Own a survivor 69 RR and would like to find some contacts to ask questions about possibly improving the appearance of the engine bay area. What could be done.
Thanks

Some things and anything. Mix or match question and answer.

. . . so you're looking to buy a non-restored RR? Can you be a little more specific?

Doing ANYTHING to "improve" the appearance of a survivor is a VERY bad idea. You will essentially be erasing history which is what makes a survivor so special. People that will be interested in a survivor car appreciate and understand the fact that they aren't always "pretty", that dirt and wear are signs of a good honest original car that hasn't been messed with.

Here are a couple survivor Hemi engines. True survivor fans go nuts over engines that look like this, they don't need to look pretty to impress.

Can you post a picture for us? Maybe we can offer some suggestions. It's only a survivor so long as it's original so I would be very hesitant to do much. Maybe a gentle cleaning if there's an excessive amount of dirt from gravel road driving of years of winter driving, etc.

Once it's repainted, it's neither original nor a survivor.

Clean it. Gently.

I would just clean it. I don't see any reason for an accumulation of grease & dirt just because some previous owner neglected to keep the car clean.
I also don't understand people who leave worn-out parts like plug wires on an engine that needs them replaced to run properly; clean & bag the originals, put on the most accurate/correct replacements you can find, and respect the car. Same for leaking gaskets, dry-rotted tires, shredded upholstery and rust-through.

The problem with cleaning is that many subtle details can be easily lost in that effort, grease pencil markings, etc. are extremely fragile and not always visible or obvious until halfway removed, it's easy to wipe most of them right off.

If selling is the goal, I'd recommend against it and let the buyer see it as is and decide where to go from there. .02

If you just bought it like your original post implied then it could help to post pictures here. There have been many a car listed as "survivor" in the WIW and some keen-eyed mopartians have found multiple items that disqualify some as "survivor."

It's not to tear your RR apart, but if there's a lot of non-wear replacement items that might answer some what-to-do questions. If it turns out solid, that's a bonus for you too.

There will probably be (and already are) 2 camps in this thread. Post the pics and let em discuss and we all learn something.

Funny thing, if that Hemi was eat-on clean, and I dribbled a tear of oil on the plug wire, I would think "oh #$%& what have I done!" And in its current patina condition, if I cleaned around the oil cap fill hole (like I always do from habit) I would think "oh #$%& what have I done!"

Ok...if a grease pencil mark is not able to be seen covered in dirt, and cleaning it will render it gone or illegible, why does it matter? If it cant be seen, and cleaning removes it, it doesnt really exist anymore, except in a sort of "shroedingers cat" kind of context.

It's a matter of knowledge and cleaning techniques. IMO its something that should be left in the hands of an expert, just like cleaning a valuable painting, you don't just break out the Purple Stuff and a shop towel and have at it.

True; you want to document it with photos and be thoughtful, not just blast away with degreaser & steam-cleaning. If resale is the goal, maybe leave it as is. For the cars I've kept around to enjoy, I've never understood leaving leaks and worn-out parts, but other things like wear on paint & such free me from worrying about perfection. I've always had a thing about cleanliness on my stuff, but as the saying goes, they're only original once.
Photos would help - and they're always interesting - and should illustrate the level of survivorship and any attention the car might/might not benefit from. At this point, there's not enough info.

Yeah what Scott said about the purple cleaner it will dull paint and once I learned the hard way cleaning an original road runner horn, it ruined my voice of the road runner decal. I was sick!

Should Have Used Acme Degreaser, Would Have Been Fine.

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