1972 Dodge Charger SE bring it back to life

[Kobrak]

Thought I should start a thread here on my 1972 Charger SE. The car has an interesting story that I thought some folks might appreciate. The car was a barn find car I guess, although it was stored inside for most of its life. The story starts a few months back when my cousin gets a call out of the blue from the son of an old boss he worked for many years ago. The son asked my cousin if he could store a few cars over at his place as his dads girl friend had someone push the cars outside and was starting to sell parts off of the cars. A few days go by and the cars arrived. A Testarossa, Pantera, ZR1 Vette, 32 Ford Vicki, and the Charger. I had flown out to my cousins place to take in a few car events including the Mecum auction. This was back in August. I took one look at the car and bought it.
So the car had been through a few things back when it was driven a bit, about 1 month after he bought it new, the car was keyed. So the car has one re-paint. About three months after he got the car it was gone from his driveway after a night of partying with a coupla gals. After the police report was filed and a few days passed, the gals returned with the car none the worst for wear.
At some point he bought a wrecked 71 Rally with a 440 6 pack in it and swapped the hood along with all the 6 pack parts. That is how I received the car. The odometer shows about 4.5 miles on it, but as several members have pointed out it is doubtful that is is actual miles due to a few items related to the odo as not being original. #1 is the bezel in the car which I guess wasn't available in 72.

Anyway, that is the background of the car, it is in nice shape for sure, but it did sit outside for about two years and it shows. The very first thing I will be doing is an engine soak as seeing how it sat for well over twenty years, the engine is stuck! The other day I did manage to get the plugs out, and then last night I filled each cylinder with Knock'er loose (s). We'll see how it goes! I pulled the radiator out as I'll have it pressure tested before re-install.

The car has a few neat options on it. The car has the 440 HiPo along with the automatic. Front and rear sway bars, factory sun roof, AC, tinted glass, power windows, black vinyl top, dual racing mirrors, and concealed headlamps. A few other items that I don't understand how to decode the trim tag.

Also, enclosed are two pics that show a Gear Vendors Over/Under drive box and what seems to be a factory cassette deck with a mic option?!?! I don't have the Mic though.

So I had also thought the tires were original to the car, but if I am decoding them correctly, it seems the date is 13th week of 1979.



Anyway, the plan is to get the engine to rotate, then throw some new plugs/wires at it. get it to fire and then drop the oil and check the trans fluid etc. I think the rear trans seal is shot, I'll need to replace it. The biggest issue right now is the wiring. Not sure what they were trying to accomplish as the steering column was just hanging there and a bunch of wires are disconnected. I now have a FSM on order so I can start tracing things out. I know for whatever reason the cruise connector is not hooked up and I can't find the other end that goes through the fire wall. misc other connectors under the dash are hanging there. I haven't even looked at the brakes yet, but it does have some brake as I used them to get it off the trailer.


I appreciate the help so far on a few questions I've asked on this forum. I haven't owned a Mopar since I was very young!!

 

[pnora]

Make sure there is not something else causing the motor not to turn over. You can take the belts loose to make sure something else is not stuck.

 

[ckessel]

Welcome from the left coast. I thought Knock'er Loose was unrestrained boobs.

 

[Charger72]

Nice to see another SE; welcome to the site, you will definitely get a lot of input from this knowledgeable crowd. Love the look of the black SE's.

 

[Kobrak]

Welcome from the left coast. I thought Knock'er Loose was unrestrained boobs.

BWAHAHAHAHAHA! to funny!

 

[khryslerkid]

I'd also pull the valve covers and see what things look like. An engine sitting outside can go through a lot of condensation and it could be really rusty. If all looks good, spraying some of that Knocker Loose around the lifters and valve springs and rockers will help also. If something in the valve train is stuck while turning the crank you'll bend pushrods.

Good luck

 

[Kobrak]

I'd also pull the valve covers and see what things look like. An engine sitting outside can go through a lot of condensation and it could be really rusty. If all looks good, spraying some of that Knocker Loose around the lifters and valve springs and rockers will help also. If something in the valve train is stuck while turning the crank you'll bend pushrods.

Good luck

Excellent point, I'll see if I can get to them tonight.

 

[Kobrak]

Thought I should start a thread here on my 1972 Charger SE. The car has an interesting story that I thought some folks might appreciate. The car was a barn find car I guess, although it was stored inside for most of its life. The story starts a few months back when my cousin gets a call out of the blue from the son of an old boss he worked for many years ago. The son asked my cousin if he could store a few cars over at his place as his dads girl friend had someone push the cars outside and was starting to sell parts off of the cars. A few days go by and the cars arrived. A Testarossa, Pantera, ZR1 Vette, 32 Ford Vicki, and the Charger. I had flown out to my cousins place to take in a few car events including the Mecum auction. This was back in August. I took one look at the car and bought it.
So the car had been through a few things back when it was driven a bit, about 1 month after he bought it new, the car was keyed. So the car has one re-paint. About three months after he got the car it was gone from his driveway after a night of partying with a coupla gals. After the police report was filed and a few days passed, the gals returned with the car none the worst for wear.
At some point he bought a wrecked 71 Rally with a 440 6 pack in it and swapped the hood along with all the 6 pack parts. That is how I received the car. The odometer shows about 4.5 miles on it, but as several members have pointed out it is doubtful that is is actual miles due to a few items related to the odo as not being original. #1 is the bezel in the car which I guess wasn't available in 72.

Anyway, that is the background of the car, it is in nice shape for sure, but it did sit outside for about two years and it shows. The very first thing I will be doing is an engine soak as seeing how it sat for well over twenty years, the engine is stuck! The other day I did manage to get the plugs out, and then last night I filled each cylinder with Knock'er loose (s). We'll see how it goes! I pulled the radiator out as I'll have it pressure tested before re-install.

The car has a few neat options on it. The car has the 440 HiPo along with the automatic. Front and rear sway bars, factory sun roof, AC, tinted glass, power windows, black vinyl top, dual racing mirrors, and concealed headlamps. A few other items that I don't understand how to decode the trim tag.

Also, enclosed are two pics that show a Gear Vendors Over/Under drive box and what seems to be a factory cassette deck with a mic option?!?! I don't have the Mic though.

So I had also thought the tires were original to the car, but if I am decoding them correctly, it seems the date is 13th week of 1979.



Anyway, the plan is to get the engine to rotate, then throw some new plugs/wires at it. get it to fire and then drop the oil and check the trans fluid etc. I think the rear trans seal is shot, I'll need to replace it. The biggest issue right now is the wiring. Not sure what they were trying to accomplish as the steering column was just hanging there and a bunch of wires are disconnected. I now have a FSM on order so I can start tracing things out. I know for whatever reason the cruise connector is not hooked up and I can't find the other end that goes through the fire wall. misc other connectors under the dash are hanging there. I haven't even looked at the brakes yet, but it does have some brake as I used them to get it off the trailer.


I appreciate the help so far on a few questions I've asked on this forum. I haven't owned a Mopar since I was very young!!

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Well then, not what I was expecting when I removed the Valve Covers:

 

[Kobrak]

Well then, not what I was expecting when I removed the Valve Covers:

Also dropped the oil and I am guessing about a gallon of water came out. It is going to be a long road...........lol. The heads don't look bad, I have them soaking now. I'll tap on each lifter tomorrow to see how things are.

 

[khryslerkid]

Yeah, that needs a total tear down. The block needs to be cooked then magnafluxed for cracks in case it had been exposed to freezing temperatures. I wouldn't try to start it even if you get it to turn over.

 

[sdweatherman]

Factory sunroof is a pretty rare option on these cars. I would love to verify that it is truly factory - I do the Mopar Sunroof Registry. Check out the fender data tag when you have some time. The very last code on the second line from the bottom will be a six digit code. For factory sunroof cars that code will start with G70. Great find, and good luck with getting it back in running shape!
Scott.

 

[Rennkafer]

So I had also thought the tires were original to the car, but if I am decoding them correctly, it seems the date is 13th week of 1979.

Not sure how I missed this originally... date codes weren't required on tires until 2000, so it's more likely they're from 2009.

Gorgeous car, should be a fun project though from the locked engine/water in the oil, it may be an expensive one.

 

[Kobrak]

Factory sunroof is a pretty rare option on these cars. I would love to verify that it is truly factory - I do the Mopar Sunroof Registry. Check out the fender data tag when you have some time. The very last code on the second line from the bottom will be a six digit code. For factory sunroof cars that code will start with G70. Great find, and good luck with getting it back in running shape!
Scott.

Scott, the fender tag reads G70308?

 

[sdweatherman]

Scott, the fender tag reads G70308?

Bingo. That vehicle order number verifies that the car came with the power sunroof from the factory. If you have a few minutes, check out my site at: www.moparsunroofregistry.com if you would like to know more about that particular option. Thanks!
Scott.

 

[Kobrak]

Thought I should do a quick update on the process of bringing the car out of mothballs and back to life. Not much of an update unfortunately as I've been busy getting ready for winter up here in the great white north!

Shout out to sdweatherman (Scott) for all of the valuable info on my car! Helped a bunch. My car is now the 25th registered 72 Dodge Charger SE to be added to the factree Sunroof register on his website. Not sure it is acceptable to ad the website? Speaking of Sunroofs, I wa pretty worried about what kind of shape mine was in as the vinyl was compromised from sitting outside for a year or two. The first pic shows what it looks like after I removed the vinyl that was left. All that rusty color is mainly due to the old glue I think? The bottom line is I will not have to replace any mettle. huge relief.

To avoid having to start on the motor I instead started with de-smelling the car. Because it sat outside for an extended period, it smelled. It smelled bad! lol! It had a moldy mildew stench mixed in with a hint of mice and wet carpet. Now, for anyone that has these types of smells.......anywhere, pay attention! Go get yourself one of these boxes (second pic). I call it the magic box. The car now smells excellent. I set it to the highest setting and ran it for 48 hours.

The next pics are of the trunk. I'm a bit disappointed, as the spare is gone. Not sure where I'll ever find one of those. You can see the person that owned it for whatever reason thought it would be a good idea to spray the jack Moper engine blue. Oh well. It did clean up very nice, you can see the had purchased an aftermarket rug for it along with a shot of the rear defrost unit. It even has a fancy spare tire cover.

Next pic is of the drivers door inside. What a mess. It seems they were chasing electric gremlins and tore it apart. I did ohm out the switch and it is just fine. I'll no more once I light the car up.

I also did do an initial clean on the back seats along with all the plastic trim and the head liner. It was pretty dirty and also had some white mold. It did clean up very well. Carpet is a bit faded, but in good enough shape to keep. One thing that was a bummer is the build sheet. At first I didn't think it was under the rear seat, but then after starting to vacuum things out and clean, I found what was left of it. Suxs....

One thing I'm just not sure about right now is the 6 pack. As you all know, this car did not come with a 6 pack, it was a 4 barrel car. I'm not a motor guy and I'm not sure how it will drive with that 6 pack. I need to figure out if I want to keep it, or go back to a 4 barrel setup. Or for that matter a Holly Sniper.

Heading over to Utah for a bit so there will be no work on the car. Once back, we are going to be into winter full on so no more excuses!

 

[sdweatherman]

Not a buildsheet - but it is something else that gets found in these cars once in a while. A Mopar super expert should be able to tell you what that sheet was. I defer for now.
Scott.

 

[Kobrak]

Thanks again Scott! so there is still hope. I guess I'll look under the front seats next?

 

[sdweatherman]

Thanks again Scott! so there is still hope. I guess I'll look under the front seats next?

The usual places are - rear seat back and under rear seat, in the bottom seat springs of the buckets and sometimes behind the hard seat back, under the carpet (usually deteriorated), up inside the headliner (rare), and taped to the upper backside of the glove box insert. Good luck!

 

[Rennkafer]

The usual places are - rear seat back and under rear seat, in the bottom seat springs of the buckets and sometimes behind the hard seat back, under the carpet (usually deteriorated), up inside the headliner (rare), and taped to the upper backside of the glove box insert. Good luck!

I just found what was left of mine under the front seat... they hid the things all over.

 

[Kobrak]

Thought I should start a thread here on my 1972 Charger SE. The car has an interesting story that I thought some folks might appreciate. The car was a barn find car I guess, although it was stored inside for most of its life. The story starts a few months back when my cousin gets a call out of the blue from the son of an old boss he worked for many years ago. The son asked my cousin if he could store a few cars over at his place as his dads girl friend had someone push the cars outside and was starting to sell parts off of the cars. A few days go by and the cars arrived. A Testarossa, Pantera, ZR1 Vette, 32 Ford Vicki, and the Charger. I had flown out to my cousins place to take in a few car events including the Mecum auction. This was back in August. I took one look at the car and bought it.
So the car had been through a few things back when it was driven a bit, about 1 month after he bought it new, the car was keyed. So the car has one re-paint. About three months after he got the car it was gone from his driveway after a night of partying with a coupla gals. After the police report was filed and a few days passed, the gals returned with the car none the worst for wear.
At some point he bought a wrecked 71 Rally with a 440 6 pack in it and swapped the hood along with all the 6 pack parts. That is how I received the car. The odometer shows about 4.5 miles on it, but as several members have pointed out it is doubtful that is is actual miles due to a few items related to the odo as not being original. #1 is the bezel in the car which I guess wasn't available in 72.

Anyway, that is the background of the car, it is in nice shape for sure, but it did sit outside for about two years and it shows. The very first thing I will be doing is an engine soak as seeing how it sat for well over twenty years, the engine is stuck! The other day I did manage to get the plugs out, and then last night I filled each cylinder with Knock'er loose (s). We'll see how it goes! I pulled the radiator out as I'll have it pressure tested before re-install.

The car has a few neat options on it. The car has the 440 HiPo along with the automatic. Front and rear sway bars, factory sun roof, AC, tinted glass, power windows, black vinyl top, dual racing mirrors, and concealed headlamps. A few other items that I don't understand how to decode the trim tag.

Also, enclosed are two pics that show a Gear Vendors Over/Under drive box and what seems to be a factory cassette deck with a mic option?!?! I don't have the Mic though.

So I had also thought the tires were original to the car, but if I am decoding them correctly, it seems the date is 13th week of 1979.



Anyway, the plan is to get the engine to rotate, then throw some new plugs/wires at it. get it to fire and then drop the oil and check the trans fluid etc. I think the rear trans seal is shot, I'll need to replace it. The biggest issue right now is the wiring. Not sure what they were trying to accomplish as the steering column was just hanging there and a bunch of wires are disconnected. I now have a FSM on order so I can start tracing things out. I know for whatever reason the cruise connector is not hooked up and I can't find the other end that goes through the fire wall. misc other connectors under the dash are hanging there. I haven't even looked at the brakes yet, but it does have some brake as I used them to get it off the trailer.


I appreciate the help so far on a few questions I've asked on this forum. I haven't owned a Mopar since I was very young!!

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Finally had a chance to do a little wrenching yesterday on the Charger. The plan was to remove the heads and also drop the pan. I was pretty much expecting what I found. Enclosed is the pic. Looks like the mota comes out. Here is what I believe happened to cause the water in the mota. Seems whomever thought it was a great idea to put the 6 pack setup on the car never really finished the job. Pretty much ever bolt I touched yesterday was not tightened. The heads did seem to have been torqued properly, but that was about it. Exhaust manifolds were loose, the alternator was loose, along with the AC compressor. My Hypothesis is they worked on the car, never closed the hood and had the air cleaner off. The intake valves that were open filled with water. I'm stuck on getting the drivers side head off as there is one exhaust manifold bolt I can't get a wrench on. It is the one that recessed (last one all the back towards the firewall) and about 1/2 inch from the steering column. Any ideas on how to get to it is appreciated. Maybe I need to remove the Engine mount bolt on that side and jack it up just enough to get a wrench on it?
Anywho, a good start on the tear down. Once I get the other head off, I'll take them to "Dave at Napa" as he is really good at what he does. Once I get the pan dropped I'll send pics of what the bottom end looks like.