Next?

The car is running beautifully, and the driving weather has been superb. There’s little chance I’ll be taking the bird out of service for any extended projects in the next few months, but I do have a few smaller jobs waiting in the wings—just in case I have a free weekend over the summer.

New rubber for the rear springs. Less rattle on bumpy roads.
New rubber for the rear springs. Less rattle on bumpy roads.

Probably at the top of this list is new rubber bushings for the rear leaf springs. I measured the stance of the car and found no droop in the rear, but I do get a lot of rattling around back there over bumps. I believe that swapping out the old for the new pretty easy project, but the prospect of stuck bolts and springs under tension have kept the new bushings in the box for some months now.

In a moment of boredom last week, I found a decent original air cleaner assembly at a reasonable price, as well as a potentially good turn signal switch on eBay. I ordered both, and they are now on my bench, waiting expectantly.

Not as rusty as the photo would suggest.
Not as rusty as the photo would suggest.

The air cleaner will take some cleaning up. With it, though, I could take another stab at installing the Autolite carb I have on the shelf. Last year, I was unable to get it to idle—an issue that should be relatively simple to trace, though I didn’t have the patience for it at the time. Bringing this all back to original would also allow me to reinstall the hood insulation, quieting the car a bit more.

I will have to be pretty bored to tackle the turn signal switch—it will take some disassembly of the column in-situ and require quite a lot of time under the dash. Still, it would be nice to have the horn working, and I’m getting a little tired of the non-canceling right turn signal.

Long-term, I’m planning to revamp the front suspension, which rattles and squeaks under the right conditions. The project will include ball joints, tie rod ends and the control arm joints. With luck, I will also have time to replace the leaky steering box.

3 thoughts on “Next?”

  1. The snout on that air cleaner may look quite out of place on a 64 model. Years ago I opted for an Edelbrock 600 with electric choke instead of trying to get the original in perfect working order. Finally got mine back on the road now after a complete underhood disassembly and engine resto!

  2. Steve, I’m enjoying your blog very much. You are an intrepid mechanic! Keep it coming, and thanks!!!!!

  3. Never thought I’d see a stock ’64 air cleaner on your girl, Steve. Going to be castillian gold and get all them silly orange decals (!) or something nice and irreverent?

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