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-   -   My '55 Dodge Kingsway 'Rustoration' (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/post-war/148270-my-55-dodge-kingsway-rustoration-5.html)

In one of our scrapyard trips, we chanced upon a set of Engine mounts, which come on the gearbox side of the block.



They were in original packing, and the rubber was intact!clap:

In the same place, we also chanced upon a brand new Counter gear for the 3 speed box.

I have picked up the same, even though my gearbox was in good shape. If any Bhp-ians need it for their Dodge/Plymouth/Desoto, can PM me. This is a vital part for most cars which were dieselized.








The old rubber beadings on the front and rear windshield were hard and rotten. We procured a set of so called 'original beadings' from a parts supplier in india, and they turned out to be duds.

The moment it was kept on the car, it started cracking.:Frustrati

It was then decided to import an original set, because if we use some local beadings, it would be impossible to attach the several beautiful chrome trim pieces on to it.

The car was painted, with only final cutting pending. We now started to set the interiors.




Soon the completely restored and painted dashboard, with all the original meters refurbished, was put in. Along with the front and rear seats. The ashtray in the rear of the front seat too was put back in. Carpets were kept for later.






An interesting part in this car was the rear boot support.

There are no metal rods or springs to lift and hold up the boot door in place. Instead it uses a system of 2 torsion rods which twist when the boot lid is opened.

That system was again damaged in our car. The easier option would have been to move to a rod system, but instead we decided to go the original route and make the torsion beams ourselves.

The specs were matched by my in house tinker and the system works beautifully.





A rear shot of the partially assembled car. Note the freshly installed roofliner poking out of the rear window.

Dear JayD, Congrats for restoring a classic so nicely. Your efforts and the dedication of your team has made this car relive it's glorious past. I have always been interested in restoring and external modification jobs and I really like the way your car has shaped up. Very neat and precise job done.

Thanks

AD

Really a great job JayD. Your father's and your commitment to restore this car deserve some rich praise. The scale of work has made you guys work harder to achieve the goal of bring back as close to originality as possible.

Super super effort.

Cheers

KPS

Brilliant choice of colours - The green and white makes it looks real classic, and the brown seats just adds to it! Your strictness on keeping the original, even for the boot lid opener is commendable!

Great outcome JayD!
Its come up wonderful finally, worth all your Efforts clap:

I do have couple of queries as well..
The tail lights look a bit dull, as the body got colored up.
Will they be freshened up as well?
I could see the Gear box missing on the Platform. Is this yet to be fixed or does the car have a steering column mounted one?

Thank you! :)

Thanks a ton sir! Im sure you will like the final outcome too!

Thank you!The car was originally green, hence decided to keep the same, but with a slight custom twist.

Originality was the key word for this resto, and im happy to say we have achieved almost 99%. Only a few more things are pending, which will be added soon!

The tail lights are cleaned up, and look slightly brighter now. The lughts of the 'Low Fin' model are much harder to get, hence im using the original ones from '55.

The gear lever is column mounted.

The steering system in this car employs a Worm and Roller system.
The worm gear in our car was slightly damaged, which was hampering smooth operation of the steering.

During one of our trips, searching for parts, we found a new set, which was put in. The steering now feels like factory fit, and the auto center return works brilliantly.




The front Park light/indicator lenses were yellowed with age. Brand new ones were not available, so a mold was made of the original one, and new ones were made using it! clap:

And we move on to the last segment of the resto.

The straight 6 motor, in all its glory. Finally in its rightful place. Under the hood of the King!







The original air cleaner is still pending its place in the engine bay. Hopefully will be able to add that soon.


Check out the startup and idle of the engine in the video.

http://youtu.be/mcmLcl_p_AE

Hats off to you JayD. What a remarkable restoration. Its just amazing to see such an elegant car being brought back to life, and being brought back this way and to such detail. clap:

:thumbs up
MaSh

The Complete strip down bodywork, paint, mechanicals, wheels, brakes, suspension and interiors have been shown till now.

Without further ado, i present to you, the labour of love- The King!












The pics have lost quite a bit of clarity, as i had to compress high res to meet forum rules. Ill be sharing an album with the high res shots soon.

The Interiors of the King! New seats, Door cards, Roofliner, fully detailed dash with all the meters restored. The carpets will probably go on next weekend!

*Again, it seems that compressing the images has caused it to go blurry at places, Ill upload the High res pics on Picasa.

Last but not the least, This thread wont be complete without thanking My Dad, for all his support, and direct involvement in the project, trips to hunt parts, sitting up late nights, poring over the parts manual to find the right parts to order, and a whole lot more! My Mom, for not losing her cool, when her garden was partially destroyed with car stuff, and for putting up with all the noise and mess for over 2 years! Not to mention, the numerous teas and food to the entire crew! clap:

Its been a mindblowing experience overall, and i hope you guys enjoyed reading it, as much as i enjoyed working on it and sharing with all of you!:)

A very beautiful restoration,the car looks fabulous with a very stock and original look.
Perhaps some pictures of the rear too.

Awesome bro!!Congratulations.:thumbs up

No words to express the respect for your entire family in getting this baby to the outside world. Mind blowing some inspirational job done here. Hats off to the team who has worked hard on this day and night.

Its party time now buddy!! Enjoy.clap: