its the little things..

[Plymouthy Adams]

that I think make the difference...modified the car just a tad to mount my scissors jack as I will never trust a bumper jack these days. The lug wrench is all that is needed for the tire mount and the screw locked jack mount bracket. The jack desgin made it easy to wedge onto the bracket and lock rigid with just the small bracket and screw..

I also worked on the relocation of the cowl vent mechanism..it is now very high on the firwall and dash end mounts higher than the wiper motor originally did if this anyone recall the wiper set up..I have AC/HTR from the donor vehicle installed but to me I just think an operton cowl vent is a key look in these old cars, One I did not want to loose..today I entend the vent lever to operate left control and mount beside the steering column mount bracket and actual have a left pivot brace for added support and ease of operation.

[Frank Elder]

Nice work Tim, you ought to talk to Rockable about his motorized cowl vent....its a pretty nifty set up.

[Plymouthy Adams]

the unit I got from Summit, motorized is at best described as cheesy and will be going back..it is the advance unit with the momentary switch and supposedly 180 operation per contact switch closure..no reversing of power needed..but the plastic linkage and such..for get it..so I decided to just rework what has been fine for over 60 years..should have done that from the get go..the donor AC unit will not allow for stock cowl vent nor stock wiper use. Not that I have ever used a vacuum set up..sorry but just not my cup of tea..I like dual speed electric and intermittent operation and do go the lengths need to install just that..

[randroid]

Tim,

I'd be interested in seeing a picture of your cowl vent modification, or at least a link to whomever manufactured it. Mine's a mess and with the dash out now would be the prime time to modify it.

-Randy

[Plymouthy Adams]

Randy..the vent mehanism I end up using is tock steel set up and lever only I have shortened the unit, raised is some 6 or so inches higer and reversed the lever to operate from the drivers side near the column..the electric set up kit I bought I would not use to raise a flag on a mail box..I do not recommend it for any rhyme or reason..yeah..it was that cheesy..it was in a sealed bag and I did not open it at the store...it does look good on paper..and that is the nicest way I can describe the unit..

[Plymouthy Adams]

Tim,

I'd be interested in seeing a picture of your cowl vent modification, or at least a link to whomever manufactured it. Mine's a mess and with the dash out now would be the prime time to modify it.

-Randy

as a side note here..if you are not installing AC or other such items of comfort you should have no real need to modify your stock mechanism. 99% of all cowl vent problems is related to rusted up pivot point and I have found that on a many I have had to heat as many as three time to a cherry red condition to free them up..DO NOT try to operate with rusted pivots as you will find yourself actually rocking the spot welds and could result in steel fatigue..the actual mechanism that operated the lift is just a pivot handle with 4 position 5/16 ball lock mechanism..a quick wire brushing and lube here is all that is ever needed..so far I have modified three of these units to meet my need for operation when installing after market AC units and such.. The cowl vent is an icon of this generation vehicle and I think worthy of the extreme to keep it functional..

[pflaming]

Yes, that cowl vent is unique. Now if there was a way to get the air through the back window. I'm thinking of having a glass company drill a 4 or 5 inch hole or maybe two 3 inch holes, then mount a sliding glass door inside to open and let the air flow. I have a truck so that is a bit different than a car but a small air escape in the rear makes a huge difference.

Any other ideas?

[Plymouthy Adams]

go to the junk yard..get the rear cab vents out of a Dakota..else I can send you a set....when there is positive cabin pressure they lift and allow air flow...mount behind the sear and hide them from side witht he truck bed as did the factory..should help a bit...

[55 Fargo]

Good Idea, gonna have to "copy cat" this .

[pflaming]

I agree with Rockwood, great idea. Have a pic or two? Maybe put in as many as the Dakota did. Is there an air vacuum between the cab and the bed front panel. One would have to make certain the exhaust system was sound.

[Plymouthy Adams]

the vents are about 5 x 7 or so in size..there are two..they are soft rubber lipped louvers that are pushed open only when there is positive cabin pressure..they snap in place when you cut a proper sized hole..

[Plymouthy Adams]

for anyone who may be interested, this is the original position of the mechanism in the first shot...in my modified you will see how close it contours to the actual grille when closed..this is quite a drastic move and as you can see it is now left hand side operated and close to the column...I will bend this a slight bit more and close to the bottom edge of the dash when I remove it to do the final paint and lube..

[Frank Elder]

May we have a close up of the wiper knob please?.......snicker, snicker:D

[Plymouthy Adams]

Frankine you ole pervert...am I going have to call and tlak to Emsey? As I will not have a wiper knob in the original position I though this will goddess may be just the ticket...

[james curl]

Tim, did you do the transmission hump out of fiberglass yourself, if so what did you make your mold out of? I could not tell how the fiberglass attaches to the sheet metal floor by the pictures, was it bonded to the original floorboard? Is the hump extension cut from the original Dakota floor and not yet attached permanently?

Edited April 15, 2012 by james curl

[Plymouthy Adams]

James the firewall, transmission hump is direct transfer from the Dakota..I use this and about 1/3 of the Dakota floors and laid it in where it woudl match the original foor panel. The item is all steel and butt welded the full perimeter, no overlaying metal anywhere. I shaped and installed the under laying structual cross brace metal to match the new hump..also The Dakota is offset about 3 inches thus I widened the last 17 inches of the original tunnel

[james curl]

It looks very professional, you do nice work.