Re: [FWDLK] eBay Motors: Dodge

There are a few items that look wrong on the car. i have an original 61 squad

car, the steering wheel is wrong, 57 plymouth savoy wheels were used. the radio

is wrong, rear side trim was not through the rear door, not sure if emblem is on

rear fenders but usually these were deleted also. these used 12 inch brakes on

front and rear. needs hard to find wide 14 inch wheels to clear drums. there is

also extra pieces of metal welded to the front suspension, a battery

shield, plus other small items to be a squad. I have the original build

sheet with mine. I have the 318 4bbl with torqueflite and 3:23 open rear end.

any other questions, let me know. Jim

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Good points, Jim.

I am sure that varying jurisdictions bought their fleet cars to different specs though. I know California Highway Patrol went with a weird Polara / Dart hybrid in 61. I thought they used 15" inch wheels. The 60 Dart Washington SP Pursuit car I had ran a B-block 383 with a 3-speed stick and 3.23 sure grip on 15" inch wheels. Vintage literature shows Mopar offered cars as "pursuit" cars and "cruisers", and no doubt this opened up a whole can of worms for different equipment applications. Got pictures of your car ?

I would love to own this car. Just for grins, what an ungainly beast of pure go-fast ! It is obvious though that the seller is clueless about what is period correct vs. "close enough". As you mentioned, the wheels and hubcaps are 68 and later STANDARD (non-police) and in my opinion should be 15" wheels with stock 61 Dodge dog dishies. Does the car really have leather ? Sounds like a later restoration modification to me. The seller mumbles something about a 383 and then lower down states it runs on a stock 440. This is clearly wrong, as the 440 didn't come available until 1966. In the photo that shows the driver's side of the engine, I can almost make out the top of the removable panel, unique to cross ram cars. The presence of the 150 certified speedo and if those panels are there, I would suggest this is probably a genuine pursuit car that fell into disrepair and was renovated with what parts the guy could find.

Still, if I didn't have so many cars needing attention and money to burn, I would enjoy running down the right gear to make this thing period correct. Neat car !

Brent