1966 Plymouth Fury VIP Delivered

[Fleet 500]

I think it's C from some multiple choice tactics I've learned in the past:

Choice A- 4,186 lbs
Choice B- 4,220 lbs
Choice C- 4,330 lbs
Choice D- 4,377 lbs

I automatically narrowed it down to C and D because they both have 4,3xx in common. Next, I noticed B and C were similar in that the last digit was 0, but having ruled B out already it's got to be C. I'm 100% certain. Prove me wrong.

You are now all enlightened and amazed. You're welcome.

You're right! The answer is C... 4,330 lbs. Good process of elimination.

A Car Life road test of the car, with the same engine, listed weight as 4,327 lbs, so mine weighs only 3 lbs more than their test car!

You may now pick up your award.

[Rockefella]

Lol, that was a lucky guess then

Only 3 lbs from the tested weight xx years ago is pretty cool too, you'd figure after all the wear and tear it'd be at least a 50-100 lb difference

[Fleet 500]

Lol, that was a lucky guess then

Only 3 lbs from the tested weight xx years ago is pretty cool too, you'd figure after all the wear and tear it'd be at least a 50-100 lb difference

Don't sell yourself short... it was more than a lucky guess!

Weight would depend on the options the car has.

[Fleet 500]

Another video added to youtube.
Two clips with a 20 second pause in between.

You can hear it get rubber in 2nd gear at 6 seconds into the first video.
The second clip shows a short burnout. I'm still getting used to the car and don't want to overrev the engine when burning rubber!

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdocLRHvVng"]YouTube - 1966 Plymouth Fury Street Driving[/ame]

[cmcpokey]

that sounds awesome, and looks better. although it looks like it could deal with a LSD.

[Fleet 500]

that sounds awesome, and looks better. although it looks like it could deal with a LSD.

I may put in a limited slip diff someday. The Mopar name for it is "Sure-Grip!"

It has a 3.55:1 axle ratio. The rear diff is the common and strong 8 and 3/4". Aftermarket gearing is widely available. 3.55:1 with LSD would be a good choice.

[Fleet 500]

Okay, I think I've owned this car long enough to make a Fiset Test...

1. Is it practical?
For a daily driver, not really. For a hobby car, yes, because it is much more affordable than a '60s muscle car.

2. Is it economical?
Not really! It has been averaging about 10.2 mpg (with a heavy foot). It is economical in a sense when factoring in insurance and the low cost of parts like spark plugs or a water pump (it hasn't needed either of those yet).

3. Is it fun to drive.
I would say so. A powerful big-block engine (383-4 bbl) and no emissions equipment to choke the engine. It is easy to tell that nothing is holding it back when accelerating (except maybe its 4,330-lb weight). Most of the streets here have a 40 mph speed limit; it keeps creeping up to 50 mph and I have to back off the accelerator a little. Fortunately, it was ordered with heavy duty suspension which includes bigger shocks and a front anti-sway bar. It does seem to corner better than my brother's former '66 Fury III which had the standard suspension. The seats are very soft and comfortable and the steering is easy. I could drive this car to Las Vegas very easily! It has that Mopar "feel" to it which is hard to explain. The shift kit I put in the automatic transmission also helps the fun factor- it will easily get rubber in 2nd gear.

4. Will it break down all the time?
Nope. The '60s Plymouth Fury enjoyed a good reliability record. Engine, transmission and rear end are all well-built.

5. Is it easy to park.
Yes and no. It is a full-sized car so parking a small space does take some effort. But the big windows all around help a lot. The back window is very large and all four fenders are visible from the driver's seat. The first time I backed it up and looked behind me, I knew it was much easier to see out of compared to my other cars.

6. What if I go to a shopping center and get chased by baddies in a 'Vette?
Not sure how to answer this question. Most likely the car would get a compliment.

7. Is it green?
Don't think so. It's certainly not an economy car and I add lead substitute to each refuel.

8. Can I afford it?
Yes, it is easily affordable since it is driven only 1-2 times per week. No car payments and insurance and registration costs are low.

9. What if I'm asked to take part in a beach assault with the Royal Marines?
Again, not sure how to answer this. As with question #6, the marines would probably be admiring the car, but I would not want it to go through any kind of beach assault.

I drove this '66 to a Cadillac friend's house a few weeks ago. He was impressed with it which kind of surprised me since he mainly likes big, luxury cars. I took him for a drive and as we started driving uphill on his street, the engine in my car caused a few car alarms to start chirping! I didn't expect that and my friend laughed when it happened.

[jcp123]

Hm, Fiset test. Hadn't seen that one, I'll have to put it up on my car.

Anyhow interesting analysis of it, pretty well jived with what I would have figured

[Fleet 500]

Hm, Fiset test. Hadn't seen that one, I'll have to put it up on my car.

Anyhow interesting analysis of it, pretty well jived with what I would have figured

Well, I don't think it's as old as the Egg Nogg test.

Yeah, do your car!

[demonsdemon]

If ya don't mind me askin' Fleet; How much did you pay for it?

I have a '66 Fury VIP myself (2 door, 2bbl w/ 383) and to be honest I joined this site to try to sell it to you, too late! LOL

[Fleet 500]

If ya don't mind me askin' Fleet; How much did you pay for it?

I have a '66 Fury VIP myself (2 door, 2bbl w/ 383) and to be honest I joined this site to try to sell it to you, too late! LOL

I won the bidding at $3,615. It being an out-of-state car, it had to be shipped which added to the price.

Yeah, I guess it is too late to buy yours! What color is yours (exterior and interior?).
I figured if I did buy one with a 2-bbl 383, I would convert it to a 4-bbl... aftermarket intake manifold and a 4-bbl carb. Also would install dual exhaust.

[demonsdemon]

Dark Blue outside (not orig. tho’-an Earl Schieb job over a greenish tan), black interior.
Hasn’t been driven for awhile due to a broken linkage between steering column and gear box.

Funny story about how I got it:

Once upon a time at a place called Circuit City in downtown Burbank I was an A/V salesman. I had worked in the Van Nuys store for a number of years before I transferred to Burbank when that store opened, so I knew a lot of people and even more knew me (especially when wanting a discount, lol) particularly because I rode a bike exclusively (V Twin). The guys I worked with on a regular basis knew that I’d had a lot of cars before swearing them off for the preceding 10 years, including a ’54 Bel Air 4-door, 1970 Monte Carlo, 1972 Lincoln Continental Mark IV, etc.

So one day this Persian guy named “Jay” tells me he is thinkin of buying a cool old car and asks me to take a look at it and tell him what I think. I say “cool” and he takes me around to the back of the store, near the car stereo installation dept. and shows me this blue (almost)cholo-mobile. I tell Jay that I’d never even heard of a Plymouth Fury and couldn’t honestly tell him if it was worth the three grand he was gonna pay for it.

The guy who owned it worked in the installation dept. so Jay brings him over and gets him to let me take it for a test drive. I didn’t even get out of the parking lot because I had to use the handbrake to stop the beast.

Anywayz, after I chewed the dude out fer not warning me about the brakes I learned that he’d bought it for $500 when he’d been stationed somewhere in the Midwest and when he discharged he brought it with him to make it in “Hollywood”. He said the reason he wanted to sell it was due to the frequency of being noticed by gangsters as he drove around town to auditions and such.

Apparently he would often get asked questions like “Where you from?” to which he’d reply “Who wants to know” or some such silly shit which obviously didn’t go over so well.

So I wished them both luck and I went back inside. A few minutes later Jay comes up to me and says “Man, I think I’m gonna buy that car. First thing I’m gonna do is take it over to my cousin and make it a convertible.”

W-wh-what?

“Yeah”, he says “my cousin just got done customizing his Bug. You should see it, he changed the front to look cooler and made it into a convertible.”

I say, Are you serious?

He says “Oh yeah, its cool, except you can’t drive it in the rain….” No more than fifteen minutes go by before my conscious gets the better of me, I couldn’t just standby and not say something, so I track down the guy who owned it. I told him, Do you know what Jay is planning to do to your car?!? He says, “Yeah man I know, give you a hundred for brakes and its’ yours. Take it” It seemed a small price to pay...wait did he say he'd pay me? Sure enough he did! I didn't take his money, but did take the car.

That was nearly twenty years ago. Ended up being the coolest car I’ve ever had, the only car I’ve owned that ever got me flagged down by cuties I didn’t know!

About the only thing I did to it (other than upkeep and repairs) was add a bumping stereo system (mounted inside the glove compartment). Oh Hey does yours have the turn signal indicators on each side of the hood? I changed the color of mine to blue.

Anywayz I pretty much stopped driving it when the arrival of child number three (a twin) forced me to buy a MINIVAN, argggh!