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Hi all:
Back in June of 1956, I ordered a Dodge Coronet D-500 coupe, with grocery getter options, with the exception of a 3/4 race cam, in western Pennsylvania. Weight with a full tank and me in it was 3685 lbs. No one could touch me in the informal drags around my neck of the woods. Sometime later that year, I started to blow head gaskets during a drag. After several tries by the dealer to fix the problem, including milling the heads, the factory replaced the heads. What a noticable power gain that gave me. (Actually, when the '57 D-500's came out, the dealer's demo could not touch me either.)
Fast forward to September of 1961. I came to California to go to college. One Saturday night, I decided to go to Lions Drag Strip in Long Beach and see what my D-500 would do. To my surprise, I turned something in the low 15's but went through the traps at a bit over 91 mph. I know the original heads would never have turned that, so I wonder what the factory put on it. When I got back to my home, I discovered that I had a small misfire in one of the plugs. Whether it was there during the drag or started afterwards, I do not know.
The dealer's manager was a cousin of mine and he said to sit tight and he would get me a good deal from the factory to fix my problem. He is now deceased so I will never know what transpired between him and the factory rep. Initally, I told the rep that I wanted a new engine or I would paint lemons on the sides and drive all over western PA. My cousin said he would furnish the paint. After that the rep was very cooperative and said he would fix me up just fine. Whatever that meant.
Dan Reitz
Northridge, CA
300F
1966 300 conv.
1956 Dodge Custom Royal
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