i am buying a 1972 dodge charger and it needs a lot of work. the body is in damn good shape with the only rust spots is the trunk but she needs an entire interior except for the seats and brackets and the floor. the motor is in good shape as well. it is the stock 318 with an 800cfm carburetor. the drivetrain only needs the yoke replaced which i already have. im not sure what i want to do with the car. i know i want to keep it stock looking and the motor i want buttloads of power and torque so i dont know if i want to get a crate motor and go from there or stroke the stock one or supercharge it. or both supercharge and stroke it. i also dont know if i want to do a tranny conversion. its got an automatic right now and im not sure if i want to turn it into a 4 speed manual. any inputs from anyone who has restored a car would be more than welcome. also if there is anyone near auburn and would like to check the car out or help me restore it would be awesome. im so excited about it all. this is my first car that i am actually going to work on.

 

bump

 

i guess you should first make a decision about keeping it all original, mostly original, or some original. then you would need to make a decision about what you want the car to do-do you want it to be a hotrod for the carshows and late night cruises?? or do you want to be able to drive the car on long trips and not have to worry about where the next gas station is and what is the highest octane they have?? once you decide on some of the same questions i am going through with my 71 el camino/hotrod, then you will make your journey to the parts stores many times.....

it is easier i would think to make it into a hotrod type of car and leave nothing untouched. if you wanted a bigger engine and such, then the car loses value if it is not the original piece. some of the "gurues" will tell you to make it original and it makes you money, some of the hotrodders will tell you the oposite. either you go ALL original(inlcudes time correct parts-i.e. bolts and markings), or you go hot rod(you can pick and chose what you want to do-i.e. 4spd conversion, bigger engine, etc.)

good luck with your resto. heres to many a night in the garage and arguing with the wife about the money spent.....cheers.

 

I actually just sold my 70 Challenger....I have had dusters, darts. Worked on all of them. Its fun, just don't have time to mess with that car anymore and work on my evo. Honestly though, the 72 charger isn't worth "alot" restored back to original. Bad year (collectively speaking) and emisions killed the motors and 318 cars are not that sought after. If i were you i would def. do the big block path. With the weight of that car you will need it. Again, i would build it exactly how YOU want it though. But if it was a matching number 68-70 charger....that would be a dff. story. Good luck

 

thanks for all the feedback. i think i am going to keep it original looking. i dont really care if it appreciates in value because i plan on keeping it for a long long time.

lets see some of your restoration projects that you have going or finished or you have worked on. ill be putting up pictures of the charger here soon.

 

I had one that me and my dad built. It would do the 1/4 in 9 seconds flat. I never drove it though. It scared the crap out of me.

 

well put....build it how YOU want it to be...

 

ROFLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

 

Personlly I would make the body nice then work on the inteior. And now the power department. I have always thought fuel injection would be the way to go on an old muscle car so thats where my vote goes. Maybe find a 5.7 Hemi and build it up with a supercharger or twin turbos. I would definatly get a 4 speed in there, and dont forget line lock for those smokey burnouts.

 

here are pictures of my lucy.

 

also for those of you that have restored a car, where did you get your parts? online? swaps? if you live in atlanta or close to auburn and happen to hear about a swap please contact me.

 

swap meets...the mother of all swap meets "the mopar nationals", for new parts get a year one catalog.

 

is it just me, or does a 800cfm carb seem a little excesive for a stock 318

 

Yeah I agree Bling Bling. 800cfm is a bit much. You must remember that cylinder head technology has come a long way. two valves and pushrods compared to the 4 or 5 valve heads, dohc, and much more efficient cam profiles of today.
My dad is an old dodge guy, I'll ask him how his 69 duster was setup. He ran either a 360 with 318 heads or vice versa. Find some old schoolers but I think you have too much carb my friend.
Maybe with a good valve job, a good solid or roller style cam and 12.1 you could use all those cfm's but for the time being I would look for a nice 650 and but the 800 away for a while.
My $.02.