67 Sport Fury Convertible, Should it be saved, or can I street rod it?

[Ripinator]

New Hampshire......"Live Free or Die" No titles required for anything older than 15 years. In fact, you can't even get them to reissue a title for a car between 15 and 25 years old. If the car is over 25 years old, and meets their strict criteria of "antique", you can pay an extra $25 to get a title reissued. They do everything by way of a bill-of-sale (which I did get with the car). When trying to sell out of state, NH has some special forms that seem to be recognized by the other states.

If all goes well over the next few days, I'm hoping to get it registered and on the road before next weekend. Except for the water pump and power steering pump disintegrating within the first ten minutes of running (neither survived 15 years of no rotation or lubrication), the rest of the car seems drivable. We'll see today, what issues we might have with the transmission.

Fingers crossed

Mighty fine ! Then I vote for a stock restoration with a few unobtrusive mods to the engine and exhaust (Mopar purple cam, HP exhaust manifolds / duals and, if the stock 4-barrel carb can't be rebuilt, an Edelbrock carb and solid state ibnition.

 

[66SportFury]

+ one ^^^^^

 

[Wollfen]

I wanna see what this thing looks like polished, and hit those bumpers with some steel wool, you will be shocked how much shine you will get out of them.

 

[jippek]

hit those bumpers with some steel wool, you will be shocked how much shine you will get out of them.

This is interesting, any special things to be considered?

 

[67Monaco]

This is interesting, any special things to be considered?

Not much for old harley's but they have some ideas and advice;

http://www.chopcult.com/forum/showthread.php?t=18619

 

[bluefury361]

As wet as the car has been inside, you should strip seats, panels & carpet out and allow it to dry out. The seat foam will act like a sponge and it won't take long for the steel seat springs to rust. I know it's a PITA but the seat covers, front and back, need to be removed from the springs. This will be the time to either clean or replace them, a well as the carpet. (With the seats out you should find the broadcast sheet tucked under he seat springs), usually in the rear backrest, but could be in any one or more of the seats ...... This is the holy grail for your car. CAREFULLY remove it .... place it into a acid free clear sheet protector and make a few copys of it before storeing it in a dry dark place.

Installing sound deadner on the floor under the carper will make a big difference too. 50 sq ft of "Fat Mat", found on ebay for around $100.00 including shipping will do the job.

 

[Bryan]

I am in the "It's your car, do with it what you want camp" - up to the point of cutting, scrapping or derby-ing it.... If it were mine, I would clean what I could, replace/repair the interior, make it mechanically sound and enjoy it. If you are not emotionally inclined to "love, honor and invest" in a Mopar - then I would suggest you sell it to someone who is.

 

[Bryan]

This is interesting, any special things to be considered?

When I use steel wool on rusted or pitted chrome, I use a very fine 0000 grade and apply paste wax with the steel wool at the same time. As long as you go lightly and reapply wax regularly afterward, you can get rid of a lot of rust and discoloration.

 

[Adebrea]

I have the same car! I'm restoring mine right now and these parts are very hard to find so If you don't restore it either sell it as a parts car or part it out and sell the parts individually. you could make a lot of money from the parts. It should be restored though since the body is in pretty good shape and there aren't many of these left!!!! The value can only go up if it's restored. If its completely rusted out underneath it may be better off as a donor car. There are lots of parts I see on yours that I would buy for mine! :happy7:

 

[Adebrea]

You have power windows and power disc in the front? brakes. factory 383 4 barrel. your car is probably pretty rare. Restore it! mine didn't come with wheel well chrome. my console was missing, the back seat was missing. the guy stripped the motor and took the transmission out. so I've had my work cut out for me. my floors are pretty rotted. have you looked at your floors yet? if they are solid, then you're golden!

 

[chief geek]

Power windows, but drum brakes all around. The factory 383 with this model was the lower compression (yay, pump gas) 2-barrel, single exhaust "Commando". Mine was definitely a lot more complete than yours. I've just taken it for a short test drive, and the list of issues discovered is rather short, so I'm hoping to have plates on it early next week

All I've done since acquiring the car is thaw it out, clean it up a bit, install new battery and decent tires, rebuild carburetor, change all the fluids and bleed the brakes, set the timing, replace the water pump, and go for a drive !!! Need a muffler, and to determine why the front left suspension seems to be collapsed, and I'll at least be able to drive it around while I determine what to do next.

As for the floors, no holes have been discovered but there are a few spots I wouldn't call "solid". The trunk is surprisingly solid.

 

[Adebrea]

All in all sounds good. It's a sweet car and not many left, can't wait to get mine on the road. til then i watch this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HesELRCeZds

 

[tallhair]

Power windows, but drum brakes all around. The factory 383 with this model was the lower compression (yay, pump gas) 2-barrel, single exhaust "Commando". Mine was definitely a lot more complete than yours. I've just taken it for a short test drive, and the list of issues discovered is rather short, so I'm hoping to have plates on it early next week

All I've done since acquiring the car is thaw it out, clean it up a bit, install new battery and decent tires, rebuild carburetor, change all the fluids and bleed the brakes, set the timing, replace the water pump, and go for a drive !!! Need a muffler, and to determine why the front left suspension seems to be collapsed, and I'll at least be able to drive it around while I determine what to do next.

As for the floors, no holes have been discovered but there are a few spots I wouldn't call "solid". The trunk is surprisingly solid.

good news on everything but the suspension. What do you think the issue with that is? Torsion bar?

 

[chief geek]

Sadly, the torsion bar is in two pieces

Aside from the bump stop, the rest of that corner seems to have survived.

Can anyone shed light on how specific (what range of years and models) the donor car will have to be? Any pointers on the best places to look would be greatly appreciated.

 

[66SportFury]

Call Murry Park to see if he has the torsion bar for your car. http://www.murraybpark.com I'm pretty sure 67 through 71 Fury's are all the same and maybe even 65 and 66 too. I believe they are all 44" long for the furys. I think if Murry finds your car, you'll be fine to order just that side, but if not, see if he has the 68 through 71 model and grab both. The hex ends are the same as far as I know for all C bodies.

 

[polara71]

All in all sounds good. It's a sweet car and not many left, can't wait to get mine on the road. til then i watch this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HesELRCeZds

Nice car in the video, assholes in the car..................

 

[67Monaco]

Nice car in the video, assholes in the car..................

Of course they are, they're in euroland.

 

[mr. fix it]

:sSig_greetingsthor: ............

These are the kind of cars restorers love to find ....... original, complete and solid.
The important thing is that the car is saved. Being a purest myself I would like to see it brought back to it's original glory ....... right down to the wheel covers. Hard to improve on Ma Chryslers design & engineering from the day.

But I can also understand the lure to modify and "make it your own. A mechanical up grade would help the performance and handeling, but things like changing colors, removing trim and custom upholstery won't help, and would likely devalue the car.

That is a great find you have there and you sound like your approching with a responsable attitude.

Good luck with it .... and keep us imformed with your progress.
Will.

I should add .... Should you decide to change things it would be wise to keep any parts you remove that will not be reinstalled, with the car. A future owner may wish to "bring it back" to OEM.

I agree with the above statement..

Welcome to the FCBO family!

 

[BUBBAZ488]

Lot nicer than the one i street rodded
tubbed with a dodge truck v10 for power

 

[Catfish]

Sadly, the torsion bar is in two pieces

Aside from the bump stop, the rest of that corner seems to have survived.

Can anyone shed light on how specific (what range of years and models) the donor car will have to be? Any pointers on the best places to look would be greatly appreciated.

You can also buy new torsion bars in different diameters depending on what you want.
http://www.firmfeel.com/torsionb_c.htm