1965 Dodge Monaco - Diplomatic Dodge - 45

It may have started life transporting American Samoa’s diplomats, but this four-owner Dodge Monaco was destined for bigger things
Ged Crombie grew up in a family that wasn’t into cars, but he was, is and always will be a car guy. His first obsession was Fords, starting with a 1949 Ford Popular. He moved on to the GM stable, but for the last 10 years he has been a Chrysler man through and through. So much so that he has created his own sideline business called Gedz Garage, importing and selling Mopar parts from the States.

Meant To Be

In 2004 Ged was looking for a new Mopar, a 1965 Dodge Coronet, to be precise. He didn’t find the Coronet, but what he did find while attending the Palmerston North Swap Meet was a very tidy 1965 Dodge Monaco. It had the body work already done and needed the mechanicals sorted, which was perfect for this Waikanae automotive technician, who admits that “bodywork isn’t my thing”.
The Monaco started its life as a Canadian-built factory 318 (the American-built Monacos came with a 383). Its first two years were spent as a diplomat’s car in American Samoa, ending in 1967 when it was shipped to little old New Zealand. By the time Ged got his Mopar-loving hands on it, it was sporting a stroked 440 big block (out to around 451ci), and recent panel and paint courtesy of previous owners Robin and Linda Barnes of Koop-de-Glass, who straightened out the long, clean lines of the coupe. Robin and Linda also de-badged and de-chromed, before coating the whole thing in a classic gold colour with subtle two-tone fade on the roof to accentuate the factory lines.

Making A Good Thing Better

Ged could have left his new purchase as he bought it and had a perfectly fine classic car ” but then it wouldn’t be on the pages of NZV8 magazine now, would it?
Not long after he got the Dodge Ged was backing out of the workshop and it lost reverse ” gone, nowhere to be found. Out came the transmission and off it went to a mate to get it sorted. The trans might only have taken two weeks to come back, but the car was off the road for 12 months. While the trans was out Ged decided it might be time for a “bit of a tidy up”. How many times have we heard that one..?

Get Up And Boogie

The Chrysler 440 big block had already had a fair amount of work done to it, including Keith Black pistons, Comp Cams roller rockers and ported heads, so Ged decided to tidy up the engine bay and dress it up a bit. This was done by hiding the wiring, popping on some race-style Indy rocker covers, installing a new electric water pump and alloy radiator, and changing the carb to a Barry Grant 750cfm Mighty Demon double pumper.
The trans is a 727 with a lot of good bits in it, which Ged found when it was stripped down to fix the no reverse problem. It has a Chrysler 8.75-inch diff that originally had 2.7:1 gears in it, but Ged changed that to a locker 3.5:1 ratio diff head, which helps it get up and go all that quicker. The old girl can really haul ass now, running a 9.2 eighth mile at Port Road in street drags, which isn’t mucking around when you consider the size of her.

Handles As Well As It Looks

While the Monaco was parked up it also got new suspension and brakes. Ged had new Tubular A-arms custom manufactured by Kiwi Race Cars. QA1 alloy 12-way adjustable shocks were slotted in all round, giving the car a more stable ride and much better stance. Ged imported an SSBC big front brake kit from the States, which included 11.25-inch slotted rotors and four-piston alloy callipers, stainless braided brake hoses and a very trick-looking billet master cylinder. The brake kit didn’t quite bolt straight on like they said it would, but it didn’t take a lot of modification to get it in. While that was going in Ged also added a brake bias valve to the system plus a line lock solenoid. Once he got the braking system dialled in, the car stopped far better than when it packed the big old 11-inch drum brakes that came factory on it. When it came to choosing wheels, after trying a few different options Ged settled on the classic look of the 15-inch Weld Prostars ” he liked the style of them and didn’t want to go with huge late-model alloys that seem to be the trend with big American cars these days. Instead he opted for more of a street machine look, which is mirrored throughout the car.

Inside The Ride

The spacious interior has been left relatively stock, with the seats, dash, headlining and even carpet being the same ones that graced the Monaco when it rolled off the factory floor. The B&M shifter looks fantastic, and it’s hard to believe it is a factory piece, except for the cool knob with the Mopar logo machined into it. The aftermarket gauges that Ged has added have been done so that they almost look factory spec; and, believe it or not, the factory centre console’s tacho, clock and radio still work perfectly ” not that Ged has the radio hooked up; he prefers to listen to the sweet exhaust note from that stroked big block engine. That’s right folks: no 20-inch alloys, no airbag suspension and no big-dollar stereo with a boot full of subs here ” Ged’s an old-school kinda guy.

Drive It Like You Stole It

For now, Ged is pretty much done with modifying the Monaco. He recently purchased a 1968 Plymouth Barracuda from Florida, so he’s diverting his attention to that and just driving the Monaco. But it was built to drive, right? Hell yeah; Ged drives it and drives it hard. It’s a solid weekend cruiser, but with summer upon us it is starting to see more action with the odd Rod Run. Ged has even booked in to drive her down to Christchurch for Muscle Car Madness this year, and why not? “It goes hard, goes around corners real well and it stops on a dime, yet it just looks like an old street machine,” he says.
Simple really.

Ged Crombie – Owner Profile

Age: 42
Occupation: Automotive technician
Previously owned cars: 1949 Ford Popular with 289 V8 and four-speed, 1969 Holden Monaro, 1964 four-door Impala, 968 Camaro with tunnel ram and nitrous, 1965 Dodge Coronet 440, 1969 Plymouth Satellite — Roadrunner Clone, 1963 Chrysler 330 Sedan
Dream Car: Mid-’60s A/FX Mopar drag car with a blown Hemi, Hemi-powered Dodge Daytona
Why the Monaco: Loved the body style and the panel and paint had already been done
Build time: Ongoing
Length of ownership: Four years
Ged thanks: “Firstly, thanks to my partner Anita who allows me to pursue my automotive addiction.
“Big thanks to a previous employer, Keith (Piggy) Dent at Cartorque Ltd in Paraparaumu (ph 04 902 9042) for use of his workshop during the build. Robin and Linda Barnes from Koop-de-Glass (ph 06 756 8460) for the original build-up of the car.”

1965 Dodge Monaco – Specifcations

Engine: Chrysler 440ci big block stroked to 451ci (7210cc to 7391cc). Keith Black pistons, Hemi half-inch oil pick-up, modified sump, nine-way adjustable cam timing set, 906 cylinder heads, stainless valves, crane double valve springs, Comp Cams roller rockers, heads ported and flowed to 550hp, 750cfm Mighty Demon
Driveline: 727 transmission, competition clutches and bands, five-plate clutch assembly, modified valve body, Hemi flexplate, 2800rpm stall torque converter, 3.5:1 ratio Suregrip diff head with big yoke, 30-spline axles, three-inch driveshaft with large universal joints
Brakes: Complete front brake kit from Stainless Steel Brake Corp in the USA. Original 279x51mm rear drum brakes with new shoes and overhauled wheel cylinders
Suspension: QA1 alloy 12-way adjustable front and rear shocks. Original front torsion bar and rear leaf springs. Original front swaybar, tubular top A-arms made by Kiwi Race Cars
Wheels/tyres: Weld Prostars, 15×7 and 15×10-inch Weld Prostar rims, 205/65R15 Goodyear and 275/60R15 BF Goodrich tyres
Exterior: Body de-chromed and panel and painted by Robin Barnes in Gold, with fade-away roof paint scheme.
Interior: Original interior with extra aftermarket Auto Meter water temp and oil pressure gauges and Summit Racing tacho. B&M shifter with custom Mopar knob
Performance: 9.2 at 95mph (152.8kph) 1/8-mile ¨(Port Road)