68 New Yorker Daily Driver

[Traff]

Just recently acquired this really clean and original 1968 New Yorker. Northern California car it's entire life, I have found a bunch of original papers with the car. It's had a history of two families before me. It was driven until 2014 then It sat on non-op. Must have been under a tarp for some time because the interior is moldy and has surface rust on the ceilings and trim pieces, as well as the inside of the trunk top. Everything else on the car is completely solid. I was looking for a classic prestige car to turn into a daily driver, and look cool at the same time, I'm a Ford guy, but this car came up and everything looked good and the price was right for a car this age that is running. So I am new to the Mopar world and am going to be learning as I go. I intend to build this car into something that I can use daily for short commuting and longer trips, and not cringe about it being in traffic or on our modern destroyed roads.

 

[413]

Congrats on the nice classic car. Get a gas card for the holidays!

Look how much bigger it is than the Mercury parked next to it.

 

[CBODY67]

Welcome and congrats on your purchase. Quite a contract in styling between the two cars.

Happy Holidays!
CBODY67

 

[bronze turbine]

This brings back memories. I have an almost identical car that has been in my family since 1971. We used it for many family trips to the shore and elsewhere when I was a little kid, then I drove it to high school and college before passing it on to my brother to drive to college. It was a really nice car and had the top of the line leather interior and AM/FM STEREO (first year for Chrysler). Sadly it got suspension damage and couldn't be aligned and my brother and I moved on to more modern cars so it just got parked in a damp metal building and really rusted. My brother had thoughts of getting it back on the road so he started dismantling it, but in the meantime we purchased 2 '68 300s and a '68 Newport, so this car will probably never be put back together. It was originally sold in Detroit, MI and was a company car. I don't know how it wound up in PA, but my Dad bought it from a VW/Audi dealer in Hazleton in 1971. He was so proud of it.

 

[GOLDMYN]

hi from Chilton, Wi 4 doors rule

 

[Boydsdodge]

Great score. What engine? Cooling system rebuild, brakes, suspension, electrical, tires make for a goos driver. Nothing hot rody, just the stock stuff all up to spec.
Firm feel can make you a front sway bar that will really help with the daily road feel, also good shocks. Basic improvements can make a huge difference. The Nexxen AH5 235/75r15s do well on the old Chryslers. The C-posts on your Chrysler should have a vinyl cover, that is why they most likely have rust. Repair the rust and having the vinyl replaced will help plenty in the aesthetics of your new daily.

 

[Traff]

Great score. What engine? Cooling system rebuild, brakes, suspension, electrical, tires make for a goos driver. Nothing hot rody, just the stock stuff all up to spec.
Firm feel can make you a front sway bar that will really help with the daily road feel, also good shocks. Basic improvements can make a huge difference. The Nexxen AH5 235/75r15s do well on the old Chryslers. The C-posts on your Chrysler should have a vinyl cover, that is why they most likely have rust. Repair the rust and having the vinyl replaced will help plenty in the aesthetics of your new daily.

It's the 440 , the Odometer reads 40k. As far as I can tell from the records I have, it has not rolled over to a hundred yet. Underbelly is pretty gooey, so lots of new seals and gaskets are in order. First step is going through the entire brake system with all new everything. Axle seals are leaking as well. Already got some cheap tire from Walmart to roll around on for now. Also going to rebuild or replace the carb and new ignition components all around. The C pillars are actually not rusted (so far) that is just dirt caked on behind the vinyl that was peeling.

 

[bronze turbine]

These cars are very easily converted to electronic ignition. If it's going to be a daily driver and you're going to be putting a lot of miles on it you might want to consider that.

 

[darth_linux]

These cars are very easily converted to electronic ignition. If it's going to be a daily driver and you're going to be putting a lot of miles on it you might want to consider that.

Also a great time to do the ammeter bypass and headlight relays!

 

[Boydsdodge]

i was just going to say, stick with the Chrysler electronic ignition system for you ignition upgrade. you can get parts fairly easy, keep a spare ECU and ballast resistor in the trunk tool kit.

 

[Traff]

Maybe I have been watching to much Uncle Tony's garage but I am leaning towards keeping the points ignition. I want to stick with the route where parts are most commonly available at any parts store. Does anyone have any feedback on whether or not I'd find parts easier if I keep it stock or start modifying different systems?

 

[Traff]

Also a great time to do the ammeter bypass and headlight relays!

I have heard the ammeter can be a problem. If I do the mod, will I still have a functional gauge or does it eliminate that entirely?

 

[darth_linux]

I have heard the ammeter can be a problem. If I do the mod, will I still have a functional gauge or does it eliminate that entirely?

The gauge on my car shows a draw of about half after doing the bypass. Meaning the current load coming into the cabin and through the IC is half what it was, thereby reducing the risk of catastrophic failure.

I added a volt meter to keep tracking of actual charging.

 

[413]

I like points, and they last a long time. Just keep spares with you because the parts store won’t have what you will need.

 

[GOLDMYN]

I keep points in my cars. if you know how to set them, they are very reliable and points are cheap, show your fender tag

 

[CBODY67]

Points have been around a long time and work good enough. At the mileage the car has, the breaker cam in the distributor (what the points work from) is still probably in good shape, with all of the lobes on the cam reasonably un-worn, so the point gap can be set well.

The evolving issue with points is keeping them greased with the little vial of lube that used to come with them. Many modern sets do not have that lube in them, which can lead to premature wear of the rubbing block on the points, which then means point gap will change, which means that dwell will change as well as base timing settings. SO, make sure to libe the rubbing block for best results. Seems like we used to get about 15K miles on each set of points?

With time, though, especially with no lube on the points, the peaks on the breaker cam can wear unevenly. As in not consistent with each other, so that which ever lobe peak is used to set the points, the gap on the other lobes can be different.

The beauty of the Mopar Perf electronic ignition kit was that it was OEM quality items with all of the needed wiring to make it plug 'n play. Only needed an electronic voltage regulator in some cases. I used an old MSD 5C control box instead of the Chrysler control box. Once done, no more issues as to need to reset the timing with each point change.

When Chrysler was selling the earlier kits, they were all OEM-spec quality and worked well. The later licensed kits seem to not be quite so good, many claim. Which leaves Mopar Guru Rick Ehrenberg's store on eBay to get his "known good" conversion kits.

The observed advantage of ignition points is that as long as there is enough juice in the battery for a spark to occur in the distributor, the engine can start. With an electronic system, there is a minimum battery voltage for the control box to work, which can be an issue sometimes.

Which ever way you go . . .
Enjoy!
CBODY67

 

[darth_linux]

I'm using one of Rick Ehrenberg's kit's with great results at a very good price point. It replaced my very worn out distributor and got rid of points all at the same time.

 

[cbarge]

I speak 68 Chrysler fluently, lol!
Had a daily grinder 68 Nyer for years, then sold it to restore my 68 Newport I still have.
As others mentioned, go electronic ignition, do the ammeter bypass and upgrade the headlights with relays, and other exterior lights go LED.
Finally go electronic on the voltage regulator for the charging system and ekectronic volt limiter for the instrument cluster.
ANY questions, I am just a PM away!
Welcome!

 

[cbarge]

Here are links to the recommended threads;
Underhood Ammeter Bypass

Plug n play headlight harness upgrade

Exterior LED lighting upgrade

 

[surfnturf]

Just recently acquired this really clean and original 1968 New Yorker. Northern California car it's entire life, I have found a bunch of original papers with the car. It's had a history of two families before me. It was driven until 2014 then It sat on non-op. Must have been under a tarp for some time because the interior is moldy and has surface rust on the ceilings and trim pieces, as well as the inside of the trunk top. Everything else on the car is completely solid. I was looking for a classic prestige car to turn into a daily driver, and look cool at the same time, I'm a Ford guy, but this car came up and everything looked good and the price was right for a car this age that is running. So I am new to the Mopar world and am going to be learning as I go. I intend to build this car into something that I can use daily for short commuting and longer trips, and not cringe about it being in traffic or on our modern destroyed roads. View attachment 632969View attachment 632970View attachment 632971View attachment 632972

Just recently acquired this really clean and original 1968 New Yorker. Northern California car it's entire life, I have found a bunch of original papers with the car. It's had a history of two families before me. It was driven until 2014 then It sat on non-op. Must have been under a tarp for some time because the interior is moldy and has surface rust on the ceilings and trim pieces, as well as the inside of the trunk top. Everything else on the car is completely solid. I was looking for a classic prestige car to turn into a daily driver, and look cool at the same time, I'm a Ford guy, but this car came up and everything looked good and the price was right for a car this age that is running. So I am new to the Mopar world and am going to be learning as I go. I intend to build this car into something that I can use daily for short commuting and longer trips, and not cringe about it being in traffic or on our modern destroyed roads. View attachment 632969View attachment 632970View attachment 632971View attachment 632972

I did the same as you and purchased a clean low mileage original. I’ve been driving it about 3-4 days a week since I bought it. It’s been a dream to drive and extremely reliable. I started out with shorter trips, and then increasing the distance and frequency as my confidence has been gaining. It’s bone stock with points and drum brakes, but starts every time with a quick bump of the ignition switch and effortless stops straight. I’ll be upgrading to Disc brakes and do a petronix conversion soon… but so far everything has been working great. Still feels like a new car.