Author Topic: Finally, I've got my car started  (Read 7629 times)

Offline ChallengerHK

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #30 on: February 18, 2012 - 10:15:22 PM »
Paint and finish is the main thing he's doing, and I know i won't be :smokin:


"She'll make point five past light speed. She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, and I've made a lot of special modifications myself."

- Han Solo, Star Wars

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Offline bb71challenger

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #31 on: February 24, 2012 - 12:52:03 PM »
Love the scoop! So glad you are continuing work on your car, its going to look awesome!!! Hey if someone can get Domingo to do some louvers I would be down for a set of Challenger louvers.
1971 Challenger (OO==== ====OO) getting close!
1970 Challenger (OO########OO) long ways off
*Brett*

Offline ChallengerHK

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #32 on: March 13, 2012 - 10:33:59 PM »
I talked to Domingo about louvres, and he's apparently not interested. They're apparently too labor intensive for what he can sell them for.


"She'll make point five past light speed. She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, and I've made a lot of special modifications myself."

- Han Solo, Star Wars

Advice Thread - Taking Pictures Of Cars

Offline ChallengerHK

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #33 on: March 13, 2012 - 10:37:46 PM »
I've got nothing new to report, but I found a whole bunch of old pics, so I'm going to post some of those every now and them. First up is a pic from 1982 or 83. You can already see that I've put the car through hell in the 4 years that I've owned it; it was close to mint when I bought it.

The license plate reads Sky 19. At the time, in VA, a personalized tag could only be three letters and two numbers. "Sky" stood for Skywalker, and 19 was my age when I got the tag.


"She'll make point five past light speed. She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, and I've made a lot of special modifications myself."

- Han Solo, Star Wars

Advice Thread - Taking Pictures Of Cars

Offline ChallengerHK

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #34 on: March 13, 2012 - 10:42:15 PM »
In 1985 I put the car in a restoration shop in Hamilton VA called Motorcar Garage. I think the place is still there and in business. When I first put it in I was getting a lot of work done for my money; after a while, the amount of work tapered off a lot. At first I blamed the guy for ripping me off, but in 20/20 hindsight this coincided with the owner's wife taking over the books, and for all I know he might have been giving me a great bargain until then.

These pics are me pulling the motor in their parking lot. The plate has changed to M FALCN. Virginia has moved to six letters and one space. M FALCN was, of course, Millenium Falcon. I still have these tags.


"She'll make point five past light speed. She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, and I've made a lot of special modifications myself."

- Han Solo, Star Wars

Advice Thread - Taking Pictures Of Cars

Offline NCtrueconservative

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #35 on: March 13, 2012 - 11:31:55 PM »
Really enjoy these old pics!
1973 Dodge Challenger Rallye (pictured), 340, Slap Stick

1998 Dodge Ram, 5.2, Black, tinted windows, dual exhaust, blackout headlights, tailights

Offline GranCuda1970

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #36 on: March 13, 2012 - 11:34:24 PM »
I like the star wars license plate.  :2thumbs:

Offline ChallengerHK

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #37 on: March 18, 2012 - 03:13:15 PM »
Round 2

These are NOT pics of my car. They're actually the last parts car that I bought. It was a 74 Rallye 360 4-speed, and to this day I feel pretty guilty over parting it.

What happened was this. The guy selling it was using it as a driver and a drag car on the weekends. He had wrecked it on the street, got t-boned. The passenger door was nothing but a mess, pushed it more than a foot. When I bought it he told me that the unibody had been bent so badly that the insurance company wouldn't pay to fix it (remember, this was about 85, so the car didn't have the value that it would now). I drove it back home, and it drove straight and ran like a bat, but I didn't put any more thought into the bent unibody idea.

So I stripped the hell out of it. What you see in these pics is me pulling the rallye cluster (I later decided to not use it and sold it to someone on the board a few months after I joined). I pulled off everything I could think f that I might need. The rallye wheels that were on my car later came from this one, and I kept all the interior panels; I still have some of them. The hood went on my car, and in pics I'll post later it's still blue.

One of the last things I worked on pulling was the dual exhaust with the stock chrome tips. While I was under the passenger side I looked at the floors...and everything seemed straight to me. The rocker was smashed in badly, but it seemed to have rolled around the joint with the floor. For about 15 minutes I thought about putting it all back together. It would still have needed the rocker and work or replacement of the passenger quarter. I decided that my car was more important than a parts car; I had only the vaguest idea of its relative rarity at the time.


"She'll make point five past light speed. She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, and I've made a lot of special modifications myself."

- Han Solo, Star Wars

Advice Thread - Taking Pictures Of Cars

Offline usraptr

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #38 on: March 18, 2012 - 07:59:41 PM »
 :popcorn:
1970 Plymouth 'Cuda.  Matching numbers 440 U Code, 4 speed pistol grip, Rallye dash, AM 8 Track, Shaker hood, 15 inch rallye wheels, Dana 60 4.10, Super Track Pak.  One of 134 - 440 "U" coupes codes built in 1970 and one of 100 - 440 Super Track Paks built in 1970.

Restoration pictures at:  http://spanks4thememory.smugmug.com/Cars/70-Cuda/7240639_M24oi#465274575_2MBqW
(Edited 8-1-17)

"usraptr" = United States raptor - bird of prey = United States Bald Eagle.  FYI, somebody else thought of it first so I had to drop the "O" in raptor.

Offline Super Blue 72

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #39 on: March 18, 2012 - 08:19:27 PM »
Nice pics, Dave!  :thumbsup:

Funny, with all the Star Wars references, I remember seeing one pic of you and thought you looked a little like George Lucas...  :grinyes:
1972 Dodge Challenger Rallye 340, AT, Code TB3=Super Blue, SBD=8/17/1971.  Yes, a Rallye without the fender louvers from the factory because of the body side molding option.

Pic #2 and 3 of my ARII 1/24 scale model car 

Phil in New England-Massachusetts  Always thank God for what you have!

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/456046/1972-dodge-challenger

Offline ChallengerHK

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #40 on: March 18, 2012 - 08:22:31 PM »
Dammit, somebody on Facebook just said the same thing  :swear:  :stomp:


"She'll make point five past light speed. She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, and I've made a lot of special modifications myself."

- Han Solo, Star Wars

Advice Thread - Taking Pictures Of Cars

Offline Super Blue 72

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #41 on: March 18, 2012 - 08:30:39 PM »
Did you save the steering wheel on the '74?  Tuff Wheel?
1972 Dodge Challenger Rallye 340, AT, Code TB3=Super Blue, SBD=8/17/1971.  Yes, a Rallye without the fender louvers from the factory because of the body side molding option.

Pic #2 and 3 of my ARII 1/24 scale model car 

Phil in New England-Massachusetts  Always thank God for what you have!

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/456046/1972-dodge-challenger

Offline ChallengerHK

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #42 on: March 18, 2012 - 09:13:36 PM »
I didn't save it, that much I'm sure of. I have to cop to not even knowing what a tuff wheel was back then.


"She'll make point five past light speed. She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, and I've made a lot of special modifications myself."

- Han Solo, Star Wars

Advice Thread - Taking Pictures Of Cars

Offline ChallengerHK

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #43 on: March 24, 2012 - 11:13:09 AM »
Round 3

This is some of the work that was done at the first resto shop where I had the car, mid 80s.

The fenders were NOS.

The passenger side quarter patch was one of my worst ideas. At the time, an NOS quarter was going for around $600, and was out of my range. I bought a patch panel for $100, and congratulated myself on being so smart. Problem was the patch panel was stamped completely flat; it didn't follow the inward curve of the body. So, the body guys had to shape it. I'm guessing that I spent about $1200 getting it shaped. Tony tells me that they didn't do a particularly good job of putting it in place, but I probably can't blame them.

The driver's side quarter shows the rusted out trunk floor extensions. These are actually the reason I bought the parts car shown in round 2. The guy who owned the shop told me that it would cost me more to have him make new extensions than to buy a parts car and cut them out.


"She'll make point five past light speed. She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, and I've made a lot of special modifications myself."

- Han Solo, Star Wars

Advice Thread - Taking Pictures Of Cars

Offline dodj

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Re: Finally, I've got my car started
« Reply #44 on: March 24, 2012 - 09:20:20 PM »
Problem was the patch panel was stamped completely flat; it didn't follow the inward curve of the body.
I bought one of those back in the 80's!  :swear: :bricks1: :banghead:
Could see center punch marks on it too.
Scott
1973 Challenger  440 4 spd 
2007.5 3500 6.7 Cummins Diesel, Anarchy tuned.
Good friends don't let friends do stupid things. ........alone.