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I have to say that it's always a joy to work on desert cars. Front shocks R&R in like 20 minutes. No torch, no cutoff wheel, no broken clip nuts, no muss, no fuss.
When anybody is looking for a project car.
I often give them Horace Greeley's advice.
" Go west, young man, go west. "
Made some progress this weekend. First, the rear axle seals looked a little wet, so I pulled the axles. One bearing was rough, so both went off to the machine shop for new bearings. I had bought these toggle bearing/seal pullers, but the thread doesn't fit on my slide hammer. It does fit on my balancer installer, and by using part of coil spring compressor tool as a spreader, I put together a seal puller.
Normally I just use the right size socket to drive seals in place, but my closest 3/4 drive socket was too close to the edge of that raised portion inside the seal. I remembered a box of exhaust pipe adapters that had come with a bunch of other stuff I had bought at an auction, and there was a perfect piece to use as a driver.
The front e-brake cable was frayed where it had been routed incorrectly under (vs over) the crossmember. I figured I MIGHTASWELL replace all the cables (it's an MT car, I'll be using the e-brake). Surprisingly, all but one of the bolts holding the inner fender to the wheel opening lip came out, so I only needed the cutoff wheel for one of them. New clip nut and bolt solved that problem, along with a generous helping of anti-sieze. The pawl on the e-brake pedal was stuck, so I also had to pull the pedal and liberally lubricate the pawl to free it up. And while they don't show in the photos, the back KYBs are also installed now.
Last edited by joe_padavano; April 1st, 2024 at 06:20 PM.
I have to say that it's always a joy to work on desert cars. Front shocks R&R in like 20 minutes. No torch, no cutoff wheel, no broken clip nuts, no muss, no fuss.
Joe, I have had the same experience, you forgot no penetrating oil required. One car I worked on, I thought I could have disassemble the entire car with a 3/8 drive ratchet. Your making good progress.
I finally had a solid weekend to work on the car, as I've been traveling for the last month. Of course, given the limited time, the black 1985 Delta daily driver decided to lock up a caliper Saturday, so I had to fix that first.
The few things I've been doing seemed like the car was fighting me tooth and nail. For example, I had fixed the horns before I left, but after a month they were not working. Turned out to be a double problem, first the horn relay then the horns themselves. I could hear the relay clicking, but no power to the horns, so I filed the contacts on the relay, which fixed that problem. Applying power directly to the horns showed that they didn't work either, so I temporarily swapped in some generic replacements from Standard Motor Products that I had on the shelf for another project. Horns work. Too well... Now the heat-warped horn pad causes the horns to blow and stick on any time I touch the wheel. That's a problem for another day.
Got the exhaust temporarily functional by swapping out the bad original muffler for one of the Walker Quiet-Flow mufflers that I was planning to use for the dual exhaust system. No time to get the duals fabricated between now and Power Tour. As I've noted in another thread, the "Quiet-Flow" mufflers aren't that quiet. Good enough for now.
Got the 15x7s painted argent for now and mounted the new BFG 245/60-15s. Finished the brake install (new rotors, bearings, seals, pads, and caliper hardware). Topped off fluid in the rear and trans and fresh Amsoil Z-Rod and Wix filter in the engine. Finished the tune up including cap, rotor, coil, and plug wires in addition to points and plugs. The car is finally back on the ground and driving. Ran cooling system cleaner through the system. Now I have to flush that out, change the hoses and belt, and take the car for a shakedown run. Still a number of things to work out, but at least it's mobile. I still need to replace the choke coil, possibly rebuild the carb, finish installing the halogen headlights, replace the windshield, reseal the quarter windows, and desperately clean the interior. The 1-2 shift is a bit painful with my f'd up shoulder.
I agree with loosing the side trim. Never was a fan of the Cutlass trim on 68-69s.
The S & 442 wheel well trim would set the look off nice with poverty caps. They'll fit on the front fenders. Rears??
Do you need me to take the 68 W30 off your hands so you have $$ for the new project?
A quick update on the wagon on the eve of Power Tour.
Last week was a thrash to get the bare minimum done to get the car roadworthy and legal. I actually passed the VA safety inspection Friday AM with no issues. Loaded up tools and spare parts and hit the road Saturday AM. One hour into the trip we stopped in Cumberland MD to take a leak, and so did the water pump. Fortunately I had a new one in the car, and the lack of PS and A/C really made it easy to swap. Of course since this was effectively the shakedown run after not being on the road for 25 years, a lot of little things have cropped up.
Biggest offender is temperature. The last thing I did Friday was install a temp gauge. This is an ancient AutoMeter unit that I last used in the early 1980s. I'm not sure if the sending unit I got is correct (AutoMeter says "all gauges pre-1995), so actual calibration is a mystery. The car runs at an indicated 210 most of the time, which obviously is a little concerning. The radiator has very visible scale on the inside, but I didn't have time to have it boiled out. Tomorrow is the first real test waiting in line to get into Beech Bend. I'm not optimistic. Holley had a parking lot party at their humongous warehouse in Bowling Green today (think the final scene in Raiders...) and was offering a 10% discount, so I bought a Frostbite four row aluminum radiator. Unfortunately I need a 1.5" to 1.75" hose bushing for the lower port, and NAPA won't have it until tomorrow. New radiator will get installed in the hotel parking lot tomorrow afternoon. I'll note that despite the higher than desired temps, not a drop has been spilled as a result.
Two other driveability problems are percolation causing hot start issues and dieseling at shutoff. I suspect both are related to underhood temps, though the 2GC does have an anti-diesel solenoid. I should probably see if that's working. Other issues are the driver's door inside handle pivot mechanism has developed a ton of slop and sometimes will not unlatch the door. I'm getting good at reaching outside to open it. Yes, I can (and should) swap the mechanism from the back door on that side. When it gets bad enough, I will. One of the plastic rollers on the tailgate window regulator has disintegrated. The window has been obviously struggling since I had the car, but today it wedged and wouldn't move. Fortunately it was down at the time so I was able to remove the inside trim panel and uncover the problem. The stump where the roller used to be had come out of the channel, causing the problem. I put it back in and now that I know what's going on, I can gingerly operate the window until I get home.
The last thing is the steering box. The original manual box had a ton of slop in the pitman shaft bushing. I was able to have a rebuilt box delivered on Tuesday, got it installed, and steering was no better. The preload adjustment on the rebuilt box was way off, so I adjusted it to where the car felt pretty good, but after Saturday's 670 mile drive, it feels pretty sloppy again. There is precious little adjustment left, so I fear it might be a bigger problem.
Hi Derek Bieri...err I mean Joe,
I have an old copy of BOP from the late 80s or early 90s with a black 69 wagon cloned into a 442. I want to think it was a flat top. It was stripped of the Cutlass lower belt trim, and added S/442 well trim. It looked great. Buckets with a console too.
I'll see if I can dig it out. I've been looking for another copy that has a 69 W32 in it... black car as well.
I too am not getting younger and want to add a 68 W30 stick to the ownership list before I leave this rotating ball of dirt. Ever want to sell it let me know.
Time for an update now that I'm home and can catch my breath. As I mentioned above, I knew the radiator was questionable - I could see the scale on the core through the filler neck. Holley had a parking lot party at their Bowling Green warehouse Sunday before HRPT and was offering 10% off. I snagged a four row Frostbite radiator. Installed it in the hotel parking lot Monday before driving into Beech Bend. Not the cleanest bracket mod, but the best I could do with at two pound sledge. Better aftermarket brackets are already on the way.
So long as the car is moving at 30MPH or more, you can watch the thermostat (180 deg) open and close on the temp gauge.Unfortunately when standing in traffic, the OEM fixed four blade fan doesn't seem to move enough air. This came to a head when the wait to get into Nashville Super Speedway on Tuesday sent the temp gauge skyrocketing. Once inside, the dust from the dirt roads between the grass parking coated every car. The 68 post belongs to my travelling companion Guy.
While I have a nice seven blade clutch fan just taking up space at home, I was stuck using an electric on the road. I bough the one electric fan that AutoZone in Lebanon, TN had on the shelf and installed that at the hotel that evening. Hardwired with a 35A switch, 10 ga wire, and a 30A fuse to make life easy. That seems to have solved the low speed airflow problem. Question: how many HRPT participants does it take to install an electric fan? Yes, I offered them shovels to lean on.
Tagged up with Tony and Michelle Bonafide in Louisville. I parked next to they beautiful 69 flattop to make it look even better.
Collected our Long Hauler plaques at IRP (and saw Eric Jensen there with one of his Jetfires) and hit the road for Lansing to attend Homecoming on Saturday.
Ten hours on Sunday to get from Lansing back to NoVA. Eight days, nine states, 2700 miles, in a car that hasn't been on the road this century (the last registration expired in 1999). I've compiled a length list of things I have to fix now.
Last edited by joe_padavano; June 17th, 2024 at 02:16 PM.
You had quite the audience in the parking lot. You are a braver man than I am. Glad you made it all the way. You could probably do a episode of Vise Grip Garage.
I remain amused when people think they need EFI, OD transmission, or an LS swap for "reliability". The part least likely to fail is the one that isn't on the car in the first place. This car has a 2bbl, points, three speed manual trans, manual steering, and no A/C. There's noting to break. In fairness I did start having a driveability issue in the last four hours Sunday. I did not have time to rebuild the carb (though I brought the kit with me just in case). The car made it home under it's own power, but it wasn't happy about it. I suspect the carb is flooding. That's the next project. Fortunately so long as I kept the RPMs up, the engine was able to use the extra fuel.
I'm no wagon expert. I see two differences in this picture; the door handle on the tailgate and the darker car has the notch in the bumper. Is that due to different trim levels of the two? Both are very cool.
Congratulations on finishing the road trip safely and with the car getting home under its own power.
I'm no wagon expert. I see two differences in this picture; the door handle on the tailgate and the darker car has the notch in the bumper. Is that due to different trim levels of the two? Both are very cool.
Congratulations on finishing the road trip safely and with the car getting home under its own power.
Tony's car has the optional two-way tailgate, mine has no options at all except for the power disc brakes. Also Tony's car has a power back window, mine is a manual crank.
The dark blue car has a dual gate (folds down and swings open like a door). Joe's car has a single action gate (it only folds down). The notch in the bumper on the darker car holds the passenger side hinge that allows the gate to fold down. Dual action gates up through 1970 also had the grab handle on the passenger side.
The dark blue car has a dual gate (folds down and swings open like a door). Joe's car has a single action gate (it only folds down). The notch in the bumper on the darker car holds the passenger side hinge that allows the gate to fold down. Dual action gates up through 1970 also had the grab handle on the passenger side.
The notch also serves as a step to help in loading the luggage rack.
Follow up on the misfire that appeared on the way home from Lansing.
The car had run great for the entire Power Tour and the trip to Lansing. About halfway home a part-throttle misfire developed that got progressively worse as the day went on. Naturally this created a little anxiety about getting all the way home, and I sort of increased speed to get as close as possible before the car crapped out. Fortunately I was able to nurse it all the way home, but it wasn't happy about it. I rebuilt the carb since that was one thing I hadn't done prior to the trip, but that didn't fix the misfire. Work travel had me out of town for a while, but this week I had time to get back into it. I strongly suspected the problem was a heat-related issue with either the coil or the condenser, despite the fact that everything in the ignition system had been new prior to leaving for Power Tour. In any case, I replaced the points, condenser, and coil with Accel parts (I had used Standard Motor Products regular grade parts previously, which have always been decent quality). The points looked excessively pitted for only 2,800 miles, which further pointed to the condenser. I just test drove the car, including about 25 miles at freeway speeds, and no sign of the misfire.
I also swapped the original four blade fixed fan for a 19" clutch fan taken from the 84 Custom Cruiser parts car. I used a new Hayden HD clutch. This seems to have helped with the heating at idle, but we'll see.
I had a terrible misfire in my TBird that continued to be problematic after checking points, wires, plugs etc. I tested the coil for resistance and found it to be out of range according to the 1957 service manual. Installed a new coil and the misfire disappeared.
I haven't played with automotive points in decades. When I did I always gravitated to the Vette Blue Streaks. They were of higher quality and had a stiffer spring to prevent float. The separate parts, not the uni-point set.
Wonder if that still applies?....prob not. Ecklers and Corvette Central says they have them but... like everything, the quality prob went you know where... my favorite place.
I haven't played with automotive points in decades. When I did I always gravitated to the Vette Blue Streaks. They were of higher quality and had a stiffer spring to prevent float. The separate parts, not the uni-point set.
Wonder if that still applies?....prob not. Ecklers and Corvette Central says they have them but... like everything, the quality prob went you know where... my favorite place.
Yes Sir. Just sayin the Blue Streaks used to outlast the standard spec points.
I also learned to wipe the contacts with a very clean lint-free towel with contact cleaner...same for the feeler gauge.
Yes Sir. Just sayin the Blue Streaks used to outlast the standard spec points.
I also learned to wipe the contacts with a very clean lint-free towel with contact cleaner...same for the feeler gauge.
Definitely ensure the contacts are clean, and yes, wipe the feeler gauge also. I was pretty happy with the quality of the Accel parts. I used their cap and rotor as well, and these were very thick and heavy bakelite with copper contacts, the way Delco parts USED to be. And, they came in black, not tan.
When I had my 54 which I installed a 56 distributor with external adjustment points, I went to ebay and bought NOS Delco Remy points and condenser. The GM part number for the points is 1931988 and teh condenser is 1932004. The points are the ones in the foil covered box. I just checked ebay and there are numerous sets of each with prices all over the board.
I remain amused when people think they need EFI, OD transmission, or an LS swap for "reliability". The part least likely to fail is the one that isn't on the car in the first place. This car has a 2bbl, points, three speed manual trans, manual steering, and no A/C. There's noting to break. In fairness
Totally agree 100% Old cars on pump gas with a 2.7-3.0 gear drive all over work great. Really cool you made the big trip in the ole wag , I love it. 3.08's in it Joe like mine? Been driving mine more and in 100 degree heat lately since RAM is in shop for hail damage. Or do ya have 3.23's ?
Made some minor progress over the weekend. One of the plastic rollers on the tailgate window regulator had left the building. Got new AuVeCo rollers and rivets (Yeah, I know the box says 57-66 - don't believe it). Cleaned and lubed the tracks. The window operates like new now.
Made some minor progress over the weekend. One of the plastic rollers on the tailgate window regulator had left the building. Got new AuVeCo rollers and rivets (Yeah, I know the box says 57-66 - don't believe it). Cleaned and lubed the tracks. The window operates like new now.
Me too! I have a drivers side power window that stopped moving years ago and I can’t get motivated to check it out! But I got the car painted and I’m trying to get it back together! I also need to clean and lube all of the window parts! I have never messed with inside the door window hardware! Joe can probably do this kind of thing in his sleep! 😂
That looks like the proper repair. Nice work Joe, thanks for sharing. Do you need a special rivet gun? Is there a bolt to attach? Hammer to mushroom the end?
Made some minor progress over the weekend. One of the plastic rollers on the tailgate window regulator had left the building. Got new AuVeCo rollers and rivets (Yeah, I know the box says 57-66 - don't believe it). Cleaned and lubed the tracks. The window operates like new now.
Joe P, are there instructions with the kit to instruct the user how to "set" the rivet ? If not, share your method, because someone will need to know.
Very useful to know parts are readily available. Thank you.
March 27th, 2024, 01:55 PM
