I have it - 55 dodge pick up - home as of yesterday and don't have the first clue what to do. What are the first few steps??? What do I need to decide before I start? What does start even mean?????????? UGHHH!!!
Congratulations, find the key, fill the tank, go for a ride.... and don't forget to breathe! Hope this help!
yes it runs but it has sat for soooooooooooooooooooooooooooo long. I have been told I am not strong enough to turn the wheel...???? What??? I was told it is a tank to stop. What do I have to do to drive this thing on the interstate?
We need more info. Rusty hulk? Semi restored? Mint? I am guessing it may or may not run, but probably needs everything. I would start by 100% rebuilding the brakes at the wheels. New wheel cylinders, rubber hoses, hardware, steel lines too if necessary, and a new master cylinder. Turn the drums and replace the front wheel bearings. Then concentrate on the steering and rest of the suspension. Then worry about making it go. No need to get to that point until it stops and steers. I wouldn't be concerned about cosmetics until the other things are in order. Tell us more and maybe post some pics.
Thanks Red! I will post pics in the morning. People keep asking me things I don't know......straight six??? What??? 1/2 ton??? I have no idea.. How do I find out? What is a hulk? It has been always stored but it does have some rust
Can I just walk into the parts store and get brakes? How do I find out what to get? I am sorry for the stupid questions but I have no experience under the hood.
I'm gonna assume your not used to driving old cars; ie., cars that don't have power steering or brakes, disc brakes, turn signals, back-up lights, power windows, automatic transmissions. Well, it does have power steering, it just takes power to steer it. Yes, it will be a tank to stop. It's heavy, drum brakes, probably worn suspension. Speaking of drum brakes, be prepared for the thing to veer in any number of directions if you hit them hard. To drive it on the freeway stay right and watch your gauges.
Rebuild or replace the Carb, fuel pump, wheel cyls, master cyls, tires, fluids, points, plugs, wires, tune and drive. Standard old car up and running procedure. (unless there are other things that need attention.) Also, don't use any unnecessary accessories like wipers, radio, lights, etc. until you are sure that the wiring is ok.
Thanks Dog! So what kind of parts do I get? I am guessing they don't make parts for my truck anymore. How do I find out what to ask for? Will the guys at the store just know what will work?
I buy most of my brake parts at carquest or napa, they usually have anything I need in stock or can get them the same day.
First things first, I would read up on basic automotive information. If you don't know what a straight six is, you might not be ready to dive into a project. Just read up a bit or find a pal who knows stuff about older cars to help you out, having someone there with you is a lot easier than having to ask everything on an online forum. Have fun.
First, find a mentor to help you with the rebuild. Begin by changing all the fluids, brake (bleed these really well), oil, coolant all of the fluids. next spark plugs, wires, cap and rotor. Then rebuild the carb and inspect the brake shoes and drums. Don't do anything that will keep you off of the road for more than a weekend after this. Then learn as much as you can from everyone willing to teach you, you'll get there
In a nutshell NO, the guys at the parts store generally don't know much and have never worked on anything but their aunt's '93 Ford Escort. There are of course exceptions to the rule though, some of them actually know their a$$ from a hole in the ground. Since it's a Mopar you might have to go through places like Kanter or other specialty places, but you might also be surprised at what is still available at the parts store if you can find an old guy that knows how to use one of the "book" thingys. Those flathead 6 motors were used in some agricultural equipment, generator, etc. so It may be possible to get parts from a tractor supply place or something like that. Don't let it discourage you, it's hard to learn sometimes but you will get it. It's an extra challenge cutting your teeth on a Mopar because the parts are hard to find, but in the end it will make you a better and more knowledgeable old car operator. I started out driving a '50 Desoto when I was 17 (in the early 2000's) and had to learn a lot awful quickly if I wanted to make it home at night. You can't just go to the parts store and get anything you want for $20 like you can with a Chevy.
1951 I am on my own here. I don't have anyone who knows about cars. I am sooo not ready for this but I do want to take this on I just need to find out how and where to get my feet wet. The book idea is a great thought. Thank you!
look up your local car club, You can make friends and learn from people more experienced than yourself.
Is it a complete truck? The first thing I would personally do is start checking for the basics like fuel, fire, and compression. I would hook and a gas can first and not try to run it off of the stock fuel tank, which is most likely full of crap. You could start just by un hooking on of the spark plugs and hooking a spare plug up to it and grounding it to the body while you crank it. you will be able to tell if you have spark or not. If it's a stock truck it was likely running in this state at some point. If you have spark, you could try and little starting fluid down the carb and try to start it. If it "tries" to start a little at that point, then you know the basics are there and you can start the other stuff.
man I am in over my head!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I do know it starts and runs the neighbors at my dads put some gas in it ..not the tank.. but some how got it in the engine and it was running for 15 min before they shut it off and went inside.
Not sure what your basic skill level is. If it's completly new to you, sit down and thing about it. An engine needs fuel/air mixture, compression, and spark to run. If these three arent timed correctly, or one is missing from the equation, then it wont run. Thins about the bascis, the distrubutor distributes the spark in the correct firing order and keeps the timing right, the carb mixes and meters the correct about of air/ fuel, fuel pump sucks fuel from the tank, coil makes spark for the distributor, etc. Knowing the bascis will be big help.
I'm not trying to be rude but it seems like someone is getting a rise out of us. It just seems weird that someone with absolutely no knowledge or experience jumps into a project. If this is real life then read all you can, start with the safety issues first, get your hands dirty, and drive it as much as you can.
sorry I vanished it was after midnight and I fell asleep. No this is VERY VERY real. My Grandfather passed and I was blessed w/ his treasure. I thought it would go to my dad but I was the one always in love w/ it sooooooo.....lucky me! I am in construction so I thought..hey how hard can this be? sooooooo wrong! I have always taken my car to the shop and I am an only child so no brothers and I just moved to the country so no neighbors to ask. I signed on here several months ago when I learned It was being left to me but there was some fighting in the family and I thought it might not happen.... well the other day I was after all this time able to get it home and I want to get started but have no idea what the first step should be. I can build a house from the ground up but this is all sooooo new to me.... the words are unfamiliar and the process is scary. I looked for car clubs but non are meeting now and we do not have a place where the classics meet on a reg. basis and google is confusing me. I DEEPLY am thankful for all the help and want to assure you that you are not wasting your time helping this silly little girl! I LOVE this truck! I miss my gramps and just dearly want to be behind the wheel remembering the trips we shared! Thank you for all your help!
Zesty, Don't get too overwhelmed. Let me make a suggestion. My Mother had an Austin Healy that she drove to college years ago. It has been in the family now for over 40 years. When she and my Dad passed away in 2000, the vehicle ended up with my brother who is mostly the non-motor head of the family. He loved the car but it was mostly in a state of disrepair, although it looked pretty good. The rest of us could have gotten together and gone through this project, but no one had any time and the car was destined to sit. Instead, he took the car to a reputable shop who rebuilt the engine, changed the fluids, replaced the clutch and pressure plate, added new brakes top to bottom, new wheel bearings, new water pump, new generator, rebuilt carbs, fresh hoses and belts, flushed the radiator, etc. I cleaned the car up and added a new set of tires and then drove the car 60 miles back to my brothers house with the wind in my hair. It was about a $3,000 plus expenditure but well worth it in the end. The car has still needed plenty of tinkering to keep it going and has remained on the road and fun (and safe). It sounds like this is the route you should consider to keep your Grandfather's truck in the family and it could be done a little at a time if money is an issue. Make sure you consider the others advice here and talk to the local cruise night people or car clubs to try and locate a reputable shop or private mechanic that could help you. This is important as there are many places where promises will be made, money will be spent... and little progress will be made. This may be the way to go to keep this fun while you learn!
1. Get some decent hand tools - perhaps Craftsman from Sears (though some have recently had bad luck with them) - not cheap Chinese tools. Cheap tools will break on you and perhaps hurt you when they do. A socket set, deep socket set, and wrench set to start with. SAE (inches), not Metric. 2. Change the oil. Get a new oil filter if possible, if not just leave the old one temporarily. This will get you dirty and get you crawling around the truck. 3. Get a shop manual for your truck. Available from Ebay - typically on CD. A physical one is better if you can find it, you can carry it out to the shop and get the pages greasy. This means a real Chrysler-written manual, not a generic "Motors" or "Chilton" manual - though those too can be useful too, and will cover most basic procedures. 4. Join the Pilot House forum at http://www430.pair.com/p15d24/mopar_forum/forumdisplay.php?f=8 5. Initially, work on maintenance items - learn to lube/grease the suspension, check all fluids, etc. 6. Get a cheap camera (one you don't mind getting greasy) and take it with you to the shop. Take pictures of anything you have questions about and post them here and/or at the Pilot House forum. Scale the pictures down for easy posting to forums, find a hosting site (photobucket or the like) and post away. 7. Keep up the happy and humble attitude and you'll be fine. There is a learning curve, some of the knowledge comes pretty quickly. When people ask you questions like "did you check compression" and you have no idea what they are talking about, a little Googling will explain the process and you can reply "not yet, maybe I should" rather than "what's that?"
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