1979 Chrysler 300

[1970Moparmann]

I was told there is a good amount of 1975 - 1979 owners on this board.:headbang:

I just picked up a low mileage 79 300, and I'm sure I will have a ton of questions to ask.

The car originally wasn't what I was looking for, but after the owner kept following up with me on buying it, he came down a lot so I can get it.

I originally wanted a 75 - 79 Doba or a 78/79 Magnum. Everything I looked at was either out of my league for money, or needed more work than what I wanted to do. The one I have now I looked at about 5 weeks ago and had a lot going for it, but the negative was the price based on the amount of work it needs. I guess I was the only one that showed some interest in it, so he kept dropping the price to what I offered originally. To be honest with you, I'm surprised he took the offer.

The good -
35k miles. I verified with the the past owners
Interior is very good. Needs some minor dying, or paint, with a few panels.
Did I say 35k original miles - YEAH BABY.
For a Midwest car, the metal is very clean. Apparently the only time it was driven in winter was for the first few years of it's life.

Work needed -
Heater core is bad. Just bypassed right now.
The underside needs a good cleaning with a wire brush and detail. The car sat in a barn for a LONG time and the moisture did a number on the surface. The frame rails, floors, trunk are good.
The wiper motor works, but no movement. I heard there there is a plastic clip or something that needs to be replaced??
Some bad bodywork from a small accident on the back right quarter.

Plan, change all the fluids, go through EVERYTHING, and drive it. The back end of the car will need some paint help, and a friend who owns a Body Shop said since it's white, he'll be able to blend into the original paint. :headbang:

I'm planning on trying to retain as much of the original aspects as possible. The tires, battery, and possibly the exhaust are the only that I can tell have been replaced from the original parts.

After I drained the soup :angryfire: out of it yesterday, I put some new oil and some Lucas oil treatment and went for a cruise. The car is very tight and handled great. The carb definitely needs a good cleaning!

Overall, I'm really glad it worked out and looking forward to driving it!

Here are some pictures-

 

[1970Moparmann]

Oh yeah, by the way, can someone give me the skinny on the Lean Burn on it? What are the components that made up the system, just the electronic ignition components?

 

[WP29440SE]

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[WP29440SE]

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[snakeyes]

nice looking car and a very nice color combo :headbang::headbang:

 

[Mopars & Missiles]

Nice car. I test drove one of those brand new in Feb '80. Went back to the other dealer and bought the brand new '79 Magnum XE GT instead. Only mistake I made was selling it in 1991.

The Lean Burn system consists of -
Spark Control Computer
7 Sensors that feed the computer, Start Pickup, Run Pickup, Coolant Temperature Sensor, Air Temperature Sensor, Throttle Position Transducer, Carburetor Switch Sensor, and a Vacuum Transducer.
Also the Carburetor is specially calibrated for the Lean Burn system.

Schematic of the system below -

 

[1970Moparmann]

Wow - THANKS.

This looked like it was the start of what we see in todays cars. Pretty advanced for 79.

Of course pretty restrictive.

For those that bypass this and install the Mopar "regular" electronic ignition, what kind of bypass is needed?

 

[egrand1508]

Welcome and very nice find. This is a great site and you'll find lots of help here. I have really grown to appreciate the late 70's B's. I originally wanted a Magnum, but they are hard to find in good condition and I found a Cordoba that was, and for dirt cheap, so I went for it. The 300's were as close to a muscle car in the late 70's as you could get. A 360 with a 4 barrel, dual exhaust, 9 1/4 rear end with 3.23 gears, HD springs. You've got a lot of good stuff to work with.

As to the Lean Burn, when I got my car it was working at first. However, after a few months it started pinging at higher speeds, so I knew something was wrong. I dabble a little in old radios and electronics, so I wanted to learn all I could about it. There is a lot of information scattered on the internet about Lean Burn, and a lot of mis-information too.

To make a long story short, the only thing the Lean Burn computer controls is the timing at the distributor. That's it. I've read lots of posts claiming that it controls everything from the carburetor to the A/C. Don't believe it. It only controls the distributor. However, it does receive signals from different sensors around the engine. They are sensors only, and they feed into the computer in the plastic box on the air cleaner. This diagram might help you. By 1979 they were on the third generation Lean Burn and some things might be a little different. If you want more detail I can explain later.

The trouble is not that Lean Burn was a bad idea. In fact by the 80's all cars had computers doing the same stuff. It's just that the early electronics and sensors were not as good as they got to be later and the early systems were prone to failure. Most people today just change out the system to a standard distributor instead of working on the Lean Burn or trying to troubleshoot it. If you want I can go into doing that later too.

First thing for you to do is see if yours is still hooked up. Lift up the air cleaner and see if the wire harness is still hooked up to the box. If it has been converted the distributor will have a vacuum advance can on it too. If you car still runs good with it, I say keep it until it causes problems.

Hope all of this helps.

Ask lots of questions here, you'll get lots of help.

​

 

[egrand1508]

Ha, looks like M & M types a lot faster than I do.

The main difference with the two diagrams is that in 79 there was only one sensor in the distributor, instead of two in the earlier ones.

 

[1970Moparmann]

Awesome information! Good point to verify it is still hooked up. I was told this car is as original as possible, so I will see.

I won't be bashful with questions. THANKS A TON!

 

[Mopars & Missiles]

...If you car still runs good with it, I say keep it until it causes problems...

I agree 100% with this, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. But, I would be surprised if its still working correctly. Although you say only 35k, so maybe......

Ha, looks like M & M types a lot faster than I do.

The main difference with the two diagrams is that in 79 there was only one sensor in the distributor, instead of two in the earlier ones.

Yeah, I grabbed the '77 manual I had here in the office, my '79 manual is out in the shop. Sorry about that!

 

[WP29440SE]

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[egrand1508]

If you change then you have to get a new distributor because the Lean Burn one doesn't have vacuum or mechanical advance; and a new carb becuase the Thermoquads with lean burn don't have ported vacuum.

Another thing to think about is rebuilding the carb if you keep the Lean Burn. Anything that old is going to need it. A lot of problems that get attributed to the Lean Burn can also be caused by a bad carb.

Here is a thread about the wiper bushing. At the end is a way to order one.
http://www.forbbodiesonly.com/moparforum/showthread.php?t=22458&highlight=cordoba+wiper

 

[1970Moparmann]

If you change then you have to get a new distributor because the Lean Burn one doesn't have vacuum or mechanical advance; and a new carb becuase the Thermoquads with lean burn don't have ported vacuum.

Another thing to think about is rebuilding the carb if you keep the Lean Burn. Anything that old is going to need it. A lot of problems that get attributed to the Lean Burn can also be caused by a bad carb.

Here is a thread about the wiper bushing. At the end is a way to order one.
http://www.forbbodiesonly.com/moparforum/showthread.php?t=22458&highlight=cordoba+wiper

Awesome! Thanks again!

 

[Ron 73]

Very nice looking ride and it looks like that interior is a joy to ride in comfort.. Sure hope you get the problems worked out.. I admit i say or think the same when i see the interior in these because they do really look comfortable to me.. nice color combo on it! Have fun...

 

[YY1]

Sharp car.

I bought a running, driving 87 5th Ave for parts, and at 90K, the lean burn was working just fine.

...and at 55K, my 73 Satellite shows no signs of needing a carb rebuild.

 

[RustyRatRod]

In fact, I remember the local dealer converting many lean burn cars to standard electronic ignition systems back when I was a kid pumpin gas. Nobody wanted to hear that lean burn crap.

 

[cordoba-440-man]

VERY Nice

She Looks Very Clean Nice find :headbang:

 

[1970Moparmann]

Thanks guys. The thing about late model B bodies is they are still reasonable in price and out there. I was just thinking about all the Mopars I ever bought, and this one is by far the cheapest!

 

[WileE]

I had one of these back when they were just "used cars"... and I loved it. As I did on others, I scrapped the LB immediately, didn't wait for it to crap out. Put in an earlier TQ & tuned it. Car ran like a top. ( The worn driver seat bottom & rear bumper stains below the license didn't bother me. ) I hope you enjoy yours as much as I did mine.