meet ginger

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diymirage

diymirage

HP@idle > hondaHP@redline
Joined
Oct 12, 2012
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Location
michigan
hey guys

last night the wifey bought me ginger for my 32nd birthday

ginger is a 71 duster, slant 6 auto




she is in overall good condition
(44 year old car in michigan with a solid frame, heck yeah)

but there are a few things that will need attention
(and i do apologize for asking redundant questions, this is my first A-body)

there is a indicator lens missing
the HVAC controlls are frozen up
side window molding is missing
front and rear molding is painted black
a few pinholes in the spare tire well
and some loose wires i cant place ?





i will try and trace them down further tomorrow

also, what keeps the ashtray up and in place?

then there seems to be a little airleak between the intake runners (cylinder 3 and 4)
i shot some degreaser on the engine and there was a puddle there that was bubbling as the engine was running
any thoughts on what that might be ?


my plans for the car are upgraded brakes, 360 engine and a 727
would the 7 1/4 hold up to that ?

im looking at a engine and tranny combo from a 75 motorhome
the engine has 45K on it, doesnt smoke and runs 40 pounds of oil pressure at idle

this drivetrain is local to me and the seller is asking 400 for it
not sure if it is still installed and i can hear it run or not

would i be able to run my stock driveshaft with that combo ?



thanks for all the help guys
 
Need to upgrade to a 8 1/4 or 8 3/4 for sure.
 
I ran the piss out of my 7 1/4 with a 360/727 and it never let me down. The guy that got the car is still running it. As long as you don't beat on it hard it will be fine.
Looks like a clean car.
 
73AbodEE said:
I ran the piss out of my 7 1/4 with a 360/727 and it never let me down. The guy that got the car is still running it. As long as you don't beat on it hard it will be fine.
Looks like a clean car.
Click to expand...

Thanks for clearing that up. my bad..
 
thanks for the advice guys

it is a nice looking car
it must have been restored at some point

they did an interesting job on the interior but it looks pretty decent
not looking to build a showstopper anyway, just a fun car to drive

73AbodEE, could you use the stock driveshaft with your 360/727 ?
 
Glad somebody had a happy birthday. Can't help you much with your dangling wires but I do see a ground strap missing in the 3rd pic. There is supposed to be a braided copper ground strap running from the bottom stud on the wiper motor to the engine. You can see what is left of it under the nut on the wiper motor stud. That washer with the squarish looking protrusion. There should be a bolt in the end of the head for the other end of the strap. As for the bubbling degreaser. Bubbles in a puddle would be air coming out, not being sucked in. Exhaust leaks are fairly common and a minor one is a tossup as to whether it is worth the hassle to fix it for no longer than the engine is going to be in place. To make sure it isn't a vacuum leak spray it with carb cleaner and see if the engine smooths out and picks up a little speed. If it does, vacuum leak. If it doesn't, exhaust leak. If it does not have the drum emergency brake on the tailshaft, you can use the motorhome tranny with no hassles besides having the driveshaft shortened and a new front yoke installed. If the drum is there you can still use it but you will need to have a car output shaft and tailhousing swapped onto it. The 7 1/4" rear will live for a while depending on the abuse level. If you granny it, it should last long enough to find a replacement. There is a springy tab in the back center of the ashtray that holds it in place. Press down on it and let the ashtray drop down to remove the ashtray. If the tab is missing you can find a replacement ashtray fairly easily. Hope this helps...
 
To me it looks like the wires hanging under the wiper motor are the ones that go to a ballast resistor that is located on the wiper motor. The one wrapped around the heater hose is the wire for the A/C compressor clutch.
 
The 7 1/4 should be fine if your just going to drop in the motor. If you plan on rebuilding it first then it all will depend on how hard you beat it. I had a 72 dart with a 318 904 and a 7 1/4 beat it until I threw a rod then droped in a 360 that someone suposidly rebuilt and beat the snot out of it....It wasnt until I rebuilt the 360 and did it correct that I started to have problems with the rear nothing major just when I hot rodded it the spider gears couldnt hold it. I replaced the spider gears 3 times until I bought an 8 3/4.... back then I scored my 8 3/4 for $300 and it was narrowed a couple inches narrower than stock. now i dont want to guess what a complete 8 3/4 would go for.
 
Well, this answers the age old question now doesn't it!! "Ginger or Mary Ann"??? Ill take Ginger!!! That is a sweet looking car, priced right, and a great birthday present at that!! Congrats on your new toy, she's a beaut!!! Geof
 
I would only want to make one driveshaft when you upgrade power units. If you need to have a driveshaft machined then you may want to balance the cost of another diff against the cost of a second driveshaft when you eventually have to upgrade diffs.

Maybe the 360 in front of the stock 904 and 7 1/4 would be best
 
happy birthday! and congrads on a great wife! and nice car too! ( i'll take Mary Ann)
the motorhome engine, I missed.... if a bog block or what? I got 440 motorhome engine from a friend, few years back. low mileage and pretty decent torque for low compression engine.
i'd say, drive and play with it with the slant. make sure you really like the car first. you might even read about guys with what they do with t heir slants and ya might get interested in it.
lots of info here, but if ya change over to a v8 of any demonination, you have a lot of things to address. read and search and you will get the idea. lots of good, knowledge people on here too. but remember we all have our opinions, not not all will suit you! LOL
 
Check out the trans from the motor home. Might be a short tail shaft style that won't work in your car.
 
73AbodEE said:
I ran the piss out of my 7 1/4 with a 360/727 and it never let me down. The guy that got the car is still running it. As long as you don't beat on it hard it will be fine.
Looks like a clean car.
Click to expand...

wow you must of had a tough one.I blew one up in my brothers factory 318 2V 74 dart not even trying lol . broke the spider gears. to the op great looking car i have a 73 duster that i put the front end off a 72 on it. its getting the 440 etc out of my 73 dart. look forward to more pics of your car.mopar65
 
had to put her up for the winter :(

in the mean time i started cleaning up the 360
im pretty happy with how it is coming along

i might need a different AC compressor bracket because the compressor on the 360 seems to be different but ill cross that bridge when i get to it

now im going to focus on finding the proper oil pan and changing her over to one of those stand alone distributors (the cap is broken on this on)

any one have any suggestions?


oh, @furyus, it is the proper tranny, should work fine
 
Nice duster. I see you are in my same zip code, where are you located?. I just picked up a 72 6cyl/auto/AC Demon from Wisconsin and will be pulling it apart soon, for more than likely a big block conversion . You are welcome to any drive train parts you may need, ill make you a deal you cant refuse.:cheers:
 
hey neighbor
im just passed walmart

unless that demon had a 8 3/4 rear end i doubt there is a lot on the drivetrain i can use
i might however invite you to give me a hand on D day when that 360 is ready to go in


is the demon green ?
i saw one about 2 months ago running down waverly and 24th
 
nice duster. i would mark where the tailshaft ends on the car now with chalk. that should tell ya if ur gonna need driveshaft work.happy birthday and goodluck with the car.let me know if i can help ya find any parts.
 
Ah, your close. im out by the state park. The Demon I picked up is Petty blue and not really road worthy. Ill be stripping the six, K-member, power steering and brakes, and sorry, "small" rear axle. The car does have complete air conditioning and "some" decent interior parts. I think im headed for a super stock clone type project.
 
sounds like the demon will be a sweet ride once its done

does it have disc brakes?
that i might be interested in
the other thing i know is wrong with the duster is the whole HVAC control system
i think i got the control section coming from Rani but i dont know if anything passed that needs replacing or if all the parts will work once the buttons are back in

its a sad sight if you pass by my house and see her under that tarp :(

any chance you have a 360 centersump pan and pick up laying around?
i will need those :)
 
The Demon is a sbp power disc brake car, and ill more than likely replace that with a wildwood manual kit. I also picked up a non AC patch for the firewall where the AC blower motor comes through. ill weld the patch in then make a heater delete plate. ill have a complete AC system to get rid of.
 
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