My GY8 '71 Road Runner

[ct71rr]

Hello all, here are some pics of my '71 RR project. I bought the car in January of '03. Since then, I have been collecting parts for it. The engine is non-numbers matching but, it is a '71 block. I'm not sure about the tranny. I knew both quarters would need to be replaced/patched. From the pics, you can see that it appears that a previous owner used a '72 quarter on the right side and tried to graft in the marker light hole. At some point, a previous owner also started to paint the car orange.









Not looking forward to finding what's behind that plate the hinge is attached to (both sides have it).



It appears that someone cut a hole in the hood and patched it. I didn't notice this until recently




















Today, I decided to remove the seats and carpet:




Looks like I'll be replacing the drivers side floor pans, front and rear:



This section on driver's side rear is all banged up:





I'm not sure what this spot is all about:




As you can see, my car need some work. Thanks for looking,
Chad

 

[71airgrabberRR]

Nice Start!!!

Welcome aboard!!! I've been watching your postings since we are both working on the same type of car.

This is a great place here at FBBO and there is a wealth of information from other members too.

Looking forward to more postings and photos.

If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.

Please keep it going. You have a great start..... Thanks.

 

[Budnicks]

Looks to be a great start to a cool project.... Good luck

 

[ct71rr]

Thanks guys. 71airgrabberRR, your thread led me to this site after I did a Google search for "'71 Road Runner restoration". I've looked through your thread several times. Your doing an awesome job! And, I'll be asking you (and many others here) a crap load of questions.

On a side note, I'm not sure why that image of my floor ended up at the end of my post :icon_scratch: .

 

[71airgrabberRR]

Thanks for the compliment. Unfortunately due to work on finishing up the Duster, my RR project has been placed in a temporary hold pattern. All I have been doing for it lately is buying parts that I need as I run across them.

And please feel free to ask away with any questions you have. I'm sure someone on here will have a correct answer for you.

As far as the last picture of the floor pan...... Forget about it!!! Lol

You should take notice that on my thread some of the pictures are upside down, or even triple posted by mistake.... Things happen

Just keep the pictures and write ups coming!!!!!

( I really like the body style of the 71-72 Plymouths )

you've got a sweet car there......

 

[roadrunnerman]

That's a really nice project. The only down-side is you have redo somebody else's "repairs"

 

[kiwigtx]

Not a bad car to start with....welcome aboard and we look forward to more pics and updates :hello2:

 

[Ron 73]

Good project to have, good luck taking it back to its former beauty!

 

[ct71rr]

That's a really nice project. The only down-side is you have redo somebody else's "repairs"

I hear ya. I can't wait until I start uncovering all the halfassery on this car. Hopefully it wont be too bad:eusa_pray:.

 

[Basket case]

ah ya gotta love previous owners......
looks like a pretty decent project. keep the pics coming!

 

[ct71rr]

ah ya gotta love previous owners......
looks like a pretty decent project. keep the pics coming!

Yup, I just found that part of the structure in front of the passenger's rear window mechanism was cut out. Not sure why...maybe for better access??
View attachment 139807

Anyway, I got a little candy today from Jeff at 521 Restorations. He was very helpful and had the pan shipped to me in less than a week. He also saved me a bunch of money of shipping.



I can add this pan to all the other parts I have been collecting for the past 6+ years:


I'm going to try to get the drivetrain out over the course of this week. I need to have the car mobile so that I can move it in and out of the garage easier seeing that my garage is still under construction. I was planning on putting the car (minus doors, hood, interior, drivetrain, etc) on my US Car Tools body wheels. Before I do this, I was planning on cross bracing the interior with square tubing to keep it rigid. I also have a rotisserie but, was advised against doing any body work while it's on there. Will I have any problems doing body work while the car is on the body wheels? Will the cross bracing be enough?

Thanks for looking

 

[Basket case]

Jeff is #1

 

[ct71rr]

I got the engine and tranny out.


How the hell did a rodent get in here??!!


I also found out what those plates were hiding behind hood hinges:


I thought I remembered someone that had replacements for this area but, I can't find them anywhere. Looks like I'm going to have to replace the battery tray area, as well. Hopefully I'll have the rest of the car stripped down in the next week or so.

 

[71airgrabberRR]

Several manufacturers make the replacement panels that will take care of any rust issues you have in this area. It's called "inner fender".
AMD makes them and they are specific for year / car line. Luckily for us the ones to fit your car fit both 71-72 B Body and 70-74 E body cars.
I have the exact same problem with my 71 RR and plan on replacing both panels using the AMD parts for my car.
Here are the part numbers:
driver side 250-1570 L
passenger side 250-1570 R

Jegs and Summit both sell them as so many other vendors.
You should be able to find them priced in the $200 range per side.
Hope this helps.

 

[ct71rr]

Thanks 71airgrabberRR. I guess what I was trying to ask was that I thought someone produced just the section where the hinge bolts into. I was hoping I wouldn't have to cut up a whole panel for that small section. The passenger's side looks pretty good except for that area. I'll probably have to replace the driver's side because of rot in the battery area though.

 

[71airgrabberRR]

They do make a patch panel for the hinge area. Give me a little bit and I will see if I can find the info on it.

- - - Updated - - -

This inner panel is not too hard to replace, and may actually be easier to do in one piece rather than patching it. It depends on your welding skills and what you have available to work with.

 

[71airgrabberRR]

Classic Auto Industries offers patch panels for the hinge area.
Part #MM8267 and MM8268. $99 each side

They also sell the complete inner fenders for $164.99 each.

I'm pretty sure they are not AMD parts though.

If you start replacing panels, my previous experience has taught me to stick with the same brand throughout. You may still run into fit issues but they will be not as problematic as they could be when changing brands. This is especially true with outer panels like quarters , doors, fenders, roof etc.

You may be able to do this with inner panels, but keep in mind the factory had acceptable tolerances at 1/4 inch with body panels. Each car will be a little different and you may have to fiddle with it to get things just right.


MM1037A and MM1038A for the full inner panels.

Hope this helps.

 

[ct71rr]

Wow! Thanks for the info!! I knew I wasn't losing my mind. Thanks, again

 

[Redhorse719]

Cool project! Keep the pictures coming.

 

[Dennis H]

Got to insert: God Bless John Herlitz for the design and bringing the 71 RR to market. This is a Legend. Finish it and keep us posted.