A final walk-around to add up clues about this 1962 Dodge Dart Police Pursuit’s past life as a police car and a look at how its dual-note horns differ from the iconic 1968-1980 Plymouth Road Runner beep-beep horn.
Of course it’s worth it, especially if you can maintain something even close to the excitement level you’ve been showing during this series of videos! Since you know the location where this car was first in service, an online search of newspapers from the era or a library archive might very well produce photos of how the car originally looked. Looking forward to watching this project move along.
I had a 1967 Dodge D200 with a 318 and it had single master if done correctly they brake really well. And I had a 1962 Chevy Corvair Rampside single master also braked great if done correctly.😎
I asked my neighbor about the police cars back in the day. He was a mechanic and body guy. He worked on lots of police cars and has an interesting collection of sirens and such. He said that it was common for smaller departments to buy an even number of cars, two, four, etc. Half of the cars were white, the other half black. It was then his job to mark the hood, deck lid, and doors and then swap them between the white cars and the black cars. The marks would tell him which car the parts came from. This was done to save the added costs of painting. When the cars were retired, he would be charged with swapping back the parts and the cars were then sold or traded in on new ones.
Up till I retired(Police Officer) the new black & white Crown Vics were, shockingly, CHEAPER than the straight white. This was one of many reasons our POA used to get the city to switch from white to black & white!
I've never heard the term wig wag used for a spot light before. Back in the day it usually referred to the alternating flashing headlights or grill lights (in contrast to the spinning roof lights). Fast foward to 80s and up, and the light bars had corner lights (LED now) that would flash side to side in a more casual pattern than the spinning or strobing main bar. Just my 2 cents.
My old buddy "Jim Baldyga" is the first person I heard use the term "wig wag" to describe an "articulated A-pillar mounted spotlight". That was back around 1987. Here's to Jim!!! THANKS for watching -Steve
@@SteveMagnante You will always find different names for the same thing. Even regional areas will have its own names for all kinds of things. Thanks for your teaching, been a viewer of you on TV for years.
I think the term wig wag has to do with alternating, The term actually comes from railroad crossing lights. I think there were police cars into the late fifties and early sixties where the spotlights had red lenses that would alternate or a single light that would vary between high and low intensity. I'm no police expert but I think that these were later supplanted by the gumball lights and later light bars.
For me what makes this car great is that it's in YOUR hands and your making a sleeper out of it. Now we'll see just how deep a sleep (tire and muffler choices etc) it falls into and how angry it is when it wakes up. Sleepers are always a compromise. I love the direction you're thinking. Just imagining the look on some old guy's face when this thing leaves a light does it for me!!!
"... It's got a cop motor, a 440 cubic inch plant, it's got cop tires, cop suspension, cop shocks. It's a model made before catalytic converters so it'll run good on regular gas. What do you say, is it the new Bluesmobile or what?..." Liked and subscribed! Following the build and having fun watching. Capt. Blackheart Charlie Key West, FL
Hey Steve, dig the Dodge project, I’ve got an ex-US embassy ‘( Canberra) 71 Ford Custom. It’s a black on black car with radio delete. I’ll leave it stock apart from sticking a 429 driveline in it. It’s a rare car in Australia as we only imported LTD pillared hard tops.
I owned a 71 Ford Custom back in 1976-77. 302 V8, power steering, plain Jane with an AM radio. This was a wonderful highway car and I drove it from Edmonton, Alberta all the way down to Los Angeles and back during a 10 vacation when I was 22 years old. You'll never find one now. They were all driven into the ground.
Steve, sure is worth it, and it’s something that through your infectious enthusiasm we can all enjoy! I LOVE this series and look forward to every new post!
BEEP BEEP Steve!! You should know the places to look for original paint!! Under the dash-in the glove box-under the headliner-behind the door trim-under the hood- wheel wells. Hardly ever is these areas repainted. Sometimes even the engine bay shows original paint!! Chrysler and Chevrolet tried their hand at police cars and were pushed out by Ford. Crown Vic’s and VW bugs are still being made in Mexico and Canada. One catch- No pollution controls!! Big bucks for parts and installation!! Keep the videos coming!!!
I agree i kinda obsessed with Virgil Exner styling right down to his concepts like the Chrysler D'elegance ,Plymouth XNR ,Dodge Firearrow etc he is also unofficially designed the karmann ghia among others . His out there styling from 60 years ago looks amazing today.
1:50 -That's called a Spotlight. Mr. Mag. Wig-Wags are a reference to the alternating high-beam lamps blinking side to side. They used a #537 flasher to alternate the flashing bulbs. Just a quick correction kiddo. Love the car and love your content. Carry on!
I would never had given this car a 2nd look until now after watching your great videos and giving the history. Funny, now I like the car. Very solid and I like the rear quarter panels. Looking forward to following the progress.
Steve, you are the man!!!!! You have so much knowledge. Love you on Barret-Jackson and this series is killer. I will be following every step of the way. And REMCHARGER? you nailed it
Excited to see it done Steve!!! I love that beautiful car!!!! A fan from Massachusetts!!!! In the small town right off of route 1 near the mall north of Boston!!!!!!
R. E. M. Sleeper is a great name. I can't wait to see it fully functional. I really appreciate your car knowledge. Thank you for sharing things with us , that are always cool
As a native Minnesotan who moved to the Lone Star State in the mid-90’s, I am STILL amazed at how clean and rust free old cars can be when they’ve spent their entire life in Texas! Much to my wife’s chagrin, even after 25 years of being down here I can hardly stroll through a parking lot without walking up to certain vehicles and to my amazement feel nothing but solid metal when I run my fingers behind the wheel openings and rocker panels of the car! As far as whether this old Mopar was worth five grand? I currently own five collector vehicles that, because of my hectic work schedule, rarely get driven - I would hardly be considered a reliable source of logic or wisdom when it comes to automotive investments……😂 One thing I will say - it would not take very long at all to burn up $5000 in bodywork trying to replace rusty fenders and quarter panels on a car that wasn’t as clean and solid as this appears to be!
"walking up to certain vehicles and to my amazement feel nothing but solid metal when I run my fingers behind the wheel openings and rocker panels of the car!" In texas that's a good way to get shot.
Never, ever look back on a business deal. I never realized that stuff about the RR, meep meep, horn. Cool! Back in the mid 70s, at 15, I got my first job. It was at a gas station. A push button shift Mopar came in for repairs. I only got to look and marvel at such a thing. Never seen one since. I'm looking forward to you and yours. Good luck, buddy 👍
People have to settle for what their budget can afford. BUT Steve, you deserve a restored 71 Hemi Cuda, for your passion of mopar and your unmatched knowledge. You make junkyard wrecks fascinating and I’ve watched your stuff for years especially Barrett and you can make watching model building interesting. The effort to restore that 4 door will be immense and I admire you. If I could afford it, I would gift you a cuda to enjoy, so maybe there is a philanthropist out there can make it happen.
Some people would probably say no, personally I think they should have given you a bit of a better deal on that car considering all the work you did for them but I can see how much you like this car, so for you its definitely worth it and in the end its your money 🤗
Another tell-tale on a police package car is the speedometer. They have a "CERTIFIED SPEEDOMETER" label on them. They were factory calibrated to ensure accuracy so that they could be used to issue speeding tickets against before the days of radar enforcement on speeders.
Steve I would LOVE to walk around one of those old junkyards down in AZ or TX with you some day, just to hear you tell me in person about the cars we look at, something about the way you tell it just satisfies the ear
My grandpa had one of these back in the 70s. Says it sat for 5 years with a dead transmission and some dirt track racer bought it, threw a transmission in it, and won every race he put it in before he blew the motor up.
Been collecting police cars for 40 years. I have never heard a Unity Spot Light called a "Wig Wag"? I have heard of "Wig Wag" train signals. Great car. Enjoy, I am restoring a 61 Dodge Polara CHP squad car. Clearly work 5K.
I love this even though it's not considered vintage it's really good times, I miss this type of videos I think you should go back and do that every once in a while also because this is cool and fun
My father had a 62 Dart 440. 440 being the model, not mill. Push button tranny, radio delete. Living in central CT, I believe heat/defrost was an option he purchased. Awesome find.
Definitely worth the 5K and shipping. I paid that for a 62 Belvedere, no motor and trans, and missing alot of parts. You have a rare car, can't wait to see more videos on it. 👍
I worked at Isky racing cams in the late 70's. One day an odd Mopar cam came in for regrind. I was told that Isky had ground the cams for their high speed "Freeway Flyers" It was a special grind and you could not order it, but if you owned a former CHP car they would regrind to the same spec. Those cars would do at least 140.
I'll never forget my Dad bought a 61 Plymouth Fury 4 door Hardtop . The Salesman was trying to show my Dad a 2door Hardtop 62 like yours with Bucket Seats . I opened my 14 year old mouth and told the Salesman my Mom don't like Bucket Seats . I know now that children should be seen and not heard .
Maybe if you were lucky you would have got it in the auction for $2500. So paying an extra $2500 to avoid saying "I wish I would have", totally worth it. I love this project! I think your plans are perfect.
yep, I was thinking where is he was located? this looked like New England to me. I guess hes filming outside that empty garage for better light. Im sure his neighbors are thrilled with that beat up ‘62 sitting up on jacks in driveway.
First name that came to mind for your Dart was "False Charges" ...... puts your Ramcharger and police theme together and adds the sleeper equation. I'm in N.E. Ohio and that car is 5k all day long here.....hell if you could start it that would jump to 8k ! Well bought !
that 1975 license plate was the first of the "multi year" plates where you put a registration sticker on it instead of changing plates every year, and it's the only year they put a star between the letters and numbers. In '76, they issued plates that had a Texas emblem between the letters and numbers, so that's a rare license plate worth keeping!
I believe police radio at that time was using the 50 MHz low VHF band and required a long whip antenna, the clip for it on the rain gutter is a nice touch.
My Grandmother bought a 61 Ford Hiway Patrol car brand new with everything but lights. She paid cash. Everyone had a fit. She said bite me. I got the car when it was 30 years old. It was quite fast for a tank. 11 mpg on a good day.
It'd look good dressed up as Captain Culpepper's black '62 from 'It's a MMMM World.' (Showing my age.) I paid $7,500 for my Dart coupe 12 years ago, so you're on the money.
I didn’t know there had been a full size Dart like that until a few years ago when a guy with his own private little wrecking yard showed me one.A 2:door.It seemed like it was in good condition.The dash was really cool.
Steve, I've never heard the spot light called a wig-wag, though I've never been in law enforcement, and I'm even a few years younger than you. But I have heard the old mechanical pre-electric turn signals, on big trucks, called wig-wags. The driver deployed them when anticipating making a turn, and a stick a little bigger than a paint stirrer would stick out on that side of the truck, indicating to other motorists that a turn was imminent.
A friend of mine in High School, early '70s, had one of these cars.it was a Washington State Patrol car. But he had painted it "Plug Crazy" and it had cool Torque Trust Wheels!
New subscriber here, great channel! Can you do some videos on AMC? Perhaps a junk yard crawl and a talk about AMC perhaps give your perspective as to why they failed maybe even talk about the Renault deal being a bad idea for AMC! Perhaps a couple of live shows on AMC! Please!
Yeah Steve, Car guys that GET IT think alike. What you said you're going to do with the car is just about the same as what we would do with it. Especially the part with the skinny tires and laying dual black strips right up the street!
In 75, Texas started using multi-year plates. They came embossed (in negative, IOW indented rather than raised like the main plate number) “75” in the upper right corner, and each year after that, you put a new year sticker over the “75.” A funny thing is that the metal plates kept on being embossed with the “75” for a number of years after, but were issued with the correct year sticker already applied at the DMV. I don’t remember what year they did away with that embossing… probably well into the 80s. I do remember the 1975-issued plate number my 73 Satellite had for many, many years: ABW-50. Can’t even fathom a 5-digit plate in Texas anymore! Very cool car. Makes me think of Chief Culpepper’s car in in ‘It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad, World.’
