I just saw a home improvement tip that might work

[The Daring Dufas]

Nope, "Big Red" the hunk of metal is a maroon color. ^_^

TDD

[clare]

Yes, the old Ford 300 and the Checy 292 six had GOBS of torque - would outpull their302 and 327 cu inch v8 "brothers" any day of the week in truck service. Used to pull a tri-axle float behind a '68 C30

292 with 22 tons of ag equipment.

[clare]

Even the napa supplied Echlin Blue Streak resistor was not imune to failure. It was thermal shock, not corrosion that killed them. They would NEVER let you down when running - they just failed to start.

[clare]

The "silver beauty" MSW wires were about $19 at the time and would start with a garden hose running over the engine. I NEVER had damp start problems on ANY of my many Mopars - 53 241 hemi, 57 fargo flathead 6, 63 valiant 170, 69 dart 225, 75 dart 225, 76 ramcharger

318, 85 lebaron 2.6, 88 New Yorker 3.0, 2002 PT Cruiser 2.4

[The Daring Dufas]

Yea, most folks don't understand the difference in an engine meant for an automobile and an engine made for a truck. I was impressed with the Ford 300 six with an automatic in the Ford Econoline. ^_^

TDD

[The Daring Dufas]

After I installed the Echlin resistor, I never had another failure. I imagine there were gobs of new resistors winding up in the Autoreilly Zone parts stores that were made in someplace like Taiwan or India. It's a good bet that those cheap ass resistors failed all the time. The new rotors I bought for my Dodge van came from China but the damn brakes have worked OK so far for the past 5 years. ^_^

TDD

[Ed Pawlowski]

Lots of horsepower is good. Torque? Tork? Dork? Many people have no idea.

[krw]

So, do you really believe that I said "Philips does have the advantage of camming out" because I disbelieve "that Phillips screws are designed to cam out"? Good grief! READ, MAN!

[krw]

Not all years' engines were created equal. Mopar went through several years where they were cheapening the slant-sixes to where they were junk. Chrysler hasn't made a decent car since.

Copper ignition wire? Really? Though, ignition wires are first on my list of suspects when such things happen. They're cheap and usually easy to replace (my Vision TSI and Intrepid were the exceptions).

Why not replace the wire?

Agree 100%, though it was usually the rainiest 33F day in November when I had to replace the points and wires. I *definitely* like newer cars. Nothing to do.

Clearing a flooded engine isn't hard. Some will never start at that temperature, though. My guess is that some of them had frozen fuel lines.

My '78 Ford ate a carb once a year. It used to piss me off but a new one was only $80ish. Rebuilts were a waste of time.

I haven't gotten quite that far yet. The best have rotted out before that. I just replaced my '01 Ranger. ...and the wife's '00 Sable, but she just had to have the shiny Mustang convertible, that matched the truck I bought.

If it wasn't for rust (Fords) and transmissions (Chryslers), I'd have kept my cars much longer. Repairs are cheap but once the rust sets in there is nothing left.

[krw]

Actually, the auto makers are doing quite well - right now. There is a scare in the air because something like half of the new cars are being bought by people over 55. "Due (Obama) to the depression", these are the only people with the money to buy a new car. Auto makers are afraid that it won't change in ten years, when those who are over 55 won't be buying any more new cars.

OTOH, used cars have never commanded as much money. When Obama's new cash for clunkers happens (no doubt he's stupid enough) it'll kill the people he pretends to care about. They still won't figure out that he's not their friend, though. Pass the Obamaphone...

[krw]

Maybe they can find a New York Times in a trash can, somewhere, to stuff in the bottoms.

[krw]

Too late. The damage is done.

The frame would have had to be replaced. The garage wouldn't even touch the job. Understandable, the rest of the truck wasn't worth it, anyway. Hope this is the last one I buy.

I thought Nova == no-go. The '70s were bad for all cars.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Sure was a bad decade. They had seatbelt interlocks for safety, mandated low pollution and were just getting into the MPG thing making lighter cars. It was a decade of learning experiences.

[krw]

That's what transmissions are for.

[krw]

The decade the government started serious intrusions into our lives, "to protect us", or "for the children", yes. Bad time and that's been a one-way trip.

As far as the (US) auto manufacturers go, it was a decade of cost reductions and planned obsolescence. Cars were *designed* to last three years. After all, that's what "people wanted". ...until the Japanese showed them the error of their ways. It took another decade or three to actually learn the lesson, though.

[clare]

Easy way to tell. If the torque is higher than the horsepower, you know it makes it's max power at low RPM (below 5250 rpm)

[The Daring Dufas]

I rebuilt the engine in my dad's 1949 Ferguson tractor that was made for torque and not necessarily horsepower. It was fun and I got rid of the 6 volt generator, converted the electrical system to 12 volts and added a used Chrysler alternator to the old mule. The engine had an updraft carburetor and I believe it would run anything that would evaporate and burn like the piss from a drunk. It was simple to service and really didn't care how you treated it because it would keep on running through the years and lots of abuse from my little brothers. ^_^

TDD

[Vic Smith]

Only know my '74 was trouble-free. Googling I see it was probably "lean burn" that screwed them up. A couple-few years later.

Never even entered my mind. A tiny piece of melted insulation is easily taped. And when I hung it back where it belonged it was in a dry undisturbed place. Maybe if my car was a boat.

>

[clare]

The 1978 model year was the beginning of the end for the slant six - different head, cast crank, lean burn, and all that crap combined to make it less driveable, less reliable, less efficient, and overall less desireable.

They HAVE built some very good cars since - if you compare them to the older stuff. Mabee not so good if you compare them to some of their competition.

[clare]

And that simple little torque monter also powered all of the 4 cyl Standard Vanguard cars of the day, as well as the early TR sports cars

--TR2, TR3 and I believe TR4 series. The TR250 was the first to get an "automotive" engine.