Doug says the complete build took less than a year and a half. Once all the metal fabrication was completed at Doug's home garage, the Belvedere-turned-Savoy was sent to Scott Guy of New Castle, Pennsylvania, for a generous helping of paint and bodywork. The sharp crease lines, sculpted fender flares, and signature protruding beltline are razor sharp. After the block-sanding, the Plymouth was coated in Dimensions' Atlantic Blue Pearl.
The Belvedere before its day...
The Belvedere before its day under the knife (well, cutting torch). Luckily, the family sedan shared the same wheelbase as the rusted Savoy or much more cutting would have been needed.
The doors were pulled and...
The doors were pulled and the center B-pillar was cut out. The running boards were cleaned and flattened to receive the new sheetmetal.
The donor Savoy was shaved...
The donor Savoy was shaved of its factory doors and forward quarter-panels. The rest of the car proffered up what little was salvageable for the project, which wasn't much.
After it was back home, Doug began reassembling the shell. Mopar Performance offset spring hangers moved the rear leaves inward allowing for better meats. A Chrysler 831/44 rear was loaded with a leisurely 2.94 Sure Grip differential turning the vintage body-matched steel rims wrapped in BFG radials. The front suspension is all but stock, with factory-style discs bringing the American Racing Torq-Thrusts to a halt. Dutton's Upholstery from Youngstown, Ohio, covered the cabin with blue cloth and vinyl. It's all stock appearing, so the stitches were easy to duplicate. Doug did install a Sony AM/FM cassette deck with a trunk-mounted CD player, and also added air conditioning and cruise control to his freeway flier. But what stands out is the large shifter hump. During the sheetmetal process, Doug opened up the floor and mounted a manual shifter tunnel.
The manual A-833 box is manned by a Hurst shifter arm and rows the gears for a hefty '65 RB 413 wedge built by Doug. Bored .030 over, the block maintains mostly all factory specifications and components, keeping the factory crank and rods. Doug pressed in a set of 9.2:1 pistons and a Mopar Performance hydraulic flat-tappet 440 Six-Pack camshaft. The factory cast heads were sent to Aerohead for a rebuild. They returned with stainless valves and hardened seats with heavy-duty Mopar Performance stamped rockers. An Edelbrock 800-cfm carburetor sits atop the factory intake, while a stock Mopar 440 electronic distributor and orange box (painted black) throws the sparks. Doug slid in a pair of Hedman headers that funnel the fumes through a set of stainless turbo mufflers and full 3-inch tubes.
A little hint of modern technology...
A little hint of modern technology crept in with the addition of this electronically controlled cruise control. Tucked underneath the steering column and perched on the inner fender like part of the aftermarket A/C equipment, many people don't recognize the little gray box until Doug points it out.
"None the wiser" is what Doug...
"None the wiser" is what Doug says when people look at his four-door-turned-two. The interior is all but stock in calm blue cloth and vinyl stitching. The shifter hump was added during the metal work process, and the door jambs hailed from a rotting corpse of a two-door sedan. As a fan of early '60s Mopars, Doug had all the shifter pedals and linkage in his personal collection ready for use.
Doug has racked up 6,000-plus miles on the Savoy since its completion. It fools most who think the car was an original two-door post sedan. Even when they're informed of the Plymouth's massive reconstructive surgery, many still don't believe it. It just goes to prove-if you can't find the car of your dreams, you can just build it yourself.