Hello all --

I just got back from Los Angeles where I picked up my new '63 Dart GT Hardtop. I bought it on eBay for $500, on the strength of two claims: that the engine was rebuilt 40k miles ago, and the body was rust-free, having spent its entire life in Arizona and the LA area. The plan was for my wife and I to take the train down, drive the Dart back up and go about a driving restoration over the next few months.

In the metal, the car didn't look as good as in the photos, but it still seemed like a good deal, and the seller had been driving it every day (he said) and it was supposedly reliable. We completed the deal, but when we got as far as Pasadena to fill the gastank, the oil light went on. I realize that 40-year old idiot lights aren't always reliable, so I checked the dipstick. Sure enough, although it had been changed the day before by the seller and was still in the OK area when he showed me, it was now just up to the "A" in "ADD". I let it cool down and added 2-1/2 quarts of oil. By the time I stopped in Valencia, some 80 miles to the north, the light came on again, and it was down to "A" again. Damn! I looked in the greasy engine bay and underneath as best as I could but all I could tell was that it was dripping off the passenger-side steering arm, and it wasn't coming from the pan.

Well, the next 450 miles were more of the same. Drive 75 miles or an hour, which ever came first, let it cool down, add oil. My normally supportive wife was not amused. Eleven quarts of oil later, we were back in San Francisco, leaving a trail of oil droplets behind us.

Today, I scrubbed the engine and bay, and finally pin-pointed the source of the leak. Just under the oil filter is a cast iron elbow that comes off the oil filter mount. Screwed onto the end of it is a plastic piece with a brass (?) insert, onto which is attached an electric wire. My uninformed guess is that it's an oil level sensor. When the engine is running, it spurts out a few drops every second or so.

Can anyone shed any light on this? What is this piece called? Does anyone know of a source? I need it rather quickly, as I'm presently going through oil like I normally go through Bourbon. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers --

Robert Haines

Hi Rob, Ebay cars are fun only if you have a good sense of adventure! Trust me I know all too well! Anyway, the gizmoe with the wire attached to it is the oil pressure sender for your idiot light in the dash. They are pretty easy to get at parts houses. I think my last one was somewhere aroun 10 to 15 bucks. OR the ugly way would be to just plug the hole where the sender went. But then you need to ground that wire cause it will be on all the time!! Good luck! Godspeed!

Yep, should be a $5 part and 10 minute job. I have had these crack before. You'll need a big socket (like 1 1/16" or 1 1/8") to replace it, or if you're good with a vise-grips...

I'd say you got off really lucky.

Lou

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Home of Slant6-powered fun machines since 1988

Did you say the oil light came on at the add mark? If so, I am a little surprised the oil light would come on with it only one qt down. After you fix the low oil pressure sender, you may find more oiling problems or possible internal bearing damage from PO running it low on oil. Don't go tearing into it on my say-so, just be wary of future symptoms. Check out the 'oil filter study' website for info on choosing a good oil filter.

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'70 Cuda AAR
'74 Duster 360
'79 MagnumGT
'79 Chrysler 300

At this stage of the game, since what the PO said is suspect, I would install a mechanical gauge to see what is really happening.

Congrats on your Dart purchase and good luck fixin her up. There's just something about the 63 and 64 Darts. Way cool little cars! I'm working on getting another aswell. Is yours the white one that was on ebay?