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Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

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  • Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

    Janet got her Dart in 1980, when she was in college. I met her about 6 months later. It was a nice car, original paint, no dents, beautiful Y1 Top Banana yellow. The seats and dash had been recovered in really ugly brown vinyl. The Tucson sun really tears up the upholstery. The 225 ran OK, but was using oil. The car had around 125k miles on it. The trans was the non-synchro low 3 on the tree, of course it would hang up every now and then, but she knew how to get it unstuck when that happened. She also knew not to drive fast on flooded streets, because the distributor got wet easily. I overhauled the engine (for her father), and she drove the car with the slant six for about 5 years.

    In 1985 we bought a 360 at the junkyard, also a small block K member, 8-3/4" rear, 727, etc. We put the engine in and she drove it for a year or two, then it started knocking...we learned a neat lesson about buying "rebuilt" parts from PAW, sometimes they don't check the connecting rods for being straight, one of them was bent. We did another quick overhaul with a different rod, and she drove it for a few more years. Our son Steve came home from the hospital in the Dart in 1988.

    By the early 90s the paint was pretty bad, it had a few dings in it, and the interior was rough again. I had some buddies in town who did paint and upholstery work, and I had found a 340 block at the junkyard I used to work at, and had collected a few core LA engines. I had a friend re paint the car, another friend redid the seats and carpet, and I build a "340" which has a 340 block, intake, and exhaust manifolds, but a 318 crank and rods, and early 360 heads. We put in the later low compression pistons and a real mild cam. She drove it regularly to work like this from about 1992 to 1998, when she bought a new Chevy truck. From then on the Dart just got occasional use, and we had it de-registered and uninsured a few times for a year or two. It sat outside a lot of the time, but did move inside when we finally built the second garage 5 years ago (it holds 6 cars, the old one only holds 4). She hasn't driven the dart for almost two years. Since she got her Prowler in 2004, she's been driving late models most of the time. Ugh.

    Steve found a job, he's going to be moving to Phoenix. We decided to give him the 70 Camaro (actually we decided that when we bought it 6 years ago), and also the 87 Suburban. So, he'll get to pay for insurance for them, and we get to put some other cars on our insurance instead. We've had 7 insured and a few more cars just sitting around for the past few years, including the Dart.

    I fired it up today after swapping in a working battery and adding some fresh gas. It still runs good and sounds like it always has. The driver seat back is getting really bad, so I guess interior work is first on the list. The paint is still ok, although it has a few dings in it, and some rust in the quarter where we accidentally left a gallon of milk in the car when taking the groceries out years ago. I found a dealership plate at an antique store in Bisbee, from the dealership that the car was bought from originally. The car has 328,995 miles on it right now.








    My fabulous web page

    "If it don't go, chrome it!" --Stroker McGurk

  • #2
    Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

    Sweet car.
    The dealerplate is a nice touch.
    www.BigBlockMopar.com

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    • #3
      Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

      No pics for me - and I'd love to see it. I love me some MOPARs of any vintage.

      Dan

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      • #4
        Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

        That car is BADASS.......Very Nice.

        Seth
        200 mph or bust.......

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        • #5
          Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

          That car just needs some interior work and it's golden.
          Escaped on a technicality.

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          • #6
            Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

            Nice Dart. Have you ever considered adding A/C being that you are in Arizona? It amazing how back when you first upgraded it you could find parts like those at any wrecker's. What are your plans for it now?
            -dulcich

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            • #7
              Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

              heh...I added AC in 1991 right about the time our twins were born, got an add on system for free, for the labor of taking it out of an old lady's Valiant. I removed it from the Dart a couple years ago, it has trouble getting power to it from the crappy mopar fuse block, and some other issues. But it never really gets hot here in Sierra Vista, maybe it hits 100 once or twice in June when it's still dry out, so we can get by without it. And she has a couple late models now with all the creature comforts.

              I guess we'll just try to fix up the interior for now, and she can drive it around some more. I can't seem to get too excited about doing a whole bunch of work on the car at once, since it's just an old Dart. Even though I know they're starting to be worth a little bit these days.

              for example: I've had a factory disk brake setup (small pattern) sitting in the shed since about 1997....too much trouble to install it....and the funky old drums are still almost in spec.

              My fabulous web page

              "If it don't go, chrome it!" --Stroker McGurk

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              • #8
                Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

                way cool that you've hung on to that car all this time

                and I learned something new, milk to a Mopar is like garlic to a vampire.... good to know :D
                Doing it all wrong since 1966

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                • #9
                  Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

                  Well if you really get bored about working on it I would be willing to step up to the plate and take it of your hands for a little bit so you can find a suitable modern and trouble free daily for Janet again... :P
                  www.BigBlockMopar.com

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                  • #10
                    Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

                    I know we've been through this a few times, but someone tell me again why insurance companies cannot just insure drivers instead of their vehicles? Anyhow, a nice old car with lots of family history, and from an era when car companies had some imagination when it came to naming their products.
                    Michael from Hampton Roads

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                    • #11
                      Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

                      Neat car and story,its great how you can keep stuff like that around outside for years
                      and it still be usable after that time.

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                      • #12
                        Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

                        Dart Swingers are cool

                        All kinds of possibilities here
                        Thom

                        "The object is to keep your balls on the table and knock everybody else's off..."

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                        • #13
                          Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

                          Originally posted by squirrel

                          I can't seem to get too excited about doing a whole bunch of work on the car at once, since it's just an old Dart.


                          SOME people would give their eye teeth for a car like that to do a "whole bunch" of work on....you're killing me....

                          I guess when you drive a blown bb 55 Chevy everyday all else becomes insignificant... ;D

                          If you can leave two black stripes from the exit of one corner to the braking zone of the next, you have enough horsepower. - Mark Donohue

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                          • #14
                            Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

                            Great story for a great car. Reminds me of a guy I worked with back in the late 70's with a 68 340 Dart. He had out run the local cops in it one night : Sooo what are your plans for it?
                            Tom
                            Overdrive is overrated


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                            • #15
                              Re: Janet's 70 Dart Swinger

                              Damn nice car Jim. I wish my junk looked and ran HALF that nice.
                              Hauling ass & sucking gas are the best uses for a truck.

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