New to the Charger Club

[d_saum]

So where to start???  Well first things first.. Hello! I've been lurking here for a while and joined not too long ago, but this is my first actual post. So why am I here?  Welllllll.... on Monday I became the proud owner of a one owner, 1973 Charger 400 SE. It is quite literally a "barn find" that I found about a year and half ago at my tax lady's house in her back yard. Her husband is a "strictly Mopar" guy and has several Barracudas, 3 of which are showroom condition, and about 40 other vehicles strewn about the yard. Luckily, this one has been kept out of the elements in said barn ... or shed I suppose. It's been sitting for about 15 years but the body is in better shape than most cars half its age. The interior is in pretty good shape too, but I'm not a fan of the beige color so I'll be redoing it to make it more gooder. I've owned a 2012 Challenger that I loved but had to part with, and back in 2000, I had a brand new Dodge Ram 1500. What a great truck that was.. kind of wish I had kept it! But oh well..  So this is my new baby, and the toughest thing about it is going to be pacing myself and figuring out what to tackle first. 

Dave

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[skip68]

Welcome Dave.   
That's a nice looking find you've got.   I think it looks gooder already for it's age and sitting in a barn for years.   Awesome score.   

[XH29N0G]

Ditto - Welcome - Nice looking car - We will all be interested in seeing more about it and it get fixed up.

[polywideblock]

welcome to the site          looks like a good starting point   

[Baldwinvette77]

Nice car and welcome, First thing i would do is clean it  then make sure there isnt any "Roadside wiring repairs", pull the fuses for things you dont need right now, who knows if mice chewed up the wiring. 

[VegasCharger]

Hello and Welcome

Nice 73 SE 

Looks very complete and for the most part unmolested. Lots of good info in here for sure.

My choice would be to go with triple black. My suggestion would be to keep the vinyl top/trim/opera window look intact unless you do a total conversion to the full rear quarter glass like the coupes have.

[tan top]

 hello & welcome 

[PlainfieldCharger]

Welcome to the best forum on the internet for chargers. That looks like a great find. It looks like with little work you could get that road worthy....

[303 Mopar]

Welcome from CO!   

[Ghoste]

Howdy! 

[hemi68charger]

Welcome to the Board.... 

[BYB69]

Welcome, and nice looking car!

[EccentricMagpies]

Nice
Car looks solid inside and out.

[super77se]

not too shabby for a legitimate barn find lol. the vinyl looks really good

[FlatbackFanatic]

Welcome! That ride looks like a nice start.

[1973rallye]

Nice looking car. Assuming that's the original paint, it looks as if all you may have to deal with is some mechanicals.

[nvrbdn]

welcome to the club. any word yet on the engine and trans? looks pretty clean (except for the dirt) 

  if it ran, I'd shoot it with a hose, dust off the seats and cruise it. 

[Lennard]

Welcome, looks like you bought a great car that doesn't take much to get ready to cruise.

[MxRacer855]

Welcome! You can do it! 

[d_saum]

Thanks for the warm welcome!

Welcome Dave.   
That's a nice looking find you've got.   I think it looks gooder already for it's age and sitting in a barn for years.   Awesome score.   

Thanks!

Nice car and welcome, First thing i would do is clean it  then make sure there isnt any "Roadside wiring repairs", pull the fuses for things you dont need right now, who knows if mice chewed up the wiring. 

Clean it? Why would I do that? I'd lose all that "Barn Patina"!  LOL.. just kidding. Thanks for the advice about the fuses.

Hello and Welcome

Nice 73 SE 

Looks very complete and for the most part unmolested. Lots of good info in here for sure.

My choice would be to go with triple black. My suggestion would be to keep the vinyl top/trim/opera window look intact unless you do a total conversion to the full rear quarter glass like the coupes have.

Thanks... and YES.. Black is exactly the color I was thinking. And also, I am planning on losing the vinyl and the opera windows. Do you happen to know what's involved in that conversion? Is it not just removing the opera panels?

hello & welcome 

Thanks!

Welcome to the best forum on the internet for chargers. That looks like a great find. It looks like with little work you could get that road worthy....

Thanks! Yeah, I'm hoping to get her on the road soon. I'm itching to driver her! 

Welcome from CO!   

Thanks!  What part of Colorado?  I used to live in the springs!

Howdy! 

Howdy back! 

Welcome to the Board.... 

Thanks! 

Welcome, and nice looking car!

Thanks! I can't wait to make her even better looking. 

Nice
Car looks solid inside and out.

Thanks. And yeah, She's very solid. No rot, floor pans and trunk are perfect. Great starting point.

not too shabby for a legitimate barn find lol. the vinyl looks really good

Thanks!  And honestly.. that's part of the allure.. being able to say "I found it in a barn on some old man's property"   LOL.

Welcome! That ride looks like a nice start.

Thanks! I agree. 

Nice looking car. Assuming that's the original paint, it looks as if all you may have to deal with is some mechanicals.

Thanks. And yep.. that's the original paint. 

welcome to the club. any word yet on the engine and trans? looks pretty clean (except for the dirt) 

  if it ran, I'd shoot it with a hose, dust off the seats and cruise it. 

Thanks! And no, I haven't done anything with it yet as I'm still fighting with my schedule and coordinating everything.

Welcome, looks like you bought a great car that doesn't take much to get ready to cruise.

Yeah, I'm hoping it won't take too much at all. I can't wait to get started!

Welcome! You can do it! 

Haha.. thanks! And thanks for the support! 

[68pplcharger]

Welcome and good luck

[67440chrg]

Welcome it is a great looking car. Have fun.

[ODZKing]

Welcome Dave.  Looks like the color my interior was E6L3 ... looks like Parchment.
Great start, keep us up to date.
Where are you from?

[d_saum]

Welcome Dave.  Looks like the color my interior was E6L3 ... looks like Parchment.
Great start, keep us up to date.
Where are you from?

Thanks! I'm originally from Long Island, but have traveled and lived around the country quite a bit before ending up in North Cack-a-lack.

[archie360]

Looks like a great start!  If it was mine I wouldn't be to concerned about color changes at this point.  More like getting her running and giving it a good scrubbing......  and posting more pics of course   

[d_saum]

Looks like a great start.  Does the engine turn over?  Clean her up and post more pics please!

Thanks!  And I don't know for sure yet, but the old man said it should turn over. Since it's been sitting so long, I'm going to pull the plugs and squirt some magic juice in the cylinders and let them sit for a day or two before trying to spin the thing.

I finally got over to the old mans house today and was going to take the wheels off and go get some used meats on them just to get it rolling so I could haul it home. To my surprise, the guy said he had a set of wheels and tires that'd fit it that I could borrow until I get my new wheels. So in the broiling NC sun (even though most of the car was is the shade), I jacked it up and put the other wheels on it. A nice surprise was finding that the brakes were not locked up at all.  And man, oh man.. she looks even meaner sitting up on inflated tires as opposed to 3 flats and one rim!  Woot!!! 

I should have her towed home tomorrow, but I have a meeting in the middle of the afternoon. If not tomorrow, then definitely no later than Thursday. 

[VegasCharger]

Thanks... and YES.. Black is exactly the color I was thinking. And also, I am planning on losing the vinyl and the opera windows. Do you happen to know what's involved in that conversion? Is it not just removing the opera panels?

Yes, if you want the standard roll down windows (non SE Chargers, see 1st pic below) you would need the assemblies and trim from a non SE Charger (2 door hardtop). SE opera windows are in a fixed position (don't roll down). For removal besides tearing off the vinyl and removing the louver panels, you would have to dig out the factory filler smoothed over the fiberglass window plug of the rear quarter window cutout area they used on the SEs (see 2nd and 3rd pic below). Also you would have to cutout a section of the door jambs to enable the quarter glass to roll up and down. And also you would either need to extend the roof drip rail or shave off the drip rail because the SE roof drip rail is a shorter run length than the hardtop one.

My suggestion is do one or the other (SE treatment or roll down hardtop) and NOT do what some others have attempted by removing the vinyl top but keeping the opera windows intact and then smoothed over with body filler. They rarely come out looking good with this plan (see 4th pic).

I know that there is a thread on this conversion somewhere in here but I couldn't find it. Someone might weigh in on this topic. I have more detail pics on the SE window plug removal procedure if you want them, there's actually hidden screws underneath the filler that attach the plug to the body.

Like others have said, you have more important priorities prior to tackle before taking this on first.