Bruce48D24

I tried searching for this information on this site, but did not get any result. What are people using for the fluid drive fluid now? If anyone knows the oil type and some vendors for it, I appreciate any info. Thanks, Bruce48D24

Thanks for your quick replies. I was lucky this time, after replacing the in-line fuse going to the back of the ignition switch, it started right up! I guess that says something about Dodge Dependability! Hopefully I won't do something that stupid again. Thanks, Bruce

After jumping out of the driver seat of my D24 to stop a carburetor fuel leak, I left the key in the ignition in the "on" position. And to make matters worse I had a battery tender charger on the battery. A couple of days later I found what I had done! I looked under the dash at the ignition switch, the wires were still intact and I noticed an in-line fuse holder which had a buss sfe 14 fuse in it. It might be blown but my ohm meter is not working - so, I'm not sure. What potential damage did I do to the ignition system? I won't have any time to investigate it further until tomorrow. Any ideas or what my best course of action should be? Thanks, Bruce

Hi Lane, I was away from the computer for the weekend. No, it does not have a Hemi, just a 318. I guess so many people think that I would sell it cheap because the paint is shot. But it is almost all original and has never been in an accident and has about 375,000 miles on it. I'm just saving up my money to rebuild the motor (I have a 440 that I'm considering, or rebuild a 360) and get a good paint job. The comment I get the most on my 29 dodge is "Wow are those real wooden wheels?" On my 48 Dodge they usually say "My dad had one just like it." Questions like these are O.K. Bruce

The thread on the 39 Plymouth with a big block Chevy motor got me thinking about how us old car owners respond to questions from the general public about our cars. I own a 1929 Dodge DA, 1948 Dodge D24, and a 1970 Dodge Challenger. When someone asks me a question about my car, if they seem genuinely interested and ask an intelligent question, I try to give them a good answer and encourage their interest. However, lately I'm getting tired of one particular question, especially if it is the first thing they ask - "Wanna sell it?" It seems that I get asked that question 5 times a day, mostly when I'm driving the Challenger. How about you? Do any questions get you annoyed? Thanks, Bruce

I'm located in Tampa, FL. The pictures were taken in Mt. Dora, FL.

I hope you guys enjoy these pictures. Bruce Farnell

I finally took a day off from work to tend to the 1948 D24, and to work on a 1928 DA Dodge. On the 1948 D24, I pulled the steering-pitman arm off and let it hang, still connected to the tie rods. I then put a pitman arm on the steering gear from a 1950 Dodge (different design but the splines still fit the '48 shaft). I tried to move, shake, or wiggle the arm attached to the box, but there was no movement - so that tells me the box itself is good. Then I looked at the original arm attached to the tie rods and took the end of it thinking to move the whole assy., and the end of the arm moved a good 3/4 of an inch before moving anything else! So Greg G. from NY was correct! The rubber bushings in the endes of the "Y" shaped steering arm are shot - deteriorated from years of absorbing oil! It is so strange that when everything was still assembled the play or movement could not be seen! I have ordered replacements from Steel Rubber Products, although I wish these bushings were available in polyurethane. Thanks for all of your help and suggestions, it got me started on the right path to find the problem.

Thanks for all the pointers and ideas. I hope to make enough room in the garage to jack the car up and double check for movement and anything obvious tonight. Maybe then I can better tell which idea might be on track. I can tell you that there has not been any roughness feeling in the steering wheel - just looseness and slowness to turn the wheels. I will update after getting under the car again. Thanks, Bruce

I am hoping to get my 1948 D24 Custom Club Coupe road worthy again for a tour in April. This was a very dependable car until a number of years ago, it suddenly developed sloppy steering, for no apparent reason (no collision, or hard bumps occurred - that I know of). Now I have to turn the steering wheel 8 to 10 inches before the wheels turn! I checked the bolts that mount the steering box to the frame, and they are tight. I have tried to shake the tie rods and pitman arm with the car jacked up but with allthe suspension still connected - and did not notice any movement. I have also tried turning the adjustment screw for the worm and roller, with the suspension still connected, to no avail. I am now ready to pull off the pittman arm from steering arm and try the worm and roller adjustment again since I located a spare pittman arm for that procedure, as outlined in the shop manual; and check for "end play" of the steering shaft. I also have a steering box and column off a 1950 Dodge for extra parts or shims - it looks the same except the mounting bolts look to be in a different position. Has anyone else experienced this or worked on this problem before? Any advice as to how proceed to fix this problem? Thanks for your help. Bruce

I am hoping to get my 1948 D24 Custom Club Coupe road worthy again for a tour in April. This was a very dependable car until a number of years ago, it suddenly developed sloppy steering, for no apparent reason (no collision, or hard bumps occurred - that I know of). Now I have to turn the steering wheel 8 to 10 inches before the wheels turn! I checked the bolts that mount the steering box to the frame, and they are tight. I have tried to shake the tie rods and pitman arm with the car jacked up but with allthe suspension still connected - and did not notice any movement. I have also tried turning the adjustment screw for the worm and roller, with the suspension still connected, to no avail. I am now ready to pull off the pittman arm from steering arm and try the worm and roller adjustment again since I located a spare pittman arm for that procedure, as outlined in the shop manual; and check for "end play" of the steering shaft. I also have a steering box and column off a 1950 Dodge for extra parts or shims - it looks the same except the mounting bolts look to be in a different position. Has anyone else experienced this or worked on this problem before? Any advice as to how proceed to fix this problem? Thanks for your help. Bruce

I am hoping to get my 1948 D24 Custom Club Coupe road worthy again for a tour in April. This was a very dependable car until a number of years ago, it suddenly developed sloppy steering, for no apparent reason (no collision, or hard bumps occurred - that I know of). Now I have to turn the steering wheel 8 to 10 inches before the wheels turn! I checked the bolts that mount the steering box to the frame, and they are tight. I have tried to shake the tie rods and pitman arm with the car jacked up but with allthe suspension still connected - and did not notice any movement. I have also tried turning the adjustment screw for the worm and roller, with the suspension still connected, to no avail. I am now ready to pull off the pittman arm from steering arm and try the worm and roller adjustment again since I located a spare pittman arm for that procedure, as outlined in the shop manual; and check for "end play" of the steering shaft. I also have a steering box and column off a 1950 Dodge for extra parts or shims - it looks the same except the mounting bolts look to be in a different position. Has anyone else experienced this or worked on this problem before? Any advice as to how proceed to fix this problem? Thanks for your help. Bruce