desoto1939

There wer clamp on brackets that would mount or bolt onto the bumper brackets. i have one on my 39 Desoto. There are after market brackets. Rich Hartung desoto1939@aol.com

Use a plastic putty knife and as suggested above use a heat gun or possibly a hair dryer to heat up the old rubber and soften it then it should scrape off. Do not use a metal putty knife becasue it will scratch the paint. rich Hartung desoto1939@aol.com

Don: I have spoken to several vendors that do sell the halogen sealed beam 6v head lights and all have informed me that they recommend the use of the 6v positive ground alternator because of the hologen bulbs. Theyhave stated that with the draw of the other electrical items the alternator is better suited for the power to runthe headlight instead of the old generator. i know you might not agree but this is what I have been getting whne inquiring about the conversion to hologen bulbs. rich Hartung

You might have to go to an alternator instead of the generator with the halogens but the alt would need to 6v positive ground. They run around 150 -175 with the mounting bracket. rich hartung

I am assuming that you have 6 volt system still in your car. So you wil lneed to have a 6 volt halogen headlight bulb and not a 12 volt bulb. It will not matter if positive or negative for the headlight. Rich HArtung

the coil type hood springs are correct. There special miller factory tools to remove and install the spring. I have one of these tools for the 49 hoods. Rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com

The big qustion is are you looking to have the car look original for points judging or are you looking to have just a fuel filter to make sure you have clean gas going to the carb? If you have a driver then as Plymouth Adams suggested then go to a local parts stores and get a metal fuel filter and put this on the line to the carb. So more info is needed. There are AC glass bowl gas filter that look period correct and have a paper insert filter. Do a search on ebay and you will find them. Rich Hartung

Plyroadking: If I would go with the stock 1939 Mopar OD unit this unit bolts onto the back of the original 3 speed Trans therefor my original driveshaft would have to be shortened or would have to get a slip joint driveshaft made to accomodate the shortened distance from the back of the overdrive to the rear differential. That alone would be approx $400. I would not take my original 70+ drive shaft and cut it There is the possibiluty that if would be off balance and then you still have a 70+ old DS. With the factory OD for the 39 Mopars there are several selinoids that have to be used and ther run approx $100 and different linkages. So to keep my 39 Desoto looking original the cost outways the OD unit for me. i am comfortable driving at 50 MPH. I do not plan on doing 70 mph with my car or going to California from PA with the car. Just trying to let you know whats involved with a factory OD unit for my 39 Desoto. If you find an OD for $500 plus shipping plus rebuilding and the special other parts well over 1000+ dollars. Rich Hartung

One must consider the costs, not just the OD trans but also the new drive shaft that willhave to be made to use on the longer trans unit. Also the entire setup with acutating pull rods and the various selinoids that have to be acquired for some of the older cars. So you have the cost of buying the OD, Overhauling the OD, New DriveShaft, Various selinoids and switches and in my case for the 39 Desoto the pul rod to engage the OD unit and cables. Now there is also the posibility that since you can travel on faster roads then you are going to want disk braskes on all four wheels so now you have to convert the front brakes and different rear end. But then you might have to get another driveshaft made if you decided to do this rear end swap after you just did the OD system. So plan out what you want to do. Or just go slower and enjoy the time that you have with your old car. So you get to your destination 10-30 later than you would without the OD unit. Just my thoughts. rich HArtung

according to my fuel pump catalog the correct pump is an AC 9926 or the the AC 588. rich Hartung

take you cowl trim pice and go to a good auto supply pait store. Ask them for their sample plastic trim clips. Get one of the plastic clips to slide into the back of the trim and make sure that the other end has a plastic knob the size of the hole in the body you need to measure this before going. The metal clips rust out and this is why the trims piesces especially the cowl trim are missing. Also the steel rust and then leaves rust marks on the extrior paint. The plstic clip dos not mark the paint and is easier to install. I did this will all the clips on my 1939 Desoto. You just need to take some time to do a search stop using the old metal clips and use the new plastic clips also no one ever sees the clips once the trim is installed. rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com

My statement is to bring it back to original. You do not see these cars and it is a great touring car. But if he wants to go real modern it is his money to do with what ever he wants with the car he is the current owner. Rich Hartung

There are two hoses to the heater. One delivers water to the heater and the other returns the water to the radiator and water pump to circulate the water. That is why I use the two shutoff valves. Check withyou local NAP store and they might have the shutoff value or I might have an extra. Rich Hartung

Why not put a shutoff valve instead of the metal tube? This way you can controlthe flow of water to your heater. I have a shutoff valve at the wp and also at the back of the head on the engine block. I have done this so that if you ever have to do work on the heater you do not have to drain the radiator of fluid, just turn off the flow with the two shutoff valves and then you only have water in the two hoses to be concerned with and this is almost factory looking and no one really knows. Also when the metal tubes gets old it gets rusty and then it gets harder to remove from the bypass connector. The shutoff value has square bosses so you can get a wrench on them to remove and tighen them. Mush eachier job to maintain. rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com

yes this is the mopar part for the by-pass.

bingster: are you refering to the pictures that i had posted? The top one is the bent tube and the bottom one is the shut off type that canbe used. i prefer the shut off valve. I might have a couple of each. Rich Hartung

This is the main reason why we stress that you get a stated value on your antique car. egular car insurance will value it as a car with the depreciation factor and go against the Blue book for a value. with the stated value if the car is insured for 15K and it gets totaled then you get the 15K not the blue book value. Please beware the difference inthe coverage by the regular car insurance carrier versu an antique car/truck specialty carrier. This has been discussed many time at the annual AACA general meeting and lecture series every February in Philadelphia. Rich Hartung desoto1939@aol.com

My first question is do you have a service manual or motors manual on your car. The alignment would be covered in the service manual. I know onthe 1941 model there are special camber thin wrench that are used to adjust the camber. Rich Hartung desoto1939@aol.com

Mrtimer: I have my 39 Desoto insured with Grundy Worldwide and the car is valued at 20K I only pay $160 for the entire year and the car is insured at the stated value. If your car is insuded via the regular carrier then if you have anaccident then the carrier can claim depreciation on the car and if the car is totaled then they also deduct for depreciation. Contact one of the regular antique car Ins carriers and you might get a better price and coverage. Right now you then are paying 280 a year, remember that you car does not have to be a show car. My 39 desoto is a driver and Grundy does not have any mileage limitations, ecept that the car must be garaged. The $160 is for full coverage liability and comprehension and collision. Rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com Cell 484-431-8157

Mike: Yes it was very nice of travis to donate the tools. I have been collecting the various miller tools to support my 39 Desoto over the years. I do not have every tool but have acquired some of the more hard to find items. I am always looking for the miller tools and if anyone has duplicates or if they are getting out of the antique car hobby I am always interested in their collection. Someday in the future yes I will get ready to sell my 39 Desoto and then i will post on the forum what is up for sale but tht is still a long way in the future. Since i am 67 hope to still be driving the car for another 15 years. Rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com

Since you are going with Coker I would suggest that you call them directly and talk with them. Since they are the ones that know their tires and the new radial style they would be better at giving you the correct answer. Be safe and a call is alot safer than relying on input from the forum members. There also might be a specific tube that is used with radials vs the old style tube that was used with bis ply tires. Rich Hartung desoto1939@aol.com

As all of you know I collect the old Miller factory tools. A couple of weeks ago I received an email from Travis Hall and he informed me that he had several old miller tools that he would like to donate to my collection. These tools are to be used by the forum members that might need them to help with their cars or trucks. I would like to personally thank Travis for the donation and he has saved these tools from being put in the trash where no one would ever get to see or use them. Travis is a members of the P15D25 forum. Here is a list of the following millers Tools: C-745 rear axle outer seal tool for the 41 Mopar cars and up C3640 c3821 Driver and thimble worm shaft seal C3782 driver power steering pump shaft seal c3284 used on powerflite trans c355-7 part of the engine front end puller equpiment set Rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com

If the little mounting pin is missing then get a rodd that has the same thread pitch and then screw it into one of the mounting bolt holes then put the rim on so that one one on the rim uses the rod to hold the rim. My volvo uses bolts but there also is not mounting stud or pin. There is a tool that screws into the hole and the outer part of the rod is not threaded so the rim slides over the rod or temporary moutning pin to hold the rima dn tie in place until you can thread in several of the bolts. Rich Hartung desoto1939@aol.com

I currently have my 39 Desoto insured with Grundy World wide located here in Pa. NOTE: If you have a child or anyone relative under the age of 25 They can not drive your antique car or truck. I just checked with Grundy World Wide Antique car Insurance. Below is a comment taken directly from their webpage when you are initiating a request for a quote *There is no deductible in most states. To be eligible for coverage, your collector car must be used for pleasure driving only. You must have a separate regular-use vehicle. Your collector car must be kept inside of a locked garage. All drivers must be 25 years old. So beware that if you have a children that is under the age of 25 they can not drive your antique car and be covered with the blanket insurance policey that you have on your car. Suggest that everyone check their carrier. Here is the policy statement from J C Taylor: the drivers must also be 25 years of age or older. Rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com