Hi,

I just recently purchased a 65 Valiant Signet and am currently learning the ins and outs of it.

I notice that one of the previous owners seemed to have completely removed the PCV valve out of it, plugged the hole in the valve cover, and left the hole open in the bottom of the air filter...

Does anyone know how/if this would affect the peformance of the car? The car starts great, and once warmed up runs great, but it has a problem of stalling in between those 2 stages... could the problem I described above be causing this at all?

Thanks very much!

Hello and welcome to the site.

The PCV is somewhat necessary. PCV stands for "P"ostitive "C"rankcase "V"entiliation. The purpose of the PCV valve is to draw noxious vapors out of the crankcase and into the intake stream of the carb so the vapors can be burned off. Not properly venting the crankcase can lead to the "coking up" of the internal parts and an engine rebuild.

I doubt it has progressed that far, but you should get the PCV functioning ASAP. However, something else in what you say gives me pause. The PCV does not hook to the air cleaner. The PCV attaches to a big nipple at the base of the carburetor. It sounds like whoever deleted the PCV valve didn't know what they were doing. I would carfully check over the carb and vacuum lines and the rest of the motor to make sure everything is set correctly, routed where it should be, and other wise present and functioning correctly. Pictures would be very helpful at this juncture.

Welcome on the board! You'll want to pick up these three books as quickly as you're able; they'll get you rapidly and widely up to speed on how your car was built and why it was built that way, how its parts work, and how to service it.

The PCV system should be restored to its correct configuration: a PCV valve in the valve cover with a 3/8" oilproof hose leading to the PCV fitting at the base of the carburetor, and if your '65 is a California car, a 5/8" oilproof hose leading from the oil cap to the dirty side (outside) of the air cleaner. If your '65 is a non-California car, there would originally have been no connection between the oil cap and the air cleaner, for the oil cap would just be vented directly to atmosphere.

Information on making the current-production plastic PCV valve work with the pre-1966 chimney/cup style PCV provision here.

Once you get everything put together the way it's meant to be, check to make sure you've got vacuum at the end of the PCV valve with the engine idling; if not, then the carb passage is clogged or the carb base gasket is installed wrong way round.

Your cold-engine stalling issue is choke- and/or carburetor-related. You may decide to install one of the electric choke kits if your present choke thermostat is old, and your carburetor's choke pull-off may need adjusting. Carburetor information is here, and choke information is here.

Tune-up parts and technique suggestions are in this thread, and don't forget your engine has solid lifters, which require periodic adjustment.

You may also want to do the fuel line mod.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Wow! Thanks for the quick and informative responses!!

I've got a few photos of the car here ...the 2 engine pics I suppose would be the applicable ones to look at...

So, I found a service technical manual online for the car and bought it (which wasn't cheap - just over $100CDN after shipping and all that, but I'm sure will be worth it in the end). Anyway, I managed to get the PCV side of it all sorted... thanks for the help with that!

I'm still confused about the open nipple on the bottom side of the air cleaner (on the "clean" side of the filter as one of the earlier responses noted). Chatted with my dad about it and he figured there's supposed to be a hose from it to the exhaust manifold, and he thought it might be there to help it from stalling in cold weather by taking in the pre-heated air... if you look closely at the photos, particularly this one, there is in fact a plugged nipple coming out of the exhaust manifold to the left of the carb, so I'm guessing I just need to pull the plug out and stick a hose between the two...

Does this sound about right? I actually couldn't find any mention of it in the manual, but it seems pretty reasonable to me...

Also, does anyone have any contacts for people who do body work, paint jobs, etc in the Vancouver (Canada) area? I'd love to find someone who isn't going to charge me an arm and a leg, but knows a lot about the older classics...

Thanks so much for your time!

Whoah, whoah, hold a sec…your car is a Canadian Valiant Signet! That's not the same as a U.S. '65 Signet. The Canadian Signet is based on the '65 U.S. Dodge Dart GT, with "Valiant" badging (but Dart dashboard). There are some mechanical differences between U.S. and Canadian Valiants made before 1967. No need to chase down a Canadian service manual if yours is a U.S. book; we can help you with these differences if they come up as problems. Mainly they're in the electrical system (starter make/model, specs, and hookup), the wheelbase (111" instead of 106") and the dashboard configuration. Nice car, as it seems…and I see it's cat-equipped!
That's for a carburetor anti-ice system installed as an option on Canadian-built slant-6s through '68, on all U.S. + Canada slant-6s through '69. There are better ways of dealing with cold carburetion issues, and in Vancouver you don't really need any of 'em. Plug the nipple on the underside of the air cleaner and call it good.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Nice car!

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for profiles and pictures of my mopars--> http://www.fquick.com/dietz_diggler

Holy crap, you're right!!

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/467731

That's almost exactly the same as my car! (particularly the blue de-chromed rendering at the bottom) Cool!