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Fast Acting, Long Lasting
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Eastern Chatham co. NC.
Posts: 1,171
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That's not a bad example. Like Kevin said, check it over for rust, but from the outside, it looks like any rust found might be manageable. Looks like its got all of it's stock components, which is good. I believe '75 had an air pump which should be done away with. It had tendency to cause backfiring on deceleration.
Electrics can be replaced with a Painless Wiring Harness and fuse box if the original wiring is not going to be reliable. Most of the issues I had were from brass contacts, and connectors getting corroded. Some fiddling with a bad connection always got a light working again.
Look for rust on the driver's floor under the clutch master cylinder, and where the rear deck section ahead of the boot meets the rear fenders. Under the battery is also where to look. Be sure the frame isn't rusty at the 'T-shirt' section near where the rear control arm brackets bolt to the frame, or at the upper spring perches.
Crankshaft thrust bearing failures were the main issue with the engines. The semi-circular bearings would wear down untill they fell out of their grooves and into the oil pan (like mine). The engines were otherwise pretty stout, and had 7.75:1 compression, so it only made about 105 hp, which didn't tax the drivetrain an awful lot. The valve guides, and seats don't seem to mind unleaded gas, but the head was notoriously under lubricated, so the rocker shaft, and arms were prone to wear. There's an external feed that can be added easily to address that.
Rear wheel bearings should be checked. They're put together like a set of pinion bearings in a Dana differential, with a crush sleeve between the inner races, and wheel bearing grease as the lubricant. Service requires a Churchill tool to pull the wheel flanges without damage. Same style of tool used to take old Jeep rear axles apart.
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Eighteen ways to burn fuel.
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