The 300 is (Finally) Here

[Boomer]

The truck arrived yesterday mid-morning. Had to meet him a couple miles away because he couldn't get up my driveway due to trees and such. There's a much longer story here as I ended up having to go directly to a trucking company instead of using a broker (should've done this first, not last), but live and learn. It was my first long haul.

It was amusing to see the old dinosaur on the bottom row surrounded by much newer vehicles. Looked like a caged beast.

Got it home and discovered many things are not what they seemed or as stated, mainly some rust issues. But I did buy it sight unseen aside from the seller's photos which left a lot to be desired. Yep - there's another story here, but in the end it's all on me anyhow since I wanted the car. And it's a cool car in reasonably decent shape. There are just a few more things that need to be addressed before the 'paint and upholstery' work I was planning on soon. Quite a few.

Only had one Christine moment, when a hinge let loose and the hood came crashing down while I was looking at the engine. Fortunately I wasn't too far inside so it just brushed my noggin and shoulder on its way by. Didn't know I could still move that fast.

Some quick shots from yesterday. Daughter LOVES it. Wife even thinks it 'looks okay'. We're moving in the right direction.

 

[300rag]

It's good when they finally arrive.

 

[bluefury361]

Arrival is always a high point, coupled with the mild disappointment of expectations not being met. Old cars always hold dark secrets that only the buyer can see. LOL.
It's a beauty though, You should have a lot of fun bringing it back and enjoying it.

 

[CanCritter]

Enjoy

 

[Ironwolf]

Yeahhhhhhhhhhhhhh there is nothing better like that feeling of seeing your new purchase arriving to you on a transporter for the first time............. ccasion14:

Best of luck with her and hope to see many progress pictures.

 

[Joe Sportone]

happy day! Congratulations. What are your plans for the car?

 

[Zymurgy]

Sweet looks like a nicely optioned 300. I see a performance indicator, everybody thinks I added it myself, that are not used to seeing an older Chrysler.

 

[1978 NYB]

Very cool car! Enjoy!!!

 

[live4theking]

Nice score. What got me excited is that your little girl likes it. She looks to be about 3 or so. My 3, 5, & 7 year olds want to go to the garage with me every time I go out to work on the 68 NYer. She'll pepper you with questions. Enjoy it while you can.

 

[65sporty]

Congrats on your car and it's arrival, look foward to more pic's as your work progresses

 

[Scrap Metal]

she looks so good!!!!!

 

[BigCRig]

congrats on the 300! buckets console excellent candidate to restore and enjoy. btw beautiful little girl you are Blessed Sir.

 

[detmatt]

Man I love a '66 300 and yours is no exception!

 

[Ron Swampson]

Very sweet ride.................What are your plans for it?

 

[Boomer]

Thanks for the encouraging comments! Have to admit, I was a bit bummed out at first - not enough to set fire to it, just disappointed that a chunk of the budget will get chewed up on items that I thought didn't exist. But it really is a neat car with some interesting options and yes - I just love the lines of the '65 & '66 300 too. This thing looks like it's doing 80 parked in the driveway.

The plan is to clean the old rig up, get it reliable and safe, repair/paint the body and redo the interior. Not looking to participate at Pebble Beach, and not looking for an Earl Sheib patch-n-paint either. Just a good, straight, clean driver.

Some might recall the original problems beyond cosmetics were: non-working fuel gauge, cracked windshield, leaky heater core. The list has grown a bit since arrival. By far, the worst has to be the passenger side floor pan. Seller mentioned the carpet was 'a bit discolored from the heater core leak and there might be some rust under there'. He should've said 'the carpet is rotted and brittle, and there might be some floor under it'. Replacement pan is around $65, not a big deal if you can weld. I can't, don't know anyone who does body welding, which is why I asked a lot of questions and tried to avoid getting a car needing serious surgery. But I bought it from 2900 miles away because it was a cool car worth rebuilding, and the price plus shipping is around or a bit more what I could find one closer with a bit of rust for. So it's awash there and I'll figure it out.

Really wanted to get the tank/sender unit dealt with first, but the optional guillotine hood really needs to be dealt with before it kills me. Spent almost three hours on it last night, had it almost back together when *TWANG* - off it came again. Looks like the hinge is bent and those spring nuts or whatever they're called that are supposed to keep it on the pivot pin leave a bit to be desired.

Planning to put the hub caps back on and give it a bath tonight. Not that it will improve the paint job, but there's a lot of black crud on it from where ever it sat. Will post a shot afterward, then back to work on it.

And yes - Princess Crumbcrusher will be 3 in November. Just started preschool last week. She calls this her preschool car since it was supposed to replace the Ford Ranger she rides to school in now. She set a small rock from the driveway up on the back deck. Wife says that's her way of claiming it. Fortunately she hasn't quite figured out yet that she's the center of my universe. She does ride with me on the Farmall when I mow, but I'm trying reeeeeally hard not to make her into a tomboy.

 

[thrashingcows]

Congrats on the new car. I have bought 3 cars sight unseen and fared pretty well with the conditions.

Get yourself a small 120V Lincoln wire feed mig welder and start practicing on scrap metal...you'll be surprised how quickly you'll learn to weld. ;)

 

[polara71]

I also bought three sight unseen. One was a bargain, the other two were bad deals. I haven't learned my lesson though

 

[Boomer]

I definitely liked the car more and more as time passed, from first seeing the ad and thinking 'not practical, too far away' to finding a way to get it. It's probably easier to take leave of your senses a bit when you've convinced yourself what a great car it is and how much you really need it.

Got the hub caps back on and scrubbed the crud off it. Aside from the screwed up hood hinge, it doesn't look half bad from a distance. Hub caps need paint and one center cap, but just couldn't resist putting them back on for now.

Planning to tackle the hinge again over the weekend. Thinking of drilling the pivot pin to install a cotter pin and washer once it's back on. The spring nut didn't impress me after the third time it came off.

 

[Fratzog]

Congratulations. Look forward to your updates.