Project "Chihuahua" '65 Formula S Restoration "Estilo Mexicano"

[moparmat2000]

That 5v pulsing is from the IVR on the back of the circuit board, and is normal. The gages read at roughly 5v and the cheapest way for chrysler to do this in 1960s tech with a 12V electrical system is to make a pulsing instrument voltage regulator, and design the gages to respond slowly so the needles dont jump with the IVR unit pulsing.

 

[dibbons]

Update: Drove 10 miles into town to a Mexican gasoline station to fill 'er up. I first warned the female attendant who inserted the hose that the fill pipe was a little finicky. Everything went fine until it shut off without warning, when a splash of fuel shot out and spilled onto one of her shoes, the ground, and the side of the quarter panel. Not a problem though (I've been flirting with Dulce Maria for years now). We did not top off the tank any further.

Now with maybe a full tank (instead of the previous 4 or 5 gallons I added recently) the fuel gauge needle moved up to right on top of furthest marked line on the gauge, which is basically the full mark. The amount added at the station was 10.8 gallons at the equivalent US dollar price of $5.35 a gallon. Not sure if it has the whole 18 gallons in it yet or not. Maybe not as accurate as I would like, but I understand "new" aftermarket in tank floats are not much better.

 

[dibbons]

Update: I noticed on the drive to the gas station the brake pedal was very hard. It seems the power booster is not doing its job any longer (had the factory booster sent off for a rebuild about ten years ago). Don't plan on rebuilding the factory booster a second time.

I guess first project after the new year will be to upgrade to a dual master cylinder with booster. I just hope I can find an aftermarket unit that is a simple bolt-in installation. I've been putting this off for a long time (now don't have a choice in the matter).

 

[chryslerfat]

Do you have the factory vacuum tank plumbed in on the drivers fender well and the checkvalve plumbed in at the intake. Those are factory requirements for the power brakes to work.

 

[Keith Mopar]

Also to stop the fuel splash back you can install a fuel tank sentry in the filler tube to stop this splash back from happening. I bought mine on Amazon and works great.

 

[dibbons]

Do you have the factory vacuum tank plumbed in on the drivers fender well and the checkvalve plumbed in at the intake.

That's a good point. In the ten years I have been driving it with the rebuilt booster, it never had a check valve installed. Maybe installing one would resurrect it once again. But funny it was working without the check valve. It does have the square vacuum tank installed and situated on the driver's side inner fender by the fender tag. Then again, the check valve may only be useful after the engine is shut off?

 

[barracuda-67]

Update: Encountered an unexpected "glitch" when test fitting the rear window chrome accents--on the passenger side there is a body hole missing (must be due to the sheet metal repair that replaced a rusty corner). As carefully as I could, a measured/compared the hole in the corresponding driver's side and drilled a 1/2" hole, which is slightly smaller than the factory hole (used bits in increments of 1/8" steps). The hole is a little rough, but won't be visible when chrome is attached.

Because the interior trim is already fixed in place, at this point in time, it appears near impossible to attach the inside nuts that will secure the rear window chrome. Well, where there is a will, there is a way.

In the fifth photo, if you look carefully about one inch below the new hole, one can see a line that appears to be some kind of fracture/crack in the metal or paint. That defect was already present before I began this work today. In the last photo, one can see the rusty metal that had been cut out previously.

P.S. I later used a Dremel tool sanding disk to smooth out the rough edges (OCD me).

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Your work is of amazing quality!

I discovered that a "stepped bit" is perfect for drilling holes in sheet metal. Although a bit expensive ($29 when I bought mine), I was thrilled at how easily it drilled a hole in the firewall. Each step centers the hole for the next increasing size. The bit does not chatter like a regular fluted drill bit, thus the hole does not need to be smoothed.

I wish I had purchased a stepped bit long ago.

 

[barracuda-67]

The crank pulley is between 6" and 6.25". Doing the math with the water pump pulley @ 5.75" it seems the water pump is slightly overdriven 1.04/1.08.

I saw a table in a factory manual somewhere, showing that engines for the a/c equipped cars did indeed have a water pump pulley which was slightly smaller than the crank pulley. So yes, A/C cars did have an overdriven water pump according to that table.

I believe that table was for the 273 Commando engine, but it has been a few months since I looked at it. If I find it, I'll post a link here.

Source: I was curious why, when I was a kid, our 273 Commando, A/C-equipped 1967 Barracuda tended to overheat. I had been told the car came without A/C and A/C was added later. The pulley size should reveal it that was true, thus this caught my attention (that the water pump pulley should be smaller).

Now the car has a 318 engine in it (I have the 273 stored), so I was pondering what size the water pump pulley should be for the 318.

I must go measure the pulley sizes on that 273 to resolve the mystery. Also, my restorer says there was no such option, no "a/c-ready" car, as the firewall is slightly different between a/c and non-a/c cars.

 

[dibbons]

Update: Began cleaning up the clips that hold the chrome moldings for the top of the quarter panels (soak in vinegar and then Evaporust). A few actually have remnants of their original green paint/coating. The rest are rusted to various degrees. Need 9 that snap on for each side (the two with nut hold downs are in good shape). Don't see any aftermarket offerings for the clips so need to put on my thinking cap to find substitutes. Photo shows the best half of the bunch. Not worried about the little gasket things that help plug the hole slots as something easy can be worked out there.

 

[Clelan]

It's good to get an update! Keep at it!

Cley

 

[str12-340]

I saw a table in a factory manual somewhere, showing that engines for the a/c equipped cars did indeed have a water pump pulley which was slightly smaller than the crank pulley. So yes, A/C cars did have an overdriven water pump according to that table.

This is also related to the use of a 6 or 8 blade impeller in the water pump, but damned if I can ever remember which is the AC or non-AC pump...

 

[DC 340]

Update: Began cleaning up the clips that hold the chrome moldings for the top of the quarter panels (soak in vinegar and then Evaporust). A few actually have remnants of their original green paint/coating. The rest are rusted to various degrees. Need 9 that snap on for each side (the two with nut hold downs are in good shape). Don't see any aftermarket offerings for the clips so need to put on my thinking cap to find substitutes. Photo shows the best half of the bunch. Not worried about the little gasket things that help plug the hole slots as something easy can be worked out there.

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See post #286. Did you try the GZ-88148 clips that Rick posted? I remember buying those from Laysons but I'll be damned if I can find them to compare to my originals. I think I just bought them and stored them away somewhere without comparing.

 

[dibbons]

Did you try the GZ-88148 clips that Rick posted?

No I have not bought the clips from Layson. The photo on his website look like the factory style clips to me.

 

[dibbons]

Update: Clean-up on quarter panel stainless molding underside (the upside that shows when installed looked in very good condition). Beginning condition underside (photo one); after spray down underside with Prep Sol which is a wax/grease remover (photo two) ; after Naval Jelly application (did not improve very much) & finally chrome polish with tooth brush (photo three shows both underside on right and topside on left) .

 

[dibbons]

Update: Peak quarter panel moulding. I salvaged all but five of the factory clips and decided to install the mouldings using my own innovation thinking (AKA: estilo mexicano). The cost of shipping is at or near the price of parts these days so just going to "wing it" for now.

For the missing clips, I used some GM door panel plastic "rivets". For the fibrous gaskets that help plug the holes around the clips, I used thin rubber matting material (see photo one) and a dollop of seam sealer over the holes. Not the ideal manner of installation, I can see where the plastic rivets are placed the moulding sits slightly high, even with a slap with a rubber hammer (see last photo). I have no idea how "waterproof" my method will turn out to be.

On the two plastic pieces that hold the stud, there is a tiny arrow molded into it. The stud is also not centered and is offset a bit, so I had to decide before installation which way I would place the offset. I only installed the driver's side so far.

 

[eekvonzipper]

Well, um. It Is Your car...

 

[DC 340]

Dibbons, I did finally find the GZ-88148 clips I bought from Laysons. They appear to be correct (although lacking the pad). They fit nicely in the trim. The 2nd picture shows one in the trim next to one of my factory clips.

 

[dibbons]

Update: Just a baby step today. Installed the repro (part #DV3) defroster vents. The metal speed nuts supplied use a 1/2" socket. The nuts didn't seem to want to spin onto the plastic posts very easily, so I did not spin them all the way down. Regardless, I don't expect the vents to jump out anytime soon. I cleaned up the metal dash and applied a liquid spray wax and used some upholstery spray cleaner on the dash pad beforehand. The original vents were a brown color and had turned almost into dust.

 

[65barracudaLA]

I just took mine out when I reinstalled the dash speaker and the self-cutting nuts are not a great design. I would still tighten them all the way - not because they would come out, but because otherwise they will rattle, which I find super annoying.

 

[dibbons]

I thought about rattles too, but being the fact my "rebuilt" factory speaker is not tested or installed yet, I decided to wait. I still have a factory AM radio I pulled out of my '65 Valiant bracket racer back in the 1970's (which appears to have the '64 style push buttons) that I might install later once it is repaired.

 

[dibbons]

Upate: Underdash courtesy lamp bracket/lens. I have one bracket already cleaned up but it's missing the round plastic dome lens. I have this other one with the lens intact and thinking about trying to clean it up prior to install.

 

[dibbons]

Update: Polished the factory tach (obviously, I didn't overdue it). The little round medallion in the center remained discolored. I see one would have to un-crimp the case in order to replace the rear face behind the needle (I don't have a replacement for now).

 

[dibbons]

Update: Installing some logo callouts today. First tried installing the fender "Barracuda" logo using some fiber washers as cushions, but they turned out to be too thick (photo #1). The holes were too small due to the repaint so I used a sheet metal screw to open them up (photo #2). Decided to use thin rubber matting material cut into little circles (photo #3). Same with the Chrysler pentastar. These pieces are not "restored", just going on as is for now (too many parts scattered all over the place around here).

 

[dibbons]

The Formula "S" badges still retained their small factory rubber seals so I re-used 'em. At the very bottom of the badge is a very small gap (must be due to the natural curve in the front fender). Those cap nuts take a 7/16" tool, while the cap nuts in previous badges installed in above update were 3/8".

 

[dibbons]

The holes I marked and drilled to secure the custom stainless steel glove box liner were a little off, but I was able to start all of the screws. No lock feature on this version of glove box door, just opens and closes and has a "cut-out" that would fit a small glass or cup.