73 Monaco wagon
- Thread starter MonacoBlue
- Start date
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
I'll try to post a photo. I think one had lipstick stains. Trying to imagine a C-body carload of smoking people rolling down the interstate in Oregon in the 70's. Forest fire waiting to happen. "Oh wait, we ALL have ashtrays. No problem." Smoky Bear is pleased.You might be overdoing the "preservation" thing...
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
I can hardly wait to take the cover off the overhead AC unit behind the back seat. Who knows what archaeological treasures may lurk therein. Maybe I'll find a VIN correct build sheet, in pristine condition.
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
In all it's glory....
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
Naval jelly on the roof rack cross members...before and after...or after and before...?
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
Got new white walls. Drove up the street with them. World o' difference....glad to be rid of the old tires.
polara71
Old Man with a Hat
I would hope so...
bluefury361
Old Man with a Hat
That's disgusting ....... close back up.....
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
Thought I had a problem with fuel draining out of the carb and back to the tank. Tried a Dorman 5/16 fuel check valve, installed in line under passenger door area of fuel line, but it leaked, so I returned it. Didn't help cold start problem, but after I installed it, fuel was staying in the clear fuel filter over night. I think my PVC line may have a vacuum leak, so I will replace that. Would a loss of vacuum cause fuel to drain out of the carb and back into the fuel tank, making for hard starts a day later? What puzzles me is I would think there would be enough residual fuel in the carb fuel bowl that the car would at least try to fire initially at start up, and it isn't really doing that. I am also wondering if automatic choke flap should be at least a little bit closed, even in hot weather. As we move into cool weather perhaps the choke will be more active. Maybe I need to replace the automatic choke. We'll see.
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
The other weird thing about the fuel check valve....had an arrow to indicate how to mount it into the fuel line - direction of flow. Since it was leaking, I took it off the car today and the fuel flowed and flowed from the gas tank into a Mason jar. Yet nothing flowed backward from the engine, which was what I assumed was the issue/was trying to prevent/why I bought the check valve in the first place. I don't think it was leaking out of a fitting of that (engine) side of the check valve, either. So strange. I removed the check valve and reassembled the fuel line with just a length of hose. I'll start it tomorrow a.m. and see how it goes. I started it tonight after work and it roared right to life. Down boy!
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
Cooler morning. Got up before breakfast and checked under the hood.
Choke actuator rod had fallen off from thermocouple. Reconnected.
After reconnecting, I pulled on accelerator mechanism and noticed choke flap went shut, as I simultaneously heard fuel being sprayed.
I thought: "Ok, this baby should start right up now."
And it did.
Thanks to the late Smokey Yunick and a Popular Mechanics post from the late 70's, which confirmed my suspicions.
Cruise event in town today. One of the last of the summer. I plan to be there, with this ride. Ruh ruh ruh.
Choke actuator rod had fallen off from thermocouple. Reconnected.
After reconnecting, I pulled on accelerator mechanism and noticed choke flap went shut, as I simultaneously heard fuel being sprayed.
I thought: "Ok, this baby should start right up now."
And it did.
Thanks to the late Smokey Yunick and a Popular Mechanics post from the late 70's, which confirmed my suspicions.
Cruise event in town today. One of the last of the summer. I plan to be there, with this ride. Ruh ruh ruh.
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
The car didn't quite make it to the cruise, but I did drive it and I did go to the cruise later in another car. I discovered I don't have brake lights. So strange. The tail light assemblies in my car were replaced sometime after the car was removed from the Kee estate in Oregon. I believe Wildcat replaced them, as they have the word "Polara SW" paint-markered on the bottom.
This is where it gets weird, and I could really use some deep old veteran service tech knowledge about the difference between tail light housing wire assemblies. The center bulb in the t.l. housing is an #1157 Sylvania, with two filaments. One filament is turn signal and the other is brake light. The odd thing is, that while the bulb is two filament, and has two lead contacts at the bottom, the spring loaded plastic contact holder it rests against only has a single lead contact in one of the two holes of the plastic contact holder. So I can't understand if the issue is 'two holes in the housing and two contacts on the bulb, but only one hole has a lead contact', or is it somehow wired right and the brake pedal switch is broken, OR is it something else, like the rats ate through the wiring? We'll see...
Went on extended drive to auto parts store. A little nervous, but with new rubber I took it up to 50 mph. It did fine. I continue to be impressed with the engineering of a car that was designed to be maintained by people who could be trained fresh out of high school and make a career of being a service technician.There are a lot of things I like about the digital age, but not being able to fix personal transportation with just simple tools like a socket set and a screw driver is not progress, in my point of view.
Oh well. Enough philosophy. I feel like this little road trip was an achievement. I can see things on the horizon that are going to require professional help, partly due to limitations of my skill set and partly due to time. The brake and coolant systems need flushed, the A/C should really get functioning again (hate to think about that $$$), wheel bearings should get checked/re-packed, headliner needs replaced, as does the carpet and the upholstery...and the paint....pretty soon your talking real money.
But doggonit the wheels look bodacious. Thanks to...Steve?... in AZ....(Revision: Thanks Chris!!)
This is where it gets weird, and I could really use some deep old veteran service tech knowledge about the difference between tail light housing wire assemblies. The center bulb in the t.l. housing is an #1157 Sylvania, with two filaments. One filament is turn signal and the other is brake light. The odd thing is, that while the bulb is two filament, and has two lead contacts at the bottom, the spring loaded plastic contact holder it rests against only has a single lead contact in one of the two holes of the plastic contact holder. So I can't understand if the issue is 'two holes in the housing and two contacts on the bulb, but only one hole has a lead contact', or is it somehow wired right and the brake pedal switch is broken, OR is it something else, like the rats ate through the wiring? We'll see...
Went on extended drive to auto parts store. A little nervous, but with new rubber I took it up to 50 mph. It did fine. I continue to be impressed with the engineering of a car that was designed to be maintained by people who could be trained fresh out of high school and make a career of being a service technician.There are a lot of things I like about the digital age, but not being able to fix personal transportation with just simple tools like a socket set and a screw driver is not progress, in my point of view.
Oh well. Enough philosophy. I feel like this little road trip was an achievement. I can see things on the horizon that are going to require professional help, partly due to limitations of my skill set and partly due to time. The brake and coolant systems need flushed, the A/C should really get functioning again (hate to think about that $$$), wheel bearings should get checked/re-packed, headliner needs replaced, as does the carpet and the upholstery...and the paint....pretty soon your talking real money.
But doggonit the wheels look bodacious. Thanks to...Steve?... in AZ....(Revision: Thanks Chris!!)
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MonacoBlue
Senior Member
We had a cruise night in my town. I will post a few photos here just for fun. The Duster decal artwork should cause a chuckle. A little "revisionist history"...
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
Just a couple more and that's it...
azblackhemi
Old Man with a Hat
It's Chris, but your welcome!
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
Got the rectangular rod that drives the headlight covers, from Murray Parks. Hooked it up and now the covers hide the headlights when I turn the headlights on, and uncover when I turn the headlights off. Sounds like a polarity issue to me and I haven't figured it out. I read where they had different mechanisms across the years, I wondered if the motor I got was from a different year. If I could flip it around to the other side of the sheet metal that it attaches to, it would work just fine. Unfortunately that stamping is pressed in concave to the left, so the motor won't fit on the other side. I am going to have to think about this one. I also thought maybe I could reverse polarity of the wires and fix it, but I would rather not strip away the insulation to get to the terminals, etc.
Any suggestions would be welcome.
Any suggestions would be welcome.
There should be two wires leading from the motor to a connector and into the harness and one going to ground. Try making a patch wire and reverse the two wire feeding the motor. One side rotates motor clockwise other counterclockwise. Seems the switch is sending the signals just reversed.
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
Yes, I think that is the case. So strange. But that is a good suggestion. I'll jumper them to reverse polarity and see if that fixes the issue. Then I either need to bite the bullet and scrape off that wonderfully effective factory rubberized terminal coating off the motor terminals and switch the wires permanently, or else pull the lower cover from under the instrument panel and swap out the relay. I bought a spare relay from Parks. Something is clicking like a telegraph under the IP. Sounds like a relay. That may be the root cause issue.
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
Took for an extended drive (over 10 miles). Tanked it up. $50. Ethanol free. So strange putting fuel in with such a wide open filler! Relieved to see the fuel gauge worked, afterward. Whew.
Idle at stop has slowed down for some reason, not sure why. Adjusted a stop/set screw at the throttle linkage. It idles a bit faster now when cold, but it doesn't 'almost die' at stop signs.
Still struggling with the headlights cover mechanism operation, looking for the breaker/relay, I took the plastic lower cover off the IP, and was greeted unexpectedly by a wall of sheet metal, instead of a much hoped for easy access to the inner guts of the IP.
Car really glides down the highway. It may have a slight miss, or a timing issue, it sputters a little bit on mid level acceleration. Responds appropriately at brief bursts of full throttle, though. I have a timing light, I just need to drag it out and use it. Wouldn't hurt to check the plugs. A four barrel and dual exhaust would be nice, I can tell already. Still, even though it's been 30 years since I drove my '70 4dr 383 2bbl Newport, from memory it seems this 400 2bbl has more response/ power, even in a heavy wagon. Maybe that's just my imagination. It may have been de-tuned, compared to the older 383, by then.
Idle at stop has slowed down for some reason, not sure why. Adjusted a stop/set screw at the throttle linkage. It idles a bit faster now when cold, but it doesn't 'almost die' at stop signs.
Still struggling with the headlights cover mechanism operation, looking for the breaker/relay, I took the plastic lower cover off the IP, and was greeted unexpectedly by a wall of sheet metal, instead of a much hoped for easy access to the inner guts of the IP.
Car really glides down the highway. It may have a slight miss, or a timing issue, it sputters a little bit on mid level acceleration. Responds appropriately at brief bursts of full throttle, though. I have a timing light, I just need to drag it out and use it. Wouldn't hurt to check the plugs. A four barrel and dual exhaust would be nice, I can tell already. Still, even though it's been 30 years since I drove my '70 4dr 383 2bbl Newport, from memory it seems this 400 2bbl has more response/ power, even in a heavy wagon. Maybe that's just my imagination. It may have been de-tuned, compared to the older 383, by then.
MonacoBlue
Senior Member
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