timmie124

Just bought a 71' Duster with the slant 6, only paid 750 for it, the trunk needs to be patched where the spare tire goes, It looks like the metal just started rotting out so shouldn't be to much of a job, but the car is a soft top. I was looking at the roof when I bought it knowing the risk I was taking buying a soft top and I didn't see any holes in the roof until today When I was able to see it in the day.

I went on year one trying to find a roof panel and there was nothing for A bodys Maybe someone can lead me in the right direction for a roof panel, it be nice to eliminate the soft top all together.

Finally the major problem, The Car swerves hard I only had to drive 5 miles to get the car but that was 5 miles to many, about 25 maybe 35 mph the cars front end goes out of control and swerves back and forth making handling impossible.

I'm planing on putting a 440 in this car and I noticed it doesn't have power brakes, with the 440 swap kit from schumacher could I install a brake booster?

lou3500

I hope you looked over this car very good prior to purchaseing it these are a unibody and depending where the car has been [climate] prone to rust which in some cases is terminal to the car [due to cost to repair/replace versises cars actual worth].Replacement roofs are not available in the aftermarket for them, however you can cut out the bad areas and weld in patches or look for a donor car with a good roof [which is a very difficult repair/replacement for a novice].Sounds like it's unsafe to drive, i suggest you rebuild the entire front suspension replace every rubber bushing,ball joints,tierod ends,shocks all around,rebuild the rear springs,bushings,replace/rebuild the entire braking system. Power booster with a 440 should be possible [altho i have never had a duster]. Welcome to the forum looks like a great project have fun with it.

timmie124

Sadly I didn't look over the car very well, for 750 dollars I just went for it, especially sense it ran and compared to my satellite in a lot better condition. It was dark both times I looked at the car so I didn't notice the holes in the roof until today.

Replacing the entire suspension sounds like a good idea I've been thinking about that might as well fix everything that could possible be wrong, I've done patches before but never something like a roof before, how much do you think it would run to get all the patches done and then a new soft top installed?

lou3500

First thing you should do is get it in the air and inspect the undercarrage [frame rails front and rear,where the springs attach to the frame rails,where the upper control arms attach to the frame rails,the crossmember where the torsion bars attach,the condition of the firewall paying attention to where the inner fenders mount to the firewall,the cowel area [between the windshield and the hood opening] it is a 2 piece stamping the upper part from the windshield to the firewall then you'll see a seam below that is the lower firewall they form the area where air is let into the aircondtioning/heater box [mopars rust in these areas due to dirt and leaves building up in there getting wet and building up over time] all mopar products are known for poor seam sealant installation at the factory [they were very good at plugging the drains and missing the seams]. After you have inspected the entire car depending on how bad or good it is you can make the decision to go ahead with repairs. My sugesstions are as follows consentrate on saftey/reliability repairs first,rebuild the entire suspension/brake system [if it does not have disk brakes on the front put them on it you can swap some on it or buy a conversion kit] then get the drive train in reliable condition so you can drive it,then you can concentrate on the body. If your gonna do a full restoration then you can do all this as you go along depends on what your plans are for it just remember this car is not a valuble car so be careful on what you spend [don't skimp on saftey/reliabilty parts] you will never get what you invest out of it if you sell it [there are folks whom have taken a soaking on numbers matching cars at auction] Have fun with it and if you find that it's not with in your ability to fix [moneywise/ability] don't scrap it you can sell parts and recoupe some of your losses so others may live.

duster fanatic

love the duster! looks like a great project and hopefully everything goes well. I wish you luck!!!!

Mr.Duster

sweet duster. Eventually the metal will be produced for it they just came out with fenders now. Id do what the other guys say but looks like a solid project to get started on.