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66 New Yorker 2dr Ht

Lookin' sharp after installing the mag wheels.

General Information

Mostly done with the restoration now, still a few things to go. Been a 20 year project (off and on). Bought this car in Texas when I left the military in '83. Was rust free then. Made the mistake of driving it in college (univ of Iowa). The salt nearly destroyed her. But after years of looking I found a donor body and did a total resto in my garage. Actually wound up stripping everything off (except the chrome clips) and tearing it down to to a shell. Sanded it down to metal and patched the rust holes with a welder. Learned how to use body solder in the process. Did the painting myself except for the hood and drivers side fender. Had the rear seat and the bucket seats recovered with leather, not a fan of vinyl. Installed a center console I found on ebay around that time. Found an upholstery supply store her in Minneapolis and created a headliner. The interior panels were in really sad shape and are unobtainable anywhere so I made a set using the originals as a template and source of several parts. A couple months ago I bought these rims and tires, they're 275/45R18 in back and 255/45R18 in front. Had to measure carefully to find rims that would fit, 6mm offset is what worked. Was really nervous when lowering it back on the ground after installation but had no issues. Really gives the car an awesome look. When finances allow I plan on doing a few more upgrades. Was going to post a photo of the engine compartment but it's over 4MB. will have to take a lower resolution photo later.
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Comments

Added a couple more photos and removed the duplicates. Did quite a few modifications in the engine area. An Edelbrock Performer RPM intake and carb, converted to a sanden compressor and aluminum brackets from CVF racing. A 100Amp alternator was added then too. Was at the Chrysler Nationals in Carlisle and picked up a 3 core aluminum radiator and electric fan. Converted to dual chamber master cylinder for safety reasons. Engine build was mostly typical. Did have the block and crank magnafluxed for cracks. Had everything balanced and the rods resized along with a 30 over rebore. Put the lower end together on a saturday afternoon. Pistons were 12.5:1 Keith Black. A Crower Beast cam was the only upgrade. The heads were in sad shape, lot of popping back through the carb. So I had a set of 67 440 915 heads rebuilt with hardened valve seats and new springs. Most of the other changes are electrical. The firewall is a problem for chryslers. Had to add relays to the headlights and bypassed the battery and alternator feed through the firewall with 8gauge wire. Voltage across the headlights went from 9V to around 12.5V, they light up really well now. Wound up adding an electric fuel pump so another relay was added. Got rid of the fusible link and added a fuse. Still have a few electrical issues to look into, the stereo amp draws a lot of current and the interior lights flicker with loud music. I think it's a ground issue.

One interesting thing I came across was loss of vacuum with the crower cam. Really screwed up the power brakes. I had to add a vacuum pump to compensate. Still not perfect, I read on here that Cardone does a lousy job rebuilding boosters and that may be my real problem. Have to stomp really hard to stop. Wasn't that way with the original booster but the master cylinder puked fluid inside it and destroyed it. Looking for a better booster at this point.

So enjoy the photos. It's been a lot of fun getting the New Yorker to this point.
 
I tried to find the original paint color but nobody could decipher WW5W on the fender plate. Found out later that meant white roof and white body with white c pillar vinyl applique. So I went with a PPG three stage paint (MBC 90537A) and replaced the worn out c pillar material with black marine grade vinyl. It should hold up better than the original material. I obtained the production option code book for 66 - 68 (2000 version) and it says the paint code is VAY1W1. Wish I had known it before doing the paint job.
 
Is that a CB radio on the upper left dash? Or some kind of electronic engine gizmo?
It's a bluetooth radio I built. Found the parts on ebay and put it together over a weekend. A tablet computer in the console stores the music. A 540 watt amp is under the passenger seat. I mounted speakers on the lower part of the doors, in the rear package tray in the quarter trim panels. Since I last posted photos I added a fitech 600Hp efi and a dakota digital electronic cruise control and removed the old mechanical cruise.
 
Not sure why multiple copies of the photos.
The store I went to couldn't figure out what WW5W means so it's a PPG white. Looks close to the original. It's a three stage clear coat. I painted it in may garage a few panels at a time over a few years.
 
Nice! I have 20" Incabus rims w/ 40series run flat tires on my '65 2drHT I think a 4 mm offset no rubbing even with skirts on . My pics over 2mb wo t load except cover one . Rear axle flip 6 " alum. Blocks
 

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John Kirby
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