'66 Coronet new guy project... reliability advice?

[CavalierX]

I am a new guy ( Did I just join a cult? 1966 Dodge Coronet ) I posted in the Welcome Wagon - but I am moving into the project now and updating here looking for any Advice on Reliability

My New to ME '66 Coronet 440 4D- with a: 440 upgrade, Edelbrock Streetmaster 440 intake, and a Holley ("80670-3" 670cfm Street Avenger ?I think?), an upgraded front end with: Earl's Disc brakes, heavier springs, shocks, bushings etc. (I can see the work, but I am still sorting it all out); I have a friend that owns the shop and its in there now. He is slow rolling the Coronet through the process of getting it running with the Friends/Family Discounts, and I am sourcing a lot of the parts myself with his advice and getting in the way when I can.

So... the goal is to getting it Running First (it does fire and run when hand fed):
*There is an ignition issue (no power to the coil from key). This looks like a simple fix, but is the reason the last guy parked it. You can tell he threw a new Ignition, Coil and Distributer at and then gave up (parts still laying on the floor with a brand new starter too - score!
*We need to Clean/Refresh/Reman the Gas System (it has been sitting for a couple years - ordered a new tank- pump- lifter tube- etc. since it all looks original and has a VERY dirty old red shop rag stuffed in the fill tube - lol). I am going to seal the new Tank exterior with ??? POR-15? or something like that so I never have to worry about it rusting from the god-awful Mag-Chloride they use on the roads here.
*Tires and Brakes- I am pretty sure the rears are leaking and are original drums. The previous guy has a set of older (still in great shape) American Racing Torq Thrusts 17" on the car running 215/45R17 ( I got a new set of Hankook Ventius V2 off Amazon for the win- but I am not crazy about the rubber-band tire look).

My buddy is not a "Mopar Guy" or really even a classic car guy... he doesn't see a lot of them in his shop, and he is too busy to micro manage the project and listen to me drone on about all the BS I see and hear while doing all the research etc. I am a Newer Mopar guy, not really a "Car Guy" in the common sense, but used to keeping older guys running and doing light restoration. I rehabbed a 1984 Volvo 244 with help and turned it into a cute little daily driver with IPD parts and a Customer 2" Exhaust that sounds like a lot more fun than the car is to actually drive. LoL

I am doing my research on my new '66, a little light reading her and there, and watching The Tube of You. I am picking up a few things and getting ducks in a row for after we "Get it running." I have a Plan to buff and seal the perfectly aged exterior, shine the chrome. Clean the interior, wipe it all down, patch the headliner (or buy a kit and just replace it), put some seat covers on the bottoms of the benches (always liked sheep skins). And I want to update the Headlights and wiring/pigtails - etc. so I can see the deer coming before they are in my lap. And I have replacement lens for the cracked tail lights on the way (Evil-bay).

I am asking myself what is next?
What are your top "Reliability" Upgrades or Recommendations?
I want to drive this old girl, chirp the tires, and take some family trips with her - where do you think my time and money be best spent based on your experiences?
I am kind of guessing on this stuff and still sifting through the big picture, but want an idea of what is next.

I am guessing:
Ignition/electrical upgrade/update would be high on the list; few things more annoying than electrical issues from bad grounds, corroded/jury-rigged connections, no start issues, INOP gauges, etc.
Creature comforts like Heat, noise, doors and windows (gaskets and seals).
Ride comfort- like swapping into something a little more reliable/sensible/comfortable than those 17" Wheels and Rubber-band tires. I would like something "period correct" like those Slotted Police Wheels with some dog dish caps and a tire with just a little bounce in it since the Government doesn't want to actually keep up with road maintenance.

Advice on reliability - comfort upgrades is appreciated.

There are so many options on things like ignition/distributors and whatnot -- its tough to gleam what I need for a driver/road-trip car as opposed to a restoration or hot rod/drag car. LoL.

Some Pics:

 

[Kern Dog]

As boring as it may seem, the closer to stock that you are, the more reliable it will be. That pertains to the engine and suspension.
Your car has torsion bars, not springs. these do essentially the same thing as a coil spring does but in a different way.
I'm not familiar with the "Streetmaster" intake but being a single plane, I'd expect it to not be a great intake for general purpose cruising like a dual plane would.
Old cars generate more noise than new cars. There are many reasons. The rain gutters on the roof, vent window frames, exposed windshield wipers, various stainless steel and aluminum moldings all seem to catch the wind, increasing noise.
Up until the 80s, there was very little effort made to dampen road noise like today's new cars. Peel and stick sound deadener on the inside of the firewall, floorpans, door shells and underside of the roof go a long way toward dampening the tinny sounds and vibrations.
My '70 Charger still gets wind noise through the vent windows and around the rain gutters but I've just accepted that at part of the charm of owning a classic.

 

[Thrashingcows]

For dependability and reliability I'd ditch the ignition system you currently have and get yourself a stock OEM mopar electronic ignition system, then if you do have problems out on the road you have a very good chance of getting repair parts from most places.

New tank, replace all the rubber lines in the fuel system, ditch that red fuel line running up over the headers and valve cover, buy a reproduction metal fuel line from fuel pump to carb with a proper metal canister fuel filter. Once you get the fuel tank, lines and fuel pump sorted out I would probably want to loose the Holley and go with an Eddelbrock 650/700/750 Vacuum secondary carb with electric choke, good reliable carb right out of the box with decent driving characteristics and minimal tuning required to get decent performance and fuel consumption numbers. Loose the single plane intake adn get yourself either a stock cast iron dual plane or an aftermarket dual plane.

For Rims and tires the old Police car 15x7 steel rims with dog disc caps are always a winner in my books...I personally love steel wheels and caps! you can get reproduction cop car rims I think but the stock steel 15x6 or 15x6.5 rims used on most RWD mopars from the 70's through to the 90's are decent and look great. Then some Raised White letter tires in a 225/70/15 size would be my choice.

 

[YY1]

I agree on a factory electronic ignition if it doesn't already have one. Super easy to do and not expensive.
Anything else is kind of a waste on a street car.
That intake has proven to be better than the ubiquitous "Torker", but that Torker has also been proven to be "not nearly as bad" as a LOT of people say for low end.
I wouldn't mess with changing it. Instead, if there are drive-ability issues, I'd consider a vacuum secondary carb.
You might consider a factory disk brake conversion. Again, anything else might be a waste on a street car. Definitely check all the rubber lines.
Eval that gas tank and I agree to replace if necessary. They are available. Get the Canadian one and re-use your OEM sender lock ring. get a red toilet valve gasket and use that instead of the one that comes with the tank.

After all that, (and a good front end inspection and wear part replace as necessary) the next step for me would be good quality shocks (like Bilsteins) and sway bars.

My mostly stock 66/67 Coronets were some of the most reliable vehicles that I've ever owned.

 

[Cranky]

In the 70's I did some research on the Street Bastard intake and decided it wasn't for me and well, the new one I had didn't even get installed since economy wasn't in my vocabulary back then. Yes, it's a low end (as in low rpm) economy minded intake but why would they even make one for a BIG block engine? I'm guessing for someone that's stuck with a BB engine and is tired of the gas bill and don't care too much about performance on the top end? The Torker now I have experience with and on several different engines including Ferd products and am impressed with the performance frow the low end to the high end. Had one on a 289 in a 66 Mustang Fastback with a 4 speed and that thing got 21 mpg with a 600 DP Holley on it!! In town now was a different story. 12 mph? Didn't even bother to check it because I knew it wasn't going to be good based on fuel gauge movement lol. I'm sure the 4 speed had something to do with that

My first car was a 66 Belvedere with the poly teen and it never broke down but there were times when it wasn't easy to start. Turned out to be the factory 2 bbl carb. Heck, I'm about to turn 72 and knock on wood, I've never had a Mopar that wasn't dependable!

 

[YY1]

My first car was a 66 Belvedere with the poly teen and it never broke down but there were times when it wasn't easy to start. Turned out to be the factory 2 bbl carb. Heck, I'm about to turn 72 and knock on wood, I've never had a Mopar that wasn't dependable!

Me either. The common stuff is usually real easy to find and fix, unlike some of the experiences I've had with the other 2 "big 3" brands.

Even my 70 Super Bee that liked to occasionally catch on fire, was pretty dependable and relatively easy to work on.

 

[Cranky]

Me either. The common stuff is usually real easy to find and fix, unlike some of the experiences I've had with the other 2 "big 3" brands.

Even my 70 Super Bee that liked to occasionally catch on fire, was pretty dependable and relatively easy to work on.

For some reason I had black thumbs when it came to GM products and my Ford stuff broke a lot. At one time I had 2 Mustang Fastbacks....the 4 speed car and the other was an automatic. Stooopid stuff broke on the 4 speed car like the pedal rack coming apart not once but twice! The first time to be fixed I used 'genuine' Ford replacement parts and the second time I fixed it my way. Nothing in the drive train ever broke though and yes, I drove the snot out of that car. The automatic car got some of the same kind of abuse and it never broke. A buddy of mine pulled the pinion out of the 8" in his Fairlane that also had a 289 automatic. How does that happen? Luckily he was just cruising down the road at about 45 with it when it came out. He thought it just spit out the driveshaft lol

 

[Dave6T4]

Once the headers start to rust out and get noisy, change them for a set of H.P. exhaust manifolds. 2 1/2" pipes to Hemi mufflers and 2 1/4" tailpipes. The best price on new gas tank I found was at RockAuto. Quality Spectra tank made in Stratford, Ontario, about 50 miles from where I live. I have never had any luck with a Holley, and use a 750 cfm. Edelbrock on both my 440's, with an electric choke kit. I use an Edelbrock dual plane intake, and ground all the lettering off and painted it engine colour to disguise it.
If you are changing to disc brakes, use M-body (5th Ave., Diplomat) spindles and brackets. All the rest of the stuff can be bought for cheap from RockAuto. If you have a front sway bar, hang the calipers at the back to avoid clearance problems. The spindles are reversible side to side.
It looks like your car originally had factory A/C, by the arrangement on the firewall. This would also explain green tinted glass on your car.

 

[Darter6]

Sounds like you have a good idea of what you want.I did the same with my 63.Low budget,good runner and safe meaning
repair/replace items to make it streetable first.It looks like a fine project but maybe you bought a
"Pig in a Poke"( dang I'm old ) You won't know till you dig into it.A car is a car.No matter the make.Sounds like you have a good understanding of all things mechanical.

the goal is to getting it Running First (

If it runs,drives,shifts and stops you are winning the first battle.

 

[RemCharger]

Too bad your extra mopar performance distributor is for a 383. Would have been the way to go.

 

[CavalierX]

. . . The best price on new gas tank I found was at RockAuto. Quality Spectra tank made in Stratford, Ontario, about 50 miles from where I live. . . All the rest of the stuff can be bought for cheap from RockAuto.

Hey... that is the Tank I ordered. Going to undercoat/paint it with some Rust-oleum or some rattle can goodness. Got the Leland Global uptake/sending unit... I went oem on the fuel pump order, but got 2 since they were SO CHEAP and that way if one is bad I am covered and if both good in the trunk it goes. The shop I am at will do a new steel line if the old one is suspect at all.

 

[CavalierX]

Too bad your extra mopar performance distributor is for a 383. Would have been the way to go.

The Pic of the loose Distributor was sitting in the backseat. I THINK it was what was on it before or the guy was using it to diagnose the Ignition issue it had... I don't know. I haven't messed with that one in the pic.

 

[Don Frelier]

The engine wiring harness looks like it's seen better days.
You can find one from Classic Industries with the plugs/connectors for electronic ignition and a newer electronic voltage regulator.
*Warning: their website sucks so this is not the easiest thing to find.
But this would allow you to easily put in a Mopar style electronic ignition and a mopar style "square back" alternator.

That huge alternator in there worries me a bit as the old wiring is not designed for it.

I'd recommmend putting a new power steering hose on it as well.

Test the heater core as it looks like it's been abandoned in place.