Intake on, engine ready for installation

I managed to install the Edelbrock Victor Jr intake yesterday. I also learned that RTV silicon sealant has a shelf life. After attempting to use the opened tube, with a nail in it to preserve it, I found the tube was fully cured. Next, I attempted to use the unopened tube, though was met with the same results, the whole tube had already cured. Now granted, the tubes were probably 4-5 years old, but I never would have thought that the unopened tube would be useless.

After a run up to the local Murray's....or O'Reilly as they are now called, I was back in business. After squeezing out a 1/4 inch bead across the front and back of the block, I dropped the intake in place and tightened up all the ARP bolts.

Next, I began rummaging through my parts. Aside from the engine parts/bolts, I seem to have did a very poor job organizing everything that came off the car. Seems I threw a bunch of nuts, bolts, and washers in plastic trays, jars, and even Rubbermaid tubs. I was able to track down the engine mounts, needed bolts, and even transmission bolts. I did manage to baggy the bolts for the torque convertor and flex plate, so that saved some searching.

Next on the agenda is to bolt up the transmission and torque convertor and drop the drivetrain into place.

My Moroso oil pan, kickout style! Should be much safer than the pan it replaced. That pan would be partially supporting the engine in this picture, and I would come to find out by trial and error that it also hung below the Camaro's crossmember. I still drove the car that way for a good 3 years, though looked in the rearview every time I hit a bump or pothole, hoping and praying there wasn't an oil trail behind me. It was so bad that the last oil change I did, I was on the last two flats on the oil drain plug. The other sides had all been ground off from "road rash."

Valve Covers installed

Ok, so today didn't exactly go as planned. The running errands didn't go as quickly as planned, nor did cleaning/repairing the grill. By the time I got started in the garage today, all I had time to accomplish was to clean/install the valve covers. Tomorrow, I should be able to get the intake cleaned up, installed, and hopefully drop the engine in. I haven't decided yet whether I'm going to install the engine/transmission together, or just put the engine in place for now. I'll be damned if I can remember if I need to put wood blocks under the engine to help support it if installed by itself. I tend to believe, from passed clutch jobs and transmission swaps, that the mounts will sufficiently support the engine. Problem is, then I'll have to wrestle with a TH400 transmission on my back and under the car. Sure, I'll jack it up into place, but it's far from a cake walk to go that route.

2010 Gratiot Cruise - Eastpointe

Though the temps were downright brutal at times, bordering on 90 degrees, the cars still came out. The nice thing about Eastpointe's Gratiot cruise is that it's a manageable size. Approximately 2 miles in length, one is able to walk the full distance down and back, essentially seeing all of the show. Most other cruises have grown way beyond the point of taking it all in. Not that that is a problem, as I feel the more cars the better, but there is something to be said about "rightsized" car cruises.

As has been my experience in the few Gratiot cruises I've been to, Mopars were out in full force. Strangely, 2nd generation Firebirds and Camaros seem to be becoming extremely popular as well. Many more 3rd generation Firebirds and Camaros are also being saved from the scrapyards. All in all, a very nice cruise. Below are just a few of the pictures I took. Click the link at the end to see all 200+.

















2010 Gratiot Cruise - Eastpointe

The Heart of the Beast arrives

I just got delivery of the engine for my Camaro, courtesy of my parents. To say it's a beauty would be an understatement. To your average person, and even a gearhead, it looks to be nothing more than a 454 painted black with aluminum heads. I, however, know what lies beneath the skin.

The fully studded block, a forged steel crank, forged pistons, rods good to over 1,400+ hp, a solid roller cam that pushes streetability to the limits, and heads that flow unheard of numbers. To me, it is more than just a black engine with aluminum heads. To me, it is a work of art. Within the next week, it will finally find it's way back between the frame rails of my car.

2010 Gratiot Cruise

Just a friendly reminder, the 2010 Gratiot Cruise takes place tomorrow, June 19th in Eastpointe, Michigan. After my engine is delivered, I'll be heading up to the cruise. Look for plenty of pictures and cruise coverage. While just a fraction of the Woodward Dream Cruise in terms of size, there are still thousands of cars on display and plenty worthy of being photographed.

2010 Gratiot Cruise - Eastpointe

Chips, nicks, scratches...FLAT BLACK IT!

I tend to wrench on my cars quite a bit, and in the process of doing so, accidents happen. Throw in a 500 hp engine, and that smoothed firewall soon starts showing signs of stress cracks...perhaps serious fractures would be a better description. So, as I looked at all the blemishes in the Prowler Purple paint, the inevitable came to mind, why not just paint if flat black and call it good?

The nice thing about flat black is repairs are just a spray bomb away. You don't have to worry about color matching it, and you really don't even need to worry about repairing those blemishes, as flat paint covers up most anything. Point, shoot, and watch your problems disappear in a dull, yet classic finish.

Though I wouldn't go so extreme as to flat black a whole car, I'm not beyond strategically choosing panels. For one, Chevy....uhh....I mean CHEVROLET (put my $1 in the Chevy swear jar) used flat black on the tail light panels of their big block Chev....rolet Camaros. It's a nice suttle way of telling those in the know "I have a big block." Sometime in the future, I may flat black my tail panel. I have a 69 Camaro rear spoiler for my car as well, currently in flat black. Unknowingly to me, the 67 and 68's were slightly narrower bodies and thus the spoiler was shorter. Me, not knowing this difference, bought a used spoiler which turned out to be a 67-68. I've had the correct one for over 10 years, though it has yet to make it on my car. Perhaps flat black will do?

I'm back on the house projects today, so the Camaro will have to wait. Still need to sort out the wiring harness, as well as figure out what I'm going to do for carpet. I'm not sure I'd survive in the car without sound deadener, judging by how loud it was before WITH deadener. The engine will arrive Saturday morning, likely finding it's way between the fenders within days of it's arrival. Stay tuned!

Metro Detroit Cruise Nights

The nice thing about living in Detroit, or even Metro Detroit, is that the number of cruise nights can be simply overwhelming. Aside from the numerous big, once a year cruises, on any given week there are over 75 cruises within a 1/2 hour drive. Now granted, a half hour drive in a 650-700 hp Camaro will gulp up probably $30 of gas or more, we'll still have the option of hitting up a car show/cruise night no matter what days I have off. Below is a link I have in the right column of my blog, under Metro Detroit Car Cruises & Shows, showcasing all the shows in and around the state of Michigan. I'm hoping that by the end of July, perhaps early August, I'll be ready to take in any and every show I had time for.

Cruises & Shows

Painted Rollcage.

Just finished up painting the rollcage, flat black rustoleum. Next step will likely be to start sorting out the ball of wires which make up the wiring harness. Shouldn't be too bad, since I wrapped most of the harness with electrical tape where subharnesses t'd off of the primary harness. I'm hoping that my diehard battery will still be good to go, though aged 9 years since it was last used, whether or not it lives up to it's "diehard" reputation will be determined.

I'll probably begin hauling out the interior panels, dash (which needs to be notched out for the cage yet), steering column, and rear glass later this week. I may take the rear glass and have it tinted dark prior to installing it. While the car has a full 12 point rollcage, the idea is to disguise it best I can so that it's not easily noticable. From the rear, this is most easily accomplished by tinting the window. On the sides and front, it will be through the use of rollbar padding which will fill the gap between the a-pillar trim and cage. On the side, it will be most difficult. While the cage lines up with the weatherstrip where the front and rear side glass meet, the thick rollbar padding will likely create somewhat of a post-car look. Considering Camaros only came in Convertibles and Coupes, it may look a bit strange with the windows down.

I just got off the phone with Tico Race Engines. The last of the parts will arrive Tuesday, with assembly following soon after. I was going to try and push the pickup date to Thursday, as I scheduled an appointment with the vet for both dogs on Friday. Since the engine may not be ready, I'm instead going to either get it Saturday, or have my dad pick it up Saturday. After unloading the engine, we'll all head on up to the Gratiot Cruise. It's been some years since I've been to Gratiot, but it's alway been a nice sized show with plenty of muscle cruising and parked.