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(18) 1984 Dodge Diplomat Salon - 172,000 mi.
Special Equipment - HD front anti-sway bar, rear anti-sway bar, driver's
side spot light, Setina 12" pushbars, Code 3 MX7000 light bar, traffic flasher,
traffic backer, 300+hp 360cid, headers, duel 2.5 in stainless exhaust.
I bought the car in April 1988 while still in college with 68k miles. Car was a state car
(not police) with a lean burn 318 2bbl. I added the HD front and rear swaybars,
cruise control, Reeseclass III trailer hitch, trans fluid cooler, and spotlight soon after. In
spring of 1989 the car received its first accident. An older gentleman pulled out in front
of me with a 2 week old K-car, T-boned pass side of his car. He got the ticket, ins fixed
my car ($1700) didn't look like that much, but I had all new parts: grill, bumper, bumper
shocks, fiberglass nose etc. After I got it back I added the push bars. The gas tank
rusted
through in 1993, replaced with lifetime ReNue tank ($135) same price as steel. No problems
until Nov. 1995, at 159,000 miles the trans gave out, $466, rel. of a friend. Did the rear
end next month, I had had a leak and let it run low, picked up a Howell, all new $485, same
place. This is where the story turns to a living bad dream. I rebuilt the front
suspension end of May/first of June 1996. All new ball joints, tie-rod ends, shocks,
upper/lower control arm bushings. Had the car on the road for 2 weeks, on June 22, 1996,
rear main oil seal gives out on way to work 8am Monday morning (171,000 miles). Motor was
still OK, still was getting 16-18 mpg in city and 22-26 hwy with occasional 30-32mpg hwy.
Decided it was time to put a few extra ponies under the hood, give it the go it looked
like it should have. Ordered a 360 from so called reputable shop. Five months later it was
ready. Another 2 months for me to pull and install, along with a little sandblasting and
repainting the front under body rails. Also took opportunity to replace steering gear box
and idler arms. I did all the custom installation work with the help of a couple of close
friends. Included oil filter relocator, trans lines rerouting away from headers,
additional oil press and water temp gauges, and a sun-tach on the dash center. Ignition
was upgraded to a MOPAR Performance electronic w/distributor. I drove the car for 3 days,
then had my friend who was our groups carb expert, take the car to set the Holly 750cfm
4bbl and timing. On the last test drive (I wasn't with him) some bonehead hits him in left
rear quarter, with an S-10 pu. This is Feb. 7, 1997. He got the info and tried to get the
guy to wait for the cops, didn't and when they did show (1.5hrs later) told by friend that
if I needed a report to come get it myself. Damages estimated at $3200. The ins comp sent
an appraiser out to look at the car. They finally agreed not to total the car for a
partial cash settlement. I took it to my cousin's body shop, he cut me deal but I would
have to wait until work slowed down a little as he would be doing the work himself. No
problem. Well, 13 months after I take it to him, he finally starts working on it. Only to
have a large tree in the lot get blown over on it in a storm on 5/31/1998. The damage is a
roof, headliner, trunk lid, and possibly the trunk latch reinforcement. Also the pass
mirror was broken during tree removal. He claims the car is a total loss. I don't. I have
an 87 that I bought for parts for the previous damage. All I need outside of it is the
headliner (wrong color). So now I wait to see what is liability ins. is going to do. I'll
update when I can.
Tom Adams - 6/18/1998
(17) 1986 Dodge Diplomat SE - 75,000 mi
Special Equipment - Traffic flasher, Code 3LP lightbar
I picked this car up in October 1997. I spotted it for sale along the road.
Thought it looked nice so I stopped and checked it out. Was in good shape, only 66k
miles, and since I didn't know when my '84 was going to be fixed and the 90 Ramcharger was
expensive to operate, I picked it up for $1300. I put a new 2bbl pre-emissions carb,
MOPAR Performance electronic ignition and distributor, new shocks, and had to replace the
rusted gas tank, same ReNue tank as '84 Diplomat. Also put the light bar and
flashers on it (was on Volunteer Fire Dept till recently, change in job, looking for new
dept.) Car is everyday driver and runs well. Love the air conditioning, 84
didn't have that! Mileage is not as good as the 84's 318, 12-15mpg city and 16-22
hwy, depending on conditions and my foot's position. No plans to hop this one up, just
drive it for a few 100,000 miles till it's just a little dust in the wind.
Tom Adams - 6/18/1998
(16) 1986 Plymouth Gran Fury 4 door sedan - 100,750 mi
Special Equipment - Bone Stock (318 4 barrel)
I just bought this car in March 1998. It belonged to the Comanche County, Oklahoma
Sheriff's Department (Ft. Sill area), and it has never been marked...it was used to serve
arrest warrants. I have put nearly 4000 miles on it in just under 3 months; it had
been sitting in a garage for two years before I bought it. I fired it up and drove
it over 500 miles back to my house. I have had to replace the water pump, starter,
and U-joints. The front end was also way out of alignment. I just took it on a
1200 mile trip to Arkansas, and it performed flawlessly and got nearly 20 mpg.
Performance tip: Disconnect the cold air intake hose (don't plug it), and flip the
breather lid upside down. It shortens the life of the air filter, but the car runs
immensely better and gets better mileage. Chrysler put this in a service bulletin to
police departments in the late 1980's. It's a fabulous car, and it has been able to
get Porsche drivers to slow down and take notice.
Jason Shafer - 6/10/1998
(15) 1984 Dodge Diplomat 318 Police Package - 174,000
mi
Special Equipment - Edelbrock Carbuerator, Posi-Rear End Cooled Oil, LOTS
OF chrome.
When I was 14 years old, I belonged to the local volunteer fire department's explorer post
(boy scouts). One day upon responding to a rescue call with my father, we sighted a
firetruck-yellow diplomat with chrome American Racing Rims and the words "New Haven Fire Chief" painted on the doors. Immediately, I fell
in love with the new car, apparently our chiefs doings, since he owned a car lot. I
said to my father, "Dad, someday I'll own that car". Hey what do ya now?
By the time I turned 17 the chief had retired, and the car did the same onto his
lot for $900. So, I scrimped and saved, and picked up this glorious Diplomat.
Come to find out it was an 84 Police Package, a retired Maryland State Police car,
resurrected from the auction block, and babied by the chief. I ended up with a lot
of repairs over the past few years. The Tranny went, the brakes, the idler arm,
radiator, carburetor. But, what could I say, I was in love with my car. How
could I not be? It took me from upstate NY to Boston and back 4 times, and never
really gave me any serious problems that left me stranded. And,
racing, man does it fly. With the posi rear end, the new Edelbrock carb., cooled
oil, and all those other nice extras, I had no problem toasting (even off the line) those
sissy 70's Chevelles, and the punk Camaro patrol, and don't forget the 5.0 Mustang club.
All these victories and no exhaust led to its naming of "The Flying Death
Machine". The fire department didn't take so well to it though. Booted me out
when I refused to paint it. Then they notified the local police, and in such a small town
the tickets began to flow in. Finally I was forced to paint some cheesy flames over
the writing. So, despite the fact that over the past two years my 174,000 mile
Diplomat has managed to get me pulled over 24 times, and produced 14 moving violations in
two different states, I still love it, and plan to drive it forever and a day.
Cheezy Flames, monthly repairs, weekly traffic violations and all.
John Dowie - 6/8/1998
(14) 1986 Dodge Diplomat SE - 116,000
mi
Almost flawless mechanically. Very nice car. The paint is, as is too typical, a
little faded. The interior is just about perfect.
Adam Taylor - 6/8/1998
(13) 1979 Dodge Diplomat Medallion
I just purchased (here in Bellingham, WA) a 1979 Dodge Diplomat Medallion for $765. It
runs great, has only 76,000 miles on it (318 V8). Electric sun roof, windows and locks
(they all work). AM/FM 8-track stereo works! It's a two-door sedan. Black w/red
interior. Interior needs help, body is in relatively good shape. My brother has a 1977
Diplomat w/about 90,000 original miles. Runs great too.
timo@cio.net - 5/12/1998
(12) 1983 Dodge Diplomat Police Package
I was the proud owner of a 1983 Dodge Diplomat police package. I drove the hell out
of that car and it always treated me good. I mounted a Carter thermoquad 4bbl in
place of the 2 bbl. With the dual exhaust and 12 inch tires in the back it would do about
110mph. It still had the dual spotlights in it and I mounted some small police band
antennas on the roof. I loved cruising down the street and see people slow down
thinking I was a cop, I even had the pleasure of seeing a couple people pull over if I
followed too close. My tendency to speed and the negligence of the other driver got
me in trouble though. I actually cried when I got out and looked her over, the car I
hit was some small import that was nearly bent in half! While mine had only
sustained some front end damage, a torn up radiator and cracked timing cover.
"Fortunately no-one was hurt" but alas I had no money to fix her up and I
scrapped her. I have been searching for another one along the lines of 1980-1985
Diplomat or Gran Fury and cannot seem to find one! If anyone in the Detroit area has
one or knows where I can get one please e-mail me! Thank you!
Luke - 5/12/1998
(11) 1986 Dodge Diplomat Police Package
I've owned an '86 Diplomat police package for about four years now. I bought it with
39,000 miles on it and now she's got 63,000. This car is great and by far the best of the
best. Its got the 318 V8 w/ 4 bbl carb and the classic "dog dish" hub caps. I
wish the boys at Chrysler Corp. would put the m-bodies back into production.
Chris - 5/8/1998
(10) 1979 Dodge Diplomat
A couple years ago, I replaced my piece of junk 1981 Toyota Corolla (toy-auto crayola as
it was known), with an exceptionally large and ugly 1979 Diplomat. It was called
the "dippy" by my friends shortly after I acquired it. I rebuilt the 318,
and installed some extra lights so far, with a black and white paint job coming up in the
future. I bought the car from a friend, who was only the second owner. The
original owner was a retired cop; and lucky enough for me, the car was well maintained,
and is a heavy duty police package model. The carb has been replaced with a
thermo-quad. Also, due to the fact that the car has spent most of it's days in the
Southern Utah/Arizona desert, there is virtually no rust what-so-ever. But the
car's paint is in bad shape; greenish, with white doors. My car looks fairly similar
to yours. (I noticed the orange lights in front of the grill -- are they turn signals or
fog lights?). I installed some really bright quartz halogens (yellow ones too, since
i can't do red and blue) in front of the grill, and I've also installed some white xenon
lights on the corners of the front bumper. (and as a little quirk, I've installed some
yellow lights identical to the front on the back bumper to blind tail-gators, etc..)
So this car can really blind people at night. And it also casts an interesting
profile if I drive around without headlights and just the ditch lights. I've taken
the car out rallying and muddin' and it's like a truck. It's even seen some jeep
trails in Moab, Utah. And with cruise control, I can travel non-stop between St.
George and Salt Lake City, Utah with an average speed of 130mph. (that's what the
lights are for, since I do this in the middle of the night) As far as wrecks, I've
only had one; and luckily it was not my fault. But to put it in a couple words, a
1996 Honda Civic was completely destroyed, and all the damage to my car consisted of a
small dent and a torn-up hubcap. [nobody was hurt, but those two girls were shaken pretty
bad] their car was thrown (literally) about five to ten feet, and my CD player didn't even
skip, I can't decide whether to be proud of this or remorseful for causing so much
damage. I'm currently a Sophomore in Mechanical Engineering at University of Utah;
so the car doesn't see quite as much action anymore. But my dates love the car if I
can get them near it. And it's fast too, I've embarrassed most of the people that
live around me; trying to show me up in their new Mustangs, and Acuras. I can spin
the tires quite easily on dry pavement, which has caused me two tickets for exhibition
driving. (some people think that that involved mooning someone or something!) Also,
the car is very reliable. The only problems (in my 32000 miles) have been a
detonating starter, and a bolt on the pinion shaft (in the differential) that decided to
run free at around 120 mph. (nice... at least it only cost me $60 to have it fixed. I
would have done it myself, but this happened in some no-where town.) Anyways, it
looks like I finally found people that know the true power of the Dodge Diplomat.
Someday I will fully restore mine, and then those bratty Mustang owners will be forced to
get "MOPAR" tattoos as I beat them badly off the line. :P
Dan Flickinger - 5/4/97
(9) 1987 Dodge Diplomat
The first car I ever bought was a 1987 Dodge Diplomat. When I got is it already had over
100,000 miles on it. Now it has 140,000 miles. It is the most dependable thing I have ever
owned. It has gone through two wrecks already, but still looks like new (almost). The only
thing that I have had to replace is my radio that has just gone out. I still need to buy
speakers for the darn thing. The 4x10 that fit in the back are hard to come by in the
price range I am looking for. Other than that, every thing is good. I think I'll keep the
double "D" for a few more years.
Jim Martinez - 4/27/1998
(8) 1980 Dodge Diplomat Salon
Hi my name is Rich and I live in Conn. Five years ago my uncle give me a Dodge
Diplomat but it's a model I have never seen in my state. Its a 1980 two door which says S
Type on the small back windows. Its the original dark blue and has the 318 engine with
bucket seats AC and nice wheels. The car has 150K and still runs perfect. The body is also
in great shape.
Rich - 4/25/1998
1989 Dodge Diplomat SE
Adam Henderson - 4/23/1998
(7) 1979 Dodge Diplomat
Hello. This is Kim from Hegra in Norway. I have a Dodge Diplomat 1979 model
which I am very proud of. I have just switched from a V6 engine to a 318 which is
much better for my use!!! My car has run 75000 miles. It was imported from
California to Norway in 1982 and have since then run in Trondheim before I got the car
last year. I soon have to show my car to the expert year control, and then I expect
to buy some new parts and repair it, but I think that will be nice in the summer weather
coming to us now. A few weeks ago my Diplomat almost caught fire, because of the
headlight switch! I saw that my lights began to blink when the car shook after
driving into a hole, and then it came smoke up from the console. I stopped the car
and got out. It smelled pyton inside the car. Some hours afterwards when I got
out the switch, I saw that the headlight cable was almost uninsulated because of the heat,
and the switch smelled very bad and looked even worse. I have put in relays to take
the current to the headlights now, so I think the problem is under control now. That
was some words from me about my car, maybe I write to you later.
Kim Danielson - 4/20/1998
(6) 1986 Dodge Diplomat Police Package
I have a 1986 Diplomat police package. I love this car. The only problem is the carb
it is a quadrajunk. It has 106,000 and the motor runs great except for the gm
carb. I want to build the car to at least stomp mustangs and camaros. The body style
on these cars rule!
Scott "Screech" Ganshirt
- 4/19/1998
(5) 1984 Dodge Diplomat Police Package
Mine is a 1984 Diplomat with a police package. I have tweaked it just a little:
1973 340 engine, balanced, blueprinted, bored with 9.4-1 compression. Six pak type
exhaust manifolds with 2 1/4 inch duals and dyno-max mufflers. 2800 stall converter, hemi
governor (shifts at 5800 rpm in drive), 904 with low-ratio gear set. 8 3/4 rear-end out of
a 1965 b-body with 3.55 sure-grip. Steel rims all around with 225/60r on front and 255/60r
on back. Fun to drive. It has munched several mustangs, cameros, and 351sc
thunderbirds.
Dan Easterling - 4/15/1998
(4) 1984 Chrysler Fifth Avenue
It's a 1984 Chrysler Fifth Avenue. It currently has 110,000 kilometers (approx.
68,000 miles). It has power everything. It lacks the leather interior, but the
velour is a lot nicer than any car interior you can get today so I'm not missing out on
much.
Mike Taylor - 4/13/1998
Mike's Chrysler Fifth Avenue Page
(3) 1988 Dodge Diplomat Police Package
AC, Tilt, Pwr seats, Pwr Locks, rear Defroster. All Factory Equipment: Rochester 4
BBl Carb, Oil cooler, Transmission cooler
5 Core Radiator 727, Torque Flight Transmission, Sure Grip Diff, Police Suspension, Heavy
Duty Alternator & Battery.
Mil spec heat treating for engine block etc., due to the HD (Heavy Duty) Designation.
Car has 117K on it. I have upgraded the Coil to an Accel Super Stock,
and put in Split Fire plugs and good wires. Replaced Gas tank with new one. I
run Goodyear F32 Tires on her all around. P225/70 15 (That's what the Police use) Its
been paid for for 5 (Five) years. Car runs best on 90 Octane. I will probably
get 300,000 out of my Dodge no Problem.
Eric Toll - 4/10/1998
(2) 1987 Dodge Diplomat
Hi, I've got an 87 Diplomat. You might have seen in on this site. I am Steve Knickerbocker
and, no, the car behind my Diplomat is not another M body but rather a 79 Newport, an R
body. My Diplomat currently has a 318 with a Holley Projection TBI system on it. I have
been gathering the parts I need to drop in a 360 and a 4 speed. I'll keep y'all up to
date.
Steve Knickerbocker
- 4/9/1998
http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/2398/
(I updated the photo description - FB)
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