1969 Valiant 4 door Gas Sipper

[tablebeast]

I'm planning on building this house-paint-covered gem into a little gas sipper/daily driver. The 225 in it is no good, but I have a 170 to swap in. The car is out of Alabama and I was told by a previous owner (are you still out there? I lost your contact info) that this car was a runner when he sold it just a few years ago. However, the kids that bought it from him revved it to destruction while trying to leave his place! But before they goofed, he had already done a lot of the little things it needed to run. So I'm thinking with an engine swap and some wheels/tires, that it isn't very far from being a driver. One puzzling thing is that it sits on a bunch of trailer tires??? I get that they: might have been the only 13s available at some Walmart somewhere, or were just laying around, or are just rollers... but was it really driven like this?

Also, what is the best way to remove latex house paint from a car while preserving the underlying original paint? I've heard of several methods online, but I was just looking for advice from you guys in case there was some magic concoction that works best on Mopars that I don't know about. That orange stuff sounds interesting...

Here are pics as she sits, covered in Glidden premium (maybe). And sorry, the gold one is gone now.

 

[Garrett Ellison]

I'd say a pressure washer with a 15 to 30 degree nozzle working at an angle would make short work of the latex paint...

 

[tablebeast]

Well shoot! Thats easy.

 

[Garrett Ellison]

I’d go as wide as possible first and then progressively move up. Anything less than a 45 degree nozzle takes with 2500 psi stain off of pressure treated wood here. You don’t want to get between the base coat and primer with your spray.

 

[mpgmike]

I wish you luck. I'm intrigued, so I'm making a useless post just so I'm subscribed.

 

[Cuprum-74]

Oof... Housepaint, even painted over the decals.

Man what were these kids doing?
Glad you're saving it.

 

[tablebeast]

Yeah, they even painted the door handles, though that paint has worn off. Maybe they were trying to make a Duel clone? It’s kind of the right color and body style, just wrong year. That was a 71 I believe.

Does anyone near the Charlotte NC / Spartanburg SC area have some Small Bolt Pattern wheels? 14” or bigger? Steels, Rallys, Aftermarket?

 

[Rallyerick]

Did it work?