1966 Dodge Dart 4d 225 1-bbl from Finland
Summary:
Compact with an impact
Faults:
Rear wheel went into peaces after burning rubber when accelerating on highway ramp!
The 3 speed manual transmission did not have synchronized first gear (original feature).
Chrysler alternators are not so reliable and electricity runs through ignition switch and ampere meter, so check that those work properly.
Clutch went broken, replaced myself. easy to work with.
General Comments:
I used this for unmaintained driving too fast and I crashed it couple of times with really minor damages to dart- but major damages to other party.
Car was really strong and did not mind the lack of service.
Outside design is ugly.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 26th February, 2003
10th Sep 2003, 12:00
My 66 dart, which in Canada is a valiant is the most dependable car ever and chicks love it, I drove it hard since the day I was 16 and it still runs and looks great,4 years later.I've crashed it once causing 8000$ dollars damage to the other car and 150$ damage to mine. Vern and his valiant have become infamous in my city of Saskatoon.
27th Nov 2003, 20:50
Electricity (current) runs through the ignition switch and ammeter on all cars, not just Mopars!
17th Feb 2007, 16:04
I had a '67 Chrysler Newport that had a similar problem with the ammeter. The contact posts in the back lost contact because of the old acid-based solder disintegrating, so the car wouldn't start. You could jump it by shorting out the mechanical voltage regulator, which of course trashed the voltage regulator. I did have to simply bolt both wires coming off the ammeter to the same terminal to ensure a complete circuit, and then wired up an external gauge to confirm that the battery was charging. I also bought the Chrysler Direct Connection (aka Mopar Performance) electronic ignition conversion kit, which consists of the magnetic pickup distributor, solid state voltage regular, and hotter ballast resistor. It made the car start more easily, run better, and get better mileage compared to the original points.
6th Apr 2003, 16:22
No synchros on first? All modern manual gearboxes do have that. Only antique transmissions have unsynchronized first gears. By the way. I owned a Dart. My mother crashed in to it. Nothing went wrong with the Dart. Her Mazda needed a lot of attention.