1961 Plymouth Savoy 318 V8 Daily Driver MoPar Fury Belvedere Forward Look UFO

1961 Plymouth Other Description

1961 Plymouth Savoy.
SPACESHIP!? UFO!? TIME MACHINE?! ALL THREE??
318 Polysphere V8, Three speed, column shift, manual transmission. "Three on the tree."
Built Jan. 11, 1961 at the Lynch Road plant in Detroit. Sold to Harold Heth of Pomeroy, Washington on January 23, 1961.Harold Heth was born Dec. 4, 1902 and died in April 30, 1979. The car was then purchased by Joseph Nickels and he and his two sisters kept the car on their farm to use for pleasure driving. The car at one point had a hitch and was used to haul their boat around. It was then purchased by the third owner who owned it for 27 years and in turn I purchased the car from him and the car finally left the small farming town of Pomeroy.
I brought the car back to California and did some basic work to get her roadworthy and drove her 3,000 miles back to North Carolina following most of Route 66. I then set about repairing/fixing any worn out components aspreventativemaintenance as I wanted this car to be a reliable driver. I drove the car daily for a year.
The engine was a replacement installed in the 1980s and has around 10,000 miles on it. Don't let the outward appearance of the engine fool you. Its dirty from the dusty dirt roads of Pomeroy and leaky valve cover gaskets! I haven't bothered cleaning the motor off. The inside of the engine is clean with no sludge. I adjusted the valves and installed new valve cover gaskets. No smokes or leaks! The engine has a spin on oil filter adapter installed. You can use the modern spin on filters instead of messing with a canister! New starter installed. Carburetor has been rebuilt. New plugs, wires and fuel pump. Converted to electronic ignition with new distributor, module and wiring. New alternator and voltage regulator. New dualexhaust installedfront to back.Has turbo mufflers for a nice sound with no annoying drone!
The brakes have been fully rebuilt. New master cylinder, wheel cylinders, hoses and shoes. Metal lines were replaced as needed. Front wheel bearings and seals replaced. One rear axle was replaced as the seal surface was worn. New bearings and inner and outer axle seals. Passenger rear drum replaced. New bias ply white wall tires were installed on 4 correct rims. (The car had 4 different rims on it when I purchased it.) The wheels were not balanced which could attribute to a shake onlynoticeableat higherspeeds. The steering centerlink was replaced with one off another car as the original was very sloppy.
Transmission was rebuilt. Any worn gears replaced. New seals including the shift rod seals. The parking brake drum was also replaced as it was badly worn and broken. Parking brake band relined. Clutch and pressure plate rebuilt, flywheel surfaced. Driveshaft boot replaced. New pinion seal.
New gas tank installed and new float for gas sending unit. The gas gauge is dead accurate and reads correctly. New front shocks. Heater valve rebuilt. I found an original plastic dash speaker grille. They are always sun baked and destroyed!
Body is solid, floors and trunk floor are perfect. Very small rust hole on lower driver side quarter. Some minor rust under the headlights. No major rot out at all. There are dings on various spots on the body and trim. I replaced the headlight rings with nice ones as the originals were badly damaged. If you know anything about '61 Plymouths you know how hard it is to find these things in good shape! I also replaced the missing grille emblem and small trim pieces. The car doesn't leak when it rains. A miracle...I know!
This car is a very fun car to drive especially with the stick shift. She's very reliable. I have not had any issues driving and enjoying this car as a daily driver. Gets decent gas mileage too! Fly in and drive her home! I wouldn't hesitate! Also be prepared for people to stare in wonder and confusion. Hardly anyone knows what this car is. Even less have ever seen one in person! It adds to the appeal. Land in your space ship and blow everyone's mind!
The license plates do not go with the car.
Clear NC title in my name.