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Project Cars--You Get to Vote on "Hold 'em or Fold 'em"

25654 messages,  Last post on May 23, 2013 at 2:52 AM

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Messages Page 2481 of 2567

#24793 of 25654 Re: Needs more power! [Mr_Shiftright] by fintail

Oct 29, 2012 (8:45 am)

Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Oct 29, 2012 8:16 am)
What does that fit in, a tank?

#24794 of 25654 Re: Needs more power! [fintail] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

Oct 29, 2012 (8:55 am)

Replying to: fintail (Oct 29, 2012 8:45 am)
Dragster. 1005 cid, 2150 HP. Probably costs more than most exotic cars you could buy.

#24795 of 25654 My '79 5th Ave got a life extension by andre1969

Nov 07, 2012 (7:35 am)

It had started leaking fuel, but only when parked facing upward on a hill. I was worried that it might be the tank itself, which would be a big pain, as I don't think R-body fuel tanks are readily available. So I took it to the mechanic to have it checked out, and thinking that if the potential repair bill was bad enough, it might be time to retire the car, and keep it around as a parts car for my other '79 NYer. Fortunately, it just turned out to be the gasket where the fuel filler tube goes into the tank. So, the mechanic replaced that, as well as all the other rubber parts associated with the tank. Also adjusted the brakes, which another shop had screwed up a bit, and gave it an oil change. He also inspected the tank itself and said that it was still in great shape.
 
Total bill came out to about $334. Now hopefully, the old beast still has a few good years left. And at least I don't have to worry anymore about giving the Pinto and Falcon/Mustang a run for their money as "Firetrap of the Year"!
 
Oh, yeah, they also had a '71 or '72 Cutlass 4-4-2 convertible in the shop. Kind of an oddly-equipped beast, with a bench seat and column shift, but power windows. It had been restored, and the red paint was smoother than you'd see on any production car built today. Unfortunately, it was also modded. Had some Chevy big-block crate motor under the hood, and it was mated to a THM700-R4 transmission. Apparently, that engine was stressing out the transmission, so the shop was planning on putting a proper THM400 in there, and then changing the axle ratio to something a bit taller, so it wasn't over-revving at highway speeds.
 
My '76 LeMans is in the shop now, awaiting diagnosis on its starter. It started up just fine after sitting about 11 days, and got me out to the shop without incident, to pick up the 5th Ave. But, true to form, once I parked it and turned it off, it wouldn't re-start. The way the mechanic explained it, he said that sometimes the splines in the output shaft will expand when hot, so it won't start, but will contract back to natural form when cool. Or, something like that...

#24796 of 25654 Re: My '79 5th Ave got a life extension [andre1969] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

Nov 07, 2012 (9:41 am)

Replying to: andre1969 (Nov 07, 2012 7:35 am)
Owners are modding "classic" cars more and more these days. They don't want to just take them to shows and sit in lawn chairs and argue about whether the sticker on the air filter is factory correct----and I don't blame them.
 
As long as the car is not some low-production and historically significant model, I see no harm in building the car to go faster, handle better and be safer.
 
As long as that '71 wasn't a genuine W30 or a Hurst Olds, no harm done.

#24797 of 25654 I'm so glad that... by Mr_Shiftright HOST

Nov 07, 2012 (9:52 am)

I voted to not repeal the death penalty in California:
 
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/cto/3388290511.html

#24798 of 25654 Re: I'm so glad that... [Mr_Shiftright] by qbrozen

Nov 07, 2012 (9:58 am)

Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Nov 07, 2012 9:52 am)
that's truly horrific.

#24799 of 25654 Re: My '79 5th Ave got a life extension [Mr_Shiftright] by andre1969

Nov 07, 2012 (9:59 am)

Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Nov 07, 2012 9:41 am)
As long as the car is not some low-production and historically significant model, I see no harm in building the car to go faster, handle better and be safer.
 
On that subject, I've thought about talking to the mechanic about putting a slightly quicker rear end in my LeMans. Right now it has the suck-tastic 2.41:1. Now I don't need some musclecar ratio, but I wonder if something around 2.73 or 2.9X:1 would be a good, middle-of-the-road way to go?
 
As it is now, the car's fairly slow from 0-60, but at higher speeds, it's quick to downshift and highway passing's not bad. It has a Pontiac 350-4bbl. 165 hp according to Consumer Guide's auto encyclopedia, 175 according to the 1976 edition of MOTOR's Repair Manual, so I dunno who's right.

#24800 of 25654 Re: My '79 5th Ave got a life extension [andre1969] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

Nov 07, 2012 (10:04 am)

Replying to: andre1969 (Nov 07, 2012 9:59 am)
At least 2.9 if they make such a thing. Depends on how much 55+ mph driving you plan on doing...if not much, you could even go to 3.3 or so.

#24801 of 25654 Re: My '79 5th Ave got a life extension [andre1969] by texases

Nov 07, 2012 (10:18 am)

Replying to: andre1969 (Nov 07, 2012 9:59 am)
If you do go this route, I'd swap out the whole rear axle, actually changing the gearing is a pretty big deal. I had to swap axles on my '72 Duster in the dorm parking lot - found one at a junkyard for $50, had a pair of jackstands, got it done one Saturday, not that big a deal.

#24802 of 25654 Re: My '79 5th Ave got a life extension [texases] by andre1969

Nov 07, 2012 (11:42 am)

Replying to: texases (Nov 07, 2012 10:18 am)
I had to swap axles on my '72 Duster in the dorm parking lot - found one at a junkyard for $50, had a pair of jackstands, got it done one Saturday, not that big a deal.
 
I did a similar thing with my '68 Dart back in 1997, although mine was a bit more complicated. It had a 7 1/4 rear on it with a 2.76:1 axle. I got an 8 3/4 rear, which is what was normally used in V-8 intermediates, full-sized cars, musclecars, etc, but somewhat hard to find in the narrower A-body width.
 
Managed to do it myself for the most part, although the brake lines on it were rusted, so I took it to the mechanic first, to have them replaced. I think I also had to buy new, larger U-bolts or shackles or whatever it is that attaches the axle housing to the leaf spring, as the 8 3/4 was a larger diameter. And then, I discovered once it went on, that the 8 3/4 rear used a shorter driveshaft than the 7 1/4. Luckily, the local junkyard had one and sold it to me for 50 bucks.
 
This 8 3/4 only had a 2.76:1 axle as well, but on the 8 3/4 it's supposedly a LOT easier to change the gears. Someone gave me a gearset for it... a 3.55 Sure-Grip, IIRC. Never got around to putting it in. That Dart has been gone for about 3 years now, but that gearset is still in my grandmother's garage, somewhere...
 
As for axle ratios on the '73-77 GM intermediate, I know there was a 3.23:1 that was used on the "1977.5" Pontiac Can Am. Dunno if there was a 2.9X offered, but I think 2.73:1 was a common V-8 ratio, until they started putting in 2.56:1 and 2.41:1's in a lame attempt to boost fuel economy.
 
My '57 DeSoto has a 3.31:1 axle. And while it's been awhile since that car has even run, let alone seen highway speeds, I don't remember it screaming all that bad at highway speeds. My '89 Gran Fury ex copcar had a 2.94:1, and it didn't seem bad either...it actually hit 20 mpg once or twice on a road trip.
 
In the long run, it's probably not worth it to swap the axle on the LeMans. While it might make it a little more fun to drive, it's actually not *that* horrible right now. And I probably don't even go 1,000 miles per year with it. I used to take the LeMans to Carlisle for the GM show, and hit some of the local shows, but since I got the Catalina road-worthy, I've mainly been using it.

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