Follow my 1967 Dodge Dart Restoration

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wow, this is an incredible build thread. you have a lot of talent in many areas, cheers to you. will you be staying or if going back, can you take your new toy back with you? I'm really looking forward to this thread like no other, many kudos on you
 
im diggin this thread and also the casting that was made .. and nice score on the car .... keep up the good work
 
Thank you for following my build thread and I appreciate everyone's posts.

Today I received the clutch kit.

It is the LT1 Chevy Camaro clutch. Its a stage 4 clutch kit with a 6 puck ceramic copper clutch disk from FX racing, and im very happy with the quality.

I test fit it tonight and it works perfect on the Dodge 360 flywheel (I had to drill new mounting holes for the pressure plate which i posted on page two of my build thread.)

One step closer.

Louwtjie













I also received the clutch master cylinder and pedal from Wilwood and a stock Camaro clutch slave cylinder.

 
Another step closer:

Front 205/60r15
Rear 275/60r15

Still need rims though. Im thinking American Racing Torque thrust 2.


(They delivered the tires to my apartment so its sitting in my kitchen at the moment. Need to get it out of here!)





 
I gotta say that this is definitely 1 of the most interesting build threads I've seen. That bellhousing is something to be proud of for sure. Keep all of your design specs & look into production for the aftermarket. Good luck with the rest of the build. Great job bro!
 
Firstly, thank you everybody for the nice comments and complements. They are much appreciated. I'm building this car for my self, so I try to make everything exactly how I picture it and would like to keep this car forever, even if I move back to Namibia.

This month I moved the car into the workshop and started working on the front end.









I stripped everything off the front end and started cleaning up the engine bay.




I had to do a little bit of fabrication to correct the bent and stretched radiator mount.















The next step was prepping and painting the engine bay. I had some Monterey blue paint mixed. Paint code PPG 0031.



















The color came out really nice and I'm happy with the results. Next, I did the brakes. It needed a new main cylinder. The rear brakes still looked really good, so I decided to leave them, but the front brakes had to be replaced with all new parts and lines. Eventually I would like to install disk brakes, but for now, the 11 inch Roadrunner drum brakes will be adequate.

















Now the engine bay is ready for the engine to be built in. Hopefully I will do that in the next week or two. I also need to cut the transmission tunnel open and fabricate a new transmission cross member to mount the T56 transmission.

 
I made a dust cover that goes between the engine and bell housing so the clutch and flywheel are protected against the elements.






Before dropping the engine into the car, i made some engine mounts and then cut the floor and transmission tunnel out.







The passenger side floor was badly rusted from a leaky heater core, so I had to cut it out as well.






















Here is a pic of the transmission in place before i made a cross member for it. Its just the jack holding it in place.



Then I fabricated a new cross member to mount the transmission.





After its bolted in and the jack is removed.










So I started welding the new floor piece in.



Thats how far I got this week. Now I need to get some more sheet metal to weld the transmission tunnel closed. And then get the engine started and have a custom drive shaft made.

 
Hi everybody!

I think it's about time for an update to my build thread. Sorry that I have been slacking on posting about the Dart's progress.

Watch this space:
 
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I had to move the car to a different location. Here are some pictures of when I was pulling it out of the workshop:



































Since the tires was in a really bad shape, I had to put new tires on it to tow it away.

I decided to keep the old rear rims that came with the car, and ordered new front rims that matches the rear ones. I had the rear rims wrapped with the 275-60r15 Mickey Thompson tires I bought a while back.


































After the engine and transmission was in the car, my main focus was to get the engine running. I was really anxious to hear it fire up for the first time.

To do this, I had a few things to take car of first.

I bolted the exhaust headers on and had an exhaust system built out of 2.5" pipe, with an x-pipe and Magnaflow mufflers, with 2 big tips poking out just underneath the rear bumper.




























In came the ceramic coated headers:






























































After the exhaust was built, I towed the car to the new location, were I continued working on getting the engine ready to be started.

I installed everything that the engine still needed. From the carburetor and ignition, to the alternator and radiator fan and everything in between:






































Engine break in oil



















Transmission fluid for the T56


























Fuel pump


















Radiator fan























I strapped a battery in and connected the wires to its terminals. Really anxiously made sure everything was in place and cranked the engine over. It took a few tries and some tuning and fiddling with the ignition timing. Then it fired up and man, i was so happy to hear her roar!!

Here is a video of the first time it ran. The carburetor was untuned (very very very very rich) at this time, as you can see from the smoke when it revs up.











[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slGKu7xzxwQ"]1967 Dodge Dart First Start - YouTube[/ame]








Finally my project car has reached another mile stone and now has a beating heart in it. Next will be getting it to move under its own power.















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Thank you Keith. Yes, its good to see the project make some nice progress. I am really anxious to get it all done and start driving it. Two of my friends and I are all building our cars, together and we are planning to have them done round about the same time so we can all drive them to the Grand Canyon in a convoy. I'm really looking forward to it. It will be a nice first road trip in the dart, and hopefully get some great pictures too.









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It was time to fit the universal Wilwood clutch master cylinder and connect it to the slave cylinder with a hydraulic braided hose.





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To make some clearance for the clutch pedal, I cut the break pedal's foot pad a bit smaller.
Eventually I will make all the pedals match and look nice.






















I then took all necessary measurements to have a custom drive shaft made that will fit between the T56 transmission and the Ford 9" rear axle. Placed the order it should be at my doorstep in a few days.



The plan is to get fiberglass replacement fenders and a hood with a scoop when I get the car ready for body work and paint, but for now, while I was waiting for the drive shaft, i put the old fenders, hood. bumper and grill back on.








Here are a few pics. The sunrise was really pretty that morning:

















































The new front rims arrived, so I had them wrapped with the 205/60r15 Goodyear Eagle GT tires I bought earlier. They look great on the car and I think they will complement the blue color ones the body is painted.































I cant wait for the drive shaft to get here so I can drive the car for the first time ever!!!








 
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The day the prop shaft arrived, I didn't even go to class at the university. I just went straight to my car and built that prop shaft in. I was so ready to drive it!




































The drive shaft bolted straight in. Perfect!


I started it up, put it in gear, backed it up. Do you see that Dart going down the street? Thats me!!


I drove it to my friends house and we strapped his GoPro camera onto the car. We then drove it from his house to another friend of our's house.









First drive

1967 Dodge Dart

6 speed manual project

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMRg8Er3uCA"]1967 Dodge Dart First drive (Short version) - YouTube[/ame]



The feeling of driving ones project car for the first time after so much work, time and money... its just incredible, priceless.

It drove really crappy though, there is a huge hole in the middle of the floor were hot air is coming through, loud, there wasn't any shocks in the back, the brakes needed some more bleeding, it had a lot of rattle noises, but still one of the best feeling ever. And once all the little things are sorted out it's gonna drive awesome!







That was a shortened version of the original video which is 7 minutes long.

Here is the full video if you would like to see it:



[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPwvL4ZNjpQ"]1967 Dodge Dart First drive - YouTube[/ame]

















The next morning I drove it to work/school. It didnt even have head lights yet, never mind a licence plate.


Oh man, that car has sooooo much power! When i drove it for the first time, i just took it easy, but driving it to work the next day, i punched it and it just leaves black lines down the road and a big smile on my face.


Here are some pics I took at work that day:

































Next will be to get the head lights in, work on the electrical stuff and sort out the shocks and little things. I also ordered a new gas tank. the old one is very dirty in side.






 
wow.. lots of progress... Congrats on getting to drive your Dart finally.. Thats awesome.. I have to say, im surprised 275/60/15's fit out back.. I was under the belief that a 255 was as big as you could get in there without having to relocate the springs inward.. it looks as though you have standard shackles (not the offset type) so i am assuming you didnt have to move the springs??
 
Bill, Thank you very much. The 275/60/15's just barely fit. I didn't have to move the leaf springs inward. They are on the standard position, but i did have to trim the fender's inner lip with about a 1/4 inch so it doesn't rub against the tire. I love the stance, it looks great with the big tires in the back.

The ultimate would be to get 4 link suspension and do a mini tub. or even better would be individual suspension. Imagine getting a Corvette rear end and modify it to bolt into the Dart. and then coil over suspension all round. That might be a future project when the Darts body work and interior is all done.

Louwtjie
 
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The headlights are in and working. Turn signals and tail lights are also working, but I need to replace the lenses.
















My buddy and I drove to the gas station to get some gas and to test and adjust the head lights. We found that the gas tank is really dirty and blocked. So the only way I could drive the car that night was to put a gas can on the passenger floor and stick the fuel hose in it. It was only temporary, the new gas tank was already on its way.


































Here are some pics I took just because it was a beautiful day out. Im not sure if the rainbow is making the dart look good, or if the Dart is making the rainbow look ugly. O:)














Interesting panorama:










The new tank arrived. I also got rear shocks. Up to this point there wasn't any shocks in the rear and the main reason that the car was so terrible to drive.


































Finally got to put some gas in it. No leaks.



















I took the car for a drive around the block. It drives a lot smoother now with the rear shocks and no more gas can sitting on the passenger floor. layed a black stripe across the parking lot. I still need to do the rear axle too and get some posi traction.












And this is the car in its present condition.




















Whats next:

-Get new indicator and tail light lenses. Get it road legal and licensed so I can drive it.

-I need to fabricate and weld a transmission hump to close the hole in the floor.

-Install the new carpet, head liner and dash pad. (Already have it) Have the seats and door panels upholstered in white.

-Cut out and replace both rear quarter panels, fenders and trunk. Do the body work and get it painted blue.










It will be a while before I make this progress on the Dart as I am visiting my family in Namibia for the summer.








Plans for the future:

-Custom dash board insert and gauges.

-Disk brakes, coil over suspension, rack and pinion steering.

-4.10 diff ratio with Detroit locker.

-Maybe possibly 4 link or even better, individual rear suspension from corvette.













Please feel free to comment your thoughts and suggestions. I would really love to hear from everyone and get some feed back.




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Hi all



Let me know what you think.

I thought I would make a short video of my Dart. Hope you enjoy it:



360 exhaust sound

It is a 360 engine, with Compcams XE268 camshaft, Flowtech headers, 2.5 inch dual exhaust with x-pipe and magnaflow mufflers. 6 speed manual trasmission.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijnuybLaAL0"]1967 Dodge Dart - Work in progress - YouTube[/ame]


Louwtjie
 
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