1965 Plymouth Satellite

Works in Progress

Art writes: A lot of things that happen in life hinge on lucky coincidences and this is one of them.

I’ve liked Mopars, especially convertibles, since buying my first slant-six ’66 Dodge Dart 270 for $400 back in High School. Through those early years I bought them and thrashed them all pretty hard before selling them again. After the Dart, I owned a ’71 Challenger (440/auto) convert, then switched to a ’68 Sport Fury convert (383/auto), then a ’67 Satellite convert (318/auto). The decrease in engine size had a lot to do with my shrinking budget through the lean years around 1989 to 1995.

Then I went through a “dry-spell” and owned no Mopars.

Around 2001 I talked with my new wife about getting into the Mopar hobby again. She felt it sounded like fun and we agreed on a budget. I was lucky enough to find a beautiful original 1967 Satellite w/factory 383/column auto convertible for sale, and the asking price fit our finances. That got things started again and led to me finding this 1965 Plymouth Satellite.

In the summer of 2005 a friend who learned of my renewed interest in Mopars told me his grandfather used to work for Chrysler and still tinkered with them. I asked if I could drop by and visit him and my friend said “Sure” and gave me his address.

I took the ’67 Satellite for the trip but it turns out his granddad wasn’t home. Coincidentally his neighbor across the street saw the ’67 parked out front and came out to talk. He asked me a lot of questions about it. He said he was actually a Ford-guy, and coincidentally had just bought a ’65 Satellite from a relative. He was going to pick up the car in Boston, MA later that fall and was glad to talk to someone like me who could give him some pointers about Mopars.

Fast-forward to this last spring and I get a phonecall from my friend. He asked me if I remembered talking to his grandpa’s neighbor about his 1965 Satellite. I said “Sure how’s he doing with it?” My friend said he had decided to sell it, but had coincidentally remembered my love for Satellites and he wanted to offer it to me before putting it up for sale. All he wanted for it was what he bought it for.

How lucky can a Satellite-lover get?

This is what I found about the Mopar: 1965 Plymouth Satellite hardtop, 361/2bbl, 727 automatic driving a 2.76 rearend, 117,000 miles (apparently). Options include: Air conditioning, power windows, dashclock, vinyl roof, tinted windows, bumper guards, plus a bunch more minor ones you can read on windowsticker that came with the car.

1965 Plymouth Satellite driver side front

The Plymouth listed for $3,957.85 although the dealer invoice that came with the car showed someone knocked it down to $3,875.00. That was a lot of money back then!

My wife agreed it sounded like a nice car. We now have two toddler boys and she said she’d prefer to travel with them in a hardtop with A/C. The power windows were a plus too, so I grabbed a fist-ful of cash and drove down to make a deal.

The bad:
- A few dents in each lower rear QP.
- Front pass side bumper has a small hit.
- Rust-through in trunk lid and trunk floor pan.
- A lotta surface corrosion from sitting in a Boston garage for 15 years.
- Normal wear and tear on the interior, cracked vinyl console lid, minor
tear in headliner.

The good:
- Haven't found any hidden rust.
- Only a few minor bubbles in vinyl roof.
- The suspension and steering are beautifully tight.
- The seller gave me a 4bbl manifold, plus an AVS carb with the car.
- The A/C and two power windows are the only things that don't work.
- Everything is there, trim, lenses, accessories, including the original
hubcaps - undented. - I found the customer order form, dealer invoice,
window sticker, broadcast sheet and more in the glovebox.

The plan is to first get the exterior restored. This will mean removing all trim, engine and firewall accessories, getting the sheetmetal straightened and trunk pan replaced. Repaint, then rechrome and buff or replace all trim. (With a house, jobs and two boys to keep us busy, we’ll have to take our time). We'll keep the vinyl roof as-is for now.

After the exterior is done the plan is to get into the engine a bit, rebuild the A/C and make it a good highway car with front and rear sway bars, plus dual-circuit brakes and front discs.

After that's done we’ll do what's needed to the interior.

I have my pit crew ready for the restoration, too!

Thanks Art!

Great project and the cards were right for you! Have fun with the restoration!

November 7, 2006

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