So do you cut it up and racecar it, or sell it and get something else..

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LXguy

LXguy

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Hey All:

Got a tough decision to make...

So, here we go. I have the speed bug and want to go faster. Next year, I'd like to build a 408 and in the meantime I'd like to see how quick this 5.9 Magnum would go with a couple more mods in a racier chassis. Car currently runs 11.70s @ 113 in an all steel, very stock weight car. I honestly think with some better heads, single plane intake, more gear, racier exhaust, less weight and a thorough lining out, I would have a shot at a 10.99 in some very awesome air.

dart2.jpg


Of course, going faster means lightening up, and past 11.49 means a roll bar.

Problem is my car is really nice. Its got between 33 and 35K miles on it. Interior is all original and very well preserved (other than Cheetah shifter and gauges, which I set up to be removable without messing things up). It does seem to like being a race car though. :toothy10: Maybe 40 years as a granny getter was enough for it?

Everything (except the @#!! gas gauge) works on this car. Glove box light, light that shines on the ignition switch, radio, blower (AC is pulled), turn signals, trunk light, etc. Well, door buzzer doesn't work, disconnected that sucker on purpose.

Here it is before I started messing with it.

IMG_0361.jpg


Line on the driver seat is the shadow of the steering wheel,not any kind of mark.

So basically options are, start doing stuff that's not readily reversible in the name of performance...(roll bar, maybe race buckets, pull wipers, heater and ac stuff from under dash, relocate battery, fuel cell, glass hood, maybe bumpers and such)

Or get something else to turn into a dedicated car.

Trick with that is, I'd probably have to sell the dart to do that (and the market for these cars is way down), and it seems pretty stupid to sell something so someone else could cut on it and I then have to start from square one with something different.

I've already put subframes on it, and cut the hole in the floor for the cheetah shifter cable, so I've already done some very difficult to reverse mods. Car was originally a 904 318 car, so not a numbers car of any kind. Wouldn't go the full bracket route with the aluminum door panels, no carpet, stickers for headlights, kind of thing.

Not even sure what kind of answers I expect to get, but:

What would you do if you were me?

:angry7:


Steve
 
sell it and get something else. Too nice to try and bring it past the 11.49 mark
 
My opinion, stick with the swinger you got and go at it! Its not a rare car by any means so no worries there, and you already own it. Like you said someone else could buy it and do the same thing. Everything you plan on doing really aren't that hard to reverse if you wanted to. GO FOR IT!
 
Keep the swinger and be modest on the changes to lighten car. Roll bar can be bolt in. I like nothing more than to see a street car like yours smoke the big tire race cars at test and tune nights. There is always someone faster but nothing wrong with running with the big dogs in the 10's

I know 10's aren't that fast but really it is!
 
Keep it as it is. Why cut up a good car? Besides, it will be tough to resell a "drag car" and you will for sure not get a good return. There are plenty of butchered cars out there. So I say preserve!

PS: Faster= more money now and more money later. Remember, consistency is the key. A track tech one told me that he sees people start with car A and year after year they dump coin to go "10's" and they win even less. They just burn money, gas, time just to go faster??? One local had a budget car/engine etc. Car is dialed in and he wins every week. A car that runs tens, but wins nothing?

It is kind of like making a superbird into a convertible. Non reversable!

Then again these days, no one gives a crap.
 
Modify the heck out of it!
How about this: Take all the weight you can out of it and do what you want to the drivetrain. Just keep it looking as stock as it does now.
Like you say, it's only a 318 car. Gut it w/o changing it's appearance.
 
You said it yourself, its a 318 & 904 car; no big deal to modify the hell out of it. Why go get a rust bucket or something you'll never be finished on because you're fixing all of the other problems with it. I say you've got a great looking car that can also be as fast as you want it to be.
 
since this is an opinion question, i vote to leave it alone. that's a nice car & there are plenty of rollers out there for less than you'll have in the motor.
 
If I were you, I'd just give it to T-Fish. It'd look good next to the Duster he bought a few weeks ago.



But seriously, that's a really clean looking car and it already hauls ***. I'd leave it alone or sell it to someone that won't cut it up. There are a lot of other cars out there that are already cut up, or are in worse shape and easier to justify cutting up.


How much would you need to get out of it if you were to sell it as-is?
 
I say modify it,like minitubbs,cage,3 inch spring relo.If done right the car will still look the same from the outside.A good looking 10 sec. street car,will surprise alot of ricers.LOL
 
If you really want to go 10's.....

I say keep your car as is, go out and buy a 97 up GM LS1 F-body. Buy a set of slicks, a 200 shot and a cam and you can run 10's all day long on the cheap. Prob less you would invest in heads, gear, seats, and fiberglass. You can then cut it up as much as you'd like and not worrie about it, and then still be able to drive your beautiful A-Body around town!



Just my .02
 
pettybludart said:
I say modify it,like minitubbs,cage,3 inch spring relo.If done right the car will still look the same from the outside.A good looking 10 sec. street car,will surprise alot of ricers.LOL
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Like this one
 

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I couldn't bring myself to start cuttin' on a mopar that nice, if it were a street car only maybe, it's your car you can do what ya like, hit one slick patch on the track in a 10-second car and you'll probably be draging it home on a rollback in pieces, theres a reason they require a roll cage and it's not for looks...:toothy10:
 
Is it a rare car,NO, is it a numbers matching car,No, but its super clean and I would keep it that way and buy a nother car and build that up the way you want it,mrmopartech
 
zhandfull said:
Keep the swinger and be modest on the changes to lighten car. Roll bar can be bolt in. I like nothing more than to see a street car like yours smoke the big tire race cars at test and tune nights. There is always someone faster but nothing wrong with running with the big dogs in the 10's

I know 10's aren't that fast but really it is!
Click to expand...

exactly you have done a good job making things bolt in so far, just make the roll bar bolt in. you don't relize that people in the salt belt are looking for original cars that aren't all hacked up to take to shows and cruises. not everyone enjoys a full race car, to me there pointless. They go fast one to two days a week and sit the week and collect dust. No offense to people who build there cars for that, it just doesn't have a point to me:happy10:
 
I'm putting an 8-point in my Dart. Honestly, its your car and you should do what you want with it. I think that it's really not that big of a deal to put a cage in it and minitub it and spring relocate to the frame rails. But if you ever plan on selling the car in the future, it'd hurt the value probably unless its to the right person such as myself that'd want that.

Also, its a very nice car as is. My Dart is a basket case:toothy10:. I'd leave it as is or do the bolt in roll cage thing
 
don't cut it up. understand about having to sell it to fund something else. how much of a hurry would you be in to sell it?
 
Looks like a pretty rare car to me.How often you see a car that nice and clean ?? Rarely.. Save it for cruising. Find you swb Dakota, tub it out and put a big block in it... JMO..
 
Get it to go 11.50 and run that class.There are plenty of "rollers" available at really good prices that will cert to 8.5's.If you have the itch,10's are the steppin' stone to the 9's:munky2:
 
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