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Been a while since I've had a worthy update, but we finally got the engine back last Friday. That in itself was and still is a headache, but thats for another day (or thread).
Had to order a new carb, dipstick, heater control valve, fuel pump, and more but while waiting on those I went ahead and decided to put the engine/trans in. After spending all day Saturday fighting a bent flexplate, I got the new one in and on, then got the converter/trans hooked and ready to install.
Spent about 3 or 4 hours wrestling the engine/trans into the car, bending the AC condenser and busting the oil filter..but its in (shoutout Harbor Freight 1 ton hoist for not quite being long enough). Going to go out hopefully tonight and get the trans mount installed and hopefully the engine mounts will finally line up (I have the bolt started on either side).
Hopefully I can get things done sooner than later, because now everyone in the house is chomping at the bit to go take "the garage car" out for its first drive in 15 years.
Last edited by brotherGood; August 11th, 2022 at 10:12 AM.
After 3 days of screwing with the trans mount (it helps to have the right bolts) its finally in. The engine is locked down as well. Driveshaft installed, shifter cable hooked up..Basically have a very small list of things under the car left to do.
Then I'll put it back on the ground and work on the top. Slowly but surely, it's getting done
Got all rubber sections of fuel line replaced, along with new fuel filter.
Replaced leaking Heater Control Valve
Replaced busted A/C line
Replaced A/C Drier
Replaced A/C Condenser
Installed Trans cooler
Installed Fuel pump
Installed Trans Vacuum Line
Installed PS manifold/attached exhaust on that side
Pretty sure once I get past the dipstick headache, I'll hopefully only have a solid days' worth of work to get it fired up. I'm hoping I can get the chance to at least drive it to the local DQ before we fly out for vacation in a week and a half. I've got Amsoil High-Zinc coming (always heard great things and a friend of mine is a dealer) but other than that I think everything is in house and waiting on me.
Headed out this evening to redo the motor mounts (long story) and then hook the starter/trans shield/exhaust up. I'll probably also change the oil to get the break in stuff out (replacing with High Zinc Amsoil 10/40) and from there it'll be on the ground again.
Gotta finish the pump to carb lines, vacuum lines, front dress, ignition/wiring/etc. Lots of little things considering I just put an engine/trans in..but still plenty of work.
Hopefully I can hear it fire up before we go to the beach..I don't want to be miserable on vacation.
Fixed the motor mount issue, put the transmission shield thing on, put the DS manifold and exhaust on, changed oil/filter, and put the starter in. After fighting with it, I looked at the book and noticed starter removal/installation should be done with the exhaust disconnected. That may explain why I can't get the wires where they need to be, but hopefully there's a way to do that without messing with the downpipe.
Still need to do that, make sure I don't have an oil leak, and seal the dipstick tube. Once those are done, it's back on the ground to bust out the top end/front dress. I need to find a valve cover bolt (most likely just grab one from the hardware store) as one was dropped and never hit the floor.
I'm definitely hoping for a short day at work tomorrow, so that we can knock another huge chunk out before Saturday.
That happened, and the following week I went to Florida. While in Florida it was due to go in for a new exhaust and then get an alignment/AC system recharged/sealing of the dipstick since I'd had issues with that...and thats where things went unhinged.
Found out on Tuesday while in FL that none of the multiple exhaust shops in town bend pipe anymore. In addition, Dad tells me it is suddenly leaking coolant from the engine. He believes it is coming from the freeze plug but isnt sure, but will ask the shop on Thursday to take a look at it. Thursday rolls around, the shop has no power and has to reschedule. It finally goes in the following Wednesday the 14th (after I have returned and seen the freeze plug is gone) and it has been there ever since. They finally started working on it this past Monday, but Tuesday he calls me to tell me to get in there as something bad has happened. When I get there, he explains that the back drivers side wheel fell off the car as he was driving it from one shop to another (new shop to current shop with alignment rack) and it folded up the bottom edge of the rear quarter. He is adamant he didn't touch them, which I already knew he hadnt..but the confusing part was that I personally put that wheel on and tightened the lug nuts. I get a call yesterday from Dad that the alignment was finished, but when he backed it off the rack everything shook so he rechecked it and it was back out of spec. Come to find out, nothing was tight (assuming A-arms) from when I changed them. He also said all the lugs on all other tires were loose as well. So with that we determined it was an issue with the new wheels/new lugnuts/something not lining up, and it also answered my mixed responses regarding the A-Arms. I heard both that you need to retighten underload, and that you did not. Seeing as how I didn't really have a good way to get under the car under a load-I went with not...wrong answer.
All in all, it should be finished either today or first part of next week. From there I need to have the rear quarter repaired and resprayed, find an exhaust shop, and replace a tire/lug nuts. The thought of possibly having this car done by the end of the season has been removed, but at this point I'm just glad that nobody was hurt. I also know that the next time I decide to do something stupid like overhaul a car again, I'm getting a bigger garage built and buying a lift
Well, brought it home today and I've got a new list of to-dos.
First thing..Ive gotta track down a timing/carb/vacuum issue. I couldn't get it to stay running when it left the shop and it was backfiring through the carb. By the time I got home, the brakes were almost gone. I adjusted the timing a bit and it seemed to idle much better, however once it went in gear it went downhill again.
once that's squared away, next will be the bodywork from the tire falling off. I'm hoping to get that done ASAP, so I can focus on exhaust and detail. It will also need a new A/C line (not sure which one) due to a pinhole, and I need to figure out the throttle cable as it keeps popping out of the bracket
Good with the bad though, it's home. I got to drive it (albeit 300 yards) for the first time. I can't complain
A wideband is a very handy tool, otherwise you are just guessing on the tune. Double check carb tightness and spray every joint with carb cleaner. What is the timing currently at? Are the clips damaged on the cable? I just replaced mine from Inline Tube. It was slightly sticky at first but now works great. Glad you got it home.
Oh absolutely I agree on the wideband..right now though I'm just trying to get it to get baseline okay enough to be able to drive it. I plan on going through after work and making sure the cap isn't loose (not gonna lie, I hate how it doesn't latch) and then check the obvious spots for potential vacuum leaks.
In regards to the cable, I don't think the tabs/clips are messed up, but I know the bracket Im using was a little twisted. I have a brand new one, I just didn't want to have to cut it down if the old one would work.
locked the distributor cap back down, bumped the timing a bit more, and found out the clips on the throttle cable are indeed broken. I also plugged the vacuum advance into the ported vacuum on the carb, and not the manifold vacuum hoping that would help.
I fired it up and heard a whining, but I couldn't quite figure out where it was coming from. After it idled down (which may need a bit more adjustment) it still needed some attention regarding timing, so I hooked the light up but before I could figure out where it's currently sitting, it stalled out and spat through the top of the carb.
I did however notice that the vacuum line from carb to valve cover had been knocked off, just not sure how long and if that'd be enough to kill the car. I went ahead and ordered a new throttle cable, and since I was having to wait I also ordered a new trans modulator and metal line (currently running all rubber) so I'll throw all those changes at it and try again. The mechanic that had it this whole time said it only started having issues the day I went to pick it up (ironically) so we'll see. I was going I could've gotten lucky with the cap being loose (there's gotta be a better design than that garbage) but it looks like that's not the case.
I also plugged the vacuum advance into the ported vacuum on the carb, and not the manifold vacuum hoping that would help. Better off on manifold vacuum. Base timing = ~12°BTDC. The vac canister should add another 8-10° at curb idle with the carb A/F mixture maximized(using a vacuum gauge).
I fired it up and heard a whining = vacuum leak
I did however notice that the vacuum line from carb to valve cover had been knocked off, just not sure how long and if that'd be enough to kill the car. Yes and quickly if it was the PCV line. What part number is the PCV valve?
I guess now would probably be a bad time to tell you you got a parking light out ...
Yeah, that's kinda frustrating because one of the first things I did was do a light/electrical test and had all lights working. Eh well, I'll get it figured out..haha
so you're saying go back to manifold vacuum so it can piggyback off the canister? I'd always run ported with vacuum advance before (not sure why I had it hooked up backwards to start with) but then again, I've not had this much cam before. I do agree it's gotta have a vacuum leak, however aside from the PCV line being loose then falling off, everything seems to be hooked up and tight aside from the trans line on the intake. I didnt get under the car to check to see that was still hooked up, but I may do that a little later.
As far as the PCV valve, whatever was correct from inline tube.
Just went out and slapped a hose clamp on the PCV hose and fired it up. Heard the whining again but can't for the life of me figure out where it's coming from. I did kick it down though, and the whine practically went away, so I started to rev it a bit and it seems to be relative to speed. Not sure if it could possibly be a bearing for either A/C, PS or Alt but for what it's worth, I hadn't replaced any of them.
I put a bit more timing in it, and it seemed to shake a bit less so when I can get a hand I'll get the light hooked up as well as the vac gauge and see where we are. It may be as simple as needing to bump the idle up too, but at the same time I'm not sure how everything got so far off from when I last wrenched (prior to vacation last month)
If you take a wooden dowel rod (shortened broom stick handle) place one end against your ear the other end against the A/C compressor, PS or Alt you can make rather short order of pin-pointing a whine.
If you take a wooden dowel rod (shortened broom stick handle) place one end against your ear the other end against the A/C compressor, PS or Alt you can make rather short order of pin-pointing a whine.
"so you're saying go back to manifold vacuum so it can piggyback off the canister?"
Yes, run the vacuum line from a full manifold vacuum source from the throttle base plate to the distributor's vacuum advance canister. This will provide better performance off idle.
Verify the canister is working and not leaking. Suck on the line and plug it off with your tongue. Does it hold vacuum? (Old skool technique lol)
Aftermarket canisters allow you to adjust the amount of travel it moves the breaker plate. This allows for fine-tuning.
You mention this is a large cam? What is the highest vacuum reading you can achieve while adjusting the timing and A/F mixture?
A good starting point is:
~12° base timing with the vac advance disconnected and the vacuum source plugged to not cause a vacuum leak. Curb idle of ~750 RPM.
~8-10° more with the vac advance plugged in. The timing at idle should now be a total of 20-22°
If you're running points verify you have 30° dwell
Give it as much timing as it will tolerate without spark knock. Each engine is different so are your ambient conditions and driving habits..
A whine or a whistle?
Power steering fluid level ok? That will whine.
Pull all the belts off then run the engine. This will tell you if it is or is not an accessory drive failure.
Pull the PCV out of the valve cover and plug the bottom with your finger. Noise stop? Engine run better? Wrong PCV. I dont have the correct PN in my brain.
Aside from the carb are the other vacuum sources plugged off? Brake booster, trans modulator?
It could be due to the fact I'm not fully awake yet..but I believe this is how I have it (dist to carb-not ported/canister to manifold). Are you suggesting I change that? It was my understanding that is correct routing as I was hooking everything up. I have not verified the canister still holds vacuum, but it is a variable I didnt think about.
I have not hooked a vac gauge up to it yet, but I do plan on doing so soon. After putting a bit more timing in it seemed to idle better, so once I'm confident it'll stay running I'll start working on getting into that aspect. I'm going to try to get a hold of a buddy of mine to see if he can swing by and we hook up a wideband into the old exhaust and tune that way as well..but priority 1 was making sure it'll stay running and have enough vacuum for brakes to get to and from the gas station.
Regarding the whine..I went back and listened to the first fire up video and didnt hear it. At that time, nothing was hooked up in regards to vacuum other than the booster. Also, the accessories werent mounted either..so it makes me wonder if it isn't a pulley issue.
Regarding the vacuum advance line; your original 400 used a ported vacuum 'switch' which was located at the front of the intake manifold on the passenger side. It looks like a two inch tall cylinder with 3 line nipples poking out of it. Several of the engine's vacuum lines were routed through this switch, including the distributor's vacuum advance can. Not sure if you have that installed in your rebuilt engine. Reproductions of the switch are available (although I'm not sure I'd trust them to work like the original). Look in your CSM and you'll find references to it.
Having said that, I abandoned that switch in my rebuild and run my vacuum advance directly off manifold vacuum. I experimented a little between this and the carb's ported line and the engine seems to like manifold vacuum better. I put a threaded plug in the hole where the switch would normally go.
Stinks that you're having all of these small problems but it's good to hear you haven't given up on it. It's an awesome car and I'm sure you'll get it sorted out.
Regarding the vacuum advance line; your original 400 used a ported vacuum 'switch' which was located at the front of the intake manifold on the passenger side. It looks like a two inch tall cylinder with 3 line nipples poking out of it. Several of the engine's vacuum lines were routed through this switch, including the distributor's vacuum advance can. Not sure if you have that installed in your rebuilt engine. Reproductions of the switch are available (although I'm not sure I'd trust them to work like the original). Look in your CSM and you'll find references to it.
Having said that, I abandoned that switch in my rebuild and run my vacuum advance directly off manifold vacuum. I experimented a little between this and the carb's ported line and the engine seems to like manifold vacuum better. I put a threaded plug in the hole where the switch would normally go.
Stinks that you're having all of these small problems but it's good to hear you haven't given up on it. It's an awesome car and I'm sure you'll get it sorted out.
Yeah, I was hoping I'd kept that tee but I couldn't find it so I just hooked everything up to the intake. I'm going to try to isolate pulleys if I get off work in time this evening..that'll help at least rule out vacuum for the sound. I've got a couple of lines that aren't tightened down with hose clamps that I'm going to toss clamps onto in hopes that maybe its seeping out of there as well, but as mentioned earlier-the sound is new and I don't remember hearing that noise prior to when I left for vacation. I feel like we did try bleeding the brakes thinking there was still air in the line before I left..but that's the only issue regarding possible vacuum problems that I remember.
I just wish I could isolate each problem. I'm having flashbacks to what finally turned me off of my Dodge-brake vacuum. That thing made ample vacuum whenever we'd test it, but the longer I drove the less it'd gain back and I'd run into brake issues in addition to the longer it'd run it'd just start running like crap. We narrowed that down to too much cam for the stock converter (just havent done anything about it yet) but I've got a 2600-2800 stall converter in this to compensate for the cam (though as I type it I'm questioning if I didn't just grab a band-aid for a migraine)
Went out this evening with the sole intention of firing the car up to at least isolate which pulley is making noise (or otherwise) and couldn't even get the car started. Not sure if I've got too much timing in it, but I did notice a couple other things.
1. Evidently Im missing lower pulley brackets. After seeing another post earlier, I looked and sure enough the PS back bracket isn't hooked up. So at this point I'm wondering if the whine is simply due to them moving. I have the brackets, just gotta figure out how to install them since I don't have the proper bolts.
2. I also noticed some discoloration below the carburetor, which makes me wonder if the adapter hasn't come loose.
Got about halfway through my checklist last night..
PS rear/lower bracket is now on, throttle cable has been changed, timing bumped back a bit. I noticed the throttle cable is much stiffer than before, but at the same time I'm not really sure if that's due to the old one being so worn, or the new one not worn in enough yet.
I left off with needing to address the transmission module/line, but figured I'd try to start it up to at least see if it took care of the whining, and it did the same thing as the night before; started up the first time and idled really low for about 4 seconds before I shut it off. I couldn't get it started again either.
I did however notice a small puddle of fuel under the car last night. I don't think its enough to create that issue, but I've at least added to my list.
I don't understand how it can run well until the day I go to pick the thing up, and now its regressed to the point where I can't even fire it up to at least allow me to get baseline checks done.
My new throttle cable was the same, it broke in after a few days of driving. Go through the rubber lines underneath car, especially if there is gas on the ground. I had cracked hoses on a 78 1/2 ton give me all sorts of grief, including no starting. Is the fuel pump new? Are you getting fuel to the carb? Good luck, yeah would not be impressed after spending that much money.
My new throttle cable was the same, it broke in after a few days of driving. Go through the rubber lines underneath car, especially if there is gas on the ground. I had cracked hoses on a 78 1/2 ton give me all sorts of grief, including no starting. Is the fuel pump new? Are you getting fuel to the carb? Good luck, yeah would not be impressed after spending that much money.
Okay, cool. I had weak springs coupled with tight cables in the past and its a spooky feeling when all you can do is stomp the throttle to allow momentum in the linkage to unstick things. Im not scarred though..ha!
Its the rubber feed line that connects the long steel line to the shorter one that goes through the frame rail just behind the tire. The annoying part is I just replaced those and they were absolute nightmare's. Its got a slice right in the middle of it, that almost looks like a screwdriver was jammed up in it. Each sight glass shows ample fuel (maybe even more than it should) and the pump is new.
I was expecting terrible fuel mileage when it was finally on the road, and considering it had gone through almost 5/8th of a tank since I left for vacation (and most of that was driving to and from both shops which were about 3 blocks apart) I wasn't surprised. I'm curious now if my mileage wont be as abysmal as I'd expected.
This thread is starting to make me paranoid. I'm realizing all the things that could have gone (or might still go) wrong with my car.
lol, no need to be worried. Its been decided that its solely my luck with things. Between this car, my previous car, my multiple guitar projects and other endeavors-its been a consistent headache no matter what I work on. Even if I hand over the reigns to someone who does that as a profession, they still stumble on once in a lifetime type issues..lol
lol, no need to be worried. Its been decided that its solely my luck with things. Between this car, my previous car, my multiple guitar projects and other endeavors-its been a consistent headache no matter what I work on. Even if I hand over the reigns to someone who does that as a profession, they still stumble on once in a lifetime type issues..lol
Yeah, sounds sort of like my own history. Continuing to wish best of luck from the sidelines!
Replaced the leaky fuel line last night, and worked a bit this afternoon to get the car able to fire. The good news is, no more fuel leak and the whining went away. The bad news (potentially) is that while checking/cleaning plugs I noticed a couple of them look like they've been hit.
I went ahead and regapped all of them and only put them in finger tight rather than a snug with the wrench..but I'm still kinda hesitant to do much else for fear of possible further damage. When I start it, it cranks hard the first few times as if it's doing nothing but building compression. I will say with cleaner plugs it seems to idle a bit better, and the throttle response is much more crisp.
Been updating the engine thread with the engine debacle, but long story short the car is now going into the shop that assembled the engine to address the biggest issue of them all; smashed spark plugs.
I just want this nightmare to be over, so that I can enjoy the car like its supposed to be enjoyed.
The best idea I can come up with is the fact that the rods were mismatched. By that I mean 6 came from the same place (though still reconditioned) and 2 were directly out of NOS melling packaging.
Even still, all 8 were balanced, had the small end bored out for the Mopar pin, and carefully checked because the first shop missed a bent rod to begin with. Granted he did also want to argue with me about it being 180° out..so I'm not sure how to take that one.
Even if it had several rods that were longer, the pistons would hit the head long before the pistons would hit the spark plugs. My bet is that "something" found its way into the combustion chamber. Nut, washer etc..
Even if it had several rods that were longer, the pistons would hit the head long before the pistons would hit the spark plugs. My bet is that "something" found its way into the combustion chamber. Nut, washer etc..
I agree with that..im just grasping at straws trying to make sense of things
I wouldn't run the engine again until I used a borescope to examine those cylinders and see what the interference is.
More than likely the heads need to come off and possibly the engine out to fix whatever the issue is.
August 11th, 2022, 10:05 AM
