Vannin' Community and Forums Forums General Discussion Introduce Yourself..... Newbie from Blighty!

Hello Ladies and Gents! I'm Tim, from Birmingham in the UK.
I'm currently working on my 1977 Dodge shorty, which was imported from California - 3 years ago.
It's a great van, but arrived a bit worse for wear - being an import, I wasn't able to really check it 😆
On arrival, it was running, albeit very badly!
I've completely stripped the front end, replaced every steering component, back to the pitt arm and all suspension components. I rebuilt the calipers and changed pads and disks - I think they're referred to as rotors in the USA?
I have desmogged the 318, stripped, plugged and painted the intake, had the holley carb completely overhauled and put in new leads and plugs.
The fuel lines were ripped out and replaced, tank cleaned and painted, new fuel pump, gauge sender and filters installed.
I have converted the rear blinkers to amber - via the reverse lamp, required in the UK.
The van runs sweet now, I am waiting for some rear suspension and braking parts to come in from Rock Auto at the moment.
The interior is blank, no holes in the shell or barn doors. It was involved in a crash, front left corner, looks pushed in . . . I need to get an MOT to put it on the road, once the back end is sorted that will be done and the front ding can be addressed!
I'm hoping I will be able to tap into the wealth of knowledge on this awesome site going forward, and if I'm ever able to contribute - I will with pleasure.
Thanks for having me, all the best 😊👍🏻👌🏻

Welcome from San Diego California. Nice Van Sir. Look forward to your progress & more pics.

to the site from pittsburgh! Nice van!

Welcome from Florida.
Good looking van.

Welcome.
Cool van.
Hope you enjoy it.

Hi Tim, expat here, out in San Diego, also a Dodge Van owner. I can help with any translations required! Americans have decided to call virtually every part of a car something different from what we know it as. I've looked stupid in the auto parts store many times "AN EARTH WIRE!!! EARTH EARTH EARTH" I meant Ground wire, of course.

Brake discs are indeed "Rotors"

MOT= inspection. Some states have nothing some have more. In California it is just the SMOG, purely emissions. That's why you see so many broken up bits of tire (aka Tyre) on the freeway; no one stops you having worn tires on your car here.

Welcome. Nice van.

Welcome! Glad you've joined us.

That's quite a scary thought, at least you have huge freeways? Imagine that situation on the M1!? 🤣