68 Fury III Resurrection in MA

RGORHAM29

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Hi Folks. I obtained a blue 1968 Fury III 2 DR Fast Top with a 318ci from the original owner around the holidays. I love the look of these cars - especially the front grille. Its the age old story of a garage find from a very sweet lady - the original owner. She took great care of the car and always garaged. Unfortunately it has sat still since 1999-2000. She would start the car occasionally for the next couple of years. Goal is to work on it with the kids (maybe) and have it on the road this spring. My goal is to get it road ready for the spring - so I am am reaching back to my youth when one could actually work on a car based on simple mechanics and share the journey as bring it back to life. That being said - I know all the rubber, hoses, belts, gaskets and fluids need to be replaced. Here is the order I am proceeding. 1. Engine; 2. Fuel System; 3. Brakes; 4. Suspension; 5. Body

Weekend 1 - The Tow Home:

Yep - buried in the previous owners garage, I cleared off the car, a quick tow home and now filling up my garage bay. It fits.

Pics below.
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First order of business - the kids helped me vacuumed out the car. The interior is all original and like new. Of course the kids tested the seats. Yep - 4 teens across the bench seat. Stoked! They were amazed with how comfortable it was, with the bright chrome and the simplicity of all the switches. Their minds were blown when they "ROLLED" the windows and corner vents to open or close. We ended the night cleaning the front bumpers. (They found a hack on Pintrest to wash the bumpers with dawn soap, then spray white vinegar - let it sit a minute or two - then rub off with a ball of aluminum foil. It worked! - see photo).


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I think they did a great job. After the excitement, the selfies and checking out the work the next morning - off to school they went.

Next - we will work to get the car started. I removed the 20 year old plugs and squirt some mystery oil into the spark plug holes and carburetor. I will let it soak for a while.....I will post later what happens next....hopefully the crank will turn over.

:thumbsup:
 
Very pretty car. That is the formal hardtop however, not the fast top. Personally I like the formal top better.
 
One of the things that happens when a car sits for a very long time is that the valve guides often rust up. This can cause all kinds of problems, stuck valves, bent push rods at the minimum. The mystery oil in the cylinders is a good idea. I would also suggest pulling the valve covers and give each valve stem a squirt of good penetrating oil. Unhook the fuel line from the input side of the fuel pump and put a breaker bar and socket on the big nut that holds the vibration damper on and rotate the engine slowly by hand to to verify that all of the valves are free and moving, usually works best to have a helper turn the engine so you can observe the valve gear. (Fuel pump is unhooked to avoid drawing bad gas into the pump and carb.) Once you are satisfied that the valves are operating properly, you can install a battery and crank the engine over to expel any remaining oil in the cylinders. A compression check should be done at this time to verify valve function. After this many years, replace the points, condenser, rotor, cap, plugs and plug wires. You can then hook a small gasoline source to the input side of the fuel pump. Once the coolant hoses, valve covers, belts, engine oil and filter have been changed, you can now attempt to start the engine and see what happens. It would be a good idea to check the carb throttle plate to be sure if moves freely prior to the engine start as the carb may be stuck from sitting.

This is a nice car, so I wish you luck with it.

Dave
 
Once you get it running, the brakes and tires are an accident waiting to happen so do not try to drive the car.

Dave
 
Car looks good after a scrub! Nice to see the kids helping out, and enjoying it! Look forward to watching your progress.
 
Congrats on your find and purchase. One of my favorite colors on these cars. I've owned '68 Furys since the early '90's and currently have 4 of them (and have had more than four in the past) so feel free to reach out to me with questions and I maybe able to help with parts or where to get parts.
 
My favorite year (between 67 and 68), my favorite roofline on Furys of those years and the same interior as my 68 Monaco (canadian car). Nothin' not to like there.
Awesome car, man. Watch those seats in the colder weather though. My 68 Monaco was a 24,000 car when I got it and the seats were perfect. That changed really quickly once winter came and I sat my boney *** down in there.
The 318LA is a great engine. A lot of folks say it's not enough power for a C Body and in a sense I agree but I rue the day I swapped mine out. Bullet proof little mill, there.
Hope to see y'all on the road this summer!
 
Very pretty car. That is the formal hardtop however, not the fast top. Personally I like the formal top better.
What's the difference between a Formal and Fast? Is it where the vinyl ends?
 
Nice find! That interior looks amazing, good luck with it. I can only echo previous comments on what to proceed with. When I got mine it also had been used little in past years so I'll emphasize the brakes, go through everything from the pedal on down. Make sure to drain all the fluid and blow out the lines, be prepared to rebuild/replace the master and wheel cylinders, (I assume it's a drum car). While your at the rear you should pull the axle shafts and replace the outer seals as well.
 
One of the things that happens when a car sits for a very long time is that the valve guides often rust up. This can cause all kinds of problems, stuck valves, bent push rods at the minimum. The mystery oil in the cylinders is a good idea. I would also suggest pulling the valve covers and give each valve stem a squirt of good penetrating oil. Unhook the fuel line from the input side of the fuel pump and put a breaker bar and socket on the big nut that holds the vibration damper on and rotate the engine slowly by hand to to verify that all of the valves are free and moving, usually works best to have a helper turn the engine so you can observe the valve gear. (Fuel pump is unhooked to avoid drawing bad gas into the pump and carb.) Once you are satisfied that the valves are operating properly, you can install a battery and crank the engine over to expel any remaining oil in the cylinders. A compression check should be done at this time to verify valve function. After this many years, replace the points, condenser, rotor, cap, plugs and plug wires. You can then hook a small gasoline source to the input side of the fuel pump. Once the coolant hoses, valve covers, belts, engine oil and filter have been changed, you can now attempt to start the engine and see what happens. It would be a good idea to check the carb throttle plate to be sure if moves freely prior to the engine start as the carb may be stuck from sitting.

This is a nice car, so I wish you luck with it.

Dave

Thanks DaveaLux. I agree - lot of old timer mechanics (some of which grew up on these cars) here in my area have advised the same. I will keep you posted as it goes. RG29
 
Congrats on your find and purchase. One of my favorite colors on these cars. I've owned '68 Furys since the early '90's and currently have 4 of them (and have had more than four in the past) so feel free to reach out to me with questions and I maybe able to help with parts or where to get parts.

Thx FuryGT. I will absolutely get in touch on questions and parts.
 
Nice find! That interior looks amazing, good luck with it. I can only echo previous comments on what to proceed with. When I got mine it also had been used little in past years so I'll emphasize the brakes, go through everything from the pedal on down. Make sure to drain all the fluid and blow out the lines, be prepared to rebuild/replace the master and wheel cylinders, (I assume it's a drum car). While your at the rear you should pull the axle shafts and replace the outer seals as well.


Agreed on all points brakes and wheels. Didnt think about the axle. good point. I should also open up the diff and look at the gears too...I should move that to #2 or #3 on the list......but first thing first......engine and fuel system.
 
Car looks good after a scrub! Nice to see the kids helping out, and enjoying it! Look forward to watching your progress.

Thanks - getting a cool iconic car to bring back to life is fun - working on it with your kids and creating fun memories - priceless. Just need to get 'er done so we can get some ice cream this summer.
 
General Question to all as the mystery oil soaks in the cylinders......

As I think ahead about the car (and looking through other MOPAR parts dealers) ...does a 68 Plymouth Fury exchange parts with any another C Body?....like a 67 Fury or something else? Or JUST a 68 Fury....Body, Frame, Suspension? Thanks in advance.
 
General Question to all as the mystery oil soaks in the cylinders......

As I think ahead about the car (and looking through other MOPAR parts dealers) ...does a 68 Plymouth Fury exchange parts with any another C Body?....like a 67 Fury or something else? Or JUST a 68 Fury....Body, Frame, Suspension? Thanks in advance.

Most of the mechanical parts are the same, especially with a 318 CID LA series engine. Engines, transmission, rear end, and suspension are the same. Body panels have different trim lines. Keep in mind that engine blocks, transmission cases etc. have casting dates on them so try to keep as much of the car with original components as you can if you someday plan to restore the car to show quality.

Dave
 
General Question to all as the mystery oil soaks in the cylinders......

As I think ahead about the car (and looking through other MOPAR parts dealers) ...does a 68 Plymouth Fury exchange parts with any another C Body?....like a 67 Fury or something else? Or JUST a 68 Fury....Body, Frame, Suspension? Thanks in advance.

To add to the above post. Front doors interchange between 67 & 68 Furys but the trim is different except for Sport Furys, which are the same. The front fenders interchange as will the hood but 68 fenders have a recessed area for an emblem and 67 hoods used individual P L Y M O U T H letters across the hood whereas 68's use an emblem on the driver's side of the hood. The dash pads, dash trim and interior trim are also different.
 
Agreed on all points brakes and wheels. Didnt think about the axle. good point. I should also open up the diff and look at the gears too...I should move that to #2 or #3 on the list......but first thing first......engine and fuel system.

Thanks. Just relaying my experience. I didn't pull the pumpkin but did change the fluid, it must have been low because that's when it started leaking. I ended up having to do the inner on one side too. I had to take that to driveline place, no way I had the tools for that. Same thing happen to the transmission, changed that fluid and it started leaking out the speedometer pinion.
 
Good looking Fury III the body looks great for being a Massachusetts car all of it's life, How is the underside ?

That interior looks mint .
 
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