

Of course, front fuel hoses already replaced.
Still there was this rattling during the test drive
Exhaust: I mounted the over-axle pipes where the hangers dictated. Left TTI hanger put the left over-axle pipe forward of the right side pipe. Need to contact TTI tech support.
My mistake: I put the jackstands under the rear subframe to get the pipe over the axle. Afterward, I should have put the jackstands back under the axle, to simulate the car being on the ground and see the real clearances.
Right side pipe cleared perfectly

Left side pipe

 

[1970FuryConv]

Shocks are to be replaced, so need to remove no matter what

Helper spring marks

A pipe position adjustment needs to be made. If I can get the pipe out of the back of the muffler, maybe I can fix it myself. Otherwise, time for a drive CP Muffler and Exhaust.

9/15 7:30pm edit: I called TTI and spoke to Sam Davis in tech support. He requested pictures, which I emailed. He called me back and said someone had sent the wrong left side over axle bracket and the pipe was hanging too far forward. He is sending correct bracket by Priority Mail.
Now if I can only move the muffler and pipe backward on the midpipe. Big block of wood, big hammer, and we'll see.

 

[1970FuryConv]

Left side exhaust update
TTI: First wrong over axle bracket on left. Prongs too long. Muffler and tail pipe too far forward. Shock hitting exhaust. Yes, shocks will be replaced, but had to test fit with something.

Part#

Second wrong bracket sent is on right in 1st picture. Prongs are correct length.

However, they extend straight out from bracket and hit trunk pan. No offset down and No room to mount rubber hangers.

Part#

I had to use the second bracket, mark the trunk pan at the prongs. Then I measured down from trunk pan to the right prongs to duplicate pipe height. Marked left side subframe. Drilled two 3/8 holes. Mounted two 5" long bolts, nuts and lock washers both sides of subframe. Both bolt holes were too low to drill thru the useless bracket.
As you can see, hangers oriented severely toward right side.

Diagram showed tail pipe hanger mounted inside subframe, between subframe and gas tank.

Shock still hitting

 

[1970FuryConv]

Solution: Left side exhaust
Move tail pipe hanger outside subframe. Distance back from 1st hanger bolt hole shows how far forward first wrong bracket put me.

Removed clamp. Wooden block and 3-lb sledge to move muffler and tailpipe assembly back.

Left side rubber hanger: vertical

Right side rubber hanger oriented slightly left, but given that I was working from scratch, I think it is OK. Shock not hitting pipe. Ends of tailpipes are even.

· Opinion: the first over axle hanger that TTI sent for the left side caused me to mount the muffler too far forward because the prongs were too long. TTI admitted that this was the wrong hanger for the car. The 2nd left side hanger that they sent fit the arch in the sub frame, but the prongs stuck straight out and hit the bottom of the floor pan, leaving no room for mounting rubber hangers. I had to improvise with bolts to get the left side pipe to hang at same height as right side. Neither bolt would’ve fit anywhere on either over axle hanger that TTI sent. I don’t have superstructure joining and reinforcing both bolts (the bolt holes to match the height of the right side over axle pipe would not have fit anywhere on either left side over axle hanger that TTI sent). I probably need to add an auxiliary hanger behind the muffler on the left side, by removing the bottom of the rear seat and drilling holes through the floor pan under the rear seat, such that I can mount the auxiliary hanger. Because of the difficulty with the left side of the TTI 2.5 inch exhaust system, I wish I had the car towed to an exhaust shop and had them build a 2.5 inch system. It would’ve been a lot less work and headache. Then I could’ve had the car’s towed home and started the car. I sent 2 emails with pictures to TTI to describe the problem with both hangers. No response to 2nd email. I cannot recommend this system for 1970 Fury, although it can be made to work.
I also still need to move the tail pipe hanger for the right side to the outside of the subframe. Ugh.