Rusty_OToole

Could be interference from the ignition or from the generator. You can add a capacitor to the generator to quell the sound. Sound breaking up badly, could be a bad connection somewhere in the 12V system making intermittent contact due to vibration as you drive. hard to say without hearing it .

Needle valve is sticking. When you hit it, that jars it loose. When the car is running if the valve sticks it burns up the excess gas and vibrates it loose. Time to clean and overhaul the carb or sent it to Carbking for a rebuild.

If no one here knows you may be able to find an 87 repair manual. Some big libraries have them. Or ask at Allpar or one of the other Mopar sites.

Unfortunately Ron passed away about 3 years ago. His shop is still in business in the hands of his son.

One technique I have used on overpriced items is to say to the seller, I would like to make an offer but dont want to insult you. If they tell you to go ahead and make an offer they cant kick no matter what it is.

The bodies were practically the same those 2 years. But instrument panels were one thing that got changed frequently. On of us should measure the 2 dashes and compare them, by taking pictures if necessary. You are closer than I am.

Im surprised there are enough LaFrance speedsters to make up a club. The only one I knew about was the 1918 touring built by Ron Fawcett of Whitby Ontario in the fifties. It sold in 2007 for $17600. Did you know about that one.

What kind of oil are you using. If you have STP or synthetic or some oil in there that is slipperier than what they had in 1911 it could be a problem. If it is possible to isolate the clutch from the engine, automatic transmission fluid is good. I used to use ATF in my British motorcycles with wet clutches, the clutch worked great and did not have the sticking problem when cold.

They used acetylene, just like they use for welding today. The welding gas companies used to make small acetylene cylinders for cars and motorcycles. You could also get a gas generator that made acetylene from carbide and water. Should be worth a good price but I dont know how much.

The old partial flow filter was a good filter. It filtered only part of the oil at a time but did a very thorough job. If it was mine I would try to keep the old filter and find a cartridge that would fit. They still make them for tractors, industrial aps etc. Or some NOS ones might turn up. A modern full flow filter will give the worst of both worlds, sketchy filtering to only part of the oil.

I think your diagnosis is right about the plates hanging up on the pins. New pins of very hard steel might be in order. The clutch was probably satisfactory in its day. The main trouble was the clutch sticking together and not releasing when cold. That, plus the complexity and expense doomed this style of clutch as soon as the asbestos lined, dry plate clutch got invented. Hudson was about the only company that stuck with the oil bath clutch but their later models had a single friction plate and were lined with cork. I think if you rebuilt your clutch with new pins and file the worn surfaces on the dogs smooth it would be fine. You might also want to check the springs to see that they still have enough tension. One way to do this is line them up and lay a straight edge on top. Any that are bent or shortened will show up, if they are all uniform they should be OK. This is just a story, so take it for what it is worth. A true story. I knew an Indian motorcycle expert named Charlie Mahoney. He had a mid 3Os Indian 4 with a multi plate wet clutch. Originally it had alternating brass and steel plates. Some time in the fifties he rebuilt the clutch using plates he cut from Masonite to replace the brass ones. He told me he tested the Masonite first by leaving a piece to soak in oil for a few months. It did not dissolve or change, the oil seemed to make it stronger. Because the Masonite was thicker than the brass he had to omit some plates but the clutch worked better than ever. Another thing he did was put springs in the plates to push them apart. This was to prevent them sticking together when cold. To do this he drilled small holes in the outer tabs of every second driven plate. In these holes he put the springs. The springs consisted of small pieces of Neoprene O rings. Im not suggesting you do the same just telling the tale.

Somewhere I have seen pics of the Hudson assembly line circa 1948. The dashboard was stamped from a big sheet of steel pre printed with the woodgrain. I always wondered how they painted the wood grain, it seems they painted flat sheets of steel then stamped them to shape without damaging the paint.

You would have to scan the part to make a virtual part in the computer. Then correct or modify the virtual part ala photoshop. Finally use the 3D printer to make the part, or the mold. For example if you wanted to make a casting you would have to make the pattern bigger to allow for shrinkage. About one sixteenth inch per foot for aluminum. This would be childs play on a computer, not so easy on the actual part.

Engine number is on left side of block, at the top edge of the block just below the head, near the front. Above the generator ahead of the distributor. If it is the original engine the number will start C16

Chevrolet. You can kill the rotten music by the sound control at the lower right of the screen. This would be a good video to illustrate why sedans and coupes had fabric inserts in the tops until the mid 30s. Note the size of the sheets of metal going into the stamping press around the 6 minute mark. Such wide sheets were not available before 1934. The Chevrolets shown are the Turret Top model, first to have a solid steel roof.

I am beginning to wonder about the continental kit and fender skirts. The way the skirts match the line of the fender and blend into the continental make me think they were made specially for that car. I doubt AMC made the skirts, or the continental kit. So either some aftermarket company tooled up for them which is unlikely, or someone had them made for the car, or someone was very lucky in buying universal parts and having them fit perfectly. It would be interesting to know where the accessories came from. Incidentally the Ambassador should be easier to get parts for than your Jeepster or Willys wagon.

Black soot means too rich mixture in other words too much gas, nothing to do with spark advance. Did they even have automatic advance in 1928.

Another empty dream.The education system today is all about milking the suckers, I mean students, into paying big money, mostly borrowed, for a worthless degree. There are thousands of graduates each year who cant find a job or if they are lucky find a low paid job the could have done with a high school diploma. Except they are starting out in life with $1OO,OOO in student loan debt that they cannot repay, and that they cannot escape even by bankruptcy.

If the car was near here I would be tempted to buy it myself. There is a restoration shop owner near here who uses a red 1966 Rambler Ambassador sedan regularly in the summer.

Motor parts are not hard to find. Most can be bought from your local parts stores. The rest are available from antique car specialists like Egge Machine. If there is anything specific you need, ask on the Olds board. Fixing the old motor would be way easier than installing a new one.

Hemi and poly trans should be the same based on the fact that they use the same block but I could be wrong. There is also the flathead six version, I bet most of them had manual trans. I know where there is a 55 plymouth 3 speed stick and six parts car. The bellhousing will be wrong but the driveshaft, trans, pedal assembly and gearshift might work. Whether a 55 plymouth uses the same parts as a 56 Dodge is also an open question. To the idea of using a SBC I still say, if you want a Camaro buy a Camaro. I like the pushbutton automatics and even if I didnt I wouldnt go to the trouble of changing one out. Id learn to like it before I did that.

Right now a lot of people are hurting for money.Unemployment is high. One American in seven is on food stamps. Could be a lot of customers have lost their jobs and are trying to struggle through the next week or month, hoping something turns up. Then again modern cars need so little maintenance they think they can get away with none at all. And they can as long as they trade the car in before it blows sky high.

Some have reported less vapor lock and more power and cooler running by adding kerosene to the gas. Low compression engines, like 7 to 1 or lower, 1O%. Up to 25% if your compression is real low like below 5 to 1. Todays gas is too light and too high octane for old low compression motors, they need more heavy ends to develop full power.

I believe the bolts were dumped into vats of oil as they came off the assembly line, still hot. This gave them a black finish that was moderately rust proof and of course a slight coating of oil would preserve them in the box until they were sold. Today they use some kind of zinc or cadmium plating.

If you go to an old car flea market you will see lots of 198O magazines cheap. Buy a few and you will soon find what you are looking for.