Grendel lives...resurrection of a 1970 Charger 500

RJ Squirrel said:

OEM Mopar Instrument Dash Light Socket /Bulb 20-pc Kit Dodge Plymouth 1962-'79 | eBay

R/T specialties.net has them too

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EDIT: Unfortunately these didn't work. The T5 bulbs fit fine, but the plastic housing outside diameter is only 18mm; the original housing diameter is about 23mm so these Amazon units are too small for the hole in the circuit board.

I found these on Amazon, they look correct. And only $13.59 CAD for 10. I only need one but spares would be nice. I'm also replacing the bulbs with LEDs.

10x T10 194 Socket for Instrument Panel Dash Light Car Gauge Cluster Bulbs Base Bulb Holder Twist Lock 12V, Pigtails & Sockets - Amazon Canada

I finally got one of my Procar Scat Sportsman seats installed today. All that work to fabricate a steel adapter bracket to fit the seats to the original seat tracks was worth it. I can't install the driver side seat until I finish the instrument panel and wiring.



Here it is slid all the way forward with the seat-back all the way forward; it doesn't fold quite as flat as the original Charger seats, but enough to make easy access for a backseat passenger:



And here's something the original seats won't do:

Since I had to pull the steering wheel to install a "new" leather wrap that I had sitting in my parts stash for 15+ years, I had a look at the steering wheel innards. Things were pretty grungy in there, so I gave it a spray with cleaner and carefully scrubbed everything with a soft paintbrush. Before/after:



And a pic of my wheel with a fresh new leather wrap to replace the old worn-out one that was on the wheel that I pulled from a 1971 Charger in a pick-and-pull many years ago. I like this wheel a lot more than the original '70 Charger wheel. It's more sporty looking and the faux woodgrain middle piece kind of matches my dash & console more. This may offend the purists but I think the original '70 wheel makes me feel like I'm driving a bus.

Coelacanth said:

I was wondering about reinstalling the headlight motor and concerned if I installed it without the rotation being centered, I'd turn on the lights and the motor would want to rotate the wrong direction and damage the motor. But reading the FSM, it's actually pretty easy.

With the motor removed, rotate the adjustment knob until 2 marks on the motor where the shaft rotates, are lined up. Run the square rod through the hole in the motor and install the motor onto the bracket. Slip on the V-shaped retaining clips on each end of the rod. Then, raise each headlight cover about halfway and slip each end of the rod into the headlight cover pivot shaft slot. Slip the retaining clips into position on the pivot shafts. Easy-peasy, easier than I expected.

You'll notice I didn't reuse the original height adjustment screws; even threaded all the way in, the headlight covers wouldn't line up enough, so I used some longer stainless hex-head screws. Now they line up perfectly.

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And now Grendel has her blacked-out goth grille completed.

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I've been following your progress and must say you're doing a great job. I been on the fence about getting the front and rear bumpers painted but seeing your car with the blacked out grill looks great.

Thanks Ray, I appreciate the comments. Dare to be different.

RJ Squirrel said:

OEM Mopar Instrument Dash Light Socket /Bulb 20-pc Kit Dodge Plymouth 1962-'79 | eBay

R/T specialties.net has them too

Click to expand...

To update this, the only spade-type bulbs used in the '70 Charger rallye dash are these 3 that use the twist-lock sockets. Fortunately my buddy had a few of these sockets so I can complete my instrument panel assembly and reinstall in the dash.

Looks like the new seats are set up for watching Submarine Races at the lake.

Wow, awesome how the car turned out! Great job!

Thanks guys, she's got a long way to go, but...making slow progress!

Instrument panel is finally reinstalled along with the steering wheel.



I still have one final mystery to solve; this grey wire and single spade connector coming out of the panel. I see no matching male connector anywhere. Looking at wiring diagrams and FSM pics, my closest guess and the only grey wire referenced is for the clock, which seems logical considering the position. Should there be a grey wire somewhere inside with a matching connector? I already have the push-on connector and spade connector for the Tic-Toc-Tach installed.

Coelacanth said:

Instrument panel is finally reinstalled along with the steering wheel.

View attachment 1926519

I still have one final mystery to solve; this grey wire and single spade connector coming out of the panel. I see no matching male connector anywhere. Looking at wiring diagrams and FSM pics, my closest guess and the only grey wire referenced is for the clock, which seems logical considering the position. Should there be a grey wire somewhere inside with a matching connector? I already have the push-on connector and spade connector for the Tic-Toc-Tach installed.

View attachment 1926522

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that grey wire went to a black wire on mine, it came from the wiring up by the emergency brake

I found the male connector, it was easy to miss because it's only a short 3 or 4" grey wire sprouting off the thick cable cluster, at the far end by the driver side. I was searching in vain for a long grey wire more centrally, but laying on my back looking up from under the steering column, I saw a bit of grey wire hanging down, almost totally invisible...I lifted it up and sure enough there was the male connector.

Seems kinda ironic to feel the need to connect the clock because in Canada, our cars sit in garages with no battery or battery disconnected most of the time, so the clock practically never works anyway.

Coelacanth said:

I found the male connector, it was easy to miss because it's only a short 3 or 4" grey wire sprouting off the thick cable cluster, at the far end by the driver side. I was searching in vain for a long grey wire more centrally, but laying on my back looking up from under the steering column, I saw a bit of grey wire hanging down, almost totally invisible...I lifted it up and sure enough there was the male connector.

Seems kinda ironic to feel the need to connect the clock because in Canada, our cars sit in garages with no battery or battery disconnected most of the time, so the clock practically never works anyway.

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i mean, if you are going to drive it, its easy to change when you get in

With the instrument panel finally reinstalled and everything connected, I was able to do some basic electrical tests. I have a few snags to iron out. The rear sidemarkers weren't working, which wasn't surprising as the housings need to ground to the body, and with the fresh paint, trunk rockerguard and fresh paint gaskets, there was no way for that to happen. I decided to cut a length of wire, crimped and soldered on some eyelets and made grounds to existing screws in the trunk floor.



Progress thus far of the driver side; steering column bolted back in with a fresh firewall gasket. Almost ready to put the driver seat in.



I discovered one of my Prestolite horns doesn't work, it just makes a barely audible sickly fart sound. The other horn works on both connectors, and the bad horn fails on both connectors, so it's not a grounding issue. It also has something small rattling around inside when I shake it. My buddy said to smack it with a hammer, one of his horns was doing the same thing. I'll give that a shot, can't make it worse...

One of the LEDs in the new hood signal indicators barely lights, but *is* working. The blinkers also seem to flash too quickly, usually that's a sign something is amiss. But all in all, the gauges all light up with the new green LEDs, the console courtesy lights are gorgeous, wipers are turning...mostly it's all good news but I won't be able to do a proper complete test until I can get the motor to crank. Not ready for that yet...