Even more questions from the 1977 Newport Owner.........

[Pclancy]

At the clear risk of abusing my privileges, I come to this forum again with questions. I apologize if I seem to be asking too many questions, but you guys are an incredible source of knowledge and good advice. I can't resist. Let me know if I over do it.

First, an update. The trunk rattle I spoke of seems to be connected with a bad shock. At least that's what my mechanic says. We shall see. New rear shocks have been ordered. KYB gas shocks. That will make the rear shocks different from the front. Any issue? Note the shocks on the car are fairly new, put on by a PO. Other than being blue, I have no idea what kind they are. They look skinny. See photos on the BAT website for 1977 Newport.

Now for the questions:

1. The driver side inside door pull seems to be coming loose. There is now a touch of play. I assume the drill here is to stop using it and then to remove the inside door panel and to diagnose and then fix. Are there any surprises lurking here? Lessons learned?

2. The vehicle has some sort of automatic locking door mechanism that now is on the fritz. That is, when you use the key to unlock the door, the door locks on both sides no longer move, but the door locks and unlocks nonetheless.
But when you manually unlock the door from the inside by pulling the knob up, both door locks move and make noise. But they don't move. Ideas?

3. I had the bright idea of swapping the radio/tape deck out. The radio/tape deck in the vehicle works OK (but the band/belt that changes the channels is loose, meaning that you need to use the buttons to move around and even then the manual tuning only moves a bit here and there). Plus, the darn thing is AM only. So I go to Murray Park, and purchase a radio/tape deck that is AM/FM that he says is from the same year and model. Looks good. He swears it was tested. Belt not loose, and manual tuning works great. Murray says the dash face comes out with only 4 screws, with spring clips on top side, and then there are 2 mounting bolts on radio face, and one nut on the back of the radio, etc. In short he says it's not a big deal to swap it out. Any bits of advice you could share?

The speakers sound OK. I dread messing with the front ones, given their location way up and under the dash. But the two on the rear deck would be easy to replace. Given that these are most likely 39 years old, any advice on what kind of new speakers to purchase?

Thanks again for your thoughts and comments.

 

[1978 NYB]

I would put KYB Gas-A-Just shocks on all 4 corners. Great shocks and you'll be very satisfied with the performance.

 

[monaco75]

Just installed the kyb's on my '75. No road time yet, but can already tell a big difference from the normal monroe's. I would add em to the front as well, only for the added performance, and the cost.

The radio is very easy. Once the bezel is off, only 2 bolts holding it in. Be carefull pulling the bezal. The shifter gets in the way. Drop it down in 1st, and gently pull up, and twist the bezal up over the column.

Door panels are easy too. 1 bilt behind the handle, and seceral clips to pull out along the bottom/sides. Once they are out lift the panel up. Usually best to roll the window down to allow room for the panel to go up.

 

[monaco75]

Brain fart for a second. Formal door panels are 2 piece. The top half has a couple clips on the bottom of it. Pull them out, then pull the top half up, and out of the car.

After pulling the top, another bolt is exposed for the bottom half of the door panel. Theres that bolt, and the one behind the door handle. The rest are clips holding it in.

 

[1978 NYB]

Be very, very careful with the bottom panel. Make absolutely certain you have the clips lined up with the holes before smacking the panel on. The panels are cardboard and the clips tear up the cardboard very easily and will make the door panel turn in to trash quickly.

 

[commando1]

Shocks.
Your front shocks are fine as-is if they are still good. Don't fret about the rear being new KYBs and the fronts not.

Door Pulls.
If you're talking about the straps, at each end you will see a metal cover with a simulated wood insert that is pried off with a tiny screwdriver. Under it are the screws that hold the door pull on. Tighten them.

Door locks.
Interior panels need to come off and a deep dive expedition started. Way too many areas to troubleshoot until you're inside.

1. Remove inside door handle by pulling up, exposing screw on underside.
2. Detach switch plate from armrest.
3. Pop off lower door panel held by clips. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE PROPER PANEL REMOVAL TOOL FULLY SEATED UNDER THE CLIP when you pop the panel. You WILL do some damage. The pressed board backsides of the panel are extremely fragillee (they're EYEtallion).
4. Remove the upper panel held by the screws on the lower edge. Remove the door lock knobs first of course.
5. Peel off plastic very carefully to reapply later.

Radio.
Buy an 80's era OEM Mopar radio on eBay. They're digital and a lot of them have CD players. Exact fit replacement. You will need an aftermarket harness adaptor.

Speakers.
If you could see them, you would see that they are toast. Literally.
The fronts are very easy to replace. Pry up the metal top panel of the dash and *poof* there they are.
OEM Rear speakers are single wire. You will have to run wire pairs to the new ones.

FACTORY SERVICE MANUAL
Buy one. NOW.

 

[1978 NYB]

FACTORY SERVICE MANUAL
Buy one. NOW.

And a parts manual!

You can get originals cheap on EBay.

Or copies/CD's from these guys:

Bishko Books, Repair Manuals, Owners Manuals, Parts Books & Sales Brochures

 

[1978 NYB]

If you are going to the Carlisle show...

Bishko usually has a tent set up and sells the stuff there.

 

[Carmine]

1 The driver side inside door pull seems to be coming loose. There is now a touch of play. I assume the drill here is to stop using it and then to remove the inside door panel and to diagnose and then fix. Are there any surprises lurking here? Lessons learned?


If you are speaking of the strap, follow Commado’s instructions. After time, the straps can loosen up. Remove the little woodgrained-metal caps carefully. Simply re-tighten with a screwdriver and snap the caps back on.


If you are speaking of the lower half of the panel (the little scooped away area for your hand), this is secured by two above and nearby screws. The sop half of the door panel is supposed to cover them, but sometimes if you look at the seam between the upper/lower from dead on, you’ll be able to see the screw heads and tighten them without removing the upper panel. Sometimes not, and you’ll need to unfasten the upper.



2. The vehicle has some sort of automatic locking door mechanism that now is on the fritz. That is, when you use the key to unlock the door, the door locks on both sides no longer move, but the door locks and unlocks nonetheless. But when you manually unlock the door from the inside by pulling the knob up, both door locks move and make noise. But they don't move. Ideas?


The lock solenoids have either gotten weak, or the mechanisms are dry/hard for the solenoids to move. You’ll have to remove the panel and clean/lubricate all the mechanical moving parts. Then you still might find the solenoids are weak. You can go further into taking these apart, but that’s too much to try and explain. You might want to delegate this to the mechanic.



3. I had the bright idea of swapping the radio/tape deck out. The radio/tape deck in the vehicle works OK (but the band/belt that changes the channels is loose, meaning that you need to use the buttons to move around and even then the manual tuning only moves a bit here and there). Plus, the darn thing is AM only. So I go to Murray Park, and purchase a radio/tape deck that is AM/FM that he says is from the same year and model. Looks good. He swears it was tested. Belt not loose, and manual tuning works great. Murray says the dash face comes out with only 4 screws, with spring clips on top side, and then there are 2 mounting bolts on radio face, and one nut on the back of the radio, etc. In short he says it's not a big deal to swap it out. Any bits of advice you could share?


What has already been mentioned. It’s not a big deal, but remember Murray works on cars for a living. Lots of blind feeling around for connectors and fasteners. Be very careful not to break/scratch anything.


The speakers sound OK. I dread messing with the front ones, given their location way up and under the dash. But the two on the rear deck would be easy to replace. Given that these are most likely 39 years old, any advice on what kind of new speakers to purchase?


Actually, the dashpad on a formal C-body is very easy to remove. Probably the easiest of any old car I’ve ever worked on. (Maybe someone has a photo guide?) That will make radio removal very easy, (no reach-arounds from under the dash) and make the front speaker removal easier than the rear! However, I differ with Commando’s radio advice on one point… Swapping to a more modern (up to about MY 2000) radio is NOT a plug and play affair. A newer radio will fit with no dash hacks, but it will require new wiring to all speakers in order to get rid of the common “-“ system. The newer radios have dedicated negative sides and require a constant power lead for memory and clock functions.


Make sure any new speakers are the correct resistance (ohms) for the old radio. I cannot remember if they are 4 or 8 ohm in this era, but someone here will know.


Thanks again for your thoughts andcomments.

 

[1978 NYB]

1 The driver side inside door pull seems to be coming loose. There is now a touch of play. I assume the drill here is to stop using it and then to remove the inside door panel and to diagnose and then fix. Are there any surprises lurking here? Lessons learned?


If you are speaking of the strap, follow Commado’s instructions. After time, the straps can loosen up. Remove the little woodgrained-metal caps carefully. Simply re-tighten with a screwdriver and snap the caps back on.


If you are speaking of the lower half of the panel (the little scooped away area for your hand), this is secured by two above and nearby screws. The sop half of the door panel is supposed to cover them, but sometimes if you look at the seam between the upper/lower from dead on, you’ll be able to see the screw heads and tighten them without removing the upper panel. Sometimes not, and you’ll need to unfasten the upper.



2. The vehicle has some sort of automatic locking door mechanism that now is on the fritz. That is, when you use the key to unlock the door, the door locks on both sides no longer move, but the door locks and unlocks nonetheless. But when you manually unlock the door from the inside by pulling the knob up, both door locks move and make noise. But they don't move. Ideas?


The lock solenoids have either gotten weak, or the mechanisms are dry/hard for the solenoids to move. You’ll have to remove the panel and clean/lubricate all the mechanical moving parts. Then you still might find the solenoids are weak. You can go further into taking these apart, but that’s too much to try and explain. You might want to delegate this to the mechanic.



3. I had the bright idea of swapping the radio/tape deck out. The radio/tape deck in the vehicle works OK (but the band/belt that changes the channels is loose, meaning that you need to use the buttons to move around and even then the manual tuning only moves a bit here and there). Plus, the darn thing is AM only. So I go to Murray Park, and purchase a radio/tape deck that is AM/FM that he says is from the same year and model. Looks good. He swears it was tested. Belt not loose, and manual tuning works great. Murray says the dash face comes out with only 4 screws, with spring clips on top side, and then there are 2 mounting bolts on radio face, and one nut on the back of the radio, etc. In short he says it's not a big deal to swap it out. Any bits of advice you could share?


What has already been mentioned. It’s not a big deal, but remember Murray works on cars for a living. Lots of blind feeling around for connectors and fasteners. Be very careful not to break/scratch anything.


The speakers sound OK. I dread messing with the front ones, given their location way up and under the dash. But the two on the rear deck would be easy to replace. Given that these are most likely 39 years old, any advice on what kind of new speakers to purchase?


Actually, the dashpad on a formal C-body is very easy to remove. Probably the easiest of any old car I’ve ever worked on. (Maybe someone has a photo guide?) That will make radio removal very easy, (no reach-arounds from under the dash) and make the front speaker removal easier than the rear! However, I differ with Commando’s radio advice on one point… Swapping to a more modern (up to about MY 2000) radio is NOT a plug and play affair. A newer radio will fit with no dash hacks, but it will require new wiring to all speakers in order to get rid of the common “-“ system. The newer radios have dedicated negative sides and require a constant power lead for memory and clock functions.


Make sure any new speakers are the correct resistance (ohms) for the old radio. I cannot remember if they are 4 or 8 ohm in this era, but someone here will know.


Thanks again for your thoughts andcomments.

I don't have any step by step tutorial. Just random pictures of the dash pad, A/C., radio replacement pictures.

 

[GregG48203]

the door locks and unlocks nonetheless.

If the doors lock and unlock when you want them to, ignore the noise and button movement. Better yet, pretend it doesn't have power locks (or disconnect it). This system usually didn't work right, or for very long.

 

[1978 NYB]

 

[1978 NYB]

I used all modern speakers and a radio.

It turned out fine.......for me.

 

[commando1]

80 sumthin in my '76. AM/FM/CD

 

[commando1]

but it will require new wiring to all speakers in order to get rid of the common “-“ system.

Strangely enough, while the rear speakers are chassis ground single wire, the fronts are the tradition 2 wire.

 

[Pclancy]

If the doors lock and unlock when you want them to, ignore the noise and button movement. Better yet, pretend it doesn't have power locks (or disconnect it). This system usually didn't work right, or for very long.

Great advice. Love your pragmatism.

 

[Pclancy]

1 The driver side inside door pull seems to be coming loose. There is now a touch of play. I assume the drill here is to stop using it and then to remove the inside door panel and to diagnose and then fix. Are there any surprises lurking here? Lessons learned?


If you are speaking of the strap, follow Commado’s instructions. After time, the straps can loosen up. Remove the little woodgrained-metal caps carefully. Simply re-tighten with a screwdriver and snap the caps back on.


If you are speaking of the lower half of the panel (the little scooped away area for your hand), this is secured by two above and nearby screws. The sop half of the door panel is supposed to cover them, but sometimes if you look at the seam between the upper/lower from dead on, you’ll be able to see the screw heads and tighten them without removing the upper panel. Sometimes not, and you’ll need to unfasten the upper.



2. The vehicle has some sort of automatic locking door mechanism that now is on the fritz. That is, when you use the key to unlock the door, the door locks on both sides no longer move, but the door locks and unlocks nonetheless. But when you manually unlock the door from the inside by pulling the knob up, both door locks move and make noise. But they don't move. Ideas?


The lock solenoids have either gotten weak, or the mechanisms are dry/hard for the solenoids to move. You’ll have to remove the panel and clean/lubricate all the mechanical moving parts. Then you still might find the solenoids are weak. You can go further into taking these apart, but that’s too much to try and explain. You might want to delegate this to the mechanic.



3. I had the bright idea of swapping the radio/tape deck out. The radio/tape deck in the vehicle works OK (but the band/belt that changes the channels is loose, meaning that you need to use the buttons to move around and even then the manual tuning only moves a bit here and there). Plus, the darn thing is AM only. So I go to Murray Park, and purchase a radio/tape deck that is AM/FM that he says is from the same year and model. Looks good. He swears it was tested. Belt not loose, and manual tuning works great. Murray says the dash face comes out with only 4 screws, with spring clips on top side, and then there are 2 mounting bolts on radio face, and one nut on the back of the radio, etc. In short he says it's not a big deal to swap it out. Any bits of advice you could share?


What has already been mentioned. It’s not a big deal, but remember Murray works on cars for a living. Lots of blind feeling around for connectors and fasteners. Be very careful not to break/scratch anything.


The speakers sound OK. I dread messing with the front ones, given their location way up and under the dash. But the two on the rear deck would be easy to replace. Given that these are most likely 39 years old, any advice on what kind of new speakers to purchase?


Actually, the dashpad on a formal C-body is very easy to remove. Probably the easiest of any old car I’ve ever worked on. (Maybe someone has a photo guide?) That will make radio removal very easy, (no reach-arounds from under the dash) and make the front speaker removal easier than the rear! However, I differ with Commando’s radio advice on one point… Swapping to a more modern (up to about MY 2000) radio is NOT a plug and play affair. A newer radio will fit with no dash hacks, but it will require new wiring to all speakers in order to get rid of the common “-“ system. The newer radios have dedicated negative sides and require a constant power lead for memory and clock functions.


Make sure any new speakers are the correct resistance (ohms) for the old radio. I cannot remember if they are 4 or 8 ohm in this era, but someone here will know.


Thanks again for your thoughts andcomments.

Thanks. I can look up the ohms.

 

[Pclancy]

If you are going to the Carlisle show...

Bishko usually has a tent set up and sells the stuff there.

I will miss the show, as I had a trip planned already and cannot change. Drats; would have loved to be there.

 

[Pclancy]

Shocks.
Your front shocks are fine as-is if they are still good. Don't fret about the rear being new KYBs and the fronts not.

Door Pulls.
If you're talking about the straps, at each end you will see a metal cover with a simulated wood insert that is pried off with a tiny screwdriver. Under it are the screws that hold the door pull on. Tighten them.

Door locks.
Interior panels need to come off and a deep dive expedition started. Way too many areas to troubleshoot until you're inside.

1. Remove inside door handle by pulling up, exposing screw on underside.
2. Detach switch plate from armrest.
3. Pop off lower door panel held by clips. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE PROPER PANEL REMOVAL TOOL FULLY SEATED UNDER THE CLIP when you pop the panel. You WILL do some damage. The pressed board backsides of the panel are extremely fragillee (they're EYEtallion).
4. Remove the upper panel held by the screws on the lower edge. Remove the door lock knobs first of course.
5. Peel off plastic very carefully to reapply later.

Radio.
Buy an 80's era OEM Mopar radio on eBay. They're digital and a lot of them have CD players. Exact fit replacement. You will need an aftermarket harness adaptor.

Speakers.
If you could see them, you would see that they are toast. Literally.
The fronts are very easy to replace. Pry up the metal top panel of the dash and *poof* there they are.
OEM Rear speakers are single wire. You will have to run wire pairs to the new ones.

FACTORY SERVICE MANUAL
Buy one. NOW.

Have ordered the manual, and thanks!

 

[Bill Watson]

For the door locks, going back in my memory to the 1970's power door locks, when you unlocked a door the buttons would pop up a little and then back down to the previous location. Same when locking, only they would pop down for a second and back.

They would not show any difference between locked and unlocked.

Bill
Vancouver, BC