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FootLoose

Posted 2025-08-18 7:50 PM (#641244)
Subject: '61 Windsor a.k.a. "Betty."

Member

Posts: 7

Location: Netherlands

Finally, after 14 years (on and off) of resto in my workshop, now ready for the road, this is "Betty".
Slightly customised, wrong colors, wrong wheels but otherwise highly original.
She's not so much restored but rather has been conserved/preserved and is now ready for her next life on the road.
Tons of upgrades as she was meant to be a daily driver. Complete engine/tranny rebuild, but still on her original bore/pistons.

Sold new in California, moved to Finland in the mid 80's where she received NOS upholstery, a new trunk floor and new paint.
She was featured in '91 in the nr.1 issue of the Finnish V8-Magazine so I was very lucky to get a nice car that didn't need any welding.
The Torque-Flite gearbox was at that time rebuilt bij Finlands most respected gearbox builder and shifts gears smooth like silk.
All work done at that time is confirmed in this '91 V8 Magazine article, that magazine is ofcourse also in my possession.

All her sheet metal is original but with the badly designed trunk lip modified by me to drain water and prevent any rust.
No other welding and no bondo anywhere, the original factory rustproofing can still be found underneath the car.
Lots of drive-train/chassis parts are powder-coated rather than painted for longevity.

4-disc brake set-up, relais headlights/hazards as per Sven (Wizzard), 7 blade Chrysler cooling fan with a Jaguar thermo clutch set-up.
A heavy-duty later type Mopar anti-sway bar was added to the front as Newports and Windsors came without one from the factory.
Original exhaust system which still has the factory silencer. Speedo was reset from just a 100K to zero during resto and she now has
7 mls on the clock and is still running break-in oil. Her new cam/lifters compare to Chryslers "purple" cam specs and she's running
mighty strong with plenty of power and a bootload of torque. She just sounds fantastic and has a beautiful idle at about 550 rpm's.
Steering box was rebuilt by Steer & Gear USA and set to "Firm" and with the addition of the swaybar she handles like any modern car.
All parts of Betty that can suffer from wear are either improved on, brand new, rebuilt or NOS, and she's now better than new!

All work was done by me including paint, which was a first for me, but i think turned out pretty good.
I'm a custom bike- and engine builder by trade and I had built several V8 engines in the past with great succes, but they were mostly
Chevy's, so I built this (my first) 383 Mopar in collaboration with Maarten from Dymo-Track, who is Netherlands most respected
and well known engine builder, anything overhere that lives on or near a race track has likely come through his shop.
Only the best quality parts were used in the rebuild and no expenses were spared for utmost reliability.

So a big thanks to Maarten from Dymo-Track in Cruquius Netherlands and i also want to thank the people I've corresponded with on
this website over the years. Special thanks to Sven (Wizzard) in Sweden, Sid (1960fury) in Germany and Brian (DeMopar) LA, U.S.A.
For all the technical advice/help and swapping/locating parts to get this project done. What a wealth of knowledge. Thanks a lot guys!

And now for the sad part of this story...
As my local City-Council confiscated the grounds my workshop was built on, I now no longer have a workshop and therefor my
beloved Betty has lost her safe parking space and roof over her head and I'm thus now forced to put her up for a very reluctant sale.
Looking for a very good home for Betty with someone who will love her as much as I do.
She comes with hundreds (1000?) of pics of all the work done, a massive library of books/vids and a boot load full of spare parts.
Basically anything that could possibly break is included in her spares, double, triple or more, used or brand new and lots of it NOS.

All OEM parts like wheels/brakes/hubcaps are ofcourse present and included, as are spare grill-and headlight surrounds, steering box
and collumn, engine mounts, carbs, 3 sets of instrument clusters with domes, all switches, mirrors, gauges, indicator switches, radio,
clocks, heater parts, gear selector unit, headlight switches, EL transformers, all electrical parts, complete windshield wiper system,
doorhandles, spare stainless trim parts, badges, etc, etc, etc...

Anyone interested can PM me for more info. I'll be posting more pics of Betty in days to come...

Edited by FootLoose 2025-08-19 5:48 AM

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frwl

Posted 2025-08-20 1:34 PM (#641254 - in reply to #641244)
Subject: RE: '61 Windsor a.k.a. "Betty."

Expert

Posts: 2356
2000

.
Hello;
Could you post up the data plate photo, please?

FootLoose

Posted 2025-08-24 10:32 AM (#641275 - in reply to #641244)
Subject: RE: '61 Windsor a.k.a. "Betty."

Member

Posts: 7

Location: Netherlands

Sorry for the delay there, it's been very busy here...

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FootLoose

Posted 2025-08-24 10:54 AM (#641277 - in reply to #641244)
Subject: RE: '61 Windsor a.k.a. "Betty."

Member

Posts: 7

Location: Netherlands

Rebuild...

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frwl

Posted 2025-08-29 2:17 AM (#641310 - in reply to #641244)
Subject: RE: '61 Windsor a.k.a. "Betty."

Expert

Posts: 2356
2000

.
Thanks for posting and sorry for delay:

MIDDLE ROW:

A2 – 292 – Power Brakes
N5 – 315 – Heater with Defroster
R1 – 371 – Light Package including:
- Back Up Lights
- Glove Box Light
- Luggage Compartment Light
- Hand Brake Warning Light
- Dome Lights

T2 – 422 – Golden Tone Radio
V1 – 441 – Solex Tinted Glass at all Windows
X1 – 511 – Windshield Washer
Y8 – 588 – Undercoating and Underhood Insulating Pad

LOWER ROW:

SO 0531 – Scheduled on May 31, 1961
NUMBER 1202 – 202th car built that day
BDY 823 – Chrysler (8) Windsor (2) 4-Door Sedan (3)
TRM 713 – Tan Vinyl and Tan Striped Fabric
PNT ZY2 – Tuscan Bronze Roof Color (Z) and Sahara Sand Body Color (Y), 2-Tone Paint Scheme (2)