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MPC 1968 Dodge Coronet R/T


StevenGuthmiller

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Thanks everyone.

 

I've moved on now to the chassis, and the only real issue with using the Revell Charger chassis under the MPC Coronet is the wheel base.

In the real world, the '68 Coronet and Charger shared the same 117 inch wheel base, but things don't always mesh in 1/25th scale I guess.

The Charger chassis fits pretty well with a little bit of trimming, and a tiny bit of grinding is necessary to eliminate a little bit of real wheel well "protrusion" at the front of the rear wheel opening.

Easy fix!

A little more involved is the fact that the rear axle sits too far back, and is too narrow for the rear wheels to look right in the openings.

That, and the fact that for the position that the chassis is required to sit in the body due to interior location, the entire rear axle needed to be moved slightly forward, widened and raised to look right.

 

I started this operation by trimming the front off of the springs and moving them the correct distance forward and then created new front attachment points.

The rear chassis spring location blocks then needed to be removed and I covered the holes with some simple "plates".

Next, new rear shackles were made to bring the height up to where I wanted it.

Then the original rear axles were removed at the springs and new longer axles were added to widen the track.

It's probably a tad higher, and the rear track a little wider than an actual 1:1, but I wanted it to have an aggressive stance, as well as to fill the wheel opening.

I've always had the impression that a wider track almost always looks much better than too narrow.

 

Anyway, I think I have all of the rear axle mods done now, although later mods will no doubt be needed for shocks and the drive shaft, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

 

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Steve

 

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Thanks guys!

 

As I was finishing up the rear axle mods, I was reminded by fellow member Frank Filosa, (Dodge Driver) that it would be correct to add torque boxes to the frame for a Hemi car.

I've said it many times, but this is precisely the reason why I like doing protracted build threads!

I am by no means an expert on a lot of this stuff, and very often, people who are following along will catch things and make suggestions.

I might not always apply every suggestion, but it sure is nice to have the facts as the build progresses rather than when it's finished and too late!

 

I appreciate the suggestion immensely Frank!!

Thank you!!

 

It wasn't too bad to add them.

Might have taken an extra hour or so.

 

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Steve

 

 

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The torque boxes are a nice touch , now the front spring hanger just needs to bolt to the torque box , not the body .

68 B Body Torque Boxes - Moparts Forums

A small detail that might not be worth the effort , but noticeable .

I've watched too many Graveyard Cars episodes . 😎

Edited by oldnslow
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7 hours ago, oldnslow said:

The torque boxes are a nice touch , now the front spring hanger just needs to bolt to the torque box , not the body .

68 B Body Torque Boxes - Moparts Forums

A small detail that might not be worth the effort , but noticeable .

I've watched too many Graveyard Cars episodes . 😎

Any photos on what you're referring to?

I'm not able to find anything.

 

I think I know what you mean, but I'm having a hard time finding reference photos.

I'm assuming that the front mounting brackets should just be flipped 90 degrees to the front?

This is the best that I could find.

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Steve

Edited by StevenGuthmiller
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Swapping a chassis almost always involves some modifications and you've shown that with some careful planning it can be an easy process .  The torque boxes are another simple addition that really improves the look , nicely done !

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In building my 62 Plymouth Savoy I added torque boxes front and rear, including the brace under the front wheel well. I based these modifications on photos from the web.

I’ve been following your build Steven from the beginning and have found it to be very informative and inspiring, thanks for sharing your techniques.
Cheers Misha

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Hey Steve , the picture I posted is of a 68 Corronet torque box , you can see the bolt arrangement on the wall of the box on the spring side and no provision for a shackle to bolt to the floor pan . I Googled "1968 Corronet Hemi torque box" .

68 B Body Torque Boxes - Moparts Forums

 

Edited by oldnslow
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  • 2 weeks later...

Still slowly trying to get some more chassis work finished.

First order of business after spending what feels like way too much time sanding mold seams off of a good portion of the parts, was modifying the exhaust system to fit the motor.

I clipped off a section of each exhaust pipe and added styrene rod to extend the pipes to the exhaust manifolds.

 

I also really hated the rear "hangers" for the exhaust, so I ground off the molded in "block" and just added a piece of thin rod instead.

Probably not exactly correct for exhaust hangers, but I wasn't too concerned with that.

I just had to get rid of those huge blocks! 🤢

 

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Steve

 

 

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You've gone this far keep it up.

You might as well add the frame rail stub Revell missed

AND

Hemi cars have chassis re-enforcement plates added in addition to the toque boxes

 

Rear spring hanger re-inforcements

( edit ---- picture is marked 66-67 , but 68 thru 70 are essentially the same )

 

 

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hemi-car-6.jpg

Edited by gtx6970
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