1966 Plymouth Fury III - From Day One

Before Henry was even born he was destined to become a Plymouth nut. His father purchased this '66 Fury III from Ayares Chrysler Plymouth in Miami, Florida, as a practical transportation solution for his growing family that also offered style. Five months later, this would be the same car that would pick him up from the hospital for his first car ride ever. Fast forward 40 years and Henry has made the car his own, and modified it in an extremely tasteful manner.

The 318-powered Plymouth served as the family's primary transportation for 14 years before they decided to look for a replacement. By this time, Henry had become attached to the C-Body and begged for them to keep it so that he could drive it when he was of legal driving age. They gave in and it sat underneath an open carport for the next few years. Since the Fury started its life as the Valdes family car, it racked up some miles, accompanied by some wear and tear. Knowing it would need some parts before it was roadworthy, Henry began saving his money. He gave it a new set of tires, refurbished all four brakes, and rebuilt the transmission along with the carburetor.

It served well as a first car for a 16-year-old high school student where it collected a lot of memories. Soon, it would be collecting dust and rust once again when he turned 19 and began looking into college. Even when he was off at school, the Fury was never too far out of his mind. Upon his return, he was greeted with a sad site. The lack of use had taken its toll on the full-size Mopar. "Somehow rodents found their way in, rust devoured the hood hinge brackets, firewall, C-pillars, and lower quarters," he recalls. This didn't dispirit him and the rebuilding began immediately.

The Fury was stripped down, saving only the doors and glass. It was hoisted onto a raised support stand where it received a leaf spring relocation kit and 2x3-inch frame connectors. Back in the garage, the remaining parts were now removed and the rear wheelwells were cut out to make room for tubs wide enough for a tire 16 inches wide. The wells were also expanded forward an additional 2 inches to clear the tire height. Supporting this robust tire are MP Superstock springs and a Dana 60 rearend with Moser axles, 4.10 gears, and a Sure-Grip Trac-Lok. The tire of choice out back is the well-proven BFGoodrich drag radial measuring 345/55-15. The fronts are 205-70-15 Sumitomos, and all four tires are mounted to American Racing Torque Thrust II wheels.

Henry had his work cut out for him with the bodywork. He welded on the new panels and got rid of the C-pillar trim. During this time, he also made a unique modification to the hood and front end of the Fury. Similar to a shoebox Chevy, the hood wraps over the front grille. Henry had the idea to separate the two and make his own fiberglass hood in the process. In doing so, he created a unique alteration to the front end that also allowed him clearance for his high-rise intake and carburetors. The car was sent to Rick's Rods in West Palm Beach, Florida, to receive its color. It was drenched in a special blend of B3 blue with a small metallic flake and ghost flames. After it was sprayed, Henry polished the stainless trim, straightened and re-anodized the stainless trim, and re-chromed the bumpers.

Inside things were given the same tedious treatment as he added new seats from a four-door '68 Satellite. A six-point rollbar was installed to sit underneath the dark blue headliner and provide increased safety. He welded the holes on the dash pads to give it a '50s-era hot rod look, and he added a handful of AutoMeter gauges and an Alpine CD player. Tom Robilard at Royal Palm Auto Trim covered the seats with the factory color silver and blue vinyl with dark blue velour inserts and door panels.