IT CAN BE DONE!!! Swapping a 69 Satellite/Roadrunner Grill to a 68 (or reverse)

[69 Sleeper Bee]

 

[MarkLevi]

Bullshit posts.......

LOL - Well...I can add one of those.....

@VitaMeVas - Fun fact - I rebuilt my IH1206 tractor (among other things) in the pole barn shop (in your opening pic) where you drove the car out of. Coors Tire and Devil's head on the wall (if you even noticed them) are my handiwork. Have known Dan's wife Deb for many years - long before she was widowed and then remarried. Never got to see that car in person before he sold it after relocating back from Colorado.

Small world

 

[69 Sleeper Bee]

Great thread !
Nice work and shows how it can be done.

I will say you can safely buy parts on this forum from well known established members with no problem at all.
Shipping cost is crazy $'s right now though.

 

[Runner 68]

Great work for sure but....why?
With enough money and time I could build a 70 Cuda from a 72 Challenger but why?

 

[Kern Dog]

Great work for sure but....why?
With enough money and time I could build a 70 Cuda from a 72 Challenger but why?

To me, it looks like he wanted the car to have the proper grille for the year model. It is clear that his way was a LOT cheaper than buying correct '68 Fenders.

 

[69 Sleeper Bee]

Post #1 says he bought a 68 that the PO had a 69 front end on. He is just bringing it back to original on the cheap except for the time but he did it. He is going to cut and replace the side marker lights next back to original.

 

[66 Sat]

Great work for sure but....why?
With enough money and time I could build a 70 Cuda from a 72 Challenger but why?

Well it seemed obvious to me why he did the work from reading the initial post - he's got a 68 Satellite with a 69 front end, so he wanted to make it proper. He also said he'd already done the job and was putting it out there for others who may want to do the same so good on him.

Seek first to understand...

 

[VitaMeVas]

View attachment 1380922

Sure did! But I think everyone is good now. **Jeremy finishes wiping the entrails from his trident and goes into hiding**


PSSSTTT!! Jeremy is me. .... I'm Jeremy .....
....incase anyone was confused. Carry on. **Jeremy slowly fades back into hedges 'Homer Simpson' style**

 

[VitaMeVas]

LOL - Well...I can add one of those.....

@VitaMeVas - Fun fact - I rebuilt my IH1206 tractor (among other things) in the pole barn shop (in your opening pic) where you drove the car out of. Coors Tire and Devil's head on the wall (if you even noticed them) are my handiwork. Have known Dan's wife Deb for many years - long before she was widowed and then remarried. Never got to see that car in person before he sold it after relocating back from Colorado.

Small world

Very cool. I love knowing stuff like that. I periodically send Dan pics of the car (my boys call her Satie). He had a great engine built for the car (in Colorado). But never did any of the suspension/bushings/brakes.... on it. He built a rocket without a parachute. It's worked great for me because I got to do all those things and figure out torsion suspension at the same time. After all the bushings/leaf springs/shackles/swaybars/alignment, my wife drove the car a few times (she's not into 'old' cars) and said it needed power brakes. Put in brake booster with front disc brakes and the rims were too small (14") so the wife picked out new wheels and of course had to get new tires to fit them. Funny how that works.

We bought the car from Dan just before Father's Day a few years ago. We attempted to drive it 300 miles to Iowa. Made it 100 miles before the belts all flew off. Wife helped me get the (now twisted) belts back on in a parking lot. Made it another 20 miles and the coil blew and it was 10 pm. I called 'uncle' and we had it towed the rest of the way home. Got home at 0200 on Father's Day and I had the time of my life. Nothing worth it is easy.

 

[VitaMeVas]

Great work for sure but....why?
With enough money and time I could build a 70 Cuda from a 72 Challenger but why?

KernDog, 69 Sleeper Bee, and 66 Sat are all correct. The additional truth is 2-fold. I always wanted to learn how to work on cars but was a band geek in high school. Had a buddy with a 72 Olds Cutlass and did 1/4 mile races a lot. Then I wasted a lot of time in college learning medical stuff. So I started learning from books and the internet. I always seem to end up doing it the 'hard-way' but I enjoy getting pissed off and learning from it.
I enjoy learning as I go. The 2nd reason is that I have pallets and pallets of gold bars and $$ in my garage and they keep getting in the way of me storing new parts and fenders. Anyone want my address?

 

[Kern Dog]

I like your enthusiasm. I'll be watching you.

 

[VitaMeVas]

I like your enthusiasm. I'll be watching you.

View attachment 1381059

Then get your popcorn. It can be a real s4!tshow. Just be ready to dodge flying tools.

 

[Photon440]

This tutorial was actually pretty well done, including the court room zoomed in photos. But in truth, the title threw me, I originally thought that this was going to be showing how to convert a 69 Satellite/Roadrunner Grill to a 68 (or reverse) rather than how to install a 68 grill into 69 fenders. I thought it was about converting the actual grill, which would have been nearly impossible.

​

 

[MarkLevi]

...a rocket without a parachute.

This, to me, pretty much sums up the Mopar Muscle of the vintage - and is likely why that car needed a new front end in the first place! Between marginal brakes and steering, and Mopar frame and 1/4 rust....two cars ultimately become one.....

 

[R413]

the title threw me, I originally thought that this was going to be showing how to convert a 69 Satellite/Roadrunner Grill to a 68 (or reverse) rather than how to install a 68 grill into 69 fenders. I thought it was about converting the actual grill, which would have been nearly impossible.

​

This is exactly what my first post was saying. I missed the idea.

read more, post less.

 

[VitaMeVas]

This tutorial was actually pretty well done, including the court room zoomed in photos. But in truth, the title threw me, I originally thought that this was going to be showing how to convert a 69 Satellite/Roadrunner Grill to a 68 (or reverse) rather than how to install a 68 grill into 69 fenders. I thought it was about converting the actual grill, which would have been nearly impossible.

​

FINE!! I changed ‘converting’ in the thread title to ‘swapping’. Is that better? It sure as s4!t didn’t make it any easier to do.

 

[Photon440]

FINE!! I changing ‘converting’ in the thread title to ‘swapping’. Is that better? It sure as s4!t didn’t make it any easier to do.

Great, now you just made part of my post unnecessary.

 

[VitaMeVas]

Great, now you just made part of my post unnecessary.

Somehow that makes it way worth it.

 

[Photon440]

Somehow that makes it way worth it.

I have a feeling that I'm going to enjoy a lot of the stuff you post on here.

 

[VitaMeVas]

I have a feeling that I'm going to enjoy a lot of the stuff you post on here.

That’s entirely possible. Most people think I’m funny until hour 12 when they tell me I need to go back home.