FNG here...Can I make a Pro-touring 65 Dodge D200 pickup? Here is where I'm at with.

[Mopar_Mikey]

Hey Guys,
I don't see it much but I'm wanting my old 65 Dodge pickup to have a Pro-Touring attitude. So far I have replaced the transmission with a automatic overdrive, using an off the shelf Holley Pro Jection system (soon to be Megasquirt), Electric Lincoln Mark VIII cooling fan with a DCC controller, 3" drop axle on the front. Where to go from here? What is the definition of "Pro-Touring" exactly? I've always been just a "car guy". Give me your input on my old rig.
Thanks All!
810568105781059

[72BBSwinger]

Love those trucks! My dad at different times had a 67,69 and a 71 that I pretty much grew up in. I personaly have had a 70 2wd long box and a 70 4x4 short box. Great trucks in any form. My dads 67 is the one I wish I had the most. It was a factory 2wd 1/2 ton LB,383 auto with the shifter on the dash.

[SRD art]

Hey Mikey-

Welcome to the forum. Not to sound like a smart butt but to answer your original question, I don't know, can you? Doing mild mods to have the "look" might be fairly simple, you're already on your way there. But to start with what you have, as unique as it is, I'd imagine you'll likely be modifying your suspension a lot if you want to be serious about it. So you have to ask yourself how much skill and/ or money do you have?

I also have a 3/4 ton truck, a Suburban, and I'm swapping all 1/2 ton suspension into it. To lower a 3/4 ton Chevy costs more, and most of the 8 lug wheels I've come across look like they belong on a lifted 4x4, not a street truck. You can also get adapters to bring the 8 lug down to 5 but that may be a little hokey and worth it to just swap everything over anyway.

As a GM guy I'm not so familiar with the Mopars but I have heard of guys swapping Volare front sub frame into trucks. Camaro sub frames, 1st or 2nd gen depending on your truck's frame width might be a nice swap, but then you're custom making motor mounts for the MoPower. If you can swap a sub frame in though you should be able to make mounts easy enough. Another cool trend is to use a Crown Vic front sub frame from a Taxi or Police car. These require a little bit of cutting and welding but become a nice bolt in situation and there is some aftermarket performance support for them. I helped do a CV swap into a 65 Ford truck, it was nice and clean when it was done, and comes with rack and pinion steering and modern geometry. You may want to google search the swap, it's really pretty cool.

On the rear suspension you could pop the bed off and you've got blue sky opportunity. To get rid of the 8 lug rear you could slip an Explorer 8.8 in there and have a 3.73 posi with disc brakes for maybe $100-$200 from a wrecking yard. Don't know the width measurements, but it might be narrower than your factory rear and give you the ability to run wider wheels and tires right off the bat. An ever so popular 9 inch from a ford truck is easy enough to grab too, but then you have to update brakes if you want discs.

Are there any forums out there that discuss swapping suspensions in your year truck?

[72BBSwinger]

It really doesnt matter what brand it is when you look at the REALLY fast trucks they are not running "bolt on" front suspensions anyway. As long as your truck has frame rails and a steering wheel the options are only limited to your bank account size.

[Mopar_Mikey]

Well I already dumped some money into the front suspension and getting the drop done. The entire front has new parts in it. Not really interested in doing an IFS at this point. I want to keep it a 3/4 ton with the Dana in the rear and 8 lugs all around. I still use this truck as a truck hauling construction materials, landscaping stuff, or car parts. My goal is to make it a truck I can take on a 1000 mile roadtrip at any point. The Megasquirt, power disk brakes on the front, and the A518 overdrive should help reach that goal. I plan on some comforts like AC, power windows, and a decent stereo without taking away the old school vintage look. At this point I have no issues driving it wherever I want to go. As far as really fast...not looking to make it a 1/4 mile truck or handle at 140mph, I can get it up to at least 85 on the highway and cruise and stop safely.

[72BBSwinger]

What I meant was handling and fast on a road course. I dont know of ANY truck that can do that with its original geometry or pickup up points. Just because your truck doesnt have 15 catalogs of aftermarket support like the CHev/Fork guys have doesnt make it any less desirable as a cool friggin truck. Mopar builders have to be a little more of a "hot rodder" to accomplish modifications because of this.

[Burkenator]

Nice looking truck! Got a great start with it.

[mitch_04]

When I think of pro-touring I think of a vehicle that can do it all. Corners, straight line, long road trips, comfortable interior, a/c, etc etc. It seems to me you would be doing more of a resto-mod, taking something and adjusting it per your tastes. Having a nice looking vehicle that runs like a new vehicle with power accessories and such. That's just my opinion, I don't think you could pull pro-touring with a straight front axle, but then again with enough suspension design it's probably possible. After all, the rear axle of many pro-touring vehicles are straight, not IRS...

Where would we be without all these labels? Pro touring, pro street, restomod, hot rod, rat rod, street rod, muscle car, pony car, sports car... most of them aren't being used correctly anyways. Who hasn't seen a piece of crap car listed as "rat rod" just because it's not painted and falling apart?

[AndrewO]

That is an awesome looking truck, almost like the truck they did on Fast & Loud.

[Mopar_Mikey]

Mitch, I kinda think the way you do on the definition of Pro-Touring... So many cars that are restored or street rods or whatever other lables you want to put on them you just can't get in them and drive them. I can drive mine 12 months out of the year at this point and want to always be able to do that. If you can't drive it...what's the point! It's working pretty good so far, working on rewiring the truck to take the Megasquirt. I have changed so much in the harness so far it is the only logical and safe thing to do. I have upgraded the alternator to a modern 136amp, took out the amp meter and put in a voltmeter, electric fan, electric fuel pump, electronic MSD ignition, Pro-Jection, adding H4 lights, added a few relays to the existing circuits. I am working on a project/new business venture converting radios in these trucks to have AM/FM stereo, bluetooth, high power, MP3, and pre-amp outputs so that will add to the comfort level I think. I took the tank out of the cab and have a 30 gallon poly tank under the truck so that leaves a little room behind the seat for subs even.
Andrew, Yeah, my girlfriend said something like that too. I was working on mine long before they hacked that one up, I'm a Mopar guy and wished they at least put a 5.7 Hemi in that truck. But the good news is that them asking $50k for it has pushed our truck prices up! My girlfriend also said my truck was nicer and if their truck was worth $50k what was mine worth...lol Hey...Kearney, NE...spent allot of time there! My mom's family still lives there.