1960 dodge dart

[whirlaway]

Stalling problems

Chrysler had a choke spring installed in the intake manifold,the dealers had a replacement which cured the problem,as usual some gottem and others didnt. I found out from my dealership,they replaced it and it was good to go then.Like the 57 and 58 Plymouths they would stall at every stop sign till they were good and warm.After that they would run like a top.

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

My grandpa had a 1960 Dodge Dart Station Wagon--one of his prized cars--that unfortunately my mom took the driver's door off of, backing out of a driveway past a tree (there were three in a row, going up & down)...!

I suppose if I'm looking for a good replacement for my Honda & can't afford a good upgrade for my ride (though I'm still holdin' out for someone to build somethin' that's REAL reminiscent of Old Skool Chrysler) then I should consider a NEW Dodge Dart comin' out...!!!!

-- Dave

 

[twintubdexter]

slipping in another story...

Back in the mid 70's when I was a "kid" buyer for The Emporium Department store in San Francisco my good friend was one the clericals for another area, Notions. Her name was Vicky...actually Victorine. She lived with her mom and brothers in the Excelsior district which I called the Alka Seltzer district. Vicky had a car, a lot of people didn't have vehicles since San Francisco is a relatively compact city with good public transportation. Her car ( which she called "Baby") was an old 1958/59 Plymouth Fury that started life as a police or Highway Patrol cruiser. It was super-powered with a 440 V8 and twin 4 barrel carbuertors. Vicky was very short, only 4 ft something. Even with the seat all the way forward and my knees up against the dash she could barely reach the pedals and pretty much operated them with the tips of her shoes. At a stop light she'd stretch to keep her toe on the brake and when the light turned green she'd stretch and stomp down on the accelerator with the tip of her right foot and woosh...Baby took off like a rocket to Venus. I only rode with her a few times but the relatively short drive from Market Street to her house was like a death ride...remember this was "hilly"San Francisco. I was very young then but I think Baby gave me my first gray hairs.

If my stories are boring everyone please don't hestitate to tell me. At least they're true.

 

[hydralique]

That Plymouth probably had a 361, or possibly an early 383; the 440 wasn't introduced until '66.  If the car was a '59 then it could have had the 413 which wasn't available in '58. All of these engines are variations on the Chrysler "B" block which replaced earlier Chrysler big V8s such as the 331/354/392 hemi head engines of the '50s.

 

[rp2813]

Joe,

I love your stories!

 

[twintubdexter]

sorry, it was a big V8 and that's all I remember...I'm not much of an authority on anything except gaining weight

 

[twintubdexter]

and at the same time...

I had a 1970 Chevelle SS 396 with a Tonawanda Plant built 402 V8 (that's correct) with cowl induction and all I remember is that Baby's engine looked much bigger, even with that living-room sized engine compartment. Just like on first dates, I guess looks can be deceiving.

 

[hydralique]

When Chevy enlarged their big-block V8s for 1970, the 396 became a 402 as noted, and the 427 became the 454. The 396 was quite famous as a performance engine after its introduction in mid '65, the 427 had to wait for the '66 models. At the time GM had a rule forbidding more than a 400 cubic inch engine in a mid-sized car, so the Chevelle wasn't available with the 427, making a 396 Chevelle the best performing Chevy sedan available as it was smaller and lighter than a 427 Impala. Eventually the 396 could even be ordered in Camaros and Novas (!), but that was quite rare so the typical Chevy muscle car was the 396 Chevelle. When the under 400 cubic inch rule was dropped by GM 454 Chevelles could be ordered, but the 396 name was so famous that they kept it as a marketing name for cars with the 402 and never had any fender badges that said "402" - they all were 396 badges.

 

Although the big block Chevys are physically large and heavy, they really weren't bad compared to many other engines of similar capacity. They were also strong and breathed pretty well, making them some of the best performance engines of the era.