My 1973 Dodge Titan Project!

[GypsyR]

Wait, what? " I first noticed issues once my overdrive gear..."

I've just been reading because these things are kind of interesting and a little amusing looking, in a good way. I know actually next to nothing about them other than this thread. But, overdrive? Did they have that? How? I figured they would be equipped (both small block and big block) with good old 727 Torqueflites which are just three speeds with a 1-1 final ratio. Do they have an add-on type overdrive? Just curious and interested.

[tinchariot]

Sounds like your trans needs to be replaced! If you stay with the 727 trans ad a deep oil pan I use the Summit racing brand pan. Make sure you have the largest oil cooler up front. A great trans upgrade is the 46RH trans. The trans mount must be fabricated ( i have the info on that). Some vacuum & electrical mod's need to be made up so it shifts properly ( I have the info on that).

Upgrading the rear lights, so the brake lights are separate from the turn signals requires cutting the white wire from the brake light switch (it runs to the turn signal switch) then run a 16 gauge wire to the rear for the brake lights. Then you will have brake lights, turn signals and back up lights working all on their own circuit. This works for all older dodge trucks, vans, Motor homes.

Contact me if anyone want info!

[tinchariot]

Originally Posted by tinchariot

Sounds like your trans needs to be replaced! If you stay with the 727 trans ad a deep oil pan I use the Summit racing brand pan. Make sure you have the largest oil cooler up front. A great trans upgrade is the 46RH trans. The trans mount must be fabricated ( i have the info on that). Some vacuum & electrical mod's need to be made up so it shifts properly ( I have the info on that).

Upgrading the rear lights, so the brake lights are separate from the turn signals requires cutting the white wire from the brake light switch (it runs to the turn signal switch) then run a 16 gauge wire to the rear for the brake lights. Then you will have brake lights, turn signals and back up lights working all on their own circuit. This works for all older dodge trucks, vans, Motor homes.

Contact me if anyone want info!

Let me rephrase that! Running lights, brake lights, turn signals, and back up lights all on their own circuit. As it is: Running lights, brake & turn signals (share the same circuit), back up lights.

[JohnRR]

Originally Posted by 1970s Titans

Some day I'll paint those fender so that they match the rest of the trim. I have I feeling they came off of a different motorhome, which is why they're white. The fenders on my other Titan are brown and match way better.

How about considering painting them to match the center stripe not as much of a hassle trying for the perfect paint match.

The transmission should not be a problem to have rebuilt it was a fairly recurring problem back in its day.

[1970s Titans]

It does have the 727, but I think it has some sort of add on overdrive. I feel it shift through all three gears when getting on the highway, and then when I get it above 50 it feels like it shifts into a secret forth gear and I can hear the rpms drop a bit.

[1970s Titans]

Sorry for not posting for a bit. I got busy with other stuff. But the day after I made my last post I managed to get all of lights working. I bypassed the original system and ran my own wires for the top lights front and rear and ran those to a switch under my dash. It seems to work flawless now and I have more switches to play with, which is always fun. I made my own switch panel out of a piece of scrap wood and left a couple spots for more switches in the future. Something goofy happened with the side lights though which I'll explain soon. Anyways, here's some pictures with it all lit up. I can't even tell you how excited I was seeing all of these lights turn on! Obviously I need to find a couple lenses for the back, and I'm gonna find some dimmer bulbs for the front because they glare orange on the windshield making it slightly harder to see. Also does anybody know about how much it would cost to have the transmission rebuild or replaced?

[GypsyR]

OK, you have a "lockup" 727. It doesn't have an extra gear but it locks the torque converter up when cruising which eliminates converter slip. That's the RPM drop you see. Worth at least a MPG and is the next best thing to overdrive.

Rebuild prices vary pretty widely according to location. Where I am you can pull it yourself and get it rebuilt for around $600. That's about a year warranty. No idea on the opposite corner of the country. Many places will sell you a "crate" rebuilt one shipped in for maybe double that but one of those will have at least a three year warranty. Lockup 727's being fairly rare birds, one may not be available in a crate.

Being an RV you'd have to find someone capable of dealing with such a vehicle for the R&R part if you don't want to do it. If you dropped the coach off and picked it up, I'd estimate a $1500 bill total with an "in house" rebuild. 727's aren't expensive to rebuild. Now if you know somebody or whatever, you can get it cheaper. If you are in a more metropolitan area like New York/New Jersey the price can easily be double or more. Just how it is.

[1970s Titans]

Originally Posted by GypsyR

OK, you have a "lockup" 727. It doesn't have an extra gear but it locks the torque converter up when cruising which eliminates converter slip. That's the RPM drop you see. Worth at least a MPG and is the next best thing to overdrive.

Rebuild prices vary pretty widely according to location. Where I am you can pull it yourself and get it rebuilt for around $600. That's about a year warranty. No idea on the opposite corner of the country. Many places will sell you a "crate" rebuilt one shipped in for maybe double that but one of those will have at least a three year warranty. Lockup 727's being fairly rare birds, one may not be available in a crate.

Being an RV you'd have to find someone capable of dealing with such a vehicle for the R&R part if you don't want to do it. If you dropped the coach off and picked it up, I'd estimate a $1500 bill total with an "in house" rebuild. 727's aren't expensive to rebuild. Now if you know somebody or whatever, you can get it cheaper. If you are in a more metropolitan area like New York/New Jersey the price can easily be double or more. Just how it is.

Thanks for all of that information. Definitely glad to finally know what it is too. I'd be more than willing to pull the transmission and take it in myself if it means saving that much money.

[1970s Titans]

For the past couple days I've been doing a little more work to the Titan. Mostly just for fun and driver comfort. I found some of these neat little almost matching fans for the driver and passenger for free a while back. I believe they're from the 70s or 80s. I've seen these in so many older trucks and motorhomes and always been jealous, so I was stoked to finally find some. I just never figured out how I was gonna install them until recently. I have perfect places for them now and wired them up to some switches under the dash board on each side. And the mounting plate for the passenger side switch is actually a piece of aluminum I salvaged off a broken roof vent from the other motorhome. The fans will also be nice for when it's cold or raining. I can just aim them at the windshield and keep it from fogging up like it has in the past.

[1970s Titans]

Hey everyone! It's a been a minute. I got extremely busy after I graduated highschool, got my CDL and got a job driving garbage trucks, and in the middle of all this forgot my password to this website. I haven't done a lot to the Titan since my last post, but I have every single exterior light working now, and even found replacement lenses for the back clearance lights. They're not correct but they're from the right era, so I don't mind too much. I'm gonna be replacing or rebuilding the cylinder heads soon and make sure to get hardened valve seats so I don't have to worry about lead, and still need to figure out my transmission issues and maybe get that rebuilt. Other than that I just need to get my plumbing and gas to work. I've gone through all the electric and have almost every inside appliance and all the lights working. I've spent a few nights in it now and it's totally livable by my standards, so after I get the plumbing and gas figured out it'll be perfect.

[1970s Titans]

Between both Titans I had three of these florescent circle lights and I absolutely love them. I put two in the back and one on the ceiling.

[1970s Titans]

And I got this awesome orange porch light to work.

[1970s Titans]

It gives off sort of a spooky glow at night and I love it!

[Sparky1]

i had a 79 Titan. loved it. sold it to a guy South boston,VA he blew it up junked it-- i would have bought it back.

i had no problem buying parts just a dodge truck.