General Information
This is my Hot Rod Dodge Truck 1500-R
It's a very basic truck, no power windows or door locks, no cruise, no tilt (wish it had that for my belly ! ), but the A/C blows cold and that's a good thing.
I love the 5 speed manual. It has duals out the back but no mufflers so it sounds like a Rod and you can hear me coming from a long way away.
Pro's ... it's a work truck so there's no thoughts about scratches and I love driving it.
Con's ... it has hail damage on the hood and roof from years gone by and paint / clearcoat cracked so the paint is flaking off which doesn't bother me but the wife hates it
. Drivers door hinge is bad and has some cancer in the lower door skin ... that bothers me so I'd like to find another door. Also has a pin hole leak in the water pump housing where is seals .. not a biggy as it doesn't loose much fluid at all except when parked after driving it and getting it up to temp that needs to be addressed one of these days. Could use a new set of tires too.
I plan to keep it as it's very useful around the my hometown and hauling stuff and just tooling running around and running through the gears when I'm back at the old homestead
I'd love to find a white hood, drivers fender, body color grill surround, and drivers door to replace the bad ones on it ... especially the hood and door so if you are in my area - STL Metro or Salem, IL / Southern IL area and have some you would like get sell or trade let me know. I would take other colors and maybe get the thing or the panels painted.
Maybe a new drivers seat as the current one is ripped up from sliding in and out. Forgot I also need a passenger mirror .. can't get it to stay put and I have to adjust it every time I drive it.
I may also get the local interior guy to replace/recover the headliner one of these days.
I'd also like to replace the carpet with a rubber mat but don't know if that was an option during these years. I know it's not good as it can cause rust but I always thought trucks with rubber mats were cool and were work-truck-like. We had rubber mats in the 70's Dodge 6 Pack trucks I used to drive in the Air Force ... easy to clean up no matter how dirty you get in it.
If I ever paint this I don't mind white but would be thinking of changing the chrome grill frame to body color, and painting the black/gray bumper parts body colored. If I ever get the whole thing painted (doubtful) I'd consider Red, intense blue like the Durango, Hemi Orange, Petty Blue, O.D. Green, 69 Plymouth A4 Platinum, or .... Limelight
Question for those more knowledgeable than I - are the wheels on it an original option or standard for this year? If not what years are they for? I like them but the size seems to be getting less and less produced.
It's a very basic truck, no power windows or door locks, no cruise, no tilt (wish it had that for my belly ! ), but the A/C blows cold and that's a good thing.
I love the 5 speed manual. It has duals out the back but no mufflers so it sounds like a Rod and you can hear me coming from a long way away.
Pro's ... it's a work truck so there's no thoughts about scratches and I love driving it.
Con's ... it has hail damage on the hood and roof from years gone by and paint / clearcoat cracked so the paint is flaking off which doesn't bother me but the wife hates it
. Drivers door hinge is bad and has some cancer in the lower door skin ... that bothers me so I'd like to find another door. Also has a pin hole leak in the water pump housing where is seals .. not a biggy as it doesn't loose much fluid at all except when parked after driving it and getting it up to temp that needs to be addressed one of these days. Could use a new set of tires too.I plan to keep it as it's very useful around the my hometown and hauling stuff and just tooling running around and running through the gears when I'm back at the old homestead
I'd love to find a white hood, drivers fender, body color grill surround, and drivers door to replace the bad ones on it ... especially the hood and door so if you are in my area - STL Metro or Salem, IL / Southern IL area and have some you would like get sell or trade let me know. I would take other colors and maybe get the thing or the panels painted.
Maybe a new drivers seat as the current one is ripped up from sliding in and out. Forgot I also need a passenger mirror .. can't get it to stay put and I have to adjust it every time I drive it.
I may also get the local interior guy to replace/recover the headliner one of these days.
I'd also like to replace the carpet with a rubber mat but don't know if that was an option during these years. I know it's not good as it can cause rust but I always thought trucks with rubber mats were cool and were work-truck-like. We had rubber mats in the 70's Dodge 6 Pack trucks I used to drive in the Air Force ... easy to clean up no matter how dirty you get in it.
If I ever paint this I don't mind white but would be thinking of changing the chrome grill frame to body color, and painting the black/gray bumper parts body colored. If I ever get the whole thing painted (doubtful) I'd consider Red, intense blue like the Durango, Hemi Orange, Petty Blue, O.D. Green, 69 Plymouth A4 Platinum, or .... Limelight
Question for those more knowledgeable than I - are the wheels on it an original option or standard for this year? If not what years are they for? I like them but the size seems to be getting less and less produced.
