Doug's 1969 Camaro: The 2008 blog
Apr 7, 2008, 05:40 PM
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Doug's 1969 Camaro: The 2008 blog
So, it's a new year (kinda). Time for a fresh thread. 
January 1st - April 6th: nothing happened. Car sat there with a cover on it.
April 7th: action!
--------------------------------------
Backstory: so late last year, the front main seal went bye-bye. To fix that, every inch of the motor must be disassembled. Not much fun. I may actually just swap in a different motor. SBC motors are pretty much "a dime a dozen," especially in the junkyard my father calls a "garage."
Super backstory: purchased in 2001. I've spent the past 7 years getting/keeping it running since the previous owner slapped it together, frequently using incorrect parts... He also painted it in his garage, so the paint job has pretty much gone to s**t the last few years. Here's a CarDomain page I made in better times...
Today, the cover came off. The hood got opened. Lots of parts got removed.
Blow-by-blow of parts removed:
headers
exhaust (obviously, since the headers held them up )
fan
alternator
battery
fender brace
radiator
distributor cap
distributor rotor
spark plugs
fuel lines & pump
air filter
some other random stuff I'm forgetting
So as you can imagine, I have one big pile of parts and a car that doesn't run. Much like some previous years with this car.
After doing all that, put the car up on jackstands and got it ready for the engine/tranny removal (luckily we own an engine hoist). Got showered and headed off to work.
My hope is that starting this thread will motivate me to actually work on the car more often than I usually do...
Anyhow, thanks for reading. More updates to come as things happen.
January 1st - April 6th: nothing happened. Car sat there with a cover on it.
April 7th: action!
--------------------------------------
Backstory: so late last year, the front main seal went bye-bye. To fix that, every inch of the motor must be disassembled. Not much fun. I may actually just swap in a different motor. SBC motors are pretty much "a dime a dozen," especially in the junkyard my father calls a "garage."
Super backstory: purchased in 2001. I've spent the past 7 years getting/keeping it running since the previous owner slapped it together, frequently using incorrect parts... He also painted it in his garage, so the paint job has pretty much gone to s**t the last few years. Here's a CarDomain page I made in better times...
Today, the cover came off. The hood got opened. Lots of parts got removed.
Blow-by-blow of parts removed:
headers
exhaust (obviously, since the headers held them up
)fan
alternator
battery
fender brace
radiator
distributor cap
distributor rotor
spark plugs
fuel lines & pump
air filter
some other random stuff I'm forgetting
So as you can imagine, I have one big pile of parts and a car that doesn't run. Much like some previous years with this car.
After doing all that, put the car up on jackstands and got it ready for the engine/tranny removal (luckily we own an engine hoist). Got showered and headed off to work.
My hope is that starting this thread will motivate me to actually work on the car more often than I usually do...
Anyhow, thanks for reading. More updates to come as things happen.
Apr 10, 2008, 03:53 PM
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Thanks for the kind words!
------------------------------------
Well, the first half (or third) is done. Driveshaft, tranny and then motor all came out yesterday. I'm still a bit undecided on the matter of "rip apart and fix vs. put in a different motor", but that should work itself out quickly. The spare motor my dad has is BURIED, so the "rip apart and fix" option is looking better everyday...
------------------------------------
Well, the first half (or third) is done. Driveshaft, tranny and then motor all came out yesterday. I'm still a bit undecided on the matter of "rip apart and fix vs. put in a different motor", but that should work itself out quickly. The spare motor my dad has is BURIED, so the "rip apart and fix" option is looking better everyday...
May 8, 2008, 02:53 PM
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BIG UPDATE:
First off – I’m sorry. I’ve just totally forgotten to update this thread day-by-day as I haven’t been online much. Mainly because I spent a lot of the time working on the car, and partly because my freetime was more about Grand Theft Auto IV than it was about EvoM.
Car status: “running.” Finished putting everything back together yesterday. The car is functional, but nowhere near being done.
Engine – 305 c.i. V-8 motor from a ’79 Chevrolet Malibu. It was free, and it works, so I can’t complain. Also, if this motor shows that it can hold up, it wouldn’t be a horrible long-term solution. 87 octane, a choke, and a 2-digit MPG rating beat the heck out of the old motor’s 93 octane, can’t-start-it-without-ether nature, and 8 MPG.
Tranny – same Borg-Warner 4-speed that it’s had for the whole time I’ve owned it.
Many of the parts from the 327 motor are still there. The exhaust bolted right up. Radiator hoses and such bolted up. Alternator just needed a little spacer to work. Stock “idiot lights” hooked right up, but the aftermarket gauges are currently unhooked; I hope to get to that soon. The 305’s stock HEI distributor is on, just need to get plug wires (currently using regular plug wires that sit carefully on the HEI distributor cap).
Currently I just want to “refine” it a bit before I take it out for a serious drive test. It’ll idle OK in the driveway, but I want to get the right plug wires, make sure all the hoses are correct, and all the not-being-used items are plugged.
Other plans for this year:
First off – I’m sorry. I’ve just totally forgotten to update this thread day-by-day as I haven’t been online much. Mainly because I spent a lot of the time working on the car, and partly because my freetime was more about Grand Theft Auto IV than it was about EvoM.
Car status: “running.” Finished putting everything back together yesterday. The car is functional, but nowhere near being done.
Engine – 305 c.i. V-8 motor from a ’79 Chevrolet Malibu. It was free, and it works, so I can’t complain. Also, if this motor shows that it can hold up, it wouldn’t be a horrible long-term solution. 87 octane, a choke, and a 2-digit MPG rating beat the heck out of the old motor’s 93 octane, can’t-start-it-without-ether nature, and 8 MPG.
Tranny – same Borg-Warner 4-speed that it’s had for the whole time I’ve owned it.
Many of the parts from the 327 motor are still there. The exhaust bolted right up. Radiator hoses and such bolted up. Alternator just needed a little spacer to work. Stock “idiot lights” hooked right up, but the aftermarket gauges are currently unhooked; I hope to get to that soon. The 305’s stock HEI distributor is on, just need to get plug wires (currently using regular plug wires that sit carefully on the HEI distributor cap).
Currently I just want to “refine” it a bit before I take it out for a serious drive test. It’ll idle OK in the driveway, but I want to get the right plug wires, make sure all the hoses are correct, and all the not-being-used items are plugged.
Other plans for this year:
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