Dan Hiebert

Welcome to the Forum. You've probably already figured out this is a good place to get help, information, opinions, etc. Nice to see another member in Maine, and in the County, too!

The top photo shows there is no retaining ring on the shaft to hold the handle onto the housing. To me that means the handle part may not be original. If a previous owner thought that maybe the trunk handles or shafts between Plymouth and Dodge were interchangeable, then the shaft is indeed too short. Personally discovered this myself many years ago. So, what you're missing may be the correct handle, or at least the correct length shaft.

A good auto upholstery shop should be able to make what you are looking for. When I did our D24 (30 years ago) there were no pre-made kits, so I took my old seat covers to a shop, and they made replacements in a material and color of my choosing to the original pattern. If I had wanted, they would have made them in the original taupe color, and a material close to original. They didn't have any issues with me installing them myself. I've heard of shops that won't make an interior for your car unless they install it, too. They still got their money for the labor and materials to make the "kit", but didn't have to shoehorn me into their busy schedule.

The parts stores here all have one of those from whatever brand is their store's go-to. If they can't find the belt for your car in the system, they measure it with the fan belt yard stick, and besides the measurement, it'll give them the part number. I'm slightly surprised, tho, by just how many car makes these shops have listed in their computers, regardless of whether or not they have any parts for it. I'll get a glazed expression from the (usually younger) counter person when I tell them I have a Terraplane, but they'll get a kick out of finding it in their system...but with only generic stuff available for it that works with all cars, like oil, cleaning supplies, etc.

I put the old cars away for the winter Sunday, got our first snow yesterday. For once in a long time, I don't have any major issues in need of attention with either the good ol' D24, the Terraplane, or the Bug, so I'm in the same boat. I want to do some TLC things on the old cars while they're laid up. Other than some furniture refinishing and cuckoo clock rebuilding, I should have some time this winter. What I have planned right now for the D24 is to rebuild the passenger side door card, rebuild the carburetor, replace the vinyl windlace with cloth, maybe install the Sisson choke after 30 years, maybe replace the windshields, and a big maybe is repair the bent front passenger side frame horn. We have long winters here, if I don't have a major old car project I'll remove various parts or components to inspect, clean, and paint them for preservation. Once in a while I'll find things that need fixing that I wasn't aware of. Stuff I don't undertake during the driving season if it'll take the cars off the road.

I'm on the fence about catalogs vs. computers, and the counter folks that use either one. Around here, even the "old guys" that know a thing or two ultimately end up being good at knowing how to find what they know you want...on the computer. The store won't allow them to use anything but their proprietary computer program. The "kids" that don't know cars can find what you need on the computer, but you have to know what it is first. Some are merely adept at searching eclectic stuff, so car parts are just another search item. Some are good at using that particular store's system. Etcetera, etcetera. The NAPA guys often invite me into the warehouse to find what I want, then they just scan it into the computer after I find it, which works well, come to think of it. What I don't like is when you search a parts store on-line, it says they have the part in stock, or can get it, but when you go to the store, their own computer sez they don't have the part in stock, and/or they can't even get it. My pea-brain tells me they should be using the same computer inventory as the on-line site. My business-brain tells me that's how they get you in their store, you're there, so you may as well get what they really have in stock. As I wrote before, there are no mom-and-pop auto parts stores here. But the ones in the region I know of still use a point-of-sale computer program for their parts. They may have paper catalogs, but those are to get a part number to put into the computer.

That is a good looking car! At least it doesn't look like you have too much to do, but you've already figured out you've found the right place.

That one particular plug you're referencing is more prone to corrosion that the others, there is a different gap between the cylinder walls there, that leads to more crud getting in and accumulating against it - it also happens to be the "easiest" one to replace. I had to replace that one in our D24 about 10 years ago. I echo previous comments, it won't hurt getting the car running. You should fix it as soon as you can, though. Once they start seeping, they only get worse, especially if the car is sitting.

Ditto. Wouldn't hurt to check your clutch pedal free play, but every time I've encountered that with my manual transmission autos, it has been the throw-out bearing.

I always went to Pep Boys when we lived in Brownsville and Horizon City, Texas. Kind of a big box store, but they were closest to our house, and always had what I needed in stock, even for the older vehicles. Once an AutoZone was opened a couple blocks from where we lived in Horizon City, that became my go to for general stuff, but Pep Boys still always had a better stock of older parts. When we lived in Carlsbad, New Mexico, it was NAPA or Carquest, depending on what I needed. The Carquest folks were actual "car people" who could find what I needed pretty quick, so I went there more often. NAPA catered to the oil fields and potash mines, so it was sometimes a chore to get car parts from them. An AutoZone was opened in town a few years before we left that was more convenient to get to, albeit not "closer" and that became the go to for general auto stuff and parts for the newer vehicles. Port Huron, Michigan was Carquest - closest to the house. Wheatfield, New York was AutoZone - closest to the house, both were for newer car parts and general supplies. Once in MI and NY we had discovered the internet and shopping online for old car stuff, but Mac's Auto Parts (vintage Ford) was only 12 miles from the house in NY and we were doing most of our old car work on our daughters Falcon, so we cruised over there on a regular basis. They pretended to get their undies in a twist when we'd drive up in the good ol' D24. Excellent counter folks, but once Ecklers bought them out, the good counter people got fed up and left. Here in Maine, it comes down to convenience and personalities for me. We've got a NAPA, an O'Reilly, and an Advanced Auto for franchise stores, there are no mom-and-pop auto parts stores. Houlton is a small town, so none of the stores are "too far", but if I need something now, it's NAPA (except for Saturday afternoon or Sunday) because it's closest. Has always had good knowledgeable counter people, too. I quit going to O'Reilly for a year or so because I couldn't get the time of day from the counter people, who have since been replaced, so I'm back to there on occasion. If I want to spend an hour chatting about cars when I'm just looking for a lug nut, I'll go to Advanced. Super knowledgeable counter folks that are eager to share what they know. There's an AutoZone in Presque Isle, 50 miles distant, that I've been to twice only because I knew they'd have something I needed, and I happened to be in town for something else. I use Rock Auto fairly often if I don't need the part right away, and sometimes they'll have a brand I prefer that the stores in town don't carry.

That's awesome. When I went to the POC meet in Port Huron, MI a while back, the owners of a pristine '35 Plymouth rumble seat coupe insisted that our granddaughter, 5 at the time, sit in the rumble seat for a picture. The little ones see how much some people dote on their cars, yet still share the experience with others. It not only gets them interested but helps teach them respect for others and their property.

Yes, lip goes up. It is significantly easier to deal with gluing the gasket down when the vent is removed. Taking the vent out is not hard, you just need to be a bit flexible...not as in open-minded, but contortionist. Removing the vent will also give you the opportunity to see just how it works (the kind of thing I find helpful) and adjust it for proper fit when you put it back on.

Northern end of the Shenandoa Valley is becoming a suburb of D.C.

You can probably get old car work in Vermont, but there is already a plethora of classic car shops there for the size of the state. It is a model liberal state, so taxes are high and getting higher with no end in sight, and the cost of heating is going through the roof with no regard for alternatives. Same as here in Maine. A lot of my former colleagues retired to Tennessee, we tend to be a cynical and "frugal" lot, so there must be a worthy draw there.

Removed comment, didn't read previous responses thoroughly.

I'm thinking that Big A oil filter may be your best indicator if DMV doesn't shed any light, but there's no telling how long that particular PO ran the car after that particular filter was installed. Some States purge their DMV systems of inactive vehicles after so many years, so if NH can run the number and comes up with nothing, whatever that cut-off time is could be a minimum. Gauging age by rust in our region amounts to a WAG. I've found cars and machinery that has sat unused for decades that looks like it was abandoned only a few years ago, and I've also found stuff that was put out to pasture a few years ago that looks like it has been there for decades. If it was stored inside, just how and where it was stored will affect how much it rusts, too. From what I'm seeing, your car could very well have sat for 30 years, but I'm guessing about 20 due to that oil filter.

You could run the serial number by your local DMV office, they can usually at least tell you when it was last registered. I don't know if NH would help you with something like that - some States will, some won't.

They are. It is best to give them a phone call if you're in a time crunch. I've ordered a few things from them recently, and that online thing never did work out.

Same as Los_Control here, I use the same gas can that I use for my outdoor equipment. Not the metal 5 gallon Jerry can, but the 5 gallon plastic can because it is cube shaped and more stable sitting on the cowl, fender, bumper, etc. I would think how much thought (read: "safety") you put into it would depend on how you intend to use it. I've only done the get-it-running thing, never drove with a can strapped to the vehicle. Always uber temporary (and minimal cost) to see if I need to work on something in the engine compartment while I ensure I have a clean fuel tank to engine set-up. Main thing I worry about is venting so I don't get the vacuum in the can as Sniper mentions. Keep it away from any exhaust or other potential source of ignition, remember it's the fumes that burn, not the gasoline itself. What they don't show in those "will it run" videos are the times they burn a car to the ground from careless handling of the field expedient fuel system.

Ok, so. DOT3 resistant paint...not why DOT3 is bad for paint. I used POR-15 semi-gloss black paint on my wheel cylinders and master cylinder when I rebuilt the brake system about 15 years ago, give or take a few. No issues to date with the brake fluid doing bad things to the paint.

Thanks, everyone, for the responses! You'uns are validating my suspicions as to what to look into, mainly the driveshaft and its components. Especially in light of my self admitted lack of regular maintenance on it. I know when I had the driveline apart many years ago that I did mark everything so I could put it back the same way it came apart. I could tell that a PO had the driveline apart at one time, but there was nothing marking the component alignments. I'll take the opportunity to look at the rear end, too.

Our D24 gets a vibration increase as the speed increases or decreases through 30 mph. Since the (original) speedo shows 5 mph increments I can only nail it down to always through 30, beginning on the way up between 25 and 30, and on the way down between 35 and 30. Does not matter whether I am in 2nd or 3rd. I do not think it is the engine and drive train up to the clutch, since I can rev it in neutral from idle up to about 3K with no excess vibration. I initially wrote it off to a bent rim that was on the car forever, but I replaced that a couple years ago and the car still does it. It's a whole car shaking vibration, noticeable, but not severe. If I'm not in that vicinity of 30mph the car runs like a sewing machine, noisy but smooth. It has done this as long as I can remember. I put a new clutch in it about 30 years ago, that was the last time I had any part of the drive train apart, and I have absolutely no recollection if it did this before then. I have never fiddled with the ball-and-trunnion joints. I have suspicions but want to get you'un's thoughts.

I would echo Greg, there's no need to go so far as to remove the manifold, that's a lot more work than you need to do to resolve the issue, and most likely unnecessary. And to confirm another response, I've had two newer vehicles with the same symptoms as yours, with different causes, one was restricted fuel flow due to the pick up filter in the tank being clogged, the other was due to the points not being correct due to a loose clamp screw on the points base (points too close). So it could still be either of those issues - fuel or fire. Not to be mean, but who did the tune up on your car? You mention that it was done, but not that you did it. So checking those settings may still be in order. I'm having visions of modern techs not being familiar with 70-ish year old cars that don't have computer terminals...

Incorrect toe adjustment generally affects both wheels...but. If the toe was adjusted without first ensuring the steering was centered, an incorrect toe adjustment can affect wear on just one side. If the tire is wearing too much on the inside, and there is feathering of the tread away from the worn spot, it is a toe in/out issue. One of the symptoms is the car darting along the road for no particular reason, which can be difficult to diagnose if you have bias ply tires, since they tend to follow irregularities in the road anyway. It's not a difficult adjustment to make, it helps to have the specific gauges for the measuring, but those aren't mandatory if you're ok with field expedient equipment and have patience.

I was taught to use aluminum spray paint on metal gaskets, too, before there was any kind of spray on gasket available. I think it's because they (at least used to) use actual aluminum in the paint. Now Permatex makes a high temperature copper spray gasket that I've used on a few engines with no issues at all.