Man drove to Michigan to get a 1963 Dodge but got a hell of a shock when he lifted the hood
- A detailing expert got a shock after popping the hood of a 1963 Dodge
- He drove two-and-a-half hours to pick it up
- However, what he found under the hood almost made him regret the decision
Published on Jul 04, 2024 at 2:28 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Jul 04, 2024 at 5:48 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Tom Wood
A detailing expert got a shock after popping the hood of a 1963 Dodge.
He drove two-and-a-half to Brant, Michigan, to pick it up.
And when he eventually popped the hood, his heart skipped a beat.
READ MORE! Son buys abandoned 1974 Dodge Challenger from dad who didn’t realize he had a real treasure
How the 1963 Dodge Dart ended up there
The third-generation 1963 Dodge Dart 440 desperately needed to be cleaned up.
It had last hit the street in 1978 or 1979 and hadn’t seen the light of day since then.
The owner’s father bought it for $100 with an unknown mileage to gift to his children, Ben and his sister.
He mounted the biggest tires in an attempt to make it drive ‘like a tank’.
And it worked, with his sister steering clear of the ‘Tank’ – which became its name.
Now, Ben wants to see the vintage car on the road and has gifted it to his own son, Michael.
That meant it was time to reveal what lay beneath the layer of dirt covering it.
The state of the vintage car
Towing it from the barn after 50 years was no easy task.
The car was hoisted onto the trailer, taking half a century of dirt – and some other unwelcome visitors – with it.
The mice feces that was all over the interior was ominous, alongside a covering of mold along the dashboard and steering wheel.
What’s more, the upholstery lay in shreds.
But, when he popped the hood his blood ran cold.
There was no rust surrounding the big block V8 engine, and the wires and cables were missing.
The resident mice seemed like the most likely culprits for that.
It wasn’t as pleasant of a surprise as was found under the hood of this mysterious 1973 Dodge Challenger.
Meanwhile, he found only a soda can, 50-year-old lubricant bottles, and a spare wheel in the trunk.
It compares to the state of these barn-find Minis that had to be rescued from an overgrown garage.
The restoration
Barn-find expert and content creator Detail Dane then cracked on with the clean-up – beginning with the dirt-covered wheels and tires.
The power-washing process filled his studio with mud – however, a glimpse of the turquoise finish beneath was rewarding.
Almost as satisfying as this Ford F250 getting its first clean in 35 years.
Afterward, the chrome-covered bumpers, grille, beltline, mirrors, and pillars glinted as if they’d just rolled off the assembly line.
When he started working on the engine compartment, the mice had scurried elsewhere in his shop, allowing Dane to vacuum and degrease inside.
When the exterior was cleaned and polished, it turned out the paint had a gloss that had turned matte over the decades.
The interior was the next challenge.
It was covered in mouse droppings and garbage, and the upholstery and floor mats had been nibbled away.
With the seats removed, he could vacuum and effectively clean and degrease the stained vinyl – revealing a light shade of turquoise beneath.
The interior mold was then steamed off the dashboard and steering wheel, too.
Despite the remaining stains and rust, the 1963 Dodge 440 was back in Ben and Michael’s yard within days, and the memories flooded back.
Michael then decided to have the mechanics fixed at a shop to get it running again.
Ben also shared that the emblem on the dashboard is from a 1949 Dodge that his father drove.
As for the mice? They proved harder to shift – but the eviction notice has been served.
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All Supercar Blondie contributors undergo editorial review and fact-checking to ensure accuracy and authority in automotive journalism. After gaining her BA Hons in French and English at the University of Nottingham, Amelia embarked on a vocational diploma from the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ). This led to numerous opportunities, from interning at Vogue to being on the small team that launched Women’s Health magazine in the UK, which was named the PPA Consumer magazine of the year for three years running. As Health, Beauty and Fitness editor, Amelia personally received a Johnson & Johnson Award and was shortlisted for both PPA and BSME titles. Since then, Amelia has created content for numerous titles and brands, including the Telegraph, 111 Skin, Waitrose, Red magazine, Stylist, and Elle, as well as being Head of Content at Vitality and Editor in Chief at INLondon magazine. “My superpower is translating technical jargon about the mechanical workings of a supercar into a relatable story you’ll want to share with your friends after you’ve read it.” After joining the SB Media family as a senior journalist in September of 2023, Amelia’s role has evolved to see her heading up the SEO output of the editorial team. From researching the most ‘Google-able’ key terms to producing evergreen content - it’s been a time of hard work, growth, and success for the editorial team and the Supercar Blondie website. “I like to think of myself as a ‘method journalist’. In other words: I live and breathe whatever I am writing about. When writing about fitness, I trained as a personal trainer, and as a beauty editor, I completed an ‘expert’ in scent diploma with the Fragrance Foundation. “During my tenure at Supercar Blondie, however, I did something I never thought possible: I passed my driving test at the age of 36. One day I’d love to train as a mechanic to better understand what happens under the hood, too. “My sweet spot is providing readers with a ‘takeaway’ (read: something new they didn’t know before) after reading every one of my stories. While I don’t claim to be an expert in the automotive world, I know the experts and bodies in the field to rely on to provide our readers with an informative and thought-provoking story every time they visit the site.”
