Paul's 1965 dodge town
wagon
I've been a Dodge Town Wagon addict since early 1999. It began
when I started to look for my own vehicle to restore after we finished my kid's cars. I have always owned trucks, never a car,
and plan to go to my grave being able to make that statement. My
first was a 1968 D100 pickup given to me by my father. Slant six
and three on the tree. A real powerhouse. I've also had a couple
Fords and Chevys, but in my heart have always been a Dodge man. I
typed the words "Dodge Panel Truck" into a search
engine and found a few Town Wagon - Town Panel web sites. It was
love at first sight.
The search began
in earnest. I scoured internet want ads and Hemming's Motor News,
while at the same time trying to learn what I could about Town
Wagons. I finally located a truck in Colorado, got some pictures,
had several pleasant conversations with it's owner, and bought it
blind. After having it shipped here I realized it was a decision
I would not regret.
My Town Wagon is two wheel drive with a polyspherical 318 and
four speed trans. It doesn't run, the windshield is cracked, the
front floors are rotted, and the doors don't latch. However, I
think it's the neatest vehicle I've ever seen.
Though I have to finish Karen's VW before I can start, I am
planning a complete frame off restoration. I have already started
acquiring
parts. My local auto recycler supplied the headlights from a '67
Coronet to replace the rectangular ones installed by a former
owner, and the fuel tank from a '74 Ramcharger to eliminated the
poor filler design in Town Wagons. I purchased a rusted out '66
W100 pickup to use as an organ donor to convert the Town Wagon to
four wheel drive. It also has a poly 318 and 4 speed, so I'll
have two engines to choose from come rebuild time. The frame of
the pickup and the front axle from the Town Wagon will become a
trailer. Exhaust headers are being custom made by a fellow in
Arkansas, and I bought a dual quad intake manifold on eBay. Keep
in mind that this is my midlife crisis sports car. I plan on
painting it Prowler Purple, and it has already been nicknamed the
"Purple Chevy Eater".
This page will be a work in progress just like my Town Wagon. You can check back from time to time see how I'm progressing. I would
like to thank my wife, Chris, for putting up with my hobby. Her
theory is that if I'm home working on the vehicles I'm not out at
the bar or worse.
Well, work has begun in earnest. The rotted floor pans and front cab mounts have been replaced with all new hand fabricated metal. The hideous rectangular headlights installed by a previous owner have been replaced by the correct dual round lights. I have retrofitted the front doors with spare latches from Karen's VW which will operate with the original TownWagon handles and power locks. The frame was modified to fit the 37 gallon fuel tank from the Ramcharger. The frame was sandblasted and painted and all the four wheel drive running gear installed. All brake parts have been replaced. I have obtained seats from a '96 Dodge Caravan and various other parts just waiting for the proper time to be installed. Next will be the engine. I have a NOS block and heads still in the crate that I found locally. I keep you posted as work progresses.
The engine is up and running. I had the heads milled .045 and hardened exhaust valve seats installed. Mild performance cam, and everything else stock. Custom fit aluminum radiator from Summitt Racing and relocated the alternator to the left side of the engine to accommodate the A/C compressor. I ended up using two Edelbrock 500 cfm carbs with a custom made air oval cleaner using a K&N element. The exhaust system is comprised of the headers from Harold, connected to Thrush mufflers with an assortment of electrical conduit bends, straight pipe, and tail pipes that were cut and re-welded to fit.
The body was completely stripped of paint, mostly with a D/A sander. Rusted metal was replaced, body filler done, primed, and painted. Prowler Purple base coat - clear coat. The body was placed back on the chassis and reassembly began. New wiring harness, air conditioning, power windows, keyless entry, sliding windows rebuilt. I installed a headliner kit from Ron Frye in Washington state. Used matching fabric to make the interior panels. Many, many tedious hours of making little things work, often from scratch. Other than machining the heads, crimping the A/C hoses and mounting the tires all the work was done here at Hidden Acres Auto Restoration.
After two years of work, okay I admit it was also a lot of fun, my midlife crisis sports car is finished. It isn't the fastest thing in town, but I could probably pull a house down with it. My wife says it's like riding in a bus. It rides like a tank and I'm building new muscles steering and stopping it, but it's great to have something you actually have to drive. I love the looks I get driving down the road. Most of my friends call me a lunatic, but I'm driving it daily to and from everywhere I need to go. That's what Dodge built it for and I'd hate to see such a wonderful piece of machinery and history go to waste.
I would like to thank my wife, my kids, my kids friends, my Townie buddies and everyone else who helped me build my dream vehicle.
