fixing it right...once

[neal zimmerman <neal.zimmerman@xxxxxxxxx>]

well this weekend has been intersting.  as i stripped the paint from
the engine compartment in the 62 dart , i discovereed a few rust
pinholes in the beloved drivers side air plenum area.
  they were minor, some would say to just POR15 it, but I have to do
everything my way.
    I cut the cowl out  up by the hood hinge, and discovered  a few
more pinholes in the floor of the plenum , , so i cut that out too.
  I created a new floor plenum with a paper pattern, a new sheet of
metal and a shrinking hammer .  I  welded  that up under the dash
then i fashinioned a  cowl piece, and welded that back in,
   after i welded the  cowl piece back in , I cut two 3/4 inch holes
on the side of the curved part of the cowl where the front fender
bolts to.  Yes I had to pull the whole front clip.
   AS I have been doing this , I have been cussing Chrysler up and
down for building this stupid dead-end air plenum " leaf trap/rust
incubator"  . Why on earth they never built drains into this pocket i
will never know. And even further: why the chamber wasnt blocked  off
9 inches more towards center of car, thus avoiding the whole mess.
Pentastar  Bean counters i guess.
   I also took a 1 inch hole saw and cut four holes across the bottom
of the  plenum box where it seams with the firewall, so it can be
properly flushed out. That little flap thing isnt enough.  these holes
can be plugged with body plugs.
  I have blown, hosed , and dental picked my way thru the whole plenum
with a piece of welding rod dislodging every bit  of loose debris and
leaf remains i can find, working thru the grills and my new acess
holes..
   Tomorrows task will be to  fill an oil squirt can and pump the
plenum full of   rust convertor, , blowing it all thru the  plenum box
with compressed air,, to get it everywhere, using all my new acesss
holes i created.  I created a long flexible metal tube for my airchuck
so i can get the stuff everywhere.  Then after that dries I will load
the same can   with a POR 15 type product and repeat, injecting the
plenum, blowing it everywhere i can , probably do two or three
treatments of the POR15, then hopefully  I will be done and hopefully
this will be a "permanent" fix.
   Probably didnt need to go whole hog like this but I am nuts after
all, and i know I would just have obsessed on that cowl other wise.
   Hope this helps, there is hope .
  neal zimmerman, eugene oregon