The All About My 1980 Pontiac LeMans Station Wagon Thread...

[motorhead]

LOL, yeah - I am like that (now).  Specs called for .075-.125"; it is set at .073" and seems to have passed the "drag test".  When I did the Super Servo on of my 200-4Rs I just slammed it in there... then it popped out on the road test.  So I slammed it right back in again.

[motorhead]

Spent most of the day shoveling heavy wet snow.

But, I did manage to get the tranny pan stripped and painted.  Somewhere down the line a goon threw black paint on the pan and it was flaking off at the slightest touch.  I scuffed it up, grabbed some primer and some gunmetal wheel paint; but, man is it still ugly.

And I finally put on my man-pants and cut the exhaust tips.  A long sawzall blade and slight touch-up with a hand-file later, and I could breathe a sigh of relief.  Done.  Once the engine and trans goes in I can start laying out the whole system - for some reason I love building/fitting exhaust systems.

You know you have a good wife when she runs to the transmission parts to store to pick up your order. But, then mentions how "two gaskets" and a "little thing" don't look like they are "worth $70". She's a keeper.

[motorhead]

Not a lot was accomplished but, a BIG box in the project was ticked:

The trans was buttoned up today with the Sonnax 2-3 Shift valve being the last piece. I used the Sonnax "plastic" balls in all of the case and VB locations. I saturated the filter element with some fluid to avoid a dry start up (do the same thing with an oil change). Hopefully this thing works well for a while. Just have to top it off with some Amsoil ATL.

For reference the details on the internal tweaking of the 4L60E is documented here: http://ls1tech.com/forums/automatic-transmission/1856669-4l60e-shift-kit-advice-needed.html

[motorhead]

Speaking of jobs that require manning up, and a lot of manpower:  Today I rolled the rear inner fender lips.  Which is much preferred method to chopping them out to avoid cutting side walls.  It also preserves the stock spot welds, and strength and integrity of the sheet metal.

It will tuck (squeeze) the 345s now.

I also mocked up the 17x11s to suit. Added a 1/8" spacer behind them to see how far out I can safely bring the wheels and still have full engagement on the studs/lugs.  There is 1.5" minimum clear around the rim on the inside - and by my calculations for mounted section width I only need 1.25" to the inside and outside.

Next up: paint the hoops and mount the buns.

[good2win22]

It's moving along. You'll be enjoying it this summer if not earlier. How did you roll the lip?  Do you have the tool or some other method?

[TWIN86GNS]

Mike,

It looks like you are moving right along.  Some very impressive work done already, I hope to see it in person some day!!!

[motorhead]

It's moving along. You'll be enjoying it this summer if not earlier. How did you roll the lip?  Do you have the tool or some other method?

Eastwood fender roller.  I actually broke it finishing the PS because the car had a quarter skin hung on it at some point in its life... which made it much more rigid than the DS that flexed like crazy by comparison.  When I fit the 315s (stock frame) on my Buick I actually flared the wheel arches out because the spot welds were cut. When I if the ZO6 325s on Natasha Camaro I reformed the arches completely and created flares, it was a thing of beauty.

[motorhead]

Mike,

It looks like you are moving right along.  Some very impressive work done already, I hope to see it in person some day!!!

Thanks, Paul!  There is a good chance you will see it at some point, we plan on driving it a lot.

I should be dropping the wheels off for paint tomorrow - decided not to make a mess out of the garage (again) for such a little project.  When I painted the wheels for the TBSS it was awful... but, the bumper cover wasn't that bad. Go figure.

[motorhead]

Dropped the wheels off for refinishing today, should have them back in early-Feb.

[motorhead]

This weekend was about doing a bunch of little things as time allowed.  Ran the nitrous main line from the back to front, and for some reason I felt compelled to build the adapters for the inner coils for the weight-jacker setup.  I will post pics after they are painted, currently they are sitting in some Evaporust getting cleaned up.

[motorhead]

Still chipping away at things little by little.  Got back to fitting the Pypes exhaust, and I am using that term loosely.  While definitely not the worst kit on the market, it darn sure isn't the best.  The general fitment is being a bit of a chore finding acceptable clearances around critical parts (things that move, things that aid stopping, and things that go boom if they get too hot) and the lack of predetermined hangers provides little guidance for the installation process.  Then there is the issue of fitting the mid-pipes and the x-pipe which is a complete and total debacle, especially as it relates to the pipes running under the floorboards; I am going to have to get some adjustability into the hangers (which I also have to build, another nice bonus) to lower them as necessary.  About the only positives are the front pipes are centred under the G-force cross member, and the QTP cutouts fit snugly into the pockets under the rear seats.

After picking metal slivers out of my raw back (I really need to get a hoist), I decided that I should remain upright and measured for the pushrods.  Picked up an 8" caliper and a Comp Cams adjustable pushrod - a few hours later (lots of triple checking) the numbers are in.  Time to order some sticks.

[TexasT]

Get you some wood and make some risers to go under the wheels. Then you can teach the little ones how cool a creaper is under a car. Mine loved the creaper and the seat on wheels. They wanted to goof with the floor jack but I thought one might loose a finger when the thing came down.

[motorhead]

Get you some wood and make some risers to go under the wheels. Then you can teach the little ones how cool a creaper is under a car. Mine loved the creaper and the seat on wheels. They wanted to goof with the floor jack but I thought one might loose a finger when the thing came down.

This thing will be on wheel cribs as soon as the wheels come back.  Tatiana isn't quite 4 years old yet, but she keeps telling me about all the cars she is going to build for me; and that is a good feeling.  We are going to start by restoring some old Hot Wheels together.

[TexasT]

Nice, do it now. Mine are 23, 18 and 13 and the eldest is the only one with interest. And that is for her car maintenance. The middle one is away at college and the young one is in Jr high and going to Hs this fall. No way she is goofing with dad in the driveway.

[motorhead]

The cat back portion of the exhaust is fitted and hung.  I swear I will never buy another Pypes exhaust - the lack of hangers has left a lot to be desired thus far.  Next time - Hooker all the way.  At any rate it is in and solid now thanks to some backyard engineering and sheer ignorance.