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Welcome Chris Pope of Utah.

PostPosted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 12:48 am
by 89ARIES
Welcome to Chris, who joined the club in July 2013. He donated to the club and has two Dodge 600 sedans
that he is restoring, a 1987 and a 1988:

https://plus.google.com/photos/10668291 ... 1841377345

Re: Welcome Chris Pope of Utah.

PostPosted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 11:14 am
by aussiewoody
Yes, welcome Chris and good luck with your restos
Gary

Re: Welcome Chris Pope of Utah.

PostPosted: Sun Mar 22, 2015 12:55 am
by cpope1981
Wow, this is embarrassing!! I am just now seeing this post for the first time. :oops: Thanks for the welcome! I have never been much of an online forum person, but I am trying to be more active on the K-Car forum. I have put LOTS of money into my 1988 Dodge 600, and it is the one I will be driving to the Spring Fling 2015 in just a couple of weeks. For $300 I was able to rescue a 1987 Dodge 600 from being scrapped. It needs a lot of work, but is all there and in remarkably good shape body and interior wise. I am also going to be taking delivery of a 1985 Dodge 600 turbo convertible in a couple of days. Now I just need a 1986 Dodge 600 so I can have 4 consecutive years!! :lol:

Re: Welcome Chris Pope of Utah.

PostPosted: Sun Mar 22, 2015 6:51 am
by aussiewoody
Yes, it did take a while to reply - lol.

The '85 'vert sounds good, is it nice or does it need work?

Re: Welcome Chris Pope of Utah.

PostPosted: Sun Mar 22, 2015 7:43 am
by cpope1981
I havent actually seen the 85 convertible in person yet, but based on the pictures and talking to the owner, it doesnt need much work. They have already had the turbo rebuilt and the engine head gasket replaced. Also, the starter, alternator, and fuel pump have been replaced. I suspect that it will need some work done to the convertible mechanisms. I will keep you posted (in a timely manner!!) :D It has 135,000 miles but sounds like it was well maintained.

Re: Welcome Chris Pope of Utah.

PostPosted: Sun May 31, 2015 11:20 pm
by cpope1981
OK, so here is an update on my three Dodge 600's:

My 1988 4-door sedan is my daily driver (and only driver, unfortunately). I drove it from Provo UT down to the big Spring Fling car show in Van Nuys in April. Come to find out, the rebuilt distributor (that i had purchased on Amazon a couple years ago with the intent of installing it on my '87 600) was probably not correct for either vehicle. My mechanic had installed it on my '88 prior to making the trip down to Van Nuys. He later said that when he went to install it, the holes on the cap did not align, and the timing had to be adjusted slightly. I found a newly manufactured distributor made by Cardone on Rock Auto for only $45 bucks and he said that one installed perfectly with how the original distributor had been set. So the lesson here is: don't buy parts from Amazon, and also, if you didn't already know, Cardone (or A-1 Cardone) is probably one of the best names out there for parts. I highly recommend them, especially for K-Car parts. My mechanic also discovered that my brand new Strut mounts had not been tightened adequately prior to my trip. In addition, the motor mounts were both worn out, so that explains why my steering wheel was shaking so much on the trip. Also, my alignment was out - even though Big O Tires had supposedly re-aligned it after installing the strut mounts. I don't think I'm ever going back to them again. Anyway, the '88 600 is performing excellent for the time being......

Right before the show in Van Nuys, I had purchased a 1985 convertible. I have been so poor ever since buying it that i have not even been able to license or drive it. I spent HOURS cleaning the filthy interior and making minor repairs. I swear that the previous owners probably never vacuumed it once in the time they owned it. I am the third owner. I also tore out the ugly aftermarket radio and installed the beautiful factory radio i bought from Joe Baca. I start it up and let it run a few times a week, but that's about it. I also have been trying to let the trunk and interior air out because the rag top obviously has a few leaks. It has been very frustrating, though because it just keeps raining!! This weekend was the first break we have had for a couple of weeks. Also, when i bought the car, i knew it had a power steering fluid leak, and now i think that somehow, power steering fluid is leaking onto the carpet of the interior passenger seat area. I don't see how that is possible, but i can definitely smell it. Anyway, I'm pretty certain this convertible is going to be a money pit. A very deep money pit. :oops:

I did buy a new battery for my '87 600 4-door sedan. I start it up and let it run a few times a week. I decided to buy the new battery because every time the battery dies or is disconnected for more than 15 minutes, the computer resets. Then it has to learn everything all over again which takes quite a while. Unfortunately, i have never driven this car either - except when i drove it off the tow truck bed and down my driveway, however many years ago. I rescued it from being crushed, and only paid $300. It needs a LOT of work (and money).

That is all for now. Chris Pope