Where do I start?

[Purple Moo Cow]

Well this is embarrassing.....I am laying under the car as I write this waiting for the oil to finish dripping out...and I just realized idk where this car gets oil filled from. The only location I can think is under some black vent type can? On the driver's side of the engine. Please help aha

[TodFitch]

Yes, aft of the generator and in front of the distributor there is a 1.5 to 2" diameter tube coming up out of the bottom of the block. Remove the cap on the top of that put your oil in. Mine takes 5 quarts, I haven't checked but my guess is that is true for the other L-head 6 engines. Your owners manual and/or factory service manual will have the details.

[Purple Moo Cow]

@TodFitch appreciate it! Planning on trying to turn her over tonight so we shall see what happens 

[Purple Moo Cow]

Alright er'body...I finally got the battery I bought charged and in the car, pulled the fuel line, got a new key made for the ignition and tried to start her. Unfortunately, nothing happened. So I've taken some pictures to ask some basic questions, please humor my ignorance.

 

Hopefully my pictures help in my explanation. There are two wires from what I assume is the solenoid on the firewall that run through the firewall. One of those wires is a small wire that runs up into the steering column into the shifter I presume to the button on the end. Any idea what that wire is for because it seems like with the battery in and key on if I push that button in I get a slight jolt of energy to my finger. 

 

The other wire goes to the ignition key uh module to the middle bolt that is slightly longer than the first and third bolt. Is that the wire that carries the power to start the car? If the fuse near it on the solenoid is blown, does that directly prevent that wire from carrying current? Thus preventing me from starting the car? 

 

There is this button on the left side near my steering column...I was under the impression my starter button was on the floor next to my clutch, is this actually the button? If not, what's it for? When I push it with the key on and battery in I do hear something start to wind up and maybe spin.

 

Do I need to just remove the dash and re-do all these wires to get this car to run? I could not verify if the motor turns over because the radiator makes it impossible to get to the crank bolt and I'd rather not spend all the energy pulling the dash to redo wiring just for it to be seized but idk. How hard is pulling the dash anyway?

 

[Sam Buchanan]

There will be members with Dodges replying soon but I can offer some thoughts.

 

Do not pull the dash.......that is hunting quail with a bazooka......

 

The switch on the floor is the headlight dimmer switch.

 

If your car is like my '48 Plymouth the starter switch is the button on the left end of the dash.

 

You REALLY need a service manual (and also a 6v test light) with a wiring schematic, otherwise you are making this harder than necessary.  With a test light and schematic you start at the battery and start tracing the wiring through the starter and ignition circuits. This will give you the opportunity to check for damaged wires and connections and also gain knowledge of how your car is wired.

Edited June 30, 2021 by Sam Buchanan

[Purple Moo Cow]

@Sam Buchanan uh I have a testing wire for regular electric outlets n such, will that not work for specifically 6v function? Appreciate the info...I guess it's time to stop putting off the service manual purchase 

[Sam Buchanan]

3 minutes ago, Purple Moo Cow said:

@Sam Buchanan uh I have a testing wire for regular electric outlets n such, will that not work for specifically 6v function? Appreciate the info...I guess it's time to stop putting off the service manual purchase 

Nope, a household test light won't work. A multimeter will do the trick, pick up one at Harbor Freight or Walmart for $10.

 

Yep....you are waaay overdue for buying the manual..... 

Edited June 30, 2021 by Sam Buchanan

[knuckleharley]

You need two things. A new wiring harness,and a fire extinguisher.

 

You need the fire extinguisher NOW.

 

Actually,you need 3 things.

 

The third is the new buddy that has been into and working on old cars for several years. Buy a 6-pack or two,and invite him over on a Sat or Sun afternoon.

 

There is no shortage of experienced VERY smart people here on this board,but it's hard to beat having someone standing right beside you to scream "NO!" when "no" needs to be heard,and to guide you as well as explain things step by step.

 

Are there no old Mopar Clubs in your area? If there is,join one and make friends. Not only will they help you with mechanical and "where to buy it" advise,they will add greatly to your enjoyment of your car by having someone to cruise with and talk cars with. Your wife can meet with his wife,and that usually makes it easier to justify spending money on new parts.

 

 

[Sniper]

I have no idea where you are, I'd help out if I could though. 

 

Those wires poking up the floor board next to the steering column, almost bet they are not stock, nor is the one in the steering wheel.

 

RockAuto list the manual for your car in paper as well as CD, I have both for my 51.

 

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/dodge,1948,custom,3.8l+230cid+l6,1331862,literature,repair+manual,10335

 

I am not familiar with the 48 Dodge and I have no schematic to look at so I can't really help sort out what's going on and how it should work.  If someone can shoot me a copy of it though.

 

 

[Young Ed]

What transmission is in this car? I'm wondering if someone added overdrive with an engagement on the shifter. If that's the case those shouldn't prevent it from running

[Purple Moo Cow]

31 minutes ago, knuckleharley said:

You need two things. A new wiring harness,and a fire extinguisher.

 

You need the fire extinguisher NOW.

 

Actually,you need 3 things.

 

The third is the new buddy that has been into and working on old cars for several years. Buy a 6-pack or two,and invite him over on a Sat or Sun afternoon.

 

There is no shortage of experienced VERY smart people here on this board,but it's hard to beat having someone standing right beside you to scream "NO!" when "no" needs to be heard,and to guide you as well as explain things step by step.

 

Are there no old Mopar Clubs in your area? If there is,join one and make friends. Not only will they help you with mechanical and "where to buy it" advise,they will add greatly to your enjoyment of your car by having someone to cruise with and talk cars with. Your wife can meet with his wife,and that usually makes it easier to justify spending money on new parts.

 

 

Not sure if there are any, but there probably is as I'm in Maryland outside Baltimore and there's certainly plenty of car shows n such in the area. Moving to GA this fall though (thanks Air Force) so don't know what I'll find down there. I've heard those wiring harnesses are expensive.

[Purple Moo Cow]

17 minutes ago, Sniper said:

I have no idea where you are, I'd help out if I could though. 

 

Those wires poking up the floor board next to the steering column, almost bet they are not stock, nor is the one in the steering wheel.

 

RockAuto list the manual for your car in paper as well as CD, I have both for my 51.

 

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/dodge,1948,custom,3.8l+230cid+l6,1331862,literature,repair+manual,10335

 

I am not familiar with the 48 Dodge and I have no schematic to look at so I can't really help sort out what's going on and how it should work.  If someone can shoot me a copy of it though.

 

 

 

I purchased a manual today, should be here next week. Hopefully that will have the necessary wire schematic for me to figure this thing out. I know the thin wire up the column is definitely not stock, it's not wrapped in cloth. The other appears stock but I also wonder if it was pulled from somewhere else to replace a broken wire because there is clearly a broken connection on the same relay on the firewall. 

 

I'm in Maryland haha I appreciate the offer 

[Sam Buchanan]

Some judicious application of heat shrink tubing and new terminals can go a long way toward squeezing some more years out of the old harness. But the important thing is to INSPECT it and fix the places where insulation is missing and terminals are corroded. No need to condemn the existing wiring until you are fully informed of its condition.

[Purple Moo Cow]

11 minutes ago, Young Ed said:

What transmission is in this car? I'm wondering if someone added overdrive with an engagement on the shifter. If that's the case those shouldn't prevent it from running

 

I got the ol' liquid drive in this bad boy. Not sure if an overdrive can be installed on a fluid drive though

[Purple Moo Cow]

@Sam Buchanan pretty sure I'll be spending my long weekend digging through the wires as best I can just replacing them one by one and hopefully with my manual here next week I can figure out what's missing or moved

[Young Ed]

58 minutes ago, Purple Moo Cow said:

 

I got the ol' liquid drive in this bad boy. Not sure if an overdrive can be installed on a fluid drive though

Fluid drive is just the coupling. You can have a standard 3spd an overdrive or a semi automatic behind it. 

[greg g]

Before you mess with the gas tank and lines, use the search feature of this forum,, and search for ferrule.   There is a small piece in the tank to fuel line connection which likes to dissappear when you break that connector.  Once released it will find the deepest darkest corner of your garage and escape to a parallel universe, without it that connection will never seal again.

 

Fluid drive cars regardless of transmission have no compression braking unless the engine is running.  If not secured by the parking brake or wheel chocks, they tend to wander on their own.

 

Go to Allpar.com, search for fluid drive and read and remember.

[knuckleharley]

1 hour ago, Purple Moo Cow said:

Not sure if there are any, but there probably is as I'm in Maryland outside Baltimore and there's certainly plenty of car shows n such in the area. Moving to GA this fall though (thanks Air Force) so don't know what I'll find down there. I've heard those wiring harnesses are expensive.

I would be shocked to discover there were no old Mopar Clubs in Maryland,or in Ga. Do a web search for car clubs in your zip code,and in the zip code where you are going. Run down the list until you find words like "P-15" or "D-22".

 

IIRC,a restoration cloth wiring harness can be pretty pricey,but even it is cheaper that rebuilding your car after it has burned to the ground.

 

Not to mention your house,if it were parked in your garage when it caught fire.

 

There ARE inexpensive wiring harness to be found if you are upgrading to 12 volt,though.

 

Even if you want to keep it as stock as possible,you can buy and install a repopped cloth dash wiring harness a section at a time as you can afford  it.

 

Save your pennies,and buy the other sections as you come up with the money.

 

The important thing to remember here is that unless you know what you are doing with wiring harnesses,buy one from a pro. This is a major safety issue as well as a major mechanical safety issue.

 

Safety always has to come before flash or convenience.

[knuckleharley]

1 hour ago, Sam Buchanan said:

Some judicious application of heat shrink tubing and new terminals can go a long way toward squeezing some more years out of the old harness. But the important thing is to INSPECT it and fix the places where insulation is missing and terminals are corroded. No need to condemn the existing wiring until you are fully informed of its condition.

You are a bolder man than I!

 

There is no way in HELL I am going to get a little propane torch,or even a cigarette lighter anywhere near 70 year old cloth wiring with rotten cloth covered in dust.

 

Especially since there is nothing wrong with using electrical tape to cover exposed wiring as a temporary fix.

[knuckleharley]

1 hour ago, Purple Moo Cow said:

@Sam Buchanan pretty sure I'll be spending my long weekend digging through the wires as best I can just replacing them one by one and hopefully with my manual here next week I can figure out what's missing or moved

Keep in mind that if you are going to keep the car 6 volt you are going to have to use MUCH heavier gauge wires than normal

[Sam Buchanan]

4 minutes ago, knuckleharley said:

You are a bolder man than I!

 

There is no way in HELL I am going to get a little propane torch,or even a cigarette lighter anywhere near 70 year old cloth wiring with rotten cloth covered in dust.

 

Especially since there is nothing wrong with using electrical tape to cover exposed wiring as a temporary fix.

Who said anything about an open flame???

 

I use a low-power electric heat gun for heat shrinking, the same one I used to apply shrink covering on R/C aircraft. I HATE electrical tape....a sure sign of an amateurs' wiring repair.

 

(In a previous life I built/inspected wiring harnesses for military contracts)

Edited July 1, 2021 by Sam Buchanan

[knuckleharley]

Just now, Sam Buchanan said:

Who said anything about an open flame???

 

I use a low-power electric heat gun for heat shrinking, the same one I used to apply shrink covering on R/C aircraft. I HATE electrical tape....a sure sign of an amateurs' wiring repair.

I had never even considered that since I have never seen one used,but if it gets hot enough to shrink the tubing it has to be a fire threat.

 

Remember,we are talking about 70 year old cloth coverings here,and dust all over under a dash.

[TodFitch]

2 hours ago, Purple Moo Cow said:

Not sure if there are any, but there probably is as I'm in Maryland outside Baltimore and there's certainly plenty of car shows n such in the area. Moving to GA this fall though (thanks Air Force) so don't know what I'll find down there. I've heard those wiring harnesses are expensive.

There is a Mid-Atlantic Region of the Plymouth Owners Club based in the Baltimore area. A pretty recent edition of the Plymouth Bulletin lists it and give the contact as a fellow in Ellicott City. I would rather not post his name, phone and email on an open forum like this but if you would like I can sent it to you in a private message.

 

p.s. There is/was a very active region of the Antique Automobile Club of America in Baltimore too. I'd have to do a little digging to find the contact for them.

 

p.p.s. Chesapeake Region AACA web site is at https://www.chesapeakeaaca.org

[Sam Buchanan]

1 minute ago, knuckleharley said:

I had never even considered that since I have never seen one used,but if it gets hot enough to shrink the tubing it has to be a fire threat.

 

Remember,we are talking about 70 year old cloth coverings here,and dust all over under a dash.

 

Nope, not hot enough for a fire threat.......looks like this is an area of expertise with which you are not familiar.............

[chrysler1941]

10 hours ago, knuckleharley said:

I had never even considered that since I have never seen one used,but if it gets hot enough to shrink the tubing it has to be a fire threat.

 

Remember,we are talking about 70 year old cloth coverings here,and dust all over under a dash.

Cloth wirings don't burn easily. Heat guns have heat range dials. 

Shrink tubing available in different isolation thickness, color and with glue.

 

Any broken wiring's, fixed with solder wire connector and same heat gun.

Never use electrical tape or wire tapping connectors