Posted by Nismo

I do appreciate that both cars have cassette holders.

I remember taking the plastic trim off the dash that surrounded the instrument cluster on Dodges, every single one of those stupid fucking spring clips would fall off or fold itself over on install, but they had screws anyhow so you didn't really need them.

That just caused a total flashback.

Posted by bandi I do appreciate that both cars have cassette holders. I remember taking the plastic trim off the dash that surrounded the instrument cluster on Dodges, every single one of those stupid fucking spring clips would fall off or fold itself over on install, but they had screws anyhow so you didn't really need them. That just caused a total flashback.

my Daytona had that when I had to replace the bulbs in the cluster. What a fucking douche to get that bezel back on.

the point of what I was getting at was that the Chryslers were odd and joyfully odd at that. What was good, though, was that you could make those cars go like hell for cheap.

See I love the "rounded corner interiors" that Chrylser had in that era. Such great memories of road trips as a child in those vehicles...

reminds me of my aunts dodge shadow, what a nightmare to change a bulb in the dash, i got a giggle that the stock radio (which she didnt have she had the premium) used a center dash speaker, so all shadows had the speaker bracket and the wiring was there too!

My '86 Caravan (which my dad bought new) was a BASE BASE model with a carbed 2.2, no headrests on the seats, a single speaker AM radio... with digital tuner!

It towed a utility trailer most of its life (and even the odd classic Beetle), and when we got rid of it in 2001, it had 485,000 km on the clock.

Repairs were limited to a rad, 2 alternators, a few exhaust bits and a lot of brake jobs and tires.

The best part? It's still going today, and makes a trip to Florida twice a year.

(The current owners figure the odometer has gone around 3 more times since 2001)

One very odd thing about that van- it would start with the deadest of batteries. You could find some leaky POS from a scrap pile, drop it in, the starter would click a few times, and then go "mrrrrruh!" and that one revolution would start the engine every time.

It was nicknamed the egg beater because of the wretched valve rattle it had from day one.

Posted by bandi My '86 Caravan (which my dad bought new) was a BASE BASE model with a carbed 2.2, no headrests on the seats, a single speaker AM radio... with digital tuner! It towed a utility trailer most of its life (and even the odd classic Beetle), and when we got rid of it in 2001, it had 485,000 km on the clock. Repairs were limited to a rad, 2 alternators, a few exhaust bits and a lot of brake jobs and tires. The best part? It's still going today, and makes a trip to Florida twice a year. (The current owners figure the odometer has gone around 3 more times since 2001) One very odd thing about that van- it would start with the deadest of batteries. You could find some leaky POS from a scrap pile, drop it in, the starter would click a few times, and then go "mrrrrruh!" and that one revolution would start the engine every time. It was nicknamed the egg beater because of the wretched valve rattle it had from day one.

See, my parents had the 2.2 with TBI on it on their '89 so it had 96 HP. We had the SE so we had a tape deck with AM/FM, AC, Cruise Control, etc.

We racked up I think 200,000 miles (321,688 km) on or abouts on on ours before my mother wanted a sedan. My father ended up parting out the van and then I think after someone took the motor and transmission, he sold the entire body and axles to just one guy.

I remember the brakes being replaced about 3 times, the tires about the same, and we had to do CV joints once after my mother had an incident with something, and oh, we had an ignition issue that we traced back to just a bad B+ terminal wire.

my first Mopar wasn't even all Mopar... it was an unholy abortion of Volkswagen 1.7L engine, Peugeot transaxle and Citroen drive axles wrapped in a Plymouth Horizon body, capped with a Dodge Omni hatchback.

the Dayton was all Daytona and kept eating power modules. I would've kept that car if I could've gotten the parts to fix what was wrong.

the 600... oh the 600... it was comfy, gutless but comfy. It would literally go through a quart or two of oil in two days. And forget trying to blow it up... i drove it 45 miles at 65mph with the OIL light a'glowin!

You'll never guess what I saw at the mall yesterday... and it's the first one I've seen in the past decade I think!

Posted by bandi You'll never guess what I saw at the mall yesterday... and it's the first one I've seen in the past decade I think! http://i104.photob...shots/366eb4b4.jpg

was it a 400, 600 or Caravelle?

Caravelle

Everyday on my way to work I pass an early 80's K car, Im guessing its an 82 or 83 lebaron coupe, with the quad headlights. Anyways thing looks like it jsut rolled off the showroom floor with a dirty french looking mullet bastard driving it.

and this one is awesome

Posted by Nismo Everyday on my way to work I pass an early 80's K car, Im guessing its an 82 or 83 lebaron coupe, with the quad headlights. Anyways thing looks like it jsut rolled off the showroom floor with a dirty french looking mullet bastard driving it. and this one is awesome http://i38.photobu...2_bb646ab306_z.jpg

how'd they get camber with a solid beam axle in the back?

Posted by Samurai how'd they get camber with a solid beam axle in the back?

You just use alignment shims on the spindles. Although it looks excessive on that car, so they probably did pie cuts in the rear axle.

its also running MK1 coil overs

Posted by Samurai my first Mopar wasn't even all Mopar... it was an unholy abortion of Volkswagen 1.7L engine, Peugeot transaxle and Citroen drive axles wrapped in a Plymouth Horizon body, capped with a Dodge Omni hatchback. the Dayton was all Daytona and kept eating power modules. I would've kept that car if I could've gotten the parts to fix what was wrong. the 600... oh the 600... it was comfy, gutless but comfy. It would literally go through a quart or two of oil in two days. And forget trying to blow it up... i drove it 45 miles at 65mph with the OIL light a'glowin!

ah the 600s lol. My grandma bought one brand new in 1986, it would not die no matter how many times she drove it into her garage wall. I have fond memories in that car. She finally got rid of it about a year ago for a new chrysler, Im sad to see it has finally met its maker. That thing sounded like a wookie but just kept on going, my grandfather kept it as sort of a joke trying to see when it would finally kick the bucket.

I had a 600 Turbo for a field car... it did really awesome FWD burnouts for a beige 4 door!

Ya know, 80's Chryslers catch shit for what they are, but they HAD to be some of the funnest cars out there for the cash. And I cannot think of anyone who's childhood doesn't include at least one.

They were certainly indestructible to a point.

Aside from the mitsu 2.6, and all of their automatics.

Oh, and the rust.

Posted by jeepdave And I cannot think of anyone who's childhood doesn't include at least one.

Here's my family's car history:

1990 Volvo 740 GLE wagon: Sold for $250 in 2008 due to severe engine trouble.
1991 Mazda 626: Donated to Goodwill around 2002.
1998 Toyota Avalon: Still runs and drives, but has battery issues.
1998 Toyota Sienna: Donated to Goodwill this past Friday after discovering that the brakes were gone and there was a fluid leak.
2009 Ford Fusion: Still runs and drives.
2011 Toyota Matrix: Still runs and drives; purchase a month ago.


No Mopar shit has been in my family, and I'd prefer to keep it that way.