Greetings, various restoration issues

[72Polara360]

Hi there,



New member here. I'm buying a 1972 Dodge Polara coupe, and it has a few issues so I have elected to post here under "restoration" as they are not specific to one area.

Firstly, I have heat but no fan activity. I think the heater core is good but it needs a new blower motor. I have been looking for resources on the replacement of the part. I am completely new to older vehicles, this is a first for me.



Also, the vehicle seems to have some water ingress occurring based on staining on the passenger side carpet. Overall the car is rust free and an immaculate survivor so I am thinking a small crack or peeled away part of the windshield seal, or, plugged rain rain tray drainage holes?



Dash lights are also not working, seems to be traced to a faulty headlight switch?



Lastly, it needs a new idler arm installed.



I haven't picked up the car yet but these are the issues we noted during the viewing that I am inheriting with the purchase of the vehicle.



Also on my honey to-do list:

-tach

-water temp gauge

-oil pressure gauge



If anyone has experience with how to approach the above issues as well as with installing gauges on the 360 engine I'd love to see the resources you used if any, or hear any advice you have.

I am thinking the dash has to come off for the fan blower and to begin tracing the dash cluster not lighting up. While I am in there I thought I'd run gauges.



Thank you kindly



Joe

Edit- oh and here's a photo I'm picking her up this week

 

[cbarge]

Hi there,



New member here. I'm buying a 1972 Dodge Polara coupe, and it has a few issues so I have elected to post here under "restoration" as they are not specific to one area.

Firstly, I have heat but no fan activity. I think the heater core is good but it needs a new blower motor. I have been looking for resources on the replacement of the part. I am completely new to older vehicles, this is a first for me.



Also, the vehicle seems to have some water ingress occurring based on staining on the passenger side carpet. Overall the car is rust free and an immaculate survivor so I am thinking a small crack or peeled away part of the windshield seal, or, plugged rain rain tray drainage holes?



Dash lights are also not working, seems to be traced to a faulty headlight switch?



Lastly, it needs a new idler arm installed.



I haven't picked up the car yet but these are the issues we noted during the viewing that I am inheriting with the purchase of the vehicle.



Also on my honey to-do list:

-tach

-water temp gauge

-oil pressure gauge



If anyone has experience with how to approach the above issues as well as with installing gauges on the 360 engine I'd love to see the resources you used if any, or hear any advice you have.

I am thinking the dash has to come off for the fan blower and to begin tracing the dash cluster not lighting up. While I am in there I thought I'd run gauges.



Thank you kindly



Joe

Edit- oh and here's a photo I'm picking her up this week

View attachment 708681

Welcome!
Bailey the Beluga whale looks great!
( see Finding Nemo movie lol)
I would test the blower motor resistor first before condeming the motor.
You can run a jumper wire directly to the motor. If it works then replace the resistor.
The resistor is a common part the was used all across the board. Napa or Oriellys can order one.
lots of them on Ebay too.
The entire dash does not need to be removed-- yet it does make the job easier-- but the ashtray and gloveboxx does.
THe rheostat in healight switched quite common to fail and no dash lights.
But change the bulbs first as they are much easier to do.
Again a common awitch that any parts jobber can order.
Fuelage cars (69 to 73) were notorious for water leaks.
Have a replacement windshield on standby as the old one may have to be removed to repair the leak.
Does not hurt to blow out the cowl vents as a process of elimination.

 

[72Polara360]

Thank you for that write up that gives me plenty to begin researching and tinkering with, appreciate it!

 

[Big_John]

Firstly, I have heat but no fan activity. I think the heater core is good but it needs a new blower motor. I have been looking for resources on the replacement of the part. I am completely new to older vehicles, this is a first for me.



Also, the vehicle seems to have some water ingress occurring based on staining on the passenger side carpet. Overall the car is rust free and an immaculate survivor so I am thinking a small crack or peeled away part of the windshield seal, or, plugged rain rain tray drainage holes?

No heat and a wet passenger floor. These two may go together as a heater core leak.

AC or no AC? As @cbarge mentioned, it could be the resistor. Could be the switch too. Check the fuse first.

A factory service manual is your friend here. I suggest buying one (eBay has them, I suggest a CD version) and in the meantime, you can download a '72 Plymouth version from Service Manuals – MyMopar that will be pretty close.

Dash lights are also not working, seems to be traced to a faulty headlight switch?

If you can't find a new switch, @Devinism (a member here) can rebuild your old one.

Lastly, it needs a new idler arm installed.

Not hard to do. The FSM (factory service manual) can guide you with this.

Also on my honey to-do list:

-tach

-water temp gauge

-oil pressure gauge

I like Autometer gauges myself. Electric gauges are much easier to install. Pick whatever you think looks good. A tee on the oil sender will let you keep the warning light. I can't remember if there's an extra hole for the temperature sender in the 360 engine, but if there is, you can keep the warning light there too.

 

[CBODY67]

ONE source of the rh carpet issues can be the hvac case on factory a/c cars. The way the soft rubber gasket has interact with the slip-on "nut" retainers the bolts go through (to hold the two case halves together) is flaky to start with, but made sense for "easy assembly" back then. Also check the drain tube for the hvac case that sticks through the lower cowl for obstructions.

A coolant leak is a possibility, too. Touch the damp (formerly) area with your fingers to see what the smell might be. A sweeter smell, coolant. Mustier, hvac case leak.

Our '72 Newport, purchased new, had condensate leaks onto the rh frt carpet area. A new dealer-installed gasket did not help. Closer inspection of the situation revealed the case half attachment was flaky at best. When I bought my '70 Monaco Brougham 4drht in 1975, it had the factory heavy vinyl floor mats in it. I later was moving the floor mats to vacuum and the rh mat had moisture beads on the back of it. The carpet was wet, so I put the mats in the rear so the front carpet area could dry out! No rain had been happening for weeks that summer.

Plus, before that, I had been at the dealership when an unhappy customer was complaining that the recently-done hvac gasket replacement (due to leaking case conditions) had not fixed the issue on her '69 Fury.

So, to me, those hvac case leaks are, or were, "known territory" back then. Changing the bolts and slip-on nuts for case half clamping components or putting a dab of high-heat silicone sealer dabbed around the push-on nuts might be options.

DO change all three areas of rubber fuel lines on the car. Tank sender to "body" metal fuel line, at the stub-frame connection under/near the rh front footwell area, and at the fuel pump and fuel filter. Then the rubber brake line sections, not forgetting that the metal lines can rust internally, too! At the front and on the rear axle. Then the rear brake whl cylinders and the front area, too.

THEN, get used to what the car likes, learning that and how to get the best performance from the car as it is. Tune-ups and changing ALL of the fluids in the process.

Although the engine might be "big" compared to others, that does not mean it's going to deliver tire-smoking performance with the (suspected) 2.7_ rear axle ratio). It WILL have relaxed cruising performance with decent fuel economy, though. Not a "slouch" in stop-light traffic, but not a "rerror" either.

Welcome! Good luck! Keep us posted on how everything goes!
CBODY67

 

[Sport Fury 67]

Hi Joe: If you are going to be doing some wiring upgrades, it is suggested that you read this post about installing a ammeter-bypass circuit. It is very simple to do and provides the background, details and instructions for this upgrade. Cbarge created a very good video on YouTube.

Ammeter bypass

Like the other's have posted, a Service Manual will be a good source of information as it will provide step by step instructions for diagnosing your electrical problem with the blower motor. Here is a source to to initially help you along.

Service Manuals – MyMopar

To learn more about you car, check out the Library tab.

The 1970 Hamtramck Registry Library Page (1970 - 1974)


Have fun and enjoy.

 

[3C's & a D?]

There is a pinch weld that runs the length of the firewall, it's a little ledge that water will sit on. Over the years it will find a way through the two pieces of metal pinched together. I found this out once after checking everything else. Also, that's a 1973 Polara.

 

[hootothecore]

Welcome!
Bailey the Beluga whale looks great!
( see Finding Nemo movie lol)
I would test the blower motor resistor first before condeming the motor.
You can run a jumper wire directly to the motor. If it works then replace the resistor.
The resistor is a common part the was used all across the board. Napa or Oriellys can order one.
lots of them on Ebay too.
The entire dash does not need to be removed-- yet it does make the job easier-- but the ashtray and gloveboxx does.
THe rheostat in healight switched quite common to fail and no dash lights.
But change the bulbs first as they are much easier to do.
Again a common awitch that any parts jobber can order.
Fuelage cars (69 to 73) were notorious for water leaks.
Have a replacement windshield on standby as the old one may have to be removed to repair the leak.
Does not hurt to blow out the cowl vents as a process of elimination.

If the rheostat is an issue, sometimes spinning the dimmer control back and forth a number of times can make it work again. Issue is corrosion on the contacts.

 

[Big_John]

Hi Joe: If you are going to be doing some wiring upgrades, it is suggested that you read this post about installing a ammeter-bypass circuit. It is very simple to do and provides the background, details and instructions for this upgrade. Cbarge created a very good video on YouTube.

Ammeter bypass

While that is good intentions, it's been proven to me that it's not a good idea to do that mod. @72RoadRunnerGTX has done some videos showing the issues. As a matter of fact, I'll be removing the bypass from my car this spring.

With the '72 Dodge, the ammeter is already shunted, so it doesn't run a lot of current through the ammeter if that is a worry.