1958 Chrysler Windsor 25 Yr Project Final Lap

[BIRD]

This 1958 Chrysler Windsor 4 door sedan (Canadian model) is the same as my first car I bought 1967 when I was 17. I found and purchased it 1995 in Ontario Canada. It had only one family owner ,originally bought in Alberta Canada.
It only suffered minor rusting and was all original.. I took the car completely apart and worked on it when I had time.
I previously posted pictures in the Forward Look Forum under the post "looking for advice/help" and now will post comments and pictures of my assembly in this forum
The car body was painted on the weekend of the 20'th of January 2021. The hood, trunk and fenders were painted about 2 months ago.
All the parts had been cleaned and stored, new parts bought and stored. The seats have been restored with all new original material. ( this car has the same color combinations as my first)
IMPORTANT NOTE install wind lace welting before you install dash. (created some extra work)
install wind lace before headliner , and install the headliner before replacing front and rear windshields.
The car was soda blasted to remove all the paint, it did a good job but it is difficult to ensure that the soda has been blown out of all the crevices.. ( it was 1998 when this car was done)
so I am pretty comfortable that all the residue is gone.. concern with the soda will attract and hold moisture causing issues with the paint.

 

[Lee Robinson]

This 1958 Chrysler Windsor 4 door sedan (Canadian model) is the same as my first car I bought 1967 when I was 17. I found and purchased it 1995 in Ontario Canada. It had only one family owner ,originally bought in Alberta Canada.
It only suffered minor rusting and was all original.. I took the car completely apart and worked on it when I had time.
I previously posted pictures in the Forward Look Forum under the post "looking for advice/help" and now will post comments and pictures of my assembly in this forum
The car body was painted on the weekend of the 20'th of January 2021. The hood, trunk and fenders were painted about 2 months ago.
All the parts had been cleaned and stored, new parts bought and stored. The seats have been restored with all new original material. ( this car has the same color combinations as my first)
IMPORTANT NOTE install wind lace welting before you install dash. (created some extra work)
install wind lace before headliner , and install the headliner before replacing front and rear windshields.
The car was soda blasted to remove all the paint, it did a good job but it is difficult to ensure that the soda has been blown out of all the crevices.. ( it was 1998 when this car was done)
so I am pretty comfortable that all the residue is gone.. concern with the soda will attract and hold moisture causing issues with the paint.

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That is a beautiful car. The dash detail is immaculate. Post more pics when complete

 

[75LandYacht]

Just imagine how your gonna feel getting behind the wheel for the first time in 20 plus yrs.. I’m excited for ya

More pics please. Of the whole car this time. Lol

 

[Mr C]

Very nice!

 

[67 sport fury]

Now this is dedication great job

 

[BIRD]

FYI a little bit of a McGyver fix to the defrosting ducting where they meet the rotatable dash vents.. over time the seal that joined the ducting has disappeared ( honestly can't remember if there was one in the first place). To ensure there is a good air sealed connection here , I cut a 3" abs pipe coupler into roughly 1 5/8" sections to allow it slide over the the duct and the the dash vent.. made a nice snug fit.. had to cut a couple of grooves in the perimeter of the abs pipe to accommodate the shape of the defroster duct.

 

[BIRD]

some photos of various parts a they were painted and hung waiting for assembly

 

[BIRD]

some more photos..in the paint shop ready for paint...base coat....clear coat.... body painted.
used base clear for the brown... the cream (white) is single stage.
my son Dan is the body, prep and paint guy.

 

[BlueGhost]

Awesome project, love the color scheme. I'm thinking of doing something similar with my wagon.

I'm sure it feels good seeing it finally come together. I've had my Suburban close to 20 years now, and it seams like every time I'm ready to get serious working on it, something happens to derail my plans.

 

[3175375]

some more photos..in the paint shop ready for paint...base coat....clear coat.... body painted.
used base clear for the brown... the cream (white) is single stage.
my son Dan is the body, prep and paint guy.

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Fabulous work! You are blessed!

 

[BIRD]

Awesome project, love the color scheme. I'm thinking of doing something similar with my wagon.

I'm sure it feels good seeing it finally come together. I've had my Suburban close to 20 years now, and it seams like every time I'm ready to get serious working on it, something happens to derail my plans.

Hope to have the car finished in the spring..my profile picture is of my first car with my Mom standing next to it.. hope to recreate the same photo 55 years later.. Mom just turned 101 years young and lives in the same house.. our family home and she is doing great .

 

[BIRD]

Fabulous work! You are blessed!

hope to have the project finished in the spring.. my profile picture is of my Mom standing next to my first 58 Windsor . Want to recreate the same photo some 55 years later.. Mom just turned 101 years young and still lives in my family home and is doing great

 

[Yellow blaze]

Love it!!!!! I just picked up my Canadian model 58 chrysler windsor 4door last week

 

[Mike66Chryslers]

Wow, that's going to look fantastic when it's finished! I was looking at pics on one of your other threads and I saw "Milton" on the bodyshop sign. You live in Milton, ON? So there's a chance I could see this car in person some day!

 

[BIRD]

found trim clips that worked nicely.. Original clips i had and refurbed did not want to work and i did not have enough of them either.
Found clips that worked well.. correct position of the the connector to align the trim properly.
the product was designed for GM cars .
worked well on the stainless trim for Saratoga and Windsor.. sure would work on other models

I sourced it from Spaenaur , a company based in Kitchener, Ontario Canada... amazing selection of stuff for auto trim, nuts, bolts etc. good prices and ship anywhere.

 

[BIRD]

got the headliner installed as well as front and rear windshields... was lucky enough to use the original glass as well as the rubbers. Have the sound deadening and carpet in place. attached the stainless mouldings.

 

[3175375]

got the headliner installed as well as front and rear windshields... was lucky enough to use the original glass as well as the rubbers. Have the sound deadening and carpet in place. attached the stainless mouldings.View attachment 445163 View attachment 445164 View attachment 445165 View attachment 445166 View attachment 445167 View attachment 445168

Good work!

That car is fabulous and speaks volumes about your abilities!

 

[BIRD]

It has been a while since I have had a chance to work on the car. How ever today I managed to awaken the engine from it's 25 year sleep. It started and ran with no unwanted noises .. let it run for 15 minutes.. took about 5 minutes to clear the exhaust smoke..(getting rid of the residual storing oil in the cylinders)... good oil pressure good temperature and good electrical charging. car is on the hoist and selected the gears and wheels rotated in the appropriate direction. Left exhaust started show white smoke.. head gasket issues? will explore.
will look for engine gasket set if need be and would appreciate any input as to rough guess on cost and suppliers. Thanks

 

[Yellow blaze]

Progress on my 58 canadian model windser!!
Unfortunately my stering box **** the bed today

 

[BIRD]

managed to source gaskets... couldn't find a complete set in a package so bought what I needed. White smoke persisted out of left exhaust... head gasket???..... remove left head and sent it out to be tanked and magnifluxed to look for cracks no cracks found but one intake valve was tight in it's guide... all valves removed ..cleaned up ..new seals and lapped in..
head itself had minor surface inconsistencies and was resurfaced.. engine shop suggested i bring in other side head so as to end up with a matching pair.. checked all push rods because of the one sticky valve... only that push rod had a slight arc .. less then 9 thou... solid rod.. and said it is good to go.. with the hydraulic lifters didn't expect any issues.
Will install the head tomorrow with the help of my son... Was going to do it my self but the strength I thought I used to have is no longer there...heads are heavy.. set up my engine hoist to help us align and angle the heads to hopefully have an easy go of installation.
If all goes well should have it back together and running by the end of the weekend.
Last steps in the process is to install the front clip.. and that should be a wrap