Cali4nia Monte

Rub baby powder on your arms before you start...it will help to fill your pours...then wear long sleeve's and a respirator. It's reallllly itchy.

Sooo was ours..Rat Crap...LA car.hehehe We already cleaned the heaterbox out before we put the front end back together...when we first installed our engine the heater box got crunched due to Mikes lame pit crew (me and the kids...)So it had to be replaced and thanks to Leo Konik for selling me the box at a fabulous price...its done. Of course about a month later the core started leaking.... we should have replaced it when we had it open oh well live and learn.

There was a guy who put one in his Monte last year but I can't find the thread on it. I think they are way cool and have been trying to convince Mike..but he likes the old school gauges with needles...these are some of my favorite features the Digital Dash has Several performance calculations include: 0-60 MPH (0-100 KPH) timer, ¼ mile timer, ¼ mile speed display, High Speed recall and High RPM recall. Dakota Digital instruments systems also include a Demonstration Mode which will cycle the instrument readouts while the vehicle is standing still. This is especially popular while the vehicle is on display at a show, event or simply displaying the instrument system. Fully programmable speedometer for various tire sizes, rear-end gearing combinations, etc. Built-in dimmer will reduce the display intensity as headlights/ parking lights are activated.

OMG...you guys are awesome. We've been busy on the interior so I haven't really been worried about the heater core...I think I will see how long it actually takes OPG to finally call me...if they ever do. I really think that I will write a letter to corporate and just let them know what kind of reputation they are building on the internet. They brag about how wonderful they are. I ordered carpet at the same time...got tired of waiting for it and ordered some from another place, it was shipped within 1 day and I had it in less then 1 week. It's the exact same carpet that I was ordering from OPG. The reason I ordered all this stuff from OPG in the first place was because they had double frequent buyers points going....I have almost 1500 points which means I get $90 worth of merchandise free. We bought Essex Ultra Plush carpeting from Stock Interiors because I don't really care for the stock loop stuff....the Essex is so soft and gorgeous and I can't wait to get it in the car! Anyhow thanks for the tip on the heater core. I'll be heading to Autozone today to see if they have one in stock for us as well! You guys Rock! Jaylene

Hey this reminds me....I ordered a new heater core 2 months ago from OPG and still don't have it...surprise surprise surprise! I better give them a call.

We used a very cheap Harbor Freight gun to spray our primer on our car and it turned out fine. The primer came out nice and even.

It's hard to tell from the photo but what did you have to do?

Hey Doug, Welcome to the boards. Where about in California are you located? If you can give us an idea of what it is you are looking for...you know like options, colors, price range...etc. I scan Craigslist all the time...so if I see something I'll let you know. Jaylene

Wow that was definitely the longest...yet one of the most pleasurable posts I have read on here. I felt as if I was sitting in the passenger seat the whole time!!! Thanks for sharing, Jaylene (Also a fellow Gemini )

The previous owners of our Monte caked on a ton of clear silicone caulking to try and stop the rear window from leaking...it looked ugly and was a PITA to remove from all the trim!

You know the trunk seal is pretty cheap...and easy to replace...it wouldn't hurt to just replace it as an extra measure that the trunk isn't leaking. Ours was leaking in both places before we replaced the window and seal. JM2Cents, Jaylene

Man I love this club! We have an 1956 International Pickup truck that we want to restore. I am pretty sure it has an inline 6, I am going to check out those sites that Bruce posted...who knows maybe we'll finally be able to get it running!

Carl, The stats are in the Members Forum in a post called Member Statistics. Here is a link to the info page. Member Statistics Although I think the stats are on the members cars and not first gens in general. Jaylene

You know people kept telling us that when we went with the TH400 behind our 377HP 350, but to be honest Mike said he didn't really feel any loss of power and is very pleased with the performance of it.

Thats pretty cool...are you feeling like you see light at the end of the tunnel? What color are you going to paint it when you do?

Thanks Nygel, Thats what I was hoping to hear...they look so good. I had also heard good reviews on them which is why I bought the kit. We replaced all the rubber we could when we repainted. I was looking at the trunk last night and I think part of the problem could be the new rubber stoppers we put in...I think they might be a bit thicker than the original...so I might pull them off and grind them down a hair and see if that helps...as I just can't see the softseal being that stiff as to hold the trunk up. I'll keep you posted. Jaylene

We just replaced all of our weather stripping with a softseal kit and are having some of the same issues. We also had difficulties with little plastic pins fitting (the round ones that go at the ends not the white ones that are molded into the stripping) Mike pinched the tips of them and after some cussing got them in. It looks soooo much better then the tattered mess that was there before, but you really have to give the doors a good slam to get them closed and the trunk lid is sticking up a bit also. I was thinking it was just because it was so new and would go down eventually...now I wonder.

Oh well glad to be of service when I can. I am by no means mechanical....I still have to say "Righty Tighty, Lefty Loosey" every time I turn a screw (and sometimes I still get it wrong) Actually I have mastered screwdrivers...its the ratchets and drills that I am always going backwards. I drive Mike bonkers tightening things when I am supposed to be loosening...or vice versa. Jaylene

Just in case you decide to try it yourself I found this place that has the primer as well as the urethane. Here is a link: Window Sealant Jaylene

Yeah thats probably one of the first two things he put on...the applicator reminded me of the kind that comes on PVC primer thats used for sprinkler pipes. It was a little fuzzy ball on the end of a wire attached to the cap. Oh Mike was with Jim...."Let the glass guy do it" Jaylene

We just spent $60 and had a company called Safelite come out and reinstall ours, although after watching him we easily could have done it ourselves. We removed it ourselves when we were preparing to paint, here is a breakdown of what we did. I would suggest if you haven't already done so buy yourself a trim removal tool...this will save your trim from getting bent up. It lays flat against the car and releases the trim from the clips. Then you will need a windshield/glass removal tool...it kind of has a bent blade that will slip under the glass and has a cable pull type handle that allows you to break the seal that is left between the car and the glass by pulling it around the window. Be careful especially around the corners. I am sure that you will find alot of rot around your window ledge when you remove your glass as it seems to be a very common problem and ours required areas to be cut out and patched back in. (See the post in this forum regarding OPINIONS for pictures of what we replaced.) Once you are ready to reinstall the window you will need to buy some new clips to hold the molding in and put them in place first. Then 3M sells the sealant....it seemed to be a 3 step process, first he put two different things on the window itself, (my husband said he thinks one was an activator and were really not sure about the other, but I am sure where ever you buy the 3M stuff they can tell you.) then guy put a good thick bead of the black window seal down. Next he laid the window in place and then reinstalled the trim. Hopefully this helped you a little bit. Jaylene

Possible dumb question but I am just curious why are you putting it in the glovebox instead of the engine compartment?? Jaylene

I second that....NO. Your interior will be a mess. We just finished our body and paint work...I could not even imagine trying to keep new interior clean. Wait until your all done then go for the interior. Jaylene

Hey Mike, There is a tool you can buy to remove it, not sure if you have one but my husband said it works like a dream. Tool lays flat on glass and slides under moldings to find clips and release their grip. It is available at Original Parts Group part #CVT0039, but they were out of stock when we were there so we had our local auto parts store order us one. Here is a picture of it. Hope this helps, Jaylene

He's building....FrankenMonte Pretty cool Jared....I applaud your individuality. I myself like many of the small details on years other then our 71, for instance I like the trim on the back of the 72...I wish it was being made aftermarket, but I haven't been able to find it. TTFN, Jaylene