Vote: Mopar or Chevy project

[patmckinneyracing]

Well here I am trying to decide on which project to put my money towards. I can only really do one because I'm in college and what not. So here are the two and some info:

1980 Malibu:
So this one is pretty much done in a way and is completely custom. It was completely original and is my first car that I got when I was 14 (19 now). The hold up is that I snapped the driveshaft and it did a number on my floors which means I have to tear up my carpet to do patch work and welding. I have a feeling the TH350 transmission is done. I tried starting it the other day and it sounded like metal grinding metal and it would start so I have a feeling the torque converter and output shaft are done. At the same time, the motor has put up with a lot and is in need of a rebuild. The oil pressure dropped a few months back from 40psi to 20 and at idle barely gets 10psi. This happened after it hit 280* because the clutch on my fan went out even though it was supposed to be a straight clutch. So i figured the engine and trans need to come out and I'm going to do a rebuild on the engine as far as the cam and checking the oil pickup, which may be clogged, and a full gasket set. As for the trans, I've got one buddy who has a 700r4 core that needs a rebuild, a 4 speed b&m sport shifter, and the correct cut driveshaft that is pretty much new for 150$. This car definately needs the 4th gear being that I'm running 3.73 gears. There is other things that need to be done as far as suspension. Simply cutting a coil out of moog springs has left my lower control arms pointing upward and me having ot drive real slow over speed bumps. So drop spindles are in order as well.

1971 Plymouth Roadrunner:
The next project that I picked up a year ago, and is my second car to own, is an all original suvivor car with 100,017 miles. It was a California car brought here to texas by the second owner. The car was liened in 1977 after repairs were done to the rear passenger quarter panel. Turns out these repairs were globs of bondo so the car is getting a replacement quarter panel. Other than that the car is rust free. It has the origional exhaust, that can be reused, numbers matching 383 big block backed by a 4 speed pistol grip and 3.23 sure grip posi. The original color was curious yellow and it had magnum rims. I'm sure the shop that had the car for a while probably took them off and put the rims on it has now. Some of the other interesting options it has is air condition, manual HD drum brakes, and power steering.
Another cool little deal is the dictaphone mounted on the front console that goes with the factory AM/FM radio. For those who don't know what this is, it is a device that is plugged into the factory radio and is basically a type of recording device. It came with a microphone from the factory and was meant for doctors and lawyers. But not only does it record, it also plays cassettes through the radio. I'm sure this was meant to just play back what was recorded on the tape since music on cassettes had yet to be produced.
The plan is to rebuild most of the factory components ie alternator, wiper motor, etc. The only change I'll be doing to the engine is an aluminum intake (factory ones weigh a ton on mopar), a hemi replacement cam, and possibly headers to release the extra torque. These simple and redo-able mods bring the factory rating of 330hp and 400lb to 450hp and 500lb. Great thing about mopar. Also have an additional 4 speed the previous owner threw into the deal. Overall goal is a factory resto with minor bolt ons.

This is what the roadrunner will mainly look like when it is finished. It came with the same vinyl top and strobe stripe and I will put the spoilers on as well as a so called "dealer option".

 

[83cutlassowner]

i guess if it was me and i had the money i would finish the malibu so it can actually be used / driveable instead of sitting un used. Theres no reason to start work on the roadrunner when its going to take way more time and money to finish then the malibu, ofcourse that depends on what you want to do to the malibu motor wise, but honestly the malibu wont take near as much time or money to be use able again.

 

[79loserbluebu]

I agree that Mopar needs alot more then a couple of weekends to be done. At least you can have the Malibu to take out and have fun with or even use it to run parts. There's nothing cooler than going to the store and picking up something for your 70's muscle car with your 80's grocery getter turned hot rod.

 

[marcar1993]

Does the roadrunner have rust? If so, take care of that first. It won't sleep and will only get worse. If not/when you fix that, get to work on the malibu. It needs mechanical work, which at least for me, is the easier thing to do. Also, costs me less because I can do mechanical work, whereas some bodywork needs to be farmed out. If you are the same, then go for the malibu first.
The road runner runs and drives right? That's one thing the malibu doesn't do, bring them both to moveable/useable levels first.
Btw, nice cars. Love em both!
From a fellow g-body gm/b body mopar owner 😉

 

[patmckinneyracing]

My parts getter is a 1996 Dodge Dakota. Paid 2500 for it and just turned 51k miles. The roadrunner does run, but I began disassembly of the engine. I was not sure if the clutch in the 4 speed was good enough to drive, brakes weren't working well, and one of my dads buddies thinks I have a possible burnt valve. The roadrunner is actually cleaner and more rust free than my dodge dakota just to give you an idea. There is absolutely no rust on the car.

 

[Blake442]

The only change I'll be doing to the engine is an aluminum intake (factory ones weigh a ton on mopar), a hemi replacement cam, and possibly headers to release the extra torque. These simple and redo-able mods bring the factory rating of 330hp and 400lb to 450hp and 500lb. Great thing about mopar.

If you think that a simple swap of cam, intake and headers will yield 450hp out of a 383, I wanna try whatever you're smokin'... :lol:
Maybe if you did that, plus a 100 shot of nitrous you'd hit 450.

Simply cutting a coil out of moog springs has left my lower control arms pointing upward and me having ot drive real slow over speed bumps. So drop spindles are in order as well.

That's why most people don't recommend cutting springs, and drop spindles alone won't cure this, you'll need to replace your springs to correct the problem.

Fix your Malibu before you dig into the Roadrunner.

 

[patmckinneyracing]

It is proven in multiple magazines that a 383 chrysler will produce that much power with a cam, intake, and headers. Comp cams is saying the same thing. They already gave me the specs to the cam I'll need.

 

[81 9C1]

OOOHHH,
A Curious Yellow 4 sp with A/C Road Runner???

Sorta like this one.

Wow that brings back memories. Extremely rare combo. Have you tried the B-Body Forum??

http://www.forbbodiesonly.com/

 

[Blake442]

It is proven in multiple magazines that a 383 chrysler will produce that much power with a cam, intake, and headers. Comp cams is saying the same thing. They already gave me the specs to the cam I'll need.

A good friend of mine raced one for years, I know what they're capable of. Prepare to be disappointed.

 

[patmckinneyracing]

OOOHHH,
A Curious Yellow 4 sp with A/C Road Runner???

Sorta like this one.

Image

Wow that brings back memories. Extremely rare combo. Have you tried the B-Body Forum??

http://www.forbbodiesonly.com/

That's not a roadrunner, that is a GTX. I can see the badge right behind the passenger door and on the grill and the stripes going from the callouts to the fender well are dead giveaway. Just to give you a heads up too, that paint is called "Lemon Twist". Curious yellow has a greenish tinge to it or maybe it is curious yellow in the photo and the light is dim. Those cars came with 440's, AC, and 4 speeds. Sure they're more rare but they came with more options than what the roadrunners were supposed to come with.

As far as the other forum, been there already. I like this one better, been here longer, and figured the malibu is a g body. I know if I go to a mopar forum, they're gonna say "THE ROADRUNNER!". I know on this forum, there is a mixture of opinions and there are a lot of guys on this forum that like both g bodies and b body mopars.

Blake if you don't believe me, then call comp cams and you can also give my buddy a call who's been building race motors for mopar since the 60's and 70's. He says otherwise. If I could convince him to give me one of his hemi's I would gladly do that instead of a factory resto.