Writer Resto: 1964 Dodge AT4 353 Pt. 1

Back from the dead

I’ve always wanted to restore an old truck. There’s something that tugs at the heart strings seeing a once-proud workhorse left to rust away at the back of a barn. It makes you want to salvage it. To bring it back to working condition. It’ almost as if the truck calls to you to save it from the elements.

Or maybe I’m just a little sentimental…

Dodge produced a wide range of AT4 variants at Tonsley Park, South Australia from 1962-71, ranging from one-ton pick-up trucks through to semi-trailers; but despite the popularity of the series – and its International Harvester counterparts – there’s surprisingly little in the way of detailed information that remains available.

The specifications and dimensions of the particular model selected for restoration here (353) were easy enough to deduce; but that wonderful archival material from an era when Australia built and bought its own trucks is, like many of the examples left rusting quietly in paddocks, fighting a losing battle with the passing of time.

It’s a shame when you consider how valued working models like the Dodge AT4 once were – and doubly so when you see the prices Ford and GM trucks from the same era are fetching nowadays.

By contrast, models like the 1964 Dodge AT4 353 featured here are something of a bargain; though with little in the way of detailed information – or the extensive catalogue of parts available for Ford and GM trucks in the USA – this is one restoration that’s already proving to be a challenge.

Why restore a Dodge AT4?

The short answer is price. I picked the AT4 (or Australian Truck 4 Series) up for $2000 plus freight, and considering some of the examples I found, this one is in reasonable nick. Body rust isn’t too bad, the truck is mostly complete mechanically. It has all of its glass, and it even runs. Well, kind of.

The other reason is that most of the work required can be completed by me in my own garage. The body work and mechanical items that require mending are straightforward enough, while the simple electrical repairs and upholstery renewing should be achievable with only a little assistance.

The hope is to restore the AT4 to a condition resembling new, albeit with some modest upgrades to the electrical system, engine and brakes. In a word, it’s about getting the old Dodge to a reliable enough point to be driven regularly while at the same time keeping it faithful to the original design. Fingers crossed it’s a restoration that is as straightforward as it sounds…

The leaning tower of (not so much) power

From what I understand, early AT4s offered a 225ci (3.7-litre) ‘Slant Six’ six-cylinder petrol engine with 245ci (4.0-litre) and 265ci (4.3-litre) Hemi units available later in the series. Larger 313ci (5.1-litre) and 318ci (5.2-litre) Poly V8 petrol mills were available in higher tonnage models, while even larger capacity 354ci (5.8-litre) Perkins six-cylinder and 361ci (5.9-litre) Cummins V8 diesel powerplants were offered at the top of the tree.

For the AT4 353 here it’s the smallest of the petrol motors we find under the bonnet. Known in Chrysler circles as the ‘leaning tower of power’, the 30-degree inline six is highly regarded for its reliability, and for the displacement-to-power ratio it once achieved.

In the AT4 the engine is fed by a single barrel Carter BBD carburettor to produce 133bhp (99kW) at 3900rpm and 276Nm at 1600rpm. Considering the payload the 353 was asked to carry (the first ‘3’ denoting payload in tons, the ‘53’ the wheel base less 100 inches) the ‘tower of power’ epithet might be something of a Furphy.

According to the compliance plate, the AT4 353 tips the scale at 2438kg (tare) which means a GVM of 4724kg.

An innumerable range of transmission and differential options were available for the AT4, but it seems the 353 here has a standard four-speed gearbox (without synchro on first). Drum brakes are fitted at all four corners under six-stud 16-inch steel rims and cross-ply tyres.

Although it mightn’t seem it from today’s perspective, the Dodge AT4 was also something of a technology leader in the medium-sized truck market of the day. It offered ‘luxuries’ some locally-built passenger cars were yet to offer including an alternator, two-speed electric windscreen wiper motor, a foot-operated windscreen washer, and a deep, foam-filled bench seat with three-way adjustment.

Where to from here?

A complete cab-off restoration is planned for the Dodge AT4. The chassis will head off for media blasting and powder coating before being reunited with the refreshed body and running gear. The mechanicals will stay true to the era, though a two barrel carburettor and freshened engine internals will help give the Dodge a better shot at keeping up with modern traffic.

I’ll revive the bearings, brakes, driveline, rubbers and steering to ensure they’re trouble free, and give the electrical system a full rewire to include a fuse and relay block for safer power transmission.

The AT4 appears to have a (disconnected) heater in the passenger foot-well I hope to revive, and in making the truck more usable, I hope to fit seating elements under the three-person bench seat as it’s reupholstered.

The glovebox will likely become home to a stereo head-unit with speakers tucked away under the dashboard to maintain a ‘factory’ aesthetic inside the cabin. At this point there are no plans for mod-cons like power windows, air-conditioning or hydraulic-assisted steering, though we may uprate the brakes if a suitable booster can be sourced.

I don’t have a timeframe for the AT4 to be completed, as much of the build will depend on the state of my bank balance, but I aim to update the Writer Resto on trucksales.com.au as visual progress is made. I look forward to sharing the journey with you over the coming months.