Hello from Manila!

[DeltaV]

 

[sombrero]

Welcome, nice pair of Mopars you have there. Went to Subic Bay several times back when I was in the Navy. I was there when Mount Pinatubo erupted.

Can you imagine that's been more than 30 years ago! how time flies. yup! Angeles City.

 

[sombrero]

Welcome. My dad was stationed at Clark AB in 1976 & 1977 so I lived there as a young teenager. There were a quite a few American muscle cars on the base and a few that were owned by locals (I remember a sinister looking black '68 GTO in particular) at that time. The local car club called themselves "Road Runners" and it was not exclusive to any makes or models of cars. When I was there the highway between Angeles City (Clark) and Manila was unfinished and not in service so the car club used to drag race on a nice stretch near the base. My dad and his buddy would take me out there. Saw my first '73 Road Runner GTX race out there - and had no idea why it had both RR & GTX badging. Saw an LS6 Chevelle break an axle on launch and destroy the driver's quarter panel when the tire came out from under it. That place was really my first exposure to any drag racing in person. I have very fond memories - and wish I had some pictures...

wow, nice to know that there are a few here that are familiar with the place! yes these 2 cars were in fact probably rolling with these that youve mentioned!

 

[sombrero]

welcome from San Jose, California. Your black Charger looks amazing and we appreciate you sharing that photo. We need some engine shots!

Are you actually driving your cars in Manila or did you just list Manila since it's a known location in the Philippines and you actually live elsewhere in the country? Are you an expat that is/was stationed there or a native filipino?

The reason I ask is that I've visited the Philippines for vacation 10 times since my wife's family lives there. We have bad traffic in northern California and even worse in Los Angeles and New York City, but out of hundreds of cities and 15 countries I've visited, Manila Philippines has the absolute WORST congested traffic I've ever seen in my life. Taking a taxi sometimes has taken me 2 hrs to drive 2 miles. We often make use of the trike sidecar motorbikes for hire or the jeepneys, which are cheaper, but can sometimes take just as long depending on the route. I don't think I would ever advise to drive a classic car there. Aside from the traffic, unless you're on the major skyway there are potholes and rutted roads everywhere.

haha, yes traffic...these cars can only get driven on the weekends with this traffic. everything is a pain to move around so I'm mostly on 2 wheels. I'm a daily motorbike rider myself. As requested (these are a bit old. havent taken recent shots but these are what they look like from about a year ago:

They're still matching numbers. 440 charger, 340 challenger with serpentine.

 

[68 Sport Satellite]

OP - next time I'm there I would love to meet up with you and check out your cars. I had no idea that there were any Mopar owners there aside from anyone stationed there from abroad. Thanks for sharing. You know what's next - now we need INTERIOR photos

How much engine work do you do on the car yourself? Since you bought these, have you had to do any repairs or improvements? I can't imagine that's too easy there with getting parts and such...this is blowing my mind. Plus, this is an expensive hobby! I work as an engineer and can barely afford it, How are you able to do this as a motorbike driver?

 

[sombrero]

OP - next time I'm there I would love to meet up with you and check out your cars. I had no idea that there were any Mopar owners there aside from anyone stationed there from abroad. Thanks for sharing. You know what's next - now we need INTERIOR photos

How much engine work do you do on the car yourself? Since you bought these, have you had to do any repairs or improvements? I can't imagine that's too easy there with getting parts and such...this is blowing my mind. Plus, this is an expensive hobby! I work as an engineer and can barely afford it, How are you able to do this as a motorbike driver?

Thank you. I meant to say i use 2 wheels for my daily commute. Seems like i dont have a real internal shot of the car.

I have a friend helping me out. Engine work: this came to me over bored 0.06” with an idle at 2500. No way could it be usable on Manila streets. Plus the idle drops when I open the airconditioning. (Plus overboring it to be a “drag” car was illogicial in that previous owner didnt do a single body stiffening job and didnt work on getting a better radiator - now a 26”).

Had to resleeve down to kb hypereutectics 0.02 and re cammed to voodoo 10200703. I had to make it milder esp being a matching 340 r/t 71. I didn’t want to stress the engine block.

Heat and humidity are things that I’m managing while still making the car a nice protouring build.

I cant recommend auto glass city enough for their absolute outstanding job on customer support. They made good work by sending me another glass window when they incorrectly sent me the wrong side. I explained to them i was halfway across the globe and understood my predicament. Sent it for free through my shipper!

What can I say, I work overtime so my car can have a better life!