AMC Eagle Den Forum
The Shop => Project Cars => Topic started by: Smitty on April 29, 2005, 10:26:15 AM
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The new SX/4 showed up yesterday and after a few minutes looking it over last night, I am convinced I will spend more money on this than I should. This car will be a great sleeper and looks to be a fun, compact car that with the right mods, will be a blast to drive. Those mods always equals $$ ;) though.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/P1010045.jpg)
The good:
it runs and drives
appears to be all there
good tires
The bad:
alt light is on
rear hatch relase is in parts in the back
wrong shifter (correct one came with car)
needs radiator, belts and hoses etc
brakes are inop - I think the MC
I hope to get all the issues cleared up by the end of next week and take her out for a test drive. After that will be fine tuning and then cleaning up the paint and bodywork. This car was filthy!! I spent half an hour with the shop vac last night and now it needs a few hours of 409 and a rag.
Pics are at: http://photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/
I will do plugs etc this weekend along with a change of all the fluids. I will pick up a MC at lunch today and try to get the brakes resolved. At this point that appears to be all that is keeping it from being a driver.
The saga begins anew ........
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Another project -- albeit a sharp one!
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Looks like an EXCELLENT start. I sure wish mine had a sunroof, nice paint, a radio, and a brush gaurd. All that stuff looks good on an SX4. Your project is already way above my driver. :D At least I have a goal now! ;D
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That is going to make a sharp looking SX/4. As is it looks great. You'll love it once you get it going.
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Thanks, you all may cringe but long term (it may be another SX/4 instead of this one, aghast, I am sounding like Starwalker now :o) is FI 360, 5 speed running an XJ dana 44, coil overs and the biggest sway bars I can find. This car has the possibility to run circles around my old vette. Might run a 727 as it is easier on the drivetrain. What is good about the Eagle is that AMC beefed up the unit body by adding subframe connectors. Even the 390 AMX's did not come with connectors so there should be enough body stiffness to make use of the HP. Well, let's see here, I have a 401 on the engine stand now with a crane cam, roller rockers and some other goodies. Might be interesting to take some measurements... ;D
Think it would fit?
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/69%20Ambo/P8080207.jpg)
I know it has been done and I read the link and webpage. Nah, want to get it going as is for now and plan out future strategy.
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Read the Sundancer article you have -- it mentions the tubular steer subframe they installed during conversion. This may be the solution for extra beefieness and maybe something we all might consider to maintain body integrity.
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There is also a blurb in last months Car Craft about adding a rigid frame to a unibody car.
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BTW it will fit. Its the same block as the 304 and the 401 -- and the put them in Hornet/Concords/Gremlins. Actually, I prefer the 360. Reminds me a lot of the 343 which was/is a good motor too.
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Hey, feel good about it. She got me 3 money pits!
Seriously, she loves the Sx/4's, it makes her happy. Now we have to concentrate on getting at least one ready for the meet.
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Between fixing a broken shock mount (bless those heli-coil kits) on the XJ and working late I was not able to get much done on the car. Could not even get the wheels off!! There are locking lug nuts and the key did not come with the car. The insert in the head looks like a three sided mickey mouse ears and nothing I have will fit it. So, until I figure that out I can't really get a good assessment on the brake pads, drums etc. From what I can feel, the rotors seem OK. No ridges or grooves. I picked up a new MC but did not get it in. As I said, I worked on the Wagoneer until 12:30.
The wheels and tires on it look nice but they rub on the left front. Have to see if that is a suspension issue or a tire size issue. It only seems to rub in reverse so I need to check bushings and strut rods to see if the wheel is moving around.
Cleaning up the inside, I did manage to break off the pass sun visor. The pot metal broke right off so if anyone has a black visor assy for an SX/4 shoot me a PM and maybe we can make a deal.
I am at work now so when I get home I want to get the rear hatch release working. All the parts are there it just has to be put back together. I do need to bench test the solenoid though. Hope one of the two is good.
I will update as progress is made. Thanks for the support of the Forum.
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the sunvisor mounts are standard. The visor just slides onto the post. So, color is not a consideration. Maybe you can still get new, metal ones at a dealer. A lot of the early ones were plastic, and cracked if you looked at them wrong.
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I used an old 12 point socket that I tapped on with a hammer to ge mine off, lost the darn key for them. Didn't damage the socket either.
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This beastie is almost identical to mine...hence the name Blackbird...my SX/4 was heavily modified when purchased, but is still an ongoing project...I have a parts car SX/4 as well, if there are specific things you need, I will have some parts I don't need in working on mine... ;)
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Got back from a conference a little early today so I spent a few minutes (between the falling snowflakes, brrrr) to work on the rear hatch release. Got the part I needed (thanks Eaglegrouch) and got power to the switch. It actually works... but. I am waiting for new rams for the hatch so maybe that will address the issue. The release works but the hatch does not pop up to clear the lock bar so it will not open unless there are two people, one for the switch and one to pull up on the hatch when the switch is pushed. Is there supposed to be a spring or something to pop the hatch up to clear the locking bar? Maybe I just need to play with the adjustments some more.
I replaced a blown fuse and now the alt light went out and stays out. Easy fix. I knew it was charging so I did not worry too much but I am glad the annoying light is gone.
Still have not been able to get the wheel locks off. Tried all of my sockets and none are the right size.
It does seem to be running better. It had not been run in about a year so the old gas is burned off and the carb seems to be doing OK. Got the grill and fog lights put back on and the new radiator from Roackauto got here today. I am going to put a new water pump on when I change the rad since it will be so easy to get at then. Hope to have it all squared away for a test drive by this weekend. Crud! It's Mother's day, means Sunday is shot for working on the Eagles :(. Well, it's all for a good cause. ;)
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The hatch gasket provides the "oomph" to push the hatch past the point of relocking.
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You should all so change the hatch shocks both need to be change at the same time.
On the wheel locks looks like you are going to see if you can get them off with some Vise-Grip pliers.
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I tried the vise grip routine but the center caps prevent getting a grip. Have to figure out my socket size. A 1 inch is too big and a 15/16 is too small. Need to find the metric sizes that match up and maybe it will be the right size to hammer on there and get those brakes working. NAPA has a kit..... $90. I will take the air chisel to it first. new studs are only a few bucks. My welder sits in a box, unopened so I have not figured out how to use it yet. The holdup to getting this thing going is those pesky wheel locks. Might be time for the BFH. ;D
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Thats what I hate about the wheel locks if you loose the key its a hassel.
Yea just cut it off save time or you know what ells migth worke one of dose rubber belt wrenches, or hiting it with a screw driver or chissel to get it to start turning. I've done that with a long screw driver it takes some time and effort.
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looks like tomorrow will be a major project day :D. bought a 24mm socket today that got all four locking lug nuts off so I am good to go on getting those brakes working. I bought a FSM off Evil Bay and it came today so I might just have a clue as to what I am doing. I have the new valve cover from Turner 4wd, the new radiator from Rockauto, new belts hoses and water pump from NAPA. Also have the new hatch lift rams from Rockauto. Going to be a busy day. First I have to finish the brakes on Skeezix's Cherokee. 85k on the factory rear shoes. We won't use it now until the winter so maybe I could postpone it for a while ;). Have a whole bunch of little parts to install and a good compound on the paint to do but maybe, just maybe, I will put tags on it next week and see how it does on the open road.
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Sounds like you will be busy. You will need for the front caliper bolts, unless they have been replaced with hex head ones, a hex bit. Drat, I don't remember the size. I will have to check my own post when I asked that question.
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7mm, got it
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Yup, that is it.
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Well, so much for the best of plans. :( there are some moderate to strong winds today and we have been without commercial power most of the day. Right now we are on generator power and that uses the power feed to the garage to supply the main house so I can not work in the garage. Oh, I could but I would not have any power tools, only lights and no heat. Since it is about 40 out there, I would need some heat on these old bones. I did manage to break one of the rear drums trying to get it off so it is probably good that I stop working today.
I also found that the rear air shocks don't hold air. Have to check the lines to see if one is blown or unhooked. Maybe when we get back from downstate tomorrow night I will have some play time. Only if I behave though ;D
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Murphy's law kicked in with full force I take it?
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Yep. probably won't have commercial power until tomorrow. We have everyting all wired for the generator since this happens often. The toy garage has always been considered a luxury to power it with the generator so I can't play tonight. You know though,... Skeezix's sauna has power and she is headed to it now. Why can't I have my toys too ??? Although, with the sauna going, I have to shut off the elec hot water heater cause it is too much of a load to run both 200 users at the same time. Maybe there is some benefit to living closer to civilization. Nah.
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Got the driver side brake drum off and everything looks fairly new. I ordered drums from rockauto as I destroyed the pass side drum and it is still not off. The Ebrake cables are froze up so they are ordered too. Front pads are shot but the rotors are good. Once all that gets here, I will get the brakes finished. Maybe tonight I will start the valve cover and radiator changeout. I think I will follow IowaEagles lead and do a partial smogectomy. I do need to leave some stuff to pass the smog inspection here. While doing the water pump and radiator, I am very tempted to do the timing chain also since half the stuff is out of the way.
Did find out that the 4wd engages. I needed to use it to get into the garage since the mud was still deep from the last of the melting snow. (at least I hope it is the last snow) I was not sure it was working but with the car up on jackstands I found the front driveshaft engaged when I spun the front wheel. So maybe that is working too.
I will be leaving work early today. Have to be home this afternoon to receive a delivery of new flooring materials so I can work on the car while waiting. Once the flooring is here though it means another project to tackle. Whew, 1800 sgft of T&G 5" Maple to put down. That will take a few evenings :D
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Thats a lot of flooring. When you are done you can come do mine. Yeah, you might as well do the timing chain while you have other stuff out of the way. How do the calipers look?
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I am going to get new (rebuilt) calipers from NAPA locally. I do not want the hassle of dealing with a core from Rockauto. Even if they are half the price of NAPA. I really might just do new rotors too as they are rather inexpensive. Everything I add to the "to do" list though takes time and pushes back the date when I can actually start driving it. Have to balance out what is really necessary and what can wait.
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Yeah, fresh new components will make your Eagle smile. If the NAPA calipers do not come with new mounting bolts I suggest you get them too. Unless yours have zero corrosion and/or rust.
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Last ones I got for the other Eagle came with bolts and anti rattle clips
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That would justify the extra cost -- the RockAuto one's may not have them. And, they don't give those bolts a way for free.
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Did that, no go. Got it today though. 8 pound sledge. the pieces came off real easy ;D
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Ok, making progress now ;D At least I feel like I accomplished something, not much, but something. Got the new rams put on to hold the hatch open. Now I can lean in there with some confidence that I will not be clunked on the head. I started on the valve cover replacement and got what seemed like miles of vacuum hose out of the way. the wiper motor is out. looking things over, I will also be doing the radiator and water pump (if not more) and might just as well redo all the heater hoses. Another trip to NAPA tomorrow. They all know me very well ;). There is actually an engine under all that hose and tube ;D. Hope to get a little more done tomorrow and maybe the valve cover in place. That's all for now.
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You're getting there.
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Isn't it amazing what you find under all that plumbing? You will really enjoy it when you need to access components in the future. Let us know of any power improvement.
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You know, Murphy has taken up permanent residence here so the rest of you are safe for now!!!! Dropped $200+ at NAPA today and figured I would make loads of progress on the SX. Put new rear wheel cylinders in and broke one brake line. OK, that is to be expected, no big deal. Open the box of brake shoes and they look a little funny, yet familiar. Take them out of the box and, no wonder...... they are the used ones I returned for core deposit from the wagon. They put them back on the shelf. IDIOTS!!!! Have to wait another day so I work on the front ones and get the new rotors and pads on but the rotors won't be here until Thursday. I did manage to get the new valve cover on though and it does look nice. Hope it seals up real nice. Figured I am on a roll now so I drain the radiator to replace the water pump and change out the radiator. I hear it drain so go about my business for a couple of minutes. Look back and the floor is covered in antifreeze. ??? Bucket had a small crack in it. Can't understand that, it only sat outside in the snow bank all winter. That shouldn't hurt it. It looked good but it fooled me. And the truth is, one of the girls left it next to the garage when she washed her car, but I should have seen it. Have to get a new bucket tomorrow so I can get it done. Hope that by Thursday night I should have most everything done on it so I can test drive it over the weekend.
That's all for now. I have to go make the spare bed up for Murphy :D
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Is that what they call a Murphy Bed. Why don't you send Murphy to go over to a neighbor who has a Ford. Yes, always check the parts box before you leave the store. And, make sure you get the core box good and dirty so those morons behind the counter can figure out there may be used parts in the box.
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Time for an update. Got 600+ sq ft of flooring down so I felt some time on the car was earned. :D The front brakes are done complete with new rotors, pads, calipers and the flex brake lines. They were not cheap but I figured the ability to stop straight and true was important to me. I got one of the front shocks changed out and will do the other one tonight. All the new Ebrake lines are in and hooked up so that works now too. Finally got the "new" rear brake shoes and replaced the rear brakes complete with new adjusters, hold down springs, wheel cylinders and drums. I am going to replace the rear flex hose tonight and run new brake lines on the rear cause I know I will break them getting them off. I unboxed the new air shocks and was sizing that up last night too, If the upper bolts don't break off, it should be fairly straightforward to change those out.
I replaced the valve cover last weekend and that in on and secure. Just have to finish plumbing the vacuum lines that will remain. The radiator is about ready to come out and I will replace the water pump and belts and hoses then,
The only concern I have at this point is that huge spot of tranny fluid on the garage floor. The fluid was low when I got the car so I topped it off and now I notice a good sized wet spot under the car. Have to go under there and find the source. I have a sick feeling that I will be replacing the front seal. Maybe it is just the pan gasket so I will snug up the pan bolts and make sure the cooling lines are OK and such before I resort to pulling the tranny for the $3 seal.
If the weather improves I may try to find a fender for the drivers side where the tree limb damaged it. Shooting some black on it and swaping it out is a lot quicker than pulling the dents, filling, sanding, filling, sanding etc.
Well, that is where the SX/4 stands right now. I am kind of out of work space at the moment so I have not been able to get the wagon into a work bay to fix the rear brake shudder. The house garage had Skeezix's Chrysler that she drives everyday and the other bay is set up with my table saw and chop saw along with debris from doing the flooring. We expect another 1200 sq ft of material to show up any day so I need to get the SX done quick before I am stuck with flooring. The AMC garage has the SX in one bay and the 69 Ambo in the other. I need to finish prepping the engine bay for paint so I can shoot color before I put the 401 in it. It was supposed to be done by now but these two Eagles showed up and............
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Keep pouring the money in her. You won't regret it. If the fluid is coming out from behind the inspection plate there is a good chance the front seal is bad. And there is a good chance it is bad because the Torque Converter lugs have cracked, spread out and have damaged the seal and bushing. If I remember JavAMXcom posted a site for a heavy duty TC where the input shaft has been beefed up.
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You are full of such good news. I really just want to get it going so I can see what else it will need. I have acquired an 82 engine and tranny out of a Spirit that has less than 40k on it. They took it out to put a 360 in their Grandmothers car.
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The TC from the Spirt is not for the Eagle. The Eagle uses a 'high' stall converter and you definitely want to keep the 998 trans, not the 904 that is in the Spirit. I don't think the Spirit did, or if so, has a lower stall rate. If that is where it is leaking then you will want to fix it now unless, at the worst you want to get a new front pump too. Might as well and check the flex plate too. My ring gear was kind of chewed up when I had to replace my Torque Converter.
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It currently has a 904 in it now, not the 998. That is the way it came to me from the previous owner. The car was originally a 5spd based on the VIN. It probably will end up with a 727 from a GW and a 228 T case.
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Sounds like a good plan to me. Let us know how that conversion works out. I hear the only mod on the 727 is the dipstick tube.
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Had a chance to fiddle for a few minutes last night and found almost all of the tranny pan bolts to be finger tight. I snugged them up a little making sure I did not overtighten and will see if that will make a difference. Most of the seepage seemed to be coming from there but I will pull the rear seal and replace it since it is easy enough to do.
I managed to get the rear flex line in and all the rear brake lines replaced so I will bleed them out tonight and see what I have. I need to pick up some new fittings for the air shocks today so I can get them plumbed tonight too. It is getting closer.
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Hope that was the source of leakage. Yup might as well replace the rear seal too. Closer and closer you do get.
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It appears that most of the seepage from the tranny has stopped. I still need to do the rear seal. Got the water pump changed and all new hoses run last night. I neglected to pick up a new power steering belt so I will do that today. Figured I would get all the belts in and snugged up before I slide the new radiator in. Just a lot easier to do with more room. Changed out the thermostat too. I did manage to get the air shocks in but was not in the mood to lay under the car on the creeper so final cable routing for the Ebarke will be done tonight. Besides, by that time the Yankee game was on and we get so few of them on the dish that it was calling to me. ;D
Closer and closer I get
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So when is your ETOTRA? (Estimated time on the Road Again)
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So when is your ETOTRA? (Estimated time on the Road Again)
Monday!!!!!
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OK, OK it is Tuesday and the car still is not done. I think tonight that I will get a lot of little things done that will let me test drive and debug issues. I have had an annoying health issue that is not getting better so it kinds of leaves me without a lot of energy. I go next Monday to see when they slice me again to fix it. Need to get the car done before then!! Did pick up the EBay parts SX/4 in a deal with a couple of Nest members so parts distribution will commence shortly.
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Hey Smitty hope your medical procedure goes well and you are back to 100% shortly. Hope there are not many bugs to get rid of.
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Best wishes on your procedure. Is it minor surgery?
You do know the defiinition of minor surgery, don't you?
It is surgery performed on someone else!
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You do know the defiinition of minor surgery, don't you?
It is surgery performed on someone else!
Very true. Hopefully, it will solve the problem, once and for all.
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Managed to putter in the garage for a couple of hours tonight. Had to stop cause of the exhaust fumes, and I WAS HUNGRY, Grilled a slab of meat on the grill and figured I could eat and type almost at the same time. I believe I have everything under the hood in order (but the hood is off the car, so what does that really mean :D). The radiator is in and fluid is in the system. It did not want to start so I had to run a bypass on the 'puter and if fired up. Must be it is missing one of those sensors that is laying on the garage floor. During the course of getting it to run decent I found and fixed; 2 small coolant leaks, 1 small vacuum leak, 1 LARGE vacuum leak and I had to reset the timing to compensate for lack of computer control. Seems to run pretty good but I have not put it under load to really see. I still have to find the wire that goes to the temp sensor as the guage does not work now.
Still left to do:
replace shifter
replace driver side shocks front and rear (Pass side are changed)
finish hanging the E brake cables so they do not drag
bleed brakes
go racing - only kidding
another night or two and it should roll out of the garage for a road test.
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Sounds like your list is getting longer. Don't you just hate having extra parts left over.
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I don't mind parts left over. Means the car is lighter and meaner ;D What I really hate is missing tools! 3 or 4 knee operations ago it took them 3 days to realize they were missing a clamp...... it was still in my leg. They had to open me up again to take it out. Military doctors (is that an oxymoron?)
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Sound like one of the 3 Stooges episodes, where one of them gets off the table, is clanking around. "Free Medical" is worth every penny. >:(
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Not quite as bad as Military Inteligence. I only had one surgery, at least where they put me out, from a Army Doctor and I have nothing but good things to say about the outcome. It was probably not so much they left a clamp in you that bothered them -- it was that the doc was afraid when it came IG inventory time he would have been charged for the clamp and you for misappropriating government property.
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Hope you are referring to military docs and not the way I work on Eagles ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
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I've always been happier with the military docs skill than I was with their attitude. That part did bother me.
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Hey Smitty good luck on the table.
That way you can get back to working on your AMC Eagle a lot faster.
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Who knows, I might get lucky and skip the knife this time. It gets old after a while. Got busted up a little in the service and have had 8 knee operations and 3 other procedures for skin cancer removal so I feel it is someone elses turn. ;D It may not look like much but a lot of work has gone into the SX/4.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/P1010101.jpg)
I am sure a lot of you have had the same experiences. You start one thing and then the list grows as you see things that really should be "taken care of" as preventative maintenance. That has been the story with this car. All it really needed was to bleed the brakes but I figured why not do everything so I know it is all good stuff. There was a growl in the water pump and rust in the radiator so why not do both and might as well do all the belts and hoses too. That mindset has taken a weekend project and stretched it into a month. Now it is a matter of a few minor things (I hope they are minor) and getting it out of the garage to see what kind or road manners it has. I think I should get most of it back together tonight unless something else comes up. With houses and land selling around here the day they are listed we need to drop everything if a house or land comes along that we think we like. That has been part of the delay so far has been the search for a house closer to work.
Long winded this morning, sorry.
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Isnt it allways like that, wille you are working on something you see something ells an think "Hey since I'm in to the repair mode I migth as well take care of that it looks worn out. How do you think mine got in to the boxes?
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It's called " Preventive Maintenance." Fix it before it breaks, so you aren't trying to patch it up on the side of the road at 3:00am.
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If you carry anything more in your car than the hood release handle then you are tempting the breakdown gods. But now I am way off topic. Must get back to Smitty. While you have the hood up you might as well do the TFI and get rid of that yucky fram oil filter.
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Actually, I am going to do the HEI as I have a pile of them in my cabinet. Oil, filter and all that stuff is yet to be done. We are looking at some property tonight so I doubt if much will get done tonight. I finished off the shocks and all the Ebrake stuff last night so the next task is to bleed out the brakes. Then I can road test it. The shifter is annoying but I can make it work with 2 hands so I can road test as is. The garage is one big mess. Once I get the SX out it will take an evening of cleaning and putting tools away, cleaning oil and brake fluid spills etc.
Skeezix ventured out to the garage last night and got her first really good look at the SX/4. Even though it is on jackstands I told her to get in and try it on for size ;D. She got in and looked around, asked a few questions about wires and all (the lower package tray is out for now) and then sat there for a minute or two, real quiet. She looked down at me (I was on the floor doing the air shock line) and said "this will be fun to take to work". Another convert. Now I will probably have to get one for her own although she does like the wagon.
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I think Lynne (Starwalker) is opening a dealership. Any tips on replacing the e-brake cables would be appreciated. Thats on my to do list too. Especially parts numbers.
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Thanks. I already have rebuilt/renewed the rear brakes with all new hardware. The front cable is probably the same for all -- the rear ones would be different for series 50 cars.
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Off the shelf at Advance. Just plain old "f" parts.
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They have under the Eagle -- no problem. Go to the Advance site (Parts America) and you can get the Wagner/Raybestos/Bendix #'s.
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a lot of the part numbers are the same as the wagon. see my post
http://forums.amceaglenest.com/index.php?topic=2844.30
I got most of these parts from Rockauto so I will do a comparison on cost
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I don't like how PA revamped their site. They list only the popular stuff and you have click an extra time to get the complete list. Set up for week end warriors not serious wrenchers.
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An exellent How To by Smitty that was moved to the How To Section. By request it is reposted here as well.
Looking through my slips from NAPA I can provide the following info:
Brake hoses front 36929 $33.53
Brake hose front 36928 33.53
Brake hose rear 36965 22.74
Those are the flexible brake lines.
Caliper 242-1009 15.95
Caliper 242-1008 15.95
Rotor 4885771 24.70
Wheel Cyl 4617510 9.68
wheel cyl 4617509 9.68
Brake hardware rt 80663 9.54 Roackauto 78526S 6.65
brake hardware lf 80664 9.54
Brake cable NAPA 92934 $28.94 Rockauto LH F103389 19.19
Brake cable NAPA 93030 $25.51 Rockauto RH F86044 19.19
Brake cable NAPA 92566 $27.98 Rockauto front F102003 21.79
The parking brake cables are the same for all models. On the SX/4 the excess cable for the front is wrapped under the fuel lines and tied off. On the wagon it is a straight shot to the bracket for the rear cable hookup.
When doing the front parking brake cable, unhook it from the rear cables and press about halfway down on the parking brake pedal and then release the brake. This brings the cable end up so that you can slip it out of the bracket on the pedal assy. Make sure you have the battery unhooked so you can move the fusebox out of the way. Otherwise there are a few sparks Grin. I reused my old cable retainers as I did not like the new type supplied with the new cables. I also saw no difference in quality between NAPA and Rockauto. Both had to be ordered so save $22.26 and get them delivered to your door.
The only annoying part about changing out the rear cables is that you have to reuse the mounting tabs that hold the cable to the axle assy. They are a pain to pry open and are usually covered in road gunk. The other thing I found out is to pull the rear cables forward as far as possible with the brake drum off and clamp a vise grip right at the end of the protective sheathing on the end of the cable that gets hooked up to the front cable. This helps when you go to hook the front and rear cables together as you are not pulling against the spring pressure on the brake drum. You can always hook the front cable up first and fight with the return spring on the brake drum but I found this the best way after doing both the wagon and the SX/4.
It should not take more than 2 hours if things go moderately well. The one thing to remember is that there are 2 retaining clips under the carpet in the drivers side floor. The front one is usally hidden under the accumulated years of dirt and debris and is located just at the upward bend of the floorpan as it transfers into the firewall.
Have fun
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hey isnt that john rosa's sx/4 you bought or am i mistaken? the brush guard's a dead giveaway, let me know if you ever want to sell the car, hehehe
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How goes the project Smitty?
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Basically, at a complete standstill. The weather here has been so hot and humid that I have not had the desire to do much of anything. I do not tolerate the heat well, let alone the humidity. Last week I had some minor work done on my throat and the meds don't agree with me. Our house goes on the market 1 July so what time I do have is going into finishing a bunch of small details and hunting for property to build the new house. We meet with the realtor today at 5:15 to put an offer in on a parcel that is about 10 minutes from work. We shall have to wait and see.
I do not think I am going to get lucky with the tranny after all. I had it running to sort out the vacuum lines and to make sure the new valve cover was sealed up. It ran great but I still need to bleed the brakes. Have to make a canister for my vacuum pump to pull the fluid through as gravity is not working. Went in the next day and the floor has a huge pool of tranny fluid again. It leaked for quite a while so I think it may be the torgue convertor draining. The weather is supposed to break tomorrow so I will probably get out there tomorrow night to finish up all the small stuff and then see what the deal is with the tranny leakage.
It is always a challenge.
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Take it easy with the heat and humidity. Sounds like plenty on your plate! Have you had the tranny out? If not, sounds like another issue to deal with.
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I am dreading the thought of pulling the tranny and there is a waiting list to get into the garage. I have to finish prepping the 69 for paint and shoot the engine bay so I can get the engine and tranny back into that. The front suspension is out too so I can put in all new poly bushings. That leaves me with one bay in the toy garage that is currently occupied by the SX/4. I need to get Skeezix's Cherokee in there for rear brakes as it has 85k on the factory brakes, then the Eagle wagon has to go in to figure out the rear brake shudder then my XJ Wagoneer has to go in for a clunk in the front end. I think it is a loose trackbar that I recently replaced but maybe not. I also need to replace the shift motor for the transfer case and put in an antenna. Besides putting the 69 together after paint I still have the 66 Ambo wagon to get ready for paint and to put all the new upholstery into.
All that and have a new house built, keep this house ready for showing at all times and have the project cars ready to transport to the new home or storage when we sell. Whew!!!!! So, it may be that the SX/4 goes to a shop for the tranny work. If I can find a good Jeep 727 then I will just swap it out.
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Yeah the 727 would be a good alternative. I know when I had my tranny done I took it to a shop. Really, it was the most cost effective way to do it.
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Got a chance to work on the money pit for a few hours tonight. Found that the tranny leak is coming from the seal around the shifting rod. I don't know if this can be replaced with the tranny in the car or not but I will make a few phone calls tomorrow. I got the front brakes to bleed up but cannot get the rear ones. Guess I will have to put the vacuum pump to it to pull it through. Tomorrow I will pick up the plug wires to do the HEI install and get rid of all the motorcraft wires, box and coil.
Heavy rains right now. Let's hope no more flooding but the ground is already saturated so it might get interesting again.
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Yup, its an in the car service procedure with the valve body removed. You lucked out there.
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Hey, Skeezix was in Town getting her hair done so I could ignore the honey-do list and work on the SX/4 ;D I managed to get the air shocks plumbed and holding pressure, topped off the rear diff fluid and got all the shifting linkage hooked up and the new shifter in. I can not get the brakes to bleed even when I put the vacuum pump to them so I have to follow the lines back and see where a blockage may be. The fronts are fine but the rears are a pain. I might even have to read the manual :o as I seem to remember that the proportioning valve may have to be bled or centered first.
I may get real lucky with the tranny leak. I sprayed everything with cleaner and wiped it down to check if maybe it might be the backup light switch leaking. they are right next to each other and maybe the switch is the real culprit and not the seal for the shifting linkage. Worth a try.
Does anyone have an 80 parts car with the 258? I need the harness from the ignition module to the distributor. I have my homemade one in there now but the factory one sure looks better. I let it run quite a while tonight to fully warm up and clear any air bubbles out of the cooling system after changing the radiator and the water pump. With the new pump it runs nice and quiet and the growl is gone.
Let's see, bleed the rear brakes, put the guages back in, change the plugs, cap and rotor (or just put the HEI in) and change fluid to test drive. It is supposed to rain this weekend so i may have more garage time and get this hangar queen out of there.
That's all for now.
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Hope you're right about the leak. Good luck getting the brakes sorted out.
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You know, one of these days I hope to get a break that goes my way. I topped off the rear diff fluid the other night and did not have a chance to work any more on the SX/4 over the weekend as relatives showed up unexpectedly (which was fine). I had to run out to the toy garage this morning before work and noticed a puddle under the rear diff and a drop fell as I looked on in disgust. Guess it needs a pinion seal. Tonight the SX/4 gets yanked out of the garage and the wagon goes in to change the idler arm. I want to get one of these driving so I can enjoy them!!! Getting real tired of this SX/4 :-[
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I bet Lynne would take it off your hands. ;D Don't get discouraged, just keep telling yourself, 20+ year old car, 20+ year old car -- no car payments, no car payments, must keep one away from Lynne, must keep one away from Lynne. :D
I get that way once in awhile too, everytime I work on one part I find something else that will need attention. I need to sit down and do a priority list.
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just think once you have all the small details fixed how much fun you will have.
Is'nt all ways like that you get in to the fixing things mentality are doing great and some one shows up to take you off track.
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Well, it is out of the garage and running and stopping on its own. Took today off from work and bled out the rear brakes enough to use them but they still need to be done again, put in the new plugs (broke one so only 5 new ones), changed the oil and filter, put the hood back on and pulled it out. The engine runs great and will accelerate without hesitation. The tranny will have to be looked at for the leak so I will have the shop do the band adjustments and filter change. Looks like I will need the rear pinion seal replaced as that is where it is leaking from. I don't do tranny's or diff gears and this car needs attention to both. The garage is a total mess and I will spend a few hours putting it back into shape before I run the wagon in for the idler arm and shocks. The SX/4 does not have tags so I could not take it far but I did run it up and down the road in front of the house just to see how it took off and if the tranny would shift. Both items passed the first test. I had hoped to use the SX/4 to go to Kenosha but that looks doubtfull now as it needs a lot of tinkering mechanically and a repaint from where the tree fell on it. It also does not have cruise and after 8 knee operations (thanks Uncle Sam) I really appreciate having it.
But you never know, another 1 owner, low mileage beauty might just come my way that would beg to go back to Kenosha ;D Well, working on it anyway.
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Are you really sure it is headed your way????? Fade out to soft cackling laughter hahahahahahaha
Remember, grasshopper, it is not yours until it is yours....
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He may be going after that wagon I listed today.
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It's just patiently waiting for it's journey south.
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That wagon is one that does bear taking a closer look at. I think Lynne would be remiss by not having at least one example of all 6 models.
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Actually, I found that post last night and emailed on that one too. Got some more pics this morning and it looks good. He says it runs sluggish, probably from not being driven much. I am following the thread here but it is getting a little off topic.
Driving both cars around the yard and field last night, Skeezix and I came to the conclusion that both cars belong where they are. There is no more room at the Inn for Eagles so I guess we will stick with what we have for now. The problem is that the 69 Ambo has not been touched in months cause all the free time goes to the Eagles and I was supposed to take the Ambo to the AMO show in Atlanta next week. No way is that happening :(. So, the money pit will continue to consume resources until I have so much into it that they will put me into the funny farm.
On a good note, I did find that the AC in the SX/4 works. Kind of surprised that it still has gas in it. Those tires and rims look cool on the car but they rub the front fenders at any kind of a turn so I think I will swap them out for the ones on my Wagoneer.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Waggy/cd_3.jpg)
The Wagoneer is headed to Ebay as soon as I get the Eagle wagon ready for a daily driver so the XJ wheels will look natural on it and the wheel wells have more clearance.
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Thanks for the great update Smitty. Yeah, these longer threads tend to take on a life of their own. But I think we can all relate to the money pit concept.
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Just make sure that sunroof is on right before you take your first spin. My sunroof is now a bolted-on plexiglass plate. My mechanic fiddled with the original and took it for a test drive. Sucked the sunroof right off and killed it.
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Guess it is time for an update. I finally was able to take the SX/4 out for a short test spin last night and there are still some issues. There has been a serious wobble in the driveline at any speed above 15mph so I finally got enough time to run it back into the garage and look it over. I spun each tire by hand and they appeared to be true. Next I checked the front driveshaft and it looked straight and the U joints were fine. Then I spun the rear driveshaft and found the cap for the U joint to be sticking out past the hold down strap. Ahhh, me thinks I may have found the answer ;D The PO had put the wrong type of U joint in so I was able to change caps with some used parts I had laying around (why I had them laying around will be another post soon). Took the car out and did 45mph with no problem so I think that issue is behind me. I will order a new U joint and put it in this weekend when I change the leaking pinion seal.
What I did notice is that I still need to bleed the brakes more but they are working better than they were and the car has a terrible wander problem, (kind of like my mind when I am at work). I jacked the right front up and tried to turn the front tire and looked for slop in the steering components. Just like the wagon, the idler arm has way too much flex in the joint on the stationary arm. I went to my parts bin and yep, there is a new, in the box, idler arm there so tonight I will change that. I just was not in the mood to drop the front skid plate last night as it was about 8pm and I still had not had dinner. I hate to eat late so I called it quits for the night.
What I did notice is that the engine seems to run well and the tranny works like it should so maybe I can run it for a while as is. I do have another engine and tranny with 32k on it but I really want to put that into the wagon over the winter. The wagon does have a lot more pep than the SX/4 and I attribute that to the motorcraft carb conversion.
I don't know if I will be brave enough to undertake the 600+ mile round trip to the Chilson show on Labor Day weekend but that is what I am shooting for. I hope the schedule works out that I can go but am not sure yet of Skeezix's schedule. She is heading to Italy for 10 days of painting classes and R&R. I need to get her to JFK either late Saturday (the show date) or early Sunday so that may preclude going to Chilsons. Anybody from the Nest going?
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Isn't it amazing how those seeming little things cause problems. Glad you caught it while car was stationary. I tell my wife the same thing about those spare parts -- you just never know? Italy, some people have it really easy! Hope she has a great time and gets plenty of R & R. BTW what style painting does she do. Or is she learning to paint Eagles!
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Hey, when a good deal comes up on Evil Bay, I buy it and store it away. Has saved me a few times.
Skeezix deserves her trip and R&R and I am just glad that we can make it happen for her. She does oil stuff and has not done Eagles..... yet. She did do one for my office with the 66 Ambo wagon in it. At least she made me thinner ;D
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/P1010040.jpg
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Nice painting. does she do murals on hoods of Eagles? I plan on going to the Chilson show, not sure when I'm leaving for it. Friday morning, to be there for the cruise ? Saturday at "Oh-dark-thirty?"
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Nice painting. Too bad there is all that other scenery around the Ambassador. ;D
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Got the idler arm changed out last night. Helped some but there is still a wander problem that I tracked down to play in the steering box. I am going to play with the adjusting screw tonight but don't really have high hopes of significant improvement. At 45mph there is a definite clunk that I think comes from the rear end assy. Happens every time at the same speed. I thought it might be in the tranny but the converter is locked up at 40mph so there should not be anything happening in the tranny that would cause a clunk. Fix the steering wander and the clunk and I think this one will be ready for the road.
Any suggestions on an alternate steering box? I think I heard somewhere that one from a Cherokee has a quicker ratio?
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Also heard that Firebirds/Camaros from around the same time are a direct bolt in.
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Well, the carnage will begin tomorrow. I am picking up another motor and tranny for the SX tonight. This combo only has 32k on it and the set in the car has 132k. The motor still runs great but the tranny is iffy so I figure I am ahead of the game if I swap in the low mileage stuff. Ought to be fun, eh? Also got the steering box from Rockauto last night so when the engine is out I will slip that puppy in too. The engine that is in the SX now will end up in the wagon as that one has massive leaks from both the front and rear main seals and has a wrist pin slap in one of the pistons. Eventually that engine will get redone with a 4.0l head and other goodies. For now I want to get the SX stuff swapped out so I can go to the Chilson show next weekend. Just some straightforward wrenching so long as I don't break anything too serious. I am picking up a new front seal for the tranny and other tidbits to put on the new combo before I put it in.
Actually, the real carnage will start Monday morning so wish me luck. I will be off list most of next week since I will be home and the dial up is a joke. The antiquated phone lines only handle a 1.5 to 2.2k transfer rate so it takes forever to pull anything up. Too far out in the boonies for dsl or cable so most of the internet stuff is done at work. I did just go down the hall and officially registered the SX/4 so it is now legal. ;D
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Sounds like fun for Smitty. Of course I know you will share all the gorey details when you have time.
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No time to post pics right now as I just have a few minutes in the office before I head south to pick up one of the girls at college. The engine, tranny and transfer case are out and I am in the process of changing over the valve cover and oil pan and pickups since the engine canme from a Spirit. I took the engine out first but going back in I want to see if I can put it all in as a unit. If not i will do the engine and tranny and then the T case will go in from the bottom ugh. Pretty straight forward wrenching and I think I am on schedule for what I thought but today may put me behind. Depends on how late I want to stay in the garage tonight and I did not plan on having to drive to get one of the girls for a Dr issue. Tomorrow I hope to try to shoehorn it back together. I also decided that the entire exhaust will get redone too. Must as well have everything nice and new before I am done.
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Yup do it right and do it once!
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Back from vaca and thought I would update things. The engine and tranny are still out cause I shipped the tranny out for a rebuild. I hope to have that back by the end of the week so I can put the car back together on Sunday.
This was pulling the engine
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/swap/P1010011.jpg)
I am installing a new steering box. I am getting a new return hose and pitman arm today at lunch so all this can go back in tonight. It is also the perfect time to replace the steeing stabilizer as the bolts are so easy to get at with the engine out.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/swap/P1010020.jpg)
This is the "new" 32k motor that is going in. I picked up an Eagle oil pan from way2phastphil at the Chilson show and that is going on tonight along with changing over the new valve cover.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/swap/P1010018.jpg)[/IMG]
Hopefully, after tonight I will have most everything ready to go back together once the tranny is ready. I am putting a new water pump and theromstat on the engine too and generally replacing all the maintenance items when the engine is on the stand rather than trying to do it later when the engine is in the car. I am seriously looking at the 390cfm Holley 4V carb from summit. I will probably just go with the same motorcraft 2V setup that I have on the wagon as that is a lot less expensive.
Lots of possibilities and the longer the engine is out of the car the more I tend to replace as preventative maintenance.
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That's the way to do it! Its great not having to fight other stuff doing your PM.
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You will have a fine machine when finished. And you will have gotten it the true old fashioned way - you will have earned it.
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Are you using the same type of steering box or are you going with a upgrade.
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Are you using the same type of steering box or are you going with a upgrade.
No upgrade, just the plain ole factory type unit.
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No word on the tranny yet but pressing forward on other fronts. I have the steering put back together and got the new damper installed too. Got all the exhaust pipes from NAPA (thanks IowaEagle for the tip on the transition pipe) and have rearranged everything in the garage so I can work a little easier.
I broke down ;D and ordered the Holley 390 4V from Summit and a nice (read expensive) billet air cleaner assembly. I really think I want to put in the HEI and pull all the wiring for the computer. That should really clean up the engine bay. Guess I will wait until after I pass the NY inspection just to make sure. I also ordered the plush molded carpet from JC Whitney. When it comes I will let you all know my impressions on quality and fit.
Does anyone have a source for a factory type catalytic convertor? I can use a generic one but they do not have the flange to mate to the head pipe and I really like the hanger that holds that system up that bolts to the flange so I do not want to cut it off. Yes, I have to run the convertor to pass inspection and I like to breathe clean air so I will continue to run a convertor.
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Advance says they offer an OE style but I did not confirm it. Are you talking about the extension pipe from the converter to the tail pipe? Yeah, that was the one that worried me for the SX/4 but without the converter to contend with it worked out fine.
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What intake are you putting the carb on? What will be on the car for inspection?
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I am going to run the stock manifold with an adapter, same as I did for the motorcraft conversion on the 83 wagon. That one passed inspection without a problem. I will probably leave the stock stuff on for inspection but don't think it will be an issue if I change it over. All that really has to be on there is the evap canister and the cat. They are supposed to do a pressure test of the evap canister to make sure the gas cap does not release vapors and that the system works. 96 and up get the full emissions testing. So as long as there are not a lot of dangling hoses it seems to pass inspection without an issue.
This is what the wagon looked like and they had no problems passing it.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Eagle/Projects/P1010187.jpg)
Notice that the pulse air system is completely gone. I actually think the motorcraft setup would pass a sniffer test if required but. thankfully, they have not gotten to that part yet. From what I understand, once the car is 25 years old then you can even run without the cat as there is no provision to require emissions checking for anything older than 25 years. One more year for the SX/4 ;D
My understanding is that the stock manifold with a carb adapter flows as much, if not more air, than the aftermarket 4V intakes and it has the preheater for those cold days. All I know is that the motorcraft setup on the wagon runs great and will pull from just off idle much better than the 4.0 in the Cherokee. I hope the 390 4V adds a little more punch without overdoing it. Right now, the SX/4 runs like a dog compared to the wagon and the wagon has 134k on it with a wrist pin knock and massive leaks from the front and rear main seals >:( The wagon will soon get a transplant so I am just trying to nurse it along and hope it does not blow before the SX/4 is finished.
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I'm curious on how it will perform with the adapter. Not saying it won't, the 390 is only a 195 with the primaries open. Flow may be better but I think the distribution stinks with the stock manifold. Not that most of the aftermarket ones are any better though. I think you will have better part throttle response than with the larger Motorcraft.
No pressure test at my inspection but they did a visual of the cat, probably the rest of the system also. They almost failed my 80 Concord because the air injection tube was broken from the cat, they just told me to fix it.
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Looks like another busy weekend ;D. Just picked up the tranny and brand new (not rebuilt) converter so it is full steam ahead with putting this puppy back together. I am still waiting for the transmission jack to get here but I can still get everything together execpt the transfer case. For those that will ask, the tranny rebuild with heavy 727 clutch packs and the new converter cost me $700. The tranny has been dyno tested and carries a 3yr/36k warranty.
Let's hope the Honey do list is short so I have the time to get this car debugged and running again.
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Is the torque converter the beefed up one with the stronger input lugs? And, did a local shop do the rebuild or did you send it out somewhere?
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Kind of a local shop. I brought it to a guy I have used for those repairs over the last 20 years that were either beyond my ability or I just did not feel like doing. He shipped it out to a shop about 70 miles away. He uses that shop to do the tranny's he puts in the 1200hp dodge diesel trucks he builds for customers. He had the tranny in my old Dodge 2500 diesel done and it was rock solid but, then again, mine only had the bigger turbo, 5 inch exhaust and edge chips, so it only dyno'd out at 610hp and 812+ ft lbs of torque. what a monster!
I think he builds a good tranny. The converter is the R 26 unit.
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Wow, this is getting to be a long thread. Must mean the project car is taking me way too long to finish. Will it ever really be finished? I got the valve cover changed over from the old motor and bought new heater hoses and stuff on Saturday. Flipped the engine over on the stand and pulled the oil pan to replace it with the Eagle pan. I did not realize that the sump was pressed into the oil pump. I have another sump in a box and pulled it out and it has the pump attached. When I looked in the manual it states not to use an old sump if you remove it from the pump because of issues with leakage past the seal. I spun the used pump by hand and did not really like the feel of it. Checked with NAPA and they do not make a rebuild kit for the pump like the V8's have. Have to figure out what I am going to do with this issue now. Spent about 45 minutes removing the old oil pan gasket >:(, that sucker was really on there!
I decided that I will replace the timing chain and gears so they will be in tomorrow. With the engine on the stand, it should not take too long except for getting the new oil seal pressed into the timing cover. Have a shop next town over that will do that, they are the same ones that rebuilt the 401 for my 69 Ambo. I am beginning to wonder if I will ever get this car back together. I keep finding things to do before I stuff the engine back in. ;D
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Dont worry the more you change or fix the closer you are to the end, till you start thinking on what to change next.
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Got a chance to work on the car last night and made some real progress. The engine is ready to go in the car but I decided to add the Holley carb now.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/swap/P1010067.jpg)
I just need to figure out the linkage. The real pain is the kickdown linkage requires that I use the stock mounting locations, otherwise I would use a mid 70's throttle cable plate and mount it to the intake manifold in place of the current throttle plate assembly. I tried using threaded rod with carb pivot ends screwed on the ends but it still wants to pull it down instead of back. I will need to fabricate a pivot plate that hooks to the rear carb mounting bolt or something to that effect.
For those that have engaged in the discussion on swapping a Concord/Spirit engine there is a definite difference in the oil pans and the pickup sumps are a different length too. The pic below shows the difference in the pans with the freshly painted one being the Eagle pan.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/swap/P1010064.jpg)
Of course, yesterday was not without the "aw crap"'s. I put the new timing chain and gears on, brought the timing cover over to a friend who has a machine shop and he cleaned it up and installed the new oil seal and then I put it all together with fresh paint and all ;D. I was putting the oil pan on and had started all the bolts when I looked down and saw the oil slinger laying on the rag where I had placed it so I would not forget to install it. Had to pull the pan off and the harmonic balancer and the timing cover just to put the slinger back in. Oh well, at least I had not torqued the pan bolts yet. Speaking of which, the bolts go a lot tighter than I would have thought. I snugged then up and thought they were good. I got the torque wrench out just to see and the little bolts get 7 ft lbs and they all moved at least half a turn if not more. The 4 larger bolts get 11 ft lbs and they went at least one full turn before torque. A case where snug might not have been good enough to stop a leak.
The second "aw crap" was after I ran new cooling hoses and put in the new thermostat and generaly buttoned up the front of the engine. I was cutting a new length of heater hose to run from the heater valve to the water pump when I noticed the thermostat box sitting next to the housing - unopened! Forgot to put the themostat in when I put the housing on. What a dummy. I will pick up another gasket ( I usually have about 5 spares) and redo it tonight.
All in all, progress is being made and I hope to bolt up the tranny tonight and move the engine and tranny to the hoist so that Saturday morning I can stuff it back in. I got the tranny floor jack yesterday so I can put the transfer case in without having it keep falling off the jack. The carpet kit also came but I have not had time to pull it out of the box.
About it for now. Skeezix and I are going away for a few days starting Sunday and I hope to have it running late Tuesday or Wednesday if all goes well. The only serious impediment to that would be fabricating throttle linkage. Any ideas?
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Really looks nice Smitty. Yeah, the linkage will take some doing. Are you going clean and paint the linkage bracket bolted to the manifold? If for no other reason than to halt any further deterioation. At least you found the parts before stuffing in car and starting. I think we all do that. Thanks for the pix of the oil pans! The difference is very obvious. We need to save that pic elsewhere as well. Thanks for your excellent write-ups on this project!
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Yep, I plan on painting the linkage bracket. Just want to make sure I am still going to use it and whether I will be modifying it someway first. Would hate to paint it then tear it up modifying it. Paint is always the last thing to go on, besides greasy fingerprints ;D
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Yup -- paint last -- though I always seem to still get fingerprints on the stuff.
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I hate it when that happens you finish puting every thing together when you notice that the first part you had to put is still in the shop table so you have to take every thing apart again.
But it sure looks like you are moving right allong
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Or that mysterious bolt that you have left over.
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Or if you are an inexperienced mechanic and have a part left over that you don't recognize.
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Went to NAPA at lunch today and talked ideas over with them. I ordered a 27 inch accelerator cable that I will connect to the stock location on the linkage bracket. I will then loop the cable up to the rear of the intake manifold and use a 1970 throttle bracket to hold the cable and modify it so that it will have the correct distance to the carb for the cable to connect. This should tranfer the downward motion of the stock linkage assembly to a rear pull that will work on the Holley. For $13 it is worth a try and should work.
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Let us know and of course if it works out we will want detailed narrative and diagrams.
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Took a few days off from work and did some traveling with Skeezix. We only saw one Eagle outside of Rutland VT and it was on jackstands but appeared to be a driver that was just getting a little work done on it. I did spend a good part of Saturday working on the Money Pit. Took care of a lot of little details with the engine and then got the tranny bolted up
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/swap/P1010076.jpg)
Couple of hints, put a little grease on the outside of the torque converter lug so it does not burn the seal on the tranny when you first fire it up, carefully line up the flexplate and the converter first so you can mark the alignment (there is only one way they will bolt together)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/swap/P1010073.jpg)
and then do not tighten everything up until the converter bolts are in. I thought I had it all aligned only to find out I had to pull the tranny off again to correct the alignment marks. We do it right cause we do it twice ;D.
You know, there are two tools I have bought that I always thought I could do without (and have until now). The first is an engine leveler that attaches to the hoist so that the engine can be tilted as it goes in or out of the car.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/swap/P1010079.jpg)
Years ago I would have tried to manhandle this in or had to put the tranny in from the bottom, which I find to be a pain. The leveler made this job a breeze and it only took about 10 minutes to get the engine and tranny in. OF COURSE ;D, there was the minor oops of having the hoist set to the wrong weight setting so the boom would not put the engine all the way back cause the hoist hit the front of the car. Had to set the engine down and readjust the length of the boom and then all was fine.
The second tool that I wonder how I lived without is a tranny jack. This one came from Harbor Freight for $59 and is a great piece for the price.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/swap/P1010080.jpg)
I have not put the transfer case in yet but it is on the jack and is easy to move around and there is no fear of it falling on me as I hook it up.
Well, here is it,
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/swap/P1010082.jpg)
now I just need to hook everything back up, install the new exhaust and get the throttle linkage hooked up. I spent yesterday fabricating the new linkage and believe I have that taken care of. Once I know it works I will post pics and part numbers.
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You have been busy. Thanks for the great pix and tips Smitty.
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So do you do body and paint work?
::) ::)
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Yep, I do most all my own paint and body work. My brother in Law owns a body shop and I have learned a lot from him over the years. He used to work in the body shop for the AMC dealer so he knows the old Ramblers well. I recently bought new HVLP spray guns so it will be fun learning how to paint all over again.
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Gee you need to talk your brother in law into being a member here -- he probably could provide some great tech tips.
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That is a funny thought ;D. He does not own a computer ::)
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That does present a problem.
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OK, OK this weekend I hope to finally get around to completing the reassembly of the money pit. The new J10 project sidetracked me but now that it is inspected and running as a daily driver (alternate weeks with the Eagle wagon) I can get back to the money pit.
Does anyone know if the front halfshafts interchange? I bought one off evilbay with the thought of swapping out one that has a tear in the boot. It looks the same and the ad stated it was for either side but I do not know for sure. This is a reman unit still in the box so I hope it is the right one.
I have a ton of small stuff to hook up yet and I had been toying with the idea of doing the 4.0 head swap and EFI from an XJ but decided that this car has consumed enough $$$ for now so it goes back together as is. The major stumbling block right now is the hanger for the front diff. I have the engine and tranny in and on their respective mounts but the front diff is off by an inch or two. Can't seem to line everything up. Maybe I just need a bigger hammer :o Once I get the diff hung and the halfshaft changed I can hang the T case and finish up the odds and ends. The front balljoints are due to get changed too along with the strut rod bushings. Still a lot to do but I am the only one here to work on it so I guess I had better get busy.
BTW we have about 4 inches of new snow here tonight and still coming. Supposed to get more tomorrow and 3-6 inches on turkey day. What a drag to have to turn the heat on in the garage :-[
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Both sides interchange. Thank you AMC. Getting closer and closer you are. Our snow melted, supposed to be flurries tonight.
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Managed to get into the money pit for a bit this past weekend but did not make much headway. I did get the driver side halfshaft out and decided to do the pass side one too so ordered that from Rockauto. I spent more time getting the garage heaters cleaned and working than actual car maintenance. They should be all set for the winter now, all I need to do is buy more pellets for the stove.
We did have a bit of snow that required my attention:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Misc/Winter04-2.jpg)
Since I ate way too much I was not highly motivated to crawl all over the car so I stood back and took an assessment of what needs to get done next. Looks like my list is still growing:
Remove and replace pass side halfshaft
replace all balljoints while halfshafts are out
hang front diff from engine mounts
bolt up tranny crossmember
install transfer case
install driveshafts
install radiator/hoses/belts
install bunches of small parts removed to get at engine bolts
install battery box and battery
fire up the new engine and see if it runs (it better!!!!!)
remove carpeting and install new
install shifter (maybe a B&M Starshifter)
install AC ducts and guages
install all new exhaust and cat
bleed brakes
replace fender damaged in shipping
drive and enjoy for many years to come. haha
Think I have a few more nights work to do huh?
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What snow? At least you have a written plan. Maybe I need to do that. Thanks Smitty.
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Dont worry looks like you are starting to get ahead of the worke could just be a couple of more months.
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At least you have a garage to work in...ours if filled with motorcycles; so when I want to work on the Blackbird, I have to do it outside in the elements...no matter what the weather. Wish me luck...cold here now, and I still need to fix the hole in the floor pan before the weather gets any worse. And now the transmission is slipping...if it ain't one darn thing, it's another... ::)
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Took today off to work on the car and it is it -17 outside. Brrrrrrrrrrrrr. Turned the heat on in the garage but it will be noon before it thaws out! Those tools are going to be cold to handle. Guess i will have to have another cup of hot chocolate before I head out there ;D
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What's in that Hot Chocolate? Its 31 degrees here but heavy wet snow with it. Its coming your way.
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That's what I figure too. They say that Friday should be mid 30's with 12 to 18 inches of "wintry mix". Translated as slop! Will run in later today to fill the gas cans for the snow blower and the generator.
Did not want to hijack your thread anymore. Slop is right. Came out of the snow blower chute more like a liquid stream rather than nice fluffy snow. IE
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Don't ever worry about hijacking this topic, it has digressed in the past and come back on topic so no worries there. Just came in for a snack but have made some progress today. You know, we all have illusions of a $1000 23 year old car being a daily driver and this one will be someday. I figure I have another $2500 in it to date not counting time, shipping charges and gas for those many trips for parts.
I finally got the front diff hung and bolted into place and will go back out and put the new halfshafts in. The T case is in too. I don't know how I ever used to do that without a tranny jack ;D. Guess I used to be stronger in my younger days (more stupid too ;D). I hope to get the driveshafts in today and the car sitting on all four wheels again without the help of jackstands. I have some pics in the camera but will add those tomorrow as the dial up from home would take forever. Still have to hang all the new exhaust pipes and cat but Skeezix will be home by then so play time will be over. The garage is finally up to toasty temps but the concrete floor is still mighty cold! Will update later. The saga continues......
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You made progress. Let's see $1000 to buy car; approx $2500 more and you have what probably amounts to a fairly new car. So what does a new 4WD kinda of like (I know there really isn't anything comparable) Eagle cost new these days? And then the new stuff lacks the AMC Eagle's character, good manners, ease of repair and of course all the little endearing AMC quirks.
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We will see how much the new Eagle costs when Jeep releases the Compass next year. Won't be cheap for sure. Called it quits for today. It is now -7 and headed for -20 tonight so it is time to stay inside. I forgot that I wanted to put in new upper ball joints so I did not get the halfshafts in. All in all, I feel pretty good about what I did get done today. The heavy lifting type stuff is done and the rest is just plain ole wrenching.. I believe I have all the parts I need except enough tranny fluid to refill the T case and to fill the rebuilt tranny and new torque convertor. I did fill the convertor before I put the engine and tranny together so I am not real sure how much more I will need. Probably just get a case and have enough when I put the 69 Ambo back together. Need to get the SX/4 out first but the Ambo needs to be finished for the Hot Rod Power Tour in June.
I figure I have a full day left on the mechanicals and another day redoing the interior carpet and pass door handle. Then we will see how well the new engine runs.
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You sure are making progress on it but then the problems of having fixing cars as a hobby there is allways some ells to fix, do or add on. The never ending project.
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I realized a little bit ago that an honest mistake of the keyboard results in the car being an SX/$. Not that is a real money pit. The car is now officially an SX/$. ;D
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Never noticed that before. Hope you did not jinx all of us. I bet the reincarnation discussed elsewhere today will be that.
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Got a chance this afternoon to tinker with the SX/$. Got the AC stuff all hooked up and tightened down, put in new heater hoses and valve, got new plugs and wires on. I hope tonight to get the rad in and hang the head pipe and new cat so I can fire it up. I hope the engine is as good as promised. I have taken this coming week off from work so this baby will be out of the garage no later than Tuesday night. Then the J10 goes in for new plugs, remove the cat, rear wheel cylinders and new rear brake drums. Once that is done then Skeezix's Cirrus goes in for new plugs (the rear cyl head is only accessible from underneath the car ::)). Then the 83 Wagon goes in for some much needed attention. Busy week ahead. I am tired just thinking about it.
You all have a great New Year and stay safe.
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Whew! You got a lot done.
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That's one of those vacations where it feels good to get back to work and a slower pace.
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Finally had a day to work on the money pit. Made some progress but not as much as I would like. Got the power steering pump mounted and new PS hoses installed, had the rad in but thought I could put the shroud in after and it would not go so out came the rad. I managed to drop a part on the rad so tomorrow I take it to get the holes fixed >:( >:(. I did manage to get the T case filled and the rear driveshaft in and spent a lot of time trying to get the carb mounted but I need to buy some heavy gasket material tomorrow or I will have a vacuum leak at the base of the 4V adapter. I am hoping that with a few other small parts and the rad fixed I should be ablr to get back on it around noon. The only time consuming items left are to get the carb setup and installed and to hang the exhaust. At least then I can fire it up and see what I am working with. I may just throw the Carter carb back on to get it running for now. The rad is really setting me back timewise so I doubt it will move out of the garage by tomorrow night as I need to meet Skeezix in town at 5pm but I hope the only major thing after tomorrow is to do the ball joints and install the new halfshafts. The old ones are out so it should just be a matter of slipping them in torquing the locknut. I did manage to get the thremostat in that I forgot earlier ;D
Maybe tomorrow it will be running!
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"Dropped partss will always find another expensive part to break"
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You know the biggest problem with living in the sticks??!! It takes forever to go get parts!! I have the car mostly together but need some 5/16 fuel line and exhaust studs. Skeezix and I had breakfast at the diner this morning and I run into a small town NAPA (still 14 miles away) to get the few things to finish off the money pit and they don't have either part I need. They are out of fuel hose!!! Too small they say cause they mostly service logging trucks and skidders. They have exhaust studs but they are about 3 inches long and I would need to rethread the manifold. So now I have to travel 28 miles each way to go to the NAPA I usually use. Over an hour round trip and 3 gallons of gas. end of rant.
Otherwise, I got the rad in and all fluids are in the car. I have a small issue to figure out hanging the headpipe but that should go in soon after I get back from getting the studs. Once that and the cat are on and I hook up fuel to the carb I will crank the engine with the coil unhooked to get gas to the carb and to get oil into the top of the engine. I will do that a few times to oil soak the engine before I try to start it. The engine has not been run in a year so I just want to take it easy and not fire a dry engine. I could pull the dizzy and prelube it with the drill but I want to move the pistons and rods at a slow speed to circulate the oil too, hence why I will crank it over about 10 times, let it sit a few minutes, crank it again, let it sit and then try to fire it. When I put the valve cover on I noticed one rocker arm had play in it and I think the lifter was not pumped up so I hope that one decides to pump up on its own. That is my only concern with this engine but the guy I got it from said it ran great when the people pulled it from their Grandmothers Spirit to put in a 454. I trust the guy I got it from so it is time to find out for sure. Should be good to go later today. YEE Haaa!
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Yes it is frustrating when the parts store does not have parts! Mike James drilled out the holes in his exhaust manifold and stuck regular grade 8 bolts in thru the top in place of studs. Have not heard if this worked well or not but I think it did.
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Yes it is frustrating when the parts store does not have parts! Mike James drilled out the holes in his exhaust manifold and stuck regular grade 8 bolts in thru the top in place of studs. Have not heard if this worked well or not but I think it did.
Can't give you a 100% answer since I'm still waiting on some parts, but, it seems to be holding really well so far. That header pipe is mounted up all nice and tight and I can't move that thing if I wanted to. If that pipe falls off, the exhaust manifold fell off or that whole pipe rusted out. :)
Mike
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Hey, IT RUNS Smokes a whole bunch but seems to run smooth enough so that I feel the lifter pumped up. No exhaust so it was loud. I got impatient and decided to fire it without the headpipe. Took me a few minutes to realize the neutral safey switch was in the wrong position but once I squared that away I cranked it for a few and then hooked up power to the coil, played with the carb for a bit and it popped and stalled. Gave it some gas and another choke adjustment and if fired and settled down on the high idle. No noticeable shaking of the car to indicate a dead cylinder and no backfiring so all the valves are working.
The exhaust studs are too long so I may use one stud and one bolt and see what happens. Otherwise I will cut the studs down and clean up the threads and try it again. Not an easy place to work in! Still have way lots to do and I have not touched replacing the carpet yet. And I still have the damaged fender to change out. No rest for the wicked I guess ;D
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It's aliiiiiiiiiiiiiive! It's aliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiive!
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I waited a while and fired it again with the headpipe somewhat hooked up and the engine smoked a lot less but it burned off the coating on the headpipe and did that stink! And smoke. Seems to run well and the response to throttle inputs are quick so no indication of any major vacuum issues either. Done for tonight. One of the girls just got back from a week in Antiqua so the story telling will go on for the rest of the night.
I knew the garage smelled from the exhaust and heating the new headpipe but when I came in the house Skeezix told me to take a shower and wash the clothes I had on. :o Guess I was pretty bad ;D Yes, it is Alive, finally. I ran it into the garage in September thinking I was going to swap out the engine in a week. It could have been done but then I decided to have the tranny rebuilt and then I had to change the oil pan and sump on the new engine and I might just as well do the timing chain and gears while it's on the engine stand. Then, as long as it is apart how about an all new exhaust system and on and on and on. Now though, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I just hope it is daylight and not the train ;D
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I'm voting for the daylight getting brighter.
Glad she's getting closer to the road!
As frustrating as it gets having to 'go for a trip' just to get a couple things, I'll take the isolation and not have to worry about keeping my door locked at night! When I first started working where I do now, one of the old timers told me how nuts I was when I told him I was going to live out where I bought my land. "You go out there, you won't have any paid fire dept., no police dept. You know how long it will take a Sheriff or Trooper to make it there when You need them?" My response: "But Sgt, out there I won't need them!" He's long retired and tired of watching his neighborhood deteriorate and last I spoke to him, he said he was moving out to the country.
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As frustrating as it gets having to 'go for a trip' just to get a couple things, I'll take the isolation and not have to worry about keeping my door locked at night!
Exactly. That is one of the main reasons we did not move last summer. Our house is never locked and our cars always have the keys in them. We are getting a goodly amount of snow right now and I am waiting for the heat to build up in the garage. Today I hope to have it on its own four wheels and the exhaust hooked up and ball joints in. I did find out last night that it needs a new radiator cap >:( I also have to get another gallon of antifreeze. I let it warm up for a while and then when I shut it off it puked out the overflow. Guess who has not put the overflow bottle back in yet? ??? No trips to town today so it will wait until tomorrow. I have enough to do today to keep me busy enough. The dial up at home is so slow or I would be boring you with the pics that are in the camera.
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All in all it was a decent day. Maybe tomorrow I will be able to take it out for a test spin. I managed to get the ball joints in and the halfshafts installed. Also got quite a few loose bolts etc tightened up. I still need to install the throttle linkage and hook up the vacuum stuff for the Tcase and front diff. The headpipe and cat are on but I need a hanger to install the muffler and tailpipe. When I got all the exhaust pipes they did not order the bushing pipe to slide the midpipe into the muffler. Had to run into town for that today so I got the rad cap and a few other trinkets too. I also need to replace the pass door handle and try to get the seats out to replace the carpet. I am hoping that most of the heavy mechanical is done for now. This old body is feeling its age laying on the creeper all day ;D
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Well, Finally, after 4 months I got to drive the car again. ;D I did not go far but a few sorting out drives up and down the road. Doesn't have as much pep as the wagon but all the vacuum ports are plugged so no vacuum advance etc. I still need to change the fender and do all the interior work but it runs and drives again. The tranny must have taken 11 quarts of fluid before it stayed at the full mark on the dipstick although all the fluids will get checked again tomorrow. There is a vacuum leak at the dash switch when in 2WD but goes away when switched to 4WD although the 4Wd does not engage. There are two hard plastic lines I need to sort out yet and it appears to be slightly different than the 83 :(.
The only major concern right now is an intermittent lifter tick. I will try some addatives to see if I can free it up or mabe just driving it will help it.
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Getting Closer and Closer. Soon you will be following Tom (OntarioEagler) around on his journeys.
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Hey! Great idea, IowaEagle!
Having a mechanic like Smitty close by would sure remove a lot of my anxiety while travelling around our great countries and hearing new noises!
Great that you have the SX/4 money pit back on the road, Smitty.
OntarioEagler
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Maybe we can do a "convoy" style trip one year!
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Thanks for the support and kind words. A convoy sounds like fun! Where we going?
After having time to reflect on things, the lack of pep compared to the wagon may be a factor of gearing. The wagon has 2.73 gears and the SX/$ has 2.2? somethings. Combine that with the 904 tranny higher first gear and it will make for less torque multiplication, hence less giddy-up.
Things I know I have to do yet:
Finish hooking up vacuum lines that I intend to keep
There are three sensors on the intake manifold not hooked up cause I can't find the wires for them
Put skid plates back on
Bleed the brakes a little more
install new tailpipe (the rest of the exhaust is all new)
Recharge AC
Remove carpet and coat floor with POR15
Install new carpet
Find out why tach does not work and fix
Reinstall guage pod
Replace drivers fender (have replacement)
Redo pinstripes
Repaint headlight doors
Find out why fog lights don't work and fix
Recheck tightness of all bolts and nuts
I am sure there will be more. Hey, the car is 24 years old. Show me a 24 year old car that doesn't need something ;D
A few pics:
I thought I had this great idea for throttle linkage and wasted 2 days trying to make it work (stubborn). Anyway, today it broke before I got it out of the garage so I just made two pieces of flat stock to convert the down pull linkage to a rear pull. Works great. I could have been driving this at least a day earlier if I had not been so stubborn ;D. But, I will make it work eventually just to prove it to myself!!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/P1010041.jpg)
The drivers side suspension with new shock, brake lines, ball joints and halfshaft. Each side took about a day and 3 or 4 bruises.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/P1010035.jpg)
The tedious part. Making sure all the little pieces are in, tight and working.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/P1010027.jpg)
My companion for the week. Actually I think he just liked being in front of the pellet stove ;D I thought I smelled his fur burning.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/P1010036.jpg)
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Thanks for the pix. I thought you had a new kind of suspension part then it dawned on me it was you shop light.
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Haha, yep, I am joining the neon crowd but I can't figure out how to keep the cord attached ;D. That light was a great deal from Harbor freight. It takes a lot of abuse and works well in tight spaces. BTW, the master cylinder was new 3 months ago but some spilled brake fluid took the paint off. Right now I am just trying to get everything working and then will purdy it up when I feel like it. This car is to be my driver so it has to look presentable but not be a show car.
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Definately diggin the dog in the "shop"! AND the holley, which model is it? We had huge issues hooking up a similar carb on a slant six a fwe years ago! My friend was so "stubborn" we wound up yankin the six and installing a 440(still don't now how we got there!).
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Convoy suggestion is a great one!
How about getting down to visit Gil next winter?
Do part of Route 66 to get some kicks?
It would be good if we could route through as many Eagle Nests as possible.
Maybe people could jump onto and off of the convoy as time permits.
Entry fee would be some libation for Gil! (and a donation to the AMC Eagle Nest)
It would be great if we could have some good mechanics along!
Good photographers too.
And amceaglenest administrators to keep the flow going to the Forum.
I think it would be a lot of fun!
Maybe we should start a new topic:
Convoy of Eagles?
Flock of Eagles?
Winter Migration of Eagles?
OntarioEagler
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But then we would all have to find OE CB units for our Eagles.
Or at least mini convoys -- or maybe some kind of relay thing. You know something from the East Coast relayed to somewhere far, far away.
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If only the dog could talke.
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Yeah, some sort of mini - relay - convoy might work. If in the winter we gotta go south. Maybe North in the summer.
CBs or those Cobra type walkie-talkies.
We could bring our dogs along for company.
Eaglers without dogs could bring along spouses or equivalent.
No nagging or chore assignments permitted. Hostessing encouraged.
Gil, the reason that dogs are "Mans best friend" is because they don't rat on their owners!
OntarioEagler
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Hey all I need to do is get him to hang out at the bars with me for a while and he will be singing like a canary on caffein.
Aske Iowa Eagle why he got read of his dog. He sure turn up to be a good parts retriver, knew every place IowaEagle stash his AMC Eagle parts.
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We do a 66 cruise every year wuth our 66 club. They are the reason IL has posted historic 66 markers along all alingments of IL66.
First full weekend of june usually 60-70 cars/groups. First full weekend in june(also our aniversary) This year it starts in St Louis and ends in Chicago. (BTW...Which model holley???)
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Dogs singing like canaries ???
IE, remind me to keep my big fluffies away from Gil, if and when I ever get down to El Paso!
Hard to imagine those brutes singing, never mind like a canary, more like a coyote!
OntarioEagler
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I am planning to do a better write up and parts listing with prices. I think I will cry when I see the total though ;D The Holley is the 390 four barrell on an adapter. The carb and billet air cleaner came from Summit. I have the slip in the garage with info on the adapter but I plan to list all the parts to date and the source. Of course, I also ran the car into the garage for a week in September to change the engine and 4 months later finally got to back it out so who knows how long it will take me to do a parts listing :D
The dog, Ben, sings like a canary now ;D He was neutered as a pup :o Skeezix has had him for almost nine years and he loves to ride. Goes to the dump every weekend. haha For our own peace he always wears his bark collar when he is outside.
I have to run the J10 into the garage to put in plugs etc so it may be next week before I start on the rest of the items on the money pit. I do need to adjust the choke for better cold starts as it ran sluggish this morning. The choke is closed too much and I have yet to set the float level or mixture screws. Oh, another thing that might contribute to a lack of pep compared to the wagon is the tires. The size is a little larger than stock that makes it act like a 2.0 gearing. Not good for drag racing :D
If I get a chance during lunch at work tomorrow I will add some more pics and maybe start the parts listing.
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Time for another update. The money pit still has a wander when taking it down the road. Guess I have to figure out what parts I have not changed in the suspension and look them over. New steering box, new pitman arm, new idler arm, ball joints etc. I did manage to finally get the tailpipe on it yesterday. I have had in on and off a number of times but could never get it to hang right. Think I finally got it squared away with a shorter hanger on the muffler. Cleaned up the connections for the fog lights and those work. Only one side needed a new bulb so now I have a spare.
I had replaced the pinion seal but have been having a heck of a time getting the fill plug out, but it is out now and the rear diff took almost a quart of fluid so I feel better about test drives now. Guess I had better check the front one now that I think about it. Spent some time looking over all that needs to be done to pull the carpet out. Hopefully next weekend I will have the interior back together. I may change out the new airshocks for coil overs that I have. Just don't like the feel or the rear with the air shocks pumped up - too harsh even when lowering the pressure down to 20lbs.
Are there any tricks to getting the tach to work? Mine is plugged in at the dash and barely moves off 0. I have another one but would really like to make sure the signal is getting through before I tear the dash out. Guess I have to get the TSM out and see what they have to say ;D I pulled out the 4wd switch and there is a definite leak on the 2wd side that goes away when in 4wd. So, until I find another switch, it stays in 4wd (even tho the 4wd does not engage)
The engine seems to run pretty well with some intermittent lifter noise that seems to be getting better the more I run it. Now I need to plumb in the vacuum line for the EGR and fine tune the carb and timing. I am going to change the oil and filter now that it has an hour or two on it so that any gunk that was flushed out does not clog things up.
Oh yeah, still have to put in the new pass door handle so Skeezix can get in ;D
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Whew - made me tired just reading it.
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Have you change the torsion bars bushings?
I replace the ones in my AMC Eagle SX/4 with some energy syspension polyurathane ones made for the late 1970's Ford Pick/Up truck 4X4.
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I have new strut rod bushings along with most of the other front end parts. I did put a gauge on it last night and found the front tires to be quite low on air so before it goes out next time I will add pressure. Last night I worked on the interior and got the pass seat out but have one stubborn nut on the driver side seat. I did find some rot in the pass rocker under the carpet so I need to cut that out and weld in new sheet metal before the new carpet goes down. looking at the padding for the carpet make me believe that the car came with the extra quiet insulation package. There is extra material under the rear seat and under the normal horsehair mats..
Couple of finds: While replacing the outside handle on the pass door I noticed a cable laying in the bottom of the door. Turns out it is for the remote mirror. The control works but apparently this is a replacement door and they just left the cable laying inside the door instead of routing it into the cabin. Where does this go on the dash? I will need the mounting bezel so if anyone has a spare let me know. The other find is that the wiring is there for a front door speaker but there is no speaker. There isn't a speaker grill in the door panel but I thought the speaker might just have been under the carpet. Guess I wll head to Radio Shack and see what they have.
I also found that the tach is not getting a feed from the coil so I plan on running a new wire to the tach and hope that fixes the problem.
Tonights plan is to measure the speaker sizes and see if there is one in the drivers door or in the rear too. I will get that seat out too!! Then I can assess cutting and welding repairs before the new carpet goes in. The stuff in there sure is dry rotted even though it looks pretty good except in the driver heel area.
My garage seems to be bigger these days too. All the new parts boxes and exhaust parts are now on the car rather than stacked on benches etc so I have more room to work. Now, if only I had the time to get working on the 69 Ambo the garage could be free of cars and get a real cleaning ;D
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I dont think the mirror cable is any good since if I remember correct the mirror and the cable are one part.
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You remember correctly. I have experimented with repairing the cable to mirror connection, without any success. I haven't tried solder yet. maybe someday, but that is a long time off. I don't know if it can be soldered without damaging the mirror.
However, this could be an added mirror with the cable attached, and just not run into the interior.
There are some pictures on the site in which you can see the location.
I may have a bezel, but it may take me a couple of days to look for it.
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The cable is connected to the mirror and it all works. They just never ran the control joytick into the dash of the car. So, If I can find the correct parts to anchor it to the dash it will all work just fine.
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As I said, I may have one. I will try to remember to look in one of my boxes tonight (no, I don't have a whole car in boxes, Gil).
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Just came in from a few hours of working on the car. I got the damaged fender off but did not put the new one on. I found a small rust hole under the liner so I will patch that another day and then put it all back together. I also finally got the carpet out. Yucky, dusty and moldy! Besides the rust in the inner rocker I found the other day the floor pan looks factory new. I am going to spend a few hours cleaning and freshening things up before I install the new carpet. Every little piece in the interior is getting a detailing so it will look nice and smell nice. I will also add some extra insulation to cut down on road noise.
I have to swing by lowes sometime this week and get a new cutter wheel so I can cut out the rust in the rocker before I patch it. I will try to POR15 everything inside the rocker I can get at to to hold off any further cancer as long as I can. That is about it for now. I took some pics and will probably do a short write up on the carpet install when it is all done. Snowing pretty good here now so Skeezix and I are going for a walk to enjoy it.
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Soon Smitty will have an '07 AMC Eagle.
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Every thing you fix is a step closer to haveing it finish.
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This is what I found on the pass side inner rocker, Of course it started on the underside and worked its way in. Time to cut and weld. The rest of the floorpan looks like the day it was made.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/interior/P1010007.jpg)
This is with the driver fender off. Think I will clean this up before all the parts go back on. Have a rust hole the size of a quarter to fix where a bolt rusted through. You can see the spot in the pic. About six inches from the bottom of driver foot well, just above the brown spot. The only real issue is that the fuse box and wiring is on the other side so all that has to come off the firewall before I can cut and weld.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/interior/P1010008.jpg)
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Thanks for the pix. I probably need to do the same. Suppose its about time to order the new rockers.
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Who makes them? Wasn't there someone on the Nest who was going to do that?
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Show Car Body Parts makes the outers. We have a link to them down in the Links Section. In the Body Parts category IIRC. They are for the two doors but I think they can be modified for the 4 doors. I even think I saw JC Whitney having some, but I may be mistaken there.
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Well, I think I have determined how I want to proceed with the floor repair and carpet install. I will cut out the rust spots and weld in new metal where needed. All the original horsehair padding is coming out cause it is old, dirty and damp. Then I will hit the entire floor with the wire wheel to clean it of all gunk and debris. After a good wipe down with solvent it will get a coat of herculiner (bedliner material for trucks). Lowes has underlayment for floating floors that is plastic coated on one side and thick sound deadener mat on the other side. I will cover the entire floor with that, plastic side down, then a layer of heavy carpet padding and another layer of the underlayment, plastic side up. The edges will get duct taped to limit moisture infiltration into the padding and to help ensure the ride is quiet. Then the carpet will go over that. The herculiner is near bulletproff and that should really help seal all the nooks and crannies. As much as possible I will also coat the underside of the cabin area with the herculiner to limit any further rust.
I think I will put the underlayment under the door panels and the plastic trim panels covering the wheel wells. It should help seal things and deaden some road noise.
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Sounds like an excellent plan. One I will have to remember. Thanks.
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That should give you a very quiet ride.
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Hey, guess what I found today? A small drip of coolant from the pass side subframe rail. Know what that means? Heater core time!! Before I am done, I think I will have most every part on this car replaced or removed to replace something else ;D I pulled all the carpet pad out and found some ugly swiss cheese that used to be the driver side floor. The subframe is perfect so just some sheet metal work needed. Every time I try to take a step forward I find something else that needs fixing. At least now I can coat the inside of the subframe with POR15 before it gets sealed up :D. $34.79 from Rockauto. I am afraid to total up the pile of slips I have for this car. Skeezix would probably question my sanity but it's my money so I can be foolish with it if I want.
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Better to find it that way than a passenger the hard way. You are scaring me for what I might find.
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Hey even new cars have problems, why you think they come with warranties?
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Gee... reading through this thread, and looking at my car... I'm just nodding my head...
At least all the parts I put in it will be under warranty. :P
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I am really curious what the total is so far. Quite the project.
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I am really curious what the total is so far. Quite the project.
I am AFRAID!!!!! ;D All I know is WAY TOO MUCH$$$$
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Yup whet to take on a project of this magnitued it is better not to total the cost till you are finish, that way you dont say its geting to expensive you just say wile looking at the finish product it sure was worth every penny an minute I put in to it.
This is since, as all car restores know it is not the money you put in it, since you will never get your investment back in dollers, you will get it back in the pride and satisfaction of knowing the time, money and effort you put in to it.
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BOY! I was just looking at the pages on this topic an with out checking I thing its the bigges one we got on forum and still going strong.
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Its in second place, yet 105, well now 104 replies behind the 1st place topic.
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one we got on forum and still going strong.
Thats cause I never seem to get it finished. ;D I can think of so many more things I would like to do, such as new springs all around, that the bank just can't justify right now. I need to get driving this on a daily basis and figure out the necessary items before I start going after things that aren't broke yet.
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heck to me it looks like about every time I got the money to have it painted some unforseen expenditure comes up.
an the worsth thing all it really need at this point is to get it painted so I can start puting it back together, and then talke Mick in to building me a bolt on leaf spring conversion.
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It is crying time!!!! And this is not all fer sure!!
Costs to date exclusive of the car and shipping. I think I am going to be sick ;D
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/sx.jpg)
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But technically you'll have a brand new car once done ;)
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Thats not really that bad. All things considered. Now if you added in your labor .......
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Now, how many months of new car payments is that? Down the road I'm sure it'll prove to be well spent money.
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You want to know the really sad part? Skeezix and I are already talking about replacing the SX with a 2 door model 30 and doing a full Rotisserie restoration with a FI stroker. Figure this car is a learning platform. Have to wait and see.
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Don't replace keep 'em both. I'd love to do a rotisseri restore.
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heck you are way low on the cost of a restoration my dad and me put $15000.00 plus two year of our time on his 1964 Mercury Comet Caliente Convertable.
And most restoration jobs at the low end are $15000.00 and up.
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:dantes inferno: you are way low on the cost of a restoration my dad and me put $15000.00 plus two year of our time on his 1964 Mercury Comet Caliente Convertable.
And most restoration jobs at the low end are $15000.00 and up.
32K into the 73 resto/race car.... >:( >:( Got 10k for it.
Smitty, I was gonna PM ya about a possible trade as the 80 is not nearly needing a resto of that scale....DW Won't let it go though! Nor can I drive her wagon....
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Just came in from tinkering out in the garage for a few hours. Got my new mig welder so have to figure out how to use it. The floor looks like a good place to learn. I did manage to get the outside handle on the pass door working. Had to really soak it with lube but works great now. At least I can say I got something done. ;D I pulled the HEI dizzy out of the cabinet and will put that in this weekend. Then I should be able to completely remove the ECM and all the wiring for it. That should really clean up the engine bay. Also means I have to pull and regap the plugs.
I really wish I could get started on the floor but I am waiting for Harbor Freight to deliver a cutter and flanging tool. That should make life a lot easier. Really wish I had a spot welder too. For now the poor man's spot welder will have to do.... the rivet gun ;D
Maybe I will just get the heater core replaced this weekend but that means I will have the radio pod out and gee, wouldn't a CD player be nice in there? Hey, it's only $$$. I never listen to a radio but sometimes will play a CD. I hate commercials and useless chatter.
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Yup but if you hang in there you will end up with a great AMC Eagle. so dont dissper
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Ok now, this project is starting to sound like a real good excuse to buy new tools.
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Smitty does buy a lot of tools doesn't he? Maybe that is the real reason for all these restorations.
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You can use the mig setup for "plug welding" which is sort of like spot welding.
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Not sure what plug welding is but you can show me when you get here on 3 June.
Got a call last night from Nest member Ted?? and we chatted about things for a while. He has a parts car with a good defroster switch so I will go meet him this week, swap lies, and take out the switch. He lives about 30 miles from me and says he can get some Hudsons to my meet and greet in June. As I posted elsewhere, I had to run my wagon into the garage yesterday and since the 69 Ambo has taken up semi permanent residency in the other bay, I had to put the SX/$ back together enough to get it outside under its own power. It looked sad parked there without a fender and the headlight buckets out of it. Without the carpet and with the holes in the floor it sure was loud driving it ;D I expect my cutter to be here this week so maybe next weekend I can weld in some sheetmetal and get this thing back together enough for some shake down runs.
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Closer and closer you get. Sounds as though you will have a nice get together in June.
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I was just checking out some of the costs on your list to date so I pulled a few of my recent receipts to see what I paid.....(Canadian $$,of course!)
Upper ball joints: $26.55 ea. (white box)
Lower ball joints: $53.00 ea. (premium-lifetime warranty)
Inner+outer tie rods $63.00 ea. (premium-lifetime warranty)
Pitman arm: $44.66
Link pin kit: $23.10
brake pads: $25.00 set
Inner CV boot: $15.01 ea.
Outer CV boot: $13.01 ea.
Front brake hose: $43.00 ea.
Rear brake hose: $44.00
Rear brake drums: $54.00 ea.
Rear brake shoes: $26.99
Wheel cylinder: $15.79 ea.
That's about it so far for the big stuff except for the $200 CDN I paid for the NP229 transfer case I installed(freshly rebuilt).
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Makes me wonder what my bill will be at the alignment shop will be today. Not counting the cost of the tires they were about wore out anyway.
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Ahhh, the Money Pit. I am sorry to say that not much has been done to the car recently. I had the wagon in the garage for a week or so doing the head gasket and stuff. Yesterday and today the J10 was in the garage getting some much needed maintenance and tomorrow night the J10 gets a new water pump so it will be a few more days before I get back to the SX$4.
I did order an Offy 4V intake for it and the gaskets are coming from Rockauto so maybe next weekend I can finish it up. It needs to get done soon cause the wagon will get an engine transplant and I want the SX done before I start on the wagon. All that needs to get done before OntarioEagle gets home so I can go look at that Sundancer up by him. That might end up on a trailer behind the J10 and find its way here too. Skeezix will shoot me ;D
Then there is that 69 Ambo waiting to be finished for the Hot Rod Power Tour. (guess that might be the 2007 tour?) No end to the projects but something has to get finished soon or I will be walking to work :)
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Or riding in style in your new Sundancer.
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Well, I guess I have pretty much settled on the Crower Baja Beast cam. It has 280 duration on intake and exhaust and has a .448" lift. Basically it is meant for the 1800 to 4500 rpm range and seems to be liked by the Jeep guys. the component kit has the lifters, springs and keepers along with new pushrods.
from Crower the cam is $148 and the component kit is $165. Should make for a healthy 258 with the Offy 4V intake and Holley 390 carb. We might use an earlier piston to bring the compression ratio up a bit. I will run the GM HEI dizzy in it for added spark. Will be ordering the cam tomorrow.
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Sounds like a good choice, just dont forget that it will not worke like in a Jeep since the gear ratio in AMC Eagles is a high ratio compare to the Jeep.
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Looks good to me too. I know you will keep us posted.
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I sure wish the six bangers had the alignment dowels for the head like the V8s do!! I had to stand on the shock towers and set the head on cause the gasket wanted to slide too much. That head gets heavy at arms length ;D. Anyway, I finally got the lifters changed out. I should have done it before the engine went in but I was hoping they would pump up after running a little. Two of them would randomly bleed down and clatter so I said @#$%^& and changed them out. Tore it apart yesterday and put it mostly back together after Church today. Hope to have it running again tomorrow night. I believe I have most everything to finish putting the interior back together now so I guess I had better jump on fixing the rust in the drivers floor and pass rocker so I can get the new carpet in.
I will say, I was very pleased with how the cylinders looked and the pistons looked like new. No carbon build up. They looked better than they should for a 52k mile engine. I did decide to put the motorcraft on this car and keep the Holley 4V for the wagon when that engine comes back in a week or so. The Holley was a little too much carb with the stock cam.
One of these day I might get to drive it other than test drives in front of the house.
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I think you will need to make a video of that Smitty! Sometimes working alone is so much fun.
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As I mentioned in another post, I have not had time to work on the money pit for a few days. I hope to get back to it this weekend. It all depends on Skeezix. She was carted off, by ambulance, from work on Tuesday and has spent the last few days in the cardiac unit of the hospital. I brought her home last night but she still does not feel well. Her heart rate took off and went to 140 plus, which dropped her blood pressure and she passed out. It recurred a few times while on monitors in the hospital but they can not find a cause. So, it may be a while before I get back to mundane things like working on toys.
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Smitty and Skeezix best of wishes and hope all comes out ok for you both.
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Yes! Please give her our best for a speedy recovery. Have the doc's said what they think it might be? Will be thinking about both of you.
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Thanks for the kind thoughts. They have run test after test and can not find the cause. This has been going on sporadically for years but this week it is one event right after another. Each time it happens it has the same effect as if she she has run hard for 10 or 15 minutes and it has just plain ole worn her out. At least it finally happened when they had her on the machines so they could record exactly what happens. Still no answers but we will keep looking.. We have an appointment with a specialist in Syracuse at the end of the month and by then we will have the results from a special (read $879, non insurance covered) ion panel blood test that will measure about 80 trace minerals and elements. We believe she has a heavy metal build up in her body from when she was a kid but whether that can cause her heart issues, we don't know.
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Thanks Smitty. Keep us posted, please.
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Really sorry to hear about her problems. Hope for a speedy recovery.
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Thanks for everyones thoughts. They are appreciated.
I found out the hard way last night that I had the wrong heater core from Rockauto. The one in the car did not look too bad so it is at the radiator shop getting cleaned and tested. I should have it back by tonight.. Got a little more grinding done on the drive side floor and may put some fiberglass mat in there tonight. I was thinking about trying to make a metal patch but the compound curves of the floor, firewall and tranny hump are more of a challenge than I care to tackle right now. With glass mat I know it won't rust again.
I also managed to drill out a broken bolt on the AC bracket and helicoil it so now I can tighten up the alternator and have it stay in place. Depending on how Skeezix is doing tonight, a couple of hours to put the heater core back in and hook up everything under the hood and I may have it running again. I hope those new lifters quiet things down. All the cam lobes looked good so I think the clatter was just from sitting so long. When they did not clatter, it real real smooth but then one or two would bleed down and it sounded like rocks in there. I know I keep saying this, but maybe soon I can drive this thing farther than up and down the road in front of my house. Besides, the engine for the wagon should be done this weekend so that project means this car has to be done.
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Frustrating to get the wrong part. Good to hear the old one still appeared sericeable. Give Skeezix our best.
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Did not get a chance to work on the car last nite but I did pick up the heater core. How about $17.12 to tank it, flush it out and pressure test. Now I know it won't puke on me somewhere on the road. Hope to get it in tonight.
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THat is sure a real good price for the worke done.
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I just did a Yahoo search for AMC SX/4 an this topic came up 6th on the results.
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Not surprising with all the posts and views it has had.
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Been a while since on posted on the money pit. Skeezix is getting better but we still spend a lot of time going to doctors so it has impacted on play time. I did manage to get all the engine pieces back together and tried to fire it last night only to have a dead battery. I did not feel like messing with it any longer so I will throw the charger on it tonight and get it going. I hope those new lifters make a difference. Of course, I still need to find out what I did with the temp sensing unit. I had to put a plug in the hole in the head so I could fill the coolant.
I spent most of my time on getting the floor and rocker patched. I hit it all with bed liner last night so it should be all set to start the carpet install tonight. I can’t wait to get the interior back together. I got the heater core back in and still have some screws to put back in for the dash and glove box. I found taking the glove box completely out made the job a whole lot easier.
Now that the floor is fixed I can also get the fender back on. I am seriously thinking about pulling both fenders on the wagon when the new engine goes in. You can not believe how much easier it is to work on the suspension and engine with the fenders out of the way!
Now for the true confessions. I will admit I was startled to find the bolts loose on the bracket from the engine to the front diff. Apparently I started the bolts by hand to hold things in place when the engine went in and only tightened up the two on the diff itself. The two on the block are done from the top and I must have forgotten to do them when I rolled the creeper out from under the car. I went checking other bolts to see if anything else was missed and found one of the power steering bracket bolts to the block was also only started by hand. One of the tasks for tonight is to check every bolt and nut in the drivetrain to see what else I missed. CRS has set in I guess.
After the carpet goes in I will see what is involved with installing the B&M shifter. I have some other plans for the interior and have to wait for an EvilBay purchase to get here before I can complete it. I hope for something unusual when I am done. I envision some custom fibreglass work ahead.
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Closer and closer. Isn't it frustrating something like a dead battery holds you up? Glad you caught the loose bolts. Maybe we need some younger apprentices to check our work? I did that last year with some lug nuts. Fortunately, I remembered after the short test drive.
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Good thing you catch the bolts before major damage had occur.
On the B&M shifter if its the cable type its nhot hard, you just have to mahe sure the cable is clear of all moving parts an not to do what I did with mine and place the cable to close to the exahust system, I had to replace my cable after the first test drive the entire sleeve melted.
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Thanks for the info Gil. I was looking at it last night and can see how you could fry a cable. Must have been frustrating.
I got delayed last night while Skeezix had some blood work done so I was not able to get as much done as I would have liked. I did manage to get the factory shifter out, all new carpet padding cut and installed and the new carpet laid out and roughed in. Tonight I hope to get the carpet fully in and some, if not all, of the trim reinstalled. The inside of the car needs an in depth cleaning from all the sanding dust. Everything has a thick layer of dust and rust debris. I have installed carpet in both my Ambassadors and know to always start at the driver’s heel pad and work out fitment from there. I feel that it should be in by tonight and maybe I can clean up a few things while I am at it. That is usually the problem though. I always find something else to do and never seem to get this car done.
I did find one issue last night that I need to correct. When I started it up for the first time after changing out the lifters there was a loud squeal from the engine. After looking it over I found the power steering belt rubbing on the tensioner pulley. It appears the power steering is sitting a little crooked so I have to figure out what went back together wrong or if a bracket is bent etc. At least I have the wagon to compare it too. Otherwise the engine seemed to run fine with no other noticeable noises.
Another dilemma surfaces now. Do I want to change out the radio to a CD player while I have everything apart? I hardly listen to the radio (maybe once a month for 5 minutes) but it might be nice to have tunes once in a while. The factory radio is there but I don’t know if it works since there are no speakers in the doors. Maybe I will wait on that but I will be ticked if I have to run any new wires for rear speakers. The factory ones look good but ya never know. Really would like to get to driving this car so maybe that will wait. We will be out of town Thursday, Friday and get back late Saturday so those days are shot. We have to take Skeezix to a Doc in Syracuse for tests and I would like to have the car out of the garage for some debugging before that.
Guess I will just continue reassembly for now and try to figure out what is going on with the power steering interference.
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Just my two cents but leave the factory radio there for appearances sake and then find some unobtrusive place to hide the new one since basically you want the CD's and not the tuner part. Our sound guys/gals here might be able to help with that.
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Hey, I finally get to try out this fancy new laptop I bought Skeezix. I finally managed to get the money pit out of the hanger!!! It had a nice bath and a short trip up and down the road but the carb on it sucks so I need to put the Holley back on. Definely some sorting out to do but the new lifters quieted the racket under the hood. I thought it was a good day for pics so here are a few. I even managed to get Skeezix and the cats outside so we all had a party. Skeezix is now officially out of work on disability and we have to head to Boston to see some Doc's there. She loves to go for walks but has been too ill to do much of anything so it was great to get her out and about. She even took a video of me staging the cars in the field for the pics.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Eagle/spring%202006/P1010065.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Eagle/spring%202006/P1010055.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Eagle/spring%202006/P1010061.jpg)
I still have a bunch of little things to do but it is real close to heading for inspection. No real rush since Skeezix can't drive anymore so I get to use her car ;D
I just ordered all new tie rod ends and adjuster sleeves since the original equipment is still on the car. Should make it easier for alignment. I also ordered new coil over shocks like I put on the wagon. The car has brand new air shocks on it that I put on but after driving the wagon I decided to change over to the coil overs. So, if anyone wants to by a set of new (less than half a mile on them) air shocks, drop me a pm.
All the pics are at
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Eagle/spring%202006/?action=view¤t=P1010062.jpg
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They sure do look great, I whould say you are most done filling up that deep money pit.
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Thanks Gil, although we all seem to always find a way to spend money on these cars ;D. Any idea what color code to use for the red on the mouldings? I want to airbrush the red inserts back on in some places and freshen up the rest. I think they used the matador red color. Mine is too faded to have scanned to get an accurate mix.
Tonight I hope to put the Holley back on although I think it is a little too much carb for the stock engine. Then I have to hook up all the vacuum lines for the 4WD. Right now the port is capped off on the intake.
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Good question. Mine is almost an orange on the Krayton and still a red on the plastic parts. I would think Matador Red would be a good choice. I don't think AMC ever listed the color for them. At least anywhere I could find.
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Could it just be the same code as there red cars?
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Matador red was the color of the inserts on my 67 Marlin. Looks to be real close and you know AMC never threw anything away ;D Probably had a 500 gallon vat of the stuff that took 20 years to use up ??? Just kidding but it does look like it.
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Freak out night time drivers and cover it over with red reflective tape.
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Really glad to hear that Skeezix is able to get out and about some. Hope recovery continues quickly.
Great pictures.
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How about some of that electric tape that lights up.
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Did some more test drives with SX$4 and there is a clunk in the front somewhere that I need to find but otherwise it is running real well. Of course it has had its moments. I thought I had some carb issues cause it idled fine but ran poorly under light acceleration. It did that with 3 different carb combinations so I changed out the dizzy and it still ran poorly. Then it dawned on me, I had the head off and maybe one of the plugs got hit. I pulled the plugs and found the gap completely closed on #2 cylinder. Fixed it and it runs smooth and quiet now. I think the speedo has an issue in that it does not want to go over 55 even though I keep accerlerating. I have a zero mile cluster to put in so maybe I will have a brand new car ;D. The new rear shocks came yesterday and I also got all new tie rods and sleeves. I figured the factory original units could use a rest and this will make it a lot easier to align it. I hope to finish debugging it this weekend and get it inspected on Monday. Skeezix's condition may throw that timetable off so we shall see.
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Check those front sway bar links, they can cause clunks, well rattles. But other parts can too.
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I have not posted in a long time so I am about due for an update here. I am still sorting out a braking issue that I have narrowed to the MC and/or booster. I bench bled the MC until there was good pressure and the outlets were blocked off. Put it on the car and there is resistance but it still goes to the floor with the caps still on the outlets. tried another MC (I have a lot of spare parts) and it does the same. Thinking that the rod out of the booster is out of adjustment but my TSM does not give a length. I tried it with a few extra turns on the cap and it felt like the front brakes were dragging. I am tempted to get a whole assembly from the salvage yard and try it. This car was originally a 5 speed and I wonder if the correct pedal assembly was used when they got rid of the clutch pedal. The rod to the booster is in the correct (lower) hole so I am somewhat at a loss to figure this out. It runs great and rides nice but takes forever to stop. We have been thinking of selling it cause Skeezix is still out of work and may never be able to go back. Of the two, I want to keep the wagon so this one may go. I want to get it done so the next owner can drive it home. Figured we would also sell the 69 Ambo to pare the fleet down but it is all subject to change. Skeezix has some procedures scheduled at Mass General Hospital on 1 Aug and that should answer a lot of questions.
Anyway, keeping up with the house and her appointments does not leave much time for toys, although we are registered to go to Sturbridge Rambler regional car show on 28-29 July. Figured we would do that on the way to Boston.
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After taking time to search the web I found this
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/power-brake2.htm
Which makes me think the problem is in the booster. Guess I will be swapping that out. What a PIA.
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I was thinking booster too. Continue to give Skeezix our best -- we are pulling for the both of you.
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Well gang, I am about at a loss here. I replaced the booster and check valve with a new one (not used) and still no joy on the brakes. A repair shop owner suggested I raise the rear of the car so that the MC sat level and then bleed it. The reason being that it would preclude air being trapped at the front of the piston in the MC. I tried that and not much improvement. I then took an old MC cover and drilled a hole in it. Through that hole I put a tire valve stem. Once I put the cap on the MC I ran the air compressor guage down to 15psi and locked the air chuck onto the valve stem. The MC was then pressurized to 15psi and I power bled all the wheels. I had good fluid flow at all wheels and no air bubbles. Problem is, I still have very weak brakes although the front ones seem more responsive. The pedal still goes all the way down. I can not believe that I have gotten 3 bad master cylinders but it sure feels like it. I may bypass the brake warning light valve to see if that does anything but that is a messy proposition and I do not believe it is an issue.
My next step is to change out the MC (again) and power bleed the system again. After that it will be to find a shop to work on it and call AAA ;D
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How are the rear drums? I forget if you replaced those or not. If the rear linings have to travel a long ways that might explain the pedal feeling low. Mine acted that way once to but it was the paper thin rotors/pads in front that caused the low pedal. I knew something was amiss when my rears would lock up under moderate pedal and not much in front was going on with braking.
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Everything but the brake switch valve is new. New rubber and steel lines, new wheel cylinders, new drums, shoes and holddown hardware, new rotors, calipers etc. The issue seems to be in the MC cause if I block off the ports where the lines connect the pedal still goes all the way down. I checked the position of the rod from the pedal to the booster and it is in the correct hole on the pedal so it has to be the MC. frustrating.
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Sure does sound like it! Funny you should get so many bad ones. Are they new or rebuilts? I gave up on rebuilts especially with the advent of aluminum MC's on the newer stuff.
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sounds like the brakes on my wagon. only I have a firm pedal, They stop the car ok, they will not lock up on a panic stop though. I always make sure I am far enough behind anyone in front of me.
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Just jumping in here, but did you bench-bleed the MC before installing it? Sometimes makes a difference in bleeding the system.
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I thnk he did. But he said even then during install air would sneak in.
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I really think I have bled it all out. The rear shoes move and now I am thinking there may be an issue with the calipers. Maybe they are not on right and sliding up on the caliper bolts instead of pushing on the pads. have to check it out tomorrow. Brand new MC came yesterday and I put it on last night - no change. Pulled the rear drums again and everything there is fine. Always thought the issue was with the rear brakes but now, the only area I have not done or checked at least twice is the front brakes.
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Worked on a Ford LTD once that had the incorrect wheel bearings in the rotors. When the calipers applied, the rotor would just move over, no real brakes.
mike
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I had to polish up the bolts with my Dremel tool to get them to slide right as they were really pitted and corroded on the outside. Finally, got a brain and to new bolts to make sure they don't bind up. So, you could have found the issue.
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The caliper bolts are new. I took the fronts apart this morning and there was nothing wrong. It all seems to be in the booster/MC area so I am going to lenghten the rod from the booster to the MC and see if i get braking action sooner in the pedal throw. First I have to finish putting the wagon back together so maybe tomorrow I will fool around with it some more.
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Dang! I wonder what is missing from this equation. It seems you have examined it from every possible angle. Is there a pinched supply line some where?
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Any chance you might have goten some water in there or the wrong fluid?
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The entire brake system is new and I have used new brake fluid thoughout so I doubt there is a contamination issue. Skeezix has become quite the authority on braking systems now ;D She has done a lot of on line researching for me. You know, it really is a simple system. The problem is that not enough hydraulic pressure is being created to engage the brakes fully before the pedal hits the floor. We have compared pedal heights and structural dimensions with the wagon and find no difference so the hardware is correct and installed correctly. My thoughts now are that the rod from the booster to the MC is not long enough and the MC is not building pressure until the pedal is too far down towards the floor. The rod from the booster is adjustable and I have left it alone from the factory setting. I got another booster/MC assembly from Ted354 and the rod lengths are the same so I figured it was good to go. Skeezix found out that the pedal to rod ration is 6 to 1 so adjustments should be minor. What that means is that it takes about 6 inches of pedal travel to move the rod in 1 inch and since the MC only needs to move about half an inch to build full pressure I should have full braking with 3 inches of pedal travel.
After I get the wagon done today I will play with this. The day is delayed tho. One of the girls wants to come home from college for a few days so we are headed down to get her. She will be doing a semester abroad at St Andrews University in Scotland this fall so it will be nice to have her home for a few days. Means no wrenching till about 2pm >:(
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This is a really interesting thread for guys like me, because it is so well written and descriptive. Lots of good stuff to learn about.
It is really presumptious of me, a wrencherwannabee, to suggest things to you Smitty. But in the unlikely event that you haven't already checked these out, here are some things that I would try:
1 Try brake application with engine on and off. You might be able to learn something from the feel of the booster. (I have learned the feel of no-vacuum boost on the brakes when I have problems with the idle circuit of the Carter. Not a recommended procedure!) You will get a good idea of the pedal travel/pressure ratio with and without boost.
2 Make sure that you are not pushing the master piston through the primary circuit into the secondary. That will, I think, give you excess master piston travel and consequent excess pedal travel. None of your brake lines are crossed from primary to secondary or vice versa, eh? (Actually, I don't even really know where and if they can! Maybe at that little ball valve signalling that you are on secondary?)
3 While she is still here you might want to put your daughter to work for 5 minutes applying the brake pedal while you go around the car with the wheels off to see what sort of brake pressure you have on each wheel. She should be able to feel, on the pedal, you pushing and prodding on the wheel cylinders or the calipers.... Especially if you have the vacuum off. That might give you an indication of where the problem is located.
The above are pretty obvious, but you never know.
In any event we are all waiting to find out what is causing this mysterious delay to the roadworthiness of the money pit!
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Don't ever think an idea is too simple to mention or that it is not worth mentioning. I am the first one to admit my limits and if I had all the answers then the car would be on the road by now ;D I like your idea on the the rod maybe being too long and I will try to lengthen it and shorten it to see the difference. My plan is to size it so I can just feel resistance against the MC when I hold it flush against the booster. That way it should be right at the point to start the pressure stroke. Anyway, have to go finish the wagon now ;D. Then the money pit >:(
Did you ever remember to run down the road and see about that sundancer? That guy is a little strange ;D
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Don't ever think an idea is too simple to mention or that it is not worth mentioning. I am the first one to admit my limits and if I had all the answers then the car would be on the road by now ;D I like your idea on the the rod maybe being too long and I will try to lengthen it and shorten it to see the difference. My plan is to size it so I can just feel resistance against the MC when I hold it flush against the booster. That way it should be right at the point to start the pressure stroke. Anyway, have to go finish the wagon now ;D. Then the money pit >:(
Did you ever remember to run down the road and see about that sundancer? That guy is a little strange ;D
Good advice.
I suspect that it applies to quite a few of us here who are somewhat awestruck by the "wrenchers" who really know their stuff. I know that I feel reticent to comment on some of the stuff because I am such a newbie at this game.
Thanks for the reminder re the Sundancer. I have tried to call him a couple of times since I got back from the last trip with no result. A friend has recently (a week ago) reported that the Sundancer is still there. It is visible from the highway. I will try to get over there before heading out to BC. It is a out of my way but I might take that route on my way back from Toronto in a couple of weeks. I seem to recall that he has an email address but I don't know what it is off the top of my head. Back to the drawing boards!!
I saw the Sundancer about a year ago. It was parked on GRASS. :( A terrible thing to do to a rare car!
Anyway, I hope to get some more up to date info to you in the next two weeks.
Tom
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Couldn't get over to see the 'dancer on the weekend, Smitty. Traffic to cottage country was heavy and I got delayed. Sorry. Can't find the owners name, but I know where he lives. Maybe I can get over there when I get back from BC at the end of Sept.
Did you get the brakes working on the money pit? Very interested in what you learned/did.
OE
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have you checked the metering valve (proportioning valve) it could be malifunctioning to the point its not letting fluid go to the front.
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have you checked the metering valve (proportioning valve) it could be malifunctioning to the point its not letting fluid go to the front.
I pulled the brake valve and cleaned it out. No change. I think that if the brake valve was at fault I would still have a hard pedal, just no braking action. All four wheels have brake dust so thay are getting some pressure. My understanding is that the brake valve is really only for the brake light switch and that the metering is done by the MC. Hence why the resevoirs are different sizes. There has been a lot of discussion on this on the AMC list and the manual is clear to call it a brake valve and not a proportioning valve. Since these are made from unobtainium I may try to adapt an XJ unit. The issue is a lack of full pressure before the pedal throw reaches its limit. The hydraulic system for the brakes is a closed system so a stuck valve or caliper etc should not cause a lack of pedal pressure. I think ;D
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Sorry if this was asked before, too lazy to look back, if you had the MC rod off the pedal did you put it back in the right mounting hole? There is one for Power and one for Manual brakes. From memory the lower one is for power brakes but you may want to check my memory.
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Your memory is still OK. It does use the lower hole for power brakes and, yes, it is in the lower hole. Keep the ideas coming. I am so swamped at work right now that I won't get to look at the car until the weekend. And then the future son in law needs all new brake lines on his Furd F150. Told him to fix the line but no, it totally let go in traffic and he made it safely to a parking lot but there it sits. Looks like the J10, a U Haul car trailer and a lot of time spent this weekend on non AMC related issues. >:(
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Well... It didn't fly...but a bottle of Southern Comfort.. made "It" think it did!
Kathy
I suspect there is more to this story ;D
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Here's a thought.....when you replaced the steel lines, did you inadvertently increase the diameter of the lines??? I had a Fiero GT that had no clutch pressure when I bought it; it turned out the previous owner installed a new line that was larger & the clutch master couldn't compensate. When I installed a factory line & bled the system, I had a good pedal....
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The lines are the same size. The MC does not build pressure even with the outlets plugged and the lines disconnected. It has to be in the MC and/or my bleeding processes. I have next week off and need to get this fixed once and for all. Right now the wagon is in the shop and I am replacing the rear axle shafts and bearings. Should have it back together tonight or tomoorow night. Then I have to figure out the wander problem with the J10 and then the SX goes back in the garage.
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have you sourced all the m/c 's from the same vendor?? It seems unlikely that you'd end up with consecutive defective units ???.....hmmmmm can you take one of the non-functioning units apart to analyze?? maybe a forensic exam would shed some light.....never seen an autopsy on a m/c though
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Took this week off from work so I am finally getting to some projects. Rebuilt the carter carb for the Money Pit and tinkered with a few other things. The 2.35 gearing really hinders the car in the mountains tho. Drove it around a little bit yesterday and today but the brakes are still not to my liking. They stop and all but are vastly different from the wagon.
I did manage to break the drivers door handle so until I get another one it is open the pass door, reach across, pull the handle for the drivers door, walk around and get in. I am sure many of you know the story.
Guess I will have to park it again for a while. I will be taking Skeezix to a molecular medicine clinic in Atlanta soon and she will be there for a week. Just waiting for them to call to say all the Docs are lined up and the services can be coordinated. Time for the toys will have to wait until we get back. Still have to figure out how to get a wheelchair through the airport security and where to stow it on the plane. Anyone know?
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I think if you let the airline know about the wheelchair they will take care of everything. They may ship yours as baggage and use theirs for boarding and de(?)boarding. You will probalby have assiistance getting around the airport and with anything else you need.
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Yup you have to let the Airline know in advance an then just before you leave your home for the airport call them and let them know you are on your way.
Do make sure you talk to the airline in advance since there are some F.A.R.'s that prohibit the transportation of passenger that have some self mobility problems. This is not that they are mean its just in case of a emergency they will hinder the quick evacuation of the aircraft.
If the airline says she can't travel on the aircraft, get it in writing and let your medical insurance know, depending on the policy they might pay for a Air-Ambulance.
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I have actually received six defective master cylinders in a row. That was when I was working on a Chevy pickup for the garage. The dealer gave us six bad cylinders in a row. This was like '91, sometime in the spring. I just used an old cast-iron master from the previous generation of pickup and fabricated a new push rod. That master cylinder is still in the same truck now.
mike
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Got a chance to work on the "Pit" for a little bit today. Replaced the drivers door handle I broke earlier and adjusted the rod to the MC again. Brakes stop pretty good but the pedal goes to the floor and I can't get close to locking them up. Not good enough to drive on a daily basis either. I have another MC in the vise and bench bleeding it to see if, once and for all, I can get these brakes to work correctly. Course I have to fix a broken exhaust pipe on the J10 so I can get it inspected and then have to finish swapping fuel tanks on the daughters boyfriends F150 so I get my heated garage back. Now Christmas gets in the way Bah Humbug!! ;D
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Just a little update. The car sits under 42 inches of new snow and will be staying there for a while. Using the J10 most of the time and will start using the Eagle wagon again next week. The brakes are still iffy and I will get that squared away soon, or a garage will. The carb is trash and the pit will get a 4.0 head and EFI from a Cherokee in a couple of months. Really looking at a T3 turbo for it too. I probably will end up taking it all apart again to mod the exhaust and install the turbo and EFI. Look for future installments ;D
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So your Eagle is just hibernating? Looking forward to the continuing saga.
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yeah, been away from the board for a while cause life called. Now that modern tecnology has arrived at the top of the mountain in the form of road runner I can get out to the world a little easier.
This is what the imp looks like now
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/P1010026.jpg)
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Looks like you have a little snow there Smitty. Has any of it melted off yet? Or are you going to get some thawing this week too? Of course then we will all be in a flood watch.
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Well, getting to -18 tonight (and OntarioEagler that is F not C ;D) so it is bench racing time. Just got Skeezix back from the hospital and need a diversion. This is the plan for the imp.
The 258 is only a 52k or so motor and runs well. I am going to scavange a 4.0 head and EFI from a 93 Cherokee and dive into the engine bay one more time. Probably will just yank the motor as that will be easiest to mock up the other additions. The ECM and all related harness and sensors will head to the land of forgotten. With the engine out I will be able to throw on a 4.0 flexplate and drill the bellhousing to accept the CPS in its stock location. The tranny has been rebuilt about 100 miles ago but the converter does not lock up so either I got the wrong converter or the wrong spring is in there for lockup pressure. Either way, I think I am taking it to the new tranny guy (new for me, golly he must be as old as IE at least) and have him check out what the other guy did. Will also see if he can beef it up a little.
The next step is the fun one. I will pull the 19lb injectors and replace them with 36lb units, make a variable power supply for the MAP sensor for tuning purposes and then put a T3 turbo mount and tubing on. The goal is to be able to run 12lbs of boost but have it wastegated at 8. Then run some boost and EGT gauges and fab up an intercooler and see what it does. I wonder how long it will stay together? When/if it goes then it will get a Golen 4.7 built for a turbo setup. Just ran a measure in the snow and came up with 42+ inches of the white stuff on the ground so it will be a few weeks before I get to a salvage yard for the 4.0 stuff. Should be after I get Skeezix back from the hospital in Atlanta. Depending on her health and ability to withstand the trip, we head out on the 20th.
Anyway, those are my initial thoughts. Flame away with comments, suggestions, ridicule etc. ;D
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Smitty!
When your beloved Skeezix is well, bring her up to Ontario for a while --- after the current 30" of ice covering the inlet in front of my place goes out.
That way I could pick your brains for all the good stuff that you know. ;D
WOW!
T
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I don't think they can put in a non locking converter into a locking tranny. But, like you say it could be defective too. Tell us what your young tranny guy finds. Sounds like an awesome engine project.
Stay safe in your travels with Skeezix.
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Smitty!
When your beloved Skeezix is well, bring her up to Ontario for a while --- after the current 30" of ice covering the inlet in front of my place goes out.
That way I could pick your brains for all the good stuff that you know. ;D
WOW!
T
Just might take you up on that someday. I used to go through your area on my way back and forth to the U P when I was stationed up there. There was a Holiday Inn in Sudbury where we would spend the night if the weather was non cooperative. Depending on health issues I would like to get Skeezix up to Mackinac Island this summer. Of course, the chance to see your flock and witness your ministry to them would be an added treat. BTW, got an email from your friend Gordon. Asked what my best offer would be on the Eagle we talked about. Oh for more $$ and space.
Enjoy your travels.
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It would be great to see you folks up here. I suspect that the HI was in downtown Sudbury when you went through.
Were you at Oscodo/Kinross/Kincheloe AFB in the UP, just east of I-75?
In my RCAF days I did a tour on CF-101Bs on a squadron out of Ottawa in the early 1960s. Used to hold alert at North Bay and do excercises and intercepts north of Lake Superior. I often used Kincheloe, as it was then called, as an alternate. Canadians didn't like to go there because of the SAC presence which required a lot of special permissions and follow-up paper work. But they did have hi-volume hi-pressure air, which we needed to get a start. We did carry a bottle on the Voodoo, but it often malfunctioned and we were stuck, waiting for land or air delivery of a start unit if we landed at a non-NORAD base. In those days the folks from Kincheloe in their F-106s and we would play with the SAC heavies coming back from Thule or England. I believe that there were some SAC tankers there in those days also.
There is quite a famous accident involving an F-89 Scorpion out of Kinross which was lost on a night hot scramble. UFO folks often refer to it, and I remember hearing about it 10 years after it happened.
Just found a reference to the accident:
http://www.cufon.org/kinross/Kinross_acc_rept.htm
Good luck with the Eagle. I just looked through my image file. I will be sending you some pics after I reduce their file sizes. (lovely dial-up!)
Good luck in Atlanta. Hope everything goes well.
T
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Actually, I was at KI Sawyer over near Marquette. You were in the area a little before my time ;D But we were the heavies you guys "played with" We had 106's and FB111's too so it was a good mix. Had tankers and B57's too. SAC was fun wasn't it? When I was there we lost one buff, one tanker and 2 106's along with a Canbera. The last was messy as debris landed in the weapon storage area where I worked. SAC did not like burning parts and debris landing on our nukes. We really had to clean up the area and repair the cortina wire before we could pull any nukes out of the storage igloos..
That place was where I sure could have used an Eagle. Lots of snow. Snowed every month of the year but August. Coldest I have ever been too. Had a weaps problem on one of the alert birds and during the night it got to a recorded -75F with the wind chill. They let us work 10 minutes outside and then had to come in for 20 minutes. The best part was when the base commander came out to find out why we were in the red at the big board at SAC headquarters. He was out there about 15 minutes and inquired how long we all had been there. I got there at 1600 along with the load crews and it was now about 0330 or so. He immediately got on the phone and had them open up the alert facility for us and they fixed us a nice hot meal and we had a great BS session with the Wing King. Great to get somebody else out of bed at that ungodly hour.
Anyway, look forward to sharing old war stories. BTW, my brother retired as a light Colonel and had the pleasure of visiting downtown Hanoi 90 times in his F105. At least we stayed high in the buff's and had lots of little friends escort us north.
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Yeah, those were the days, eh? We were young and full of p and vinegar! NOTHING would daunt us as we KNEW that we were invincible. NO ONE would get into our six. Times change.
We had Genie capability but carried dummies with recorders. I understand that only one has been detonated to yield about 2 kilotons. We used to debate whether or not WE would survive the blast or the EMP.
One winter we played with some B-57s up in Bagotville, northern Quebec and got to know the crew. Following year had to ferry a couple of Voodoos to the west coast. AFHQ didn't give us a route or an arrival time. So we went the long way: St Louis (Home of F-101 and F-4, Gemini spacecraft and good jazz. So sad to go u/s and have to stay there a couple of days), Salt Lake City, Reno (oops, Oxy problem, have to land and visit the ANG Canberra Sqn on THEIR home turf. Had to wait for a couple of days to bring start units over from Sacramento. Saw the sights courtesy the Sqn Commander who had some sort of interest in Harrahs), Klamath Falls, finally Comox BC, where we had some explaining to do.
Hats off to Thud drivers. Dangerous and difficult job in those days. HEAVY pilot work-load.
We used to work both 47s and the Big Ugly Fat Fellows. The Buffs were good at ECM and we used to have lots of fun. In CAVU they'd let up come up and formate on that big flapping wing. We kept our distance though. Couldn't let the paints merge for the folks in the darkened rooms or they would get anxious and would start dialing right away.
I see that I have email. Sorry for pulling the Money Pit into the war story pit. A break from all that practical technical stuff. ;D
T
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Fired up the money pit today after a long winters hibernation and managed to get it into the toy garage under its own power. I had put the carter carb back on it so that I could work on the motorcraft. Figured I would put the motorcraft back on it now that the leaks are fixed in the throttle shaft. Made more work for myself!!! Lost a nut for the carb mounting and can not find it. It MIGHT have dropped into the intake as I pulled the carb. I thought it was wedged into the linkage and that I would get it loose once the carb was on the bench. As soon as I got it over the fender I noticed the nut was missing. It is nowhere to be found. I dropped a magnet down the intake but it came up empty. It is probably not in the intake but I will not chance it. Lost an engine in my Vette that way years back. Not me doing it but there was a small phillips bit that got dropped into the TBI. Cost me a new engine.
If I have to pull the intake I might as well change out the head. I have a fresh one on the bench and this one is blowing a little oil out the breather. Guess I will order the gaskets tomorrow. Have to bring Skeezix to a Doc about 70 miles away so that will shoot the day tomorrow and we will be gone this weekend as she goes to Tufts Hospital in Boston. Maybe some night next week I will take about 3 hours and R&R the head and find that nut. I know where the nut is that lost the nut but can't find the nut that the nut lost. Make sense? ;D
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Your the second person here to have that happen. There is an interesting thread here entitled something like a crunchy object?
Maybe it was the nut telling you that the car told it that it wanted a fresh new head?
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Got everything together to do the head. Hope to get to it this weekend. Have to go to college and fetch one of the kids on Saturday. That will shoot half a day.
I have a question for someone with an 82 IPB. I still have not figured out the brake issue with the pedal assy on the pit. looking through the factory manual it shows 2 diagrams for predal arrangements - one for auto and one for stick. The bracket that the pedals swing from look different. Are there two different part numbers for the metal frame that the pedals mount to? If so, it might lead me somewhere. The pit was originally a 5 speed car and was changed to auto before I got it. John Rosa always said he had brake issues with car so me thinks this might be an issue. To recap from post whatever ;D, the MC is bench bled and holds pressure - put it on the car with the ports plugged and the MC does not hold pressure.
Maybe the pedal can not travel far enough cause it is an auto pedal hanging from a standard bracket. I'm guessing here so can someone with access do a part number lookup? To better understand what I mean look in M. R.251 pages K-15 and K-18. The standard and auto brackets are clearly different in the pics.
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Let me do some checking later, if I remember.
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Looking @ the parts catalog, all models 80-up use the same bracket, part # 3224980
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Thanks T5258. I thought there was only one, but wanted to make sure before saying anything.
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Makes sense that the same bracket would be used. Chearper and consistent with RM. Wonder why the bracket in the two pics from the manual are different then?
Thanks for looking that up. Brings that idea to closure.
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From an earlier AMC model???
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Any idea what year the brake pedal is out of??? or what model???
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Supposed to have come out of a donor SX/4. Looks identical to what is in the wagon. Pedal distance to the floor is the same as the wagon but 3 MC's fail to build pressure once they go in the car and are completely divorced from the brake system. I will figure this out!! Soon, I hope.
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Is the fire wall soft in that area. Has been a problem with folks and their clutches -- reporting the same symptoms.
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That area is solid. checked it all over when I put the new booster and new MC unit in.
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OK, one less issue to worry about.
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I haven't had a MC off a booster on one of these yet but most times the plunger rod in the booster is adjustable. Wondering if that might not be the problem since you say this has been an on going thing.
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I have adjusted it many times trying to see if it made a difference. It is now set at exactly the same length as the one in the wagon.
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Got a chance to spend a few minutes on the money pit today. I think this is the one I want to take to Kenosha so it might get a few extra things done to it. I did manage to get the head pulled today and figure I will spend tomorrow afternoon during the snowstorm to put it all back together. The carb nut was not in the manifold BTW and I have no idea where it went. I really looked everything over too. Guess it will be one of those mysteries and then one day it will be there on the garage floor.
One thing I did find that surprised me though was how loose the intake manifold bolts were. I was very careful when I put it together last time to make sure the torques were exact. I almost think I could have gotten some of them out by hand. This is something I will pay more attention to in the future. Maybe I will even recheck the wagon tomorrow to make sure they are still tight. Guess those manifold bolts will get a torque check every six months or so from now on. A few of them are a real pain to get to.
Since this is the last time I plan on going into this engine for quite a while I think I will see about recharging the AC tomorrow too after it is all together. Got a vacuum pump and AC gauges the other day and might as well use this one as the first trial. I will see if I can find the camera and do a small write up if there is any interest.
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Once again I like the way he says he does these things when he has a few minutes. It would be many hours for me, not a few minutes.
Yes, a write up will be appreciated.
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How much snow are you expecting there? I'm likely heading up in your direction on Wednesday, at least as far as Utica.
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The lower areas are forecast for 12 to 18 inches depending on temperature and how much falls as rain versus snow. On top of the mountain we are ready for anywhere from 18 to 36 inches. If it is light and dry then 36 inches or so and if it is heavy wet stuff then probably around 18. Went out this morning and tanked up the XJ and the J10 and filled the snowblower and the generator. Got an extra 5 gallons for the generator so we can manage for 3 days or so if the power is out. It will probably be a false alarm and we will only get 8 to 10 inches like last week but you never know.
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Once again I like the way he says he does these things when he has a few minutes. It would be many hours for me, not a few minutes.
Yes, a write up will be appreciated.
Actually, it was more than " a few minutes". Took about 90 minutes to pull the wiper motor, drop the coil and plug wires, drop the AC compressor and bracket, pull the valve cover, remove rocker arms and pushrods, pull EGR valve and throttle linkage bracket, pull carb and fuel lines, unbolt power steering brackets, drain coolant, remove heater hoses, AC hoses and upper radiator hose, unbolt intake manifold, unbolt exhaust manifold, impact gun the head bolts and then yank the head out. Then Skeezix came out and talked me into going out for dinner. ;D There is a place about 30 miles away that does an $11.95 prime rib special on Saturday nights. She did not have to ask twice. otherwise I would have had the engine back together tonight but now I am too stuffed. :D
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90 minutes ain't half bad. It takes me that long to find that socket I laid down where I would find it again.
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Got most of everything put back together but I need to pick up some bolt sealant tomorrow. Mine had dried up in the can and the front exhaust stud was not in the new head. Since it goes into a water jacket it needs to be sealed.
Found a few things I thought I would pass along to make someone elses life easier
If you do like I did and just unbolt the intake and exhaust manifold and leave the exhaust pipe attached it may be a little difficult getting it aligned with the new head so you can get bolts started. After fighting it for a minute or two I decided to put a jack under the exhaust pipe where it goes to the rear of the oil pan. I jacked it enough to align the height with the head and then a small tug forward and it popped right onto the guide dowels. No fuss or issues with gaskets dropping as you fight with the manifolds.
Also, the rear valve cover bolt is a PIA to say the least. I used a drop of RTV on the underside of the head and put it in the hole in the valve cover before I slid the cover into place. I then put in the front bolt and the side bolts so I knew the rear one was lined up and dropped a quarter inch drive and universal and the bolt went right in. The RTV was enough to keep it from falling out as the cover was dropped on and there was no need to try to get my fat fingers back there to get the bolt started. Usually I drop the bolt at least 5 times before I can get it started.
Hopefully tomorrow night I get will it buttoned up. Depends if I am able to get out tomorrow. BTW, we be getting some snow ;D
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Misc/P1010080.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Misc/P1010081.jpg)
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Great Tips Smitty! I see its a winter wonder land there.
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Yep, ole man winter sticking around. Got about a foot so far and expect at least another foot tonight according to the weatherperson (is that PC? ;D)
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Sounds PC to me. And we were complaining about winter hanging on here with last week's snow. You still have it!
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"I need to pick up some bolt sealant tomorrow"
What do you use for that bolt sealant?
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Teflon tape or Teflon paste.
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Will that stand up to engine temps? I know it is used for hot water, but how hot?
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I use a high temp permatex sealer. I need to see the tube to remember the exact one. It has to be a high temp sealer since the stud runs through the exhaust manifold. I think the manual calls for a permatex 2 but that was 25 years ago. It is either an orange or black tube but I will recognize it when I see it.
Sorry Gil, but I would not recommend a teflon tape on an engine or any place with high temps. YMMV.
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Well, it's tuesday morning and i still have not been able to get back to work on the money pit. We lost power on Sunday evening and it is still out. The generator will run the house just fine but heating the garage and running the compressor aren't in the picture. there is hope that power will be returned today but we shall see. I spent yesterday trying to move 18 inches of heavy wet snow!! The snowblower threw it about 3 feet and labored to do that. The guy finally showed up to plow at about 10:30 so I was able to get to work for a few hours yesterday. No power, phone, internet etc at the house. Snowing again now but they say 60's for the weekend. Go figure.
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Take care Smitty and Skeezix and stay safe. So are they now predicting flooding when it starts melting this weekend?
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I think you got a got half a foot over what we got. Crazy thing where I am, I drive a couple miles down the road (all down hill) and there is hardly anything. I go to work, much lower elevation, and there is no snow, just a lot of rain with a little snow mixed in as it's falling. Hope things get back to normal soon at your house.
The last time I looked out my window, a couple hours ago, it was snowing like crazy. :o
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Am going to try and finalize a few things on the pit. I need to acquire the carb spacer for the motorcraft conversion. Mine is a Moroso unit but has seen better days and leaks... badly! I do not have the Moroso part number and all the others I have tried are too short along the rear of the carb and create a HUGH vacuum leak. I am going to pull this one and take it with me to NAPA but without a part number, I don't have much confidence. I have looked through their parts books and bought two others only to have them too short. I speced one for a 78 304 and it was a totally different design even though that is where my carb came from.
Who has a good part number?
Thanks
Smitty
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Maybe Shin-X will remember. I picked up a Mr Gasket one for him at our local parts store.
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NAPA part number 60716. They matched up the old one from a box full of mounting gaskets.
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Got the carb back on and cured the vacuum leak. Pulled it out of the garage and cleaned it up. Looks pretty good eh?
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/July2007/P1010226.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/July2007/P1010227.jpg)
The tags have expired so I will renew them Monday and get this inspected this week. Just have to change out the wiper switch. It only works on high >:(
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"Pretty good" doesn't come close. It looks much better than "pretty good".
Incidentally, I certainly understand the name of your thread. I have a wagon money pit. Bottomless Wagon Money Pit would be a good name for mine.
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Looking real good Smitty. It must be a good runner now with the carb leak resolved.
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Smitty,
A real jewel there...
Eddie
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Looking back, I started this project on 29 April 2005!! Over 2 years and lots of time and money. It does have a new interior, "fresh" engine, new front suspension, rebuilt tranny and a whole bunch of little stuff like brake cables etc. I suppose if Skeezix had not taken ill I would have made more progress on it but it is what it is. I am picking up the AC recharge kit today and hope to get that done later today. I still have the B&M shifter to install and the converter won't lock up. For that it is going to the tranny shop. In 2 years I have driven it 76 miles, all for test drives trying to sort out issues. Still lots to do but I am looking forward to actually driving this instead of short test drives. We shall see.
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76 miles in two years! Yes, you need to get that bird on the road!
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Beautiful ride... you should be complimented on your perseverance with this project. Great job! So here's a laurel, and hearty handshake...
;D
mike
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Well, I thought I was going to drive the pit to work today. Changed my mind after I could not get the A/C charge to take last night. I was able to vacuum the system out and have it hold vacuum but could not get the fittings to work on the charging cans. An all black car is too hot to drive in this weather for me. Just too old to enjoy dripping sweat. I did manage to change out the wiper switch and now have full intermittent and 2 speeds. I also had a problem with how I had reinstalled the stop light switch. Took some time and figured out my oops and got them working again.
I am hoping to tackle the A/C tonight but the local EMT's are coming to the house for an education on Skeezix's illness and where to find the emergency protocols and living will etc. so I might have to wait until the weekend. I had hoped to take this one to the Sturbridge show but I want more local drive time before I venture out on a 300 mile round trip.
I do notice that the wagon has a lot more pep than this one. Of course the wagon has the baja beast cam and a total rebuild to go along with the 2.73 gearing. The pit has the 2.35 gearing and a 50K mile engine. It does ride pretty nice but the short wheelbase combined with the coil over shocks gives it a rougher ride.
Skeezix says I should sell this one and keep the wagon. We need to pare down the fleet so that we can have room and time for a GMC motorhome. That will be our next project so that we can get her out of the house with all her medical gear and have her own bed, bath etc as well as the capability to use the equipment any time she needs. I say this would make a great toad car for the motorhome ;D. We shall see.
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Its always something. Was the fitting bad at the cap end or the compressor end. I have had issues with both, in the past. They use really cheap fittings.
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Took the car out for its maiden trip away from home this morning. 28 mile round trip for breakfast and to put some gas in it. Mixed results, mostly not good. This one is destined to stay a project car and a money pit. I had changed the head on it because I had noticed oil around the breather and since I had the manifolds off it was not too big a deal to change to a fresh head that I had. Did not cure the problem so I think all my oil is staying up top in the engine. The car drove nice and ran well for most of the trip. Coming home I have to climb the mountain and then the fun began. So much oil blew out the breather that the car filled with smoke and there can't be a mosquito left alive in my wake. Lost most of the power and barely made it to the top and was able to coast most of the rest of the way. It does not bode well for this engine. It was supposed to be a low mileage engine but who really knows. I trust the guy I got it from and he heard it run before the kid pulled it. Me thinks, however, that it is toasted. I will do a compression check later today to see what that tells. might have to call around and see if I can find a decent 4.0 or get the spare 258 short block redone.
Wonder how much scrap metal goes for these days? :(
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DANG! Let us know what the compression checks are. I think around here scrap is $60 per ton.
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Since it was smoking on a incline, could it be that the oil is building up on the rear of the head?
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That is what I keep thinking too.
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Kinda what i was thinking too but there is no reason for it to be. The head has been redone so the drain passages are open. I did not notice anything with the block when I swapped heads. When I blip the throttle there is blowby out the breather so pressure is getting there somehow. Since the head should be tight it must be from the crankcase, which means rings. Have not had a chance to test the compression yet.
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Yeah, new head should eliminate the question of valves or seals also. Probably blow-by from the rings.
mike
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Let the games begin. I decided that the engine in the car is not worth any more time. I am picking up a 4.0 this weekend and will go with the EFI too. Just have to figure a few technical details out. Others have done it so I will be asking a few questions along the way. Stay tuned, this could get fun :D.
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Good luck!
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And the pit gets deeper. What year 4.0?
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92 out of a YJ. I can always run a carb on it if the wiring is not all there. I am told it is complete and awaiting the results of a compression test. Not sure if I am going to use the HESCO CPS relocation or get the correct flexplate and drill out the bellhousing. Probably the drill since it is less expensive. Lots more research to do. There are lots of combinations that could work and differing opinions of what does and does not work. I hope to keep good records on what works for me.
PS. I know the motors runs decent. It may not be perfect but once in and running the car is all set and debugged for the 4.7 stroker ;D
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Got the carb back on and cured the vacuum leak. Pulled it out of the garage and cleaned it up. Looks pretty good eh?
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/July2007/P1010226.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/July2007/P1010227.jpg)
The tags have expired so I will renew them Monday and get this inspected this week. Just have to change out the wiper switch. It only works on high >:(
Looks like an "Eagle of the month" contender to me!!!
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Which reminds I guess I need to "announce" July's and move on to August.
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Took the trusty rusty J10 out for a 180 mile round trip this morning and picked up the 4.0. There is one big pile of wiring with that thing!!! Have to sort through what I have and see if the electronic are worth using. May still just HEI and motorcraft the 4.0 long block. Not sure just how good the engine is. I have an old tranny I will bolt up so I can attach the starter and do a CR test to see how the rings seal up. This is going to take a little while to sort everything out and figure out all the accessories like how to mount the AC and such. If I stay with the EFI then I need to figure out the wiring before I start anything. Just not sure I got everything that I need. The TJ stuff is quite a bit different than the XJ stuff cause the computer sits in the engine bay.
Will be gone for a few days. We have to head over to NH for my Niece's husbands funeral. He was killed in a motorcycle accident on the way to work the other day. Retired Navy guy, 4 kids with 2 starting college in a few weeks. Some lady pulled out in front of him and he died on impact. This is not going to be easy to get through.
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Sorry to hear about your niece's husband. Please give her our sympathies.
Have fun with the "new" Jeep and all of its goodies.
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Darn. I can't think of anything appropriate to say.
God be with you and yours.
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Had a few minutes to look at the money pit. Did a compression test to confirm what I already thought. The manual says to take the reading on the 3rd crank. I did that and also at 5 cranks. The engine was warm so it should have max sealing
Cyl 1 3 cranks 90psi 5 cranks 110psi
Cyl 2 3 cranks 90psi 5 cranks 120psi
Cyl 3 3 cranks 95psi 5 cranks 118psi
Cyl 4 3 cranks 90psi 5 cranks 120psi
Cyl 5 3 cranks 90psi 5 cranks 120psi
Cyl 6 3 cranks 90psi 5 cranks 120psi
The manual says 120-150 is norm. Guess that explains the blow by through the breather. Now I need to do the same for the 4.0 I bought. Have to rig that up on the stand to be able to crank it with the starter. The never ending project!!
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At least they were pretty even indicating no other hidden problems.
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(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/stroker/P1010233.jpg)
Put the 4.0 on the stand and got it wired up to crank. Mixed results.
Cyl 1 3 cranks 90psi 5 cranks 105 with oil 105
Cyl 2 3 cranks 120psi 5 cranks 130
Cyl 3 3 cranks 150psi 5 cranks 150
Cyl 4 3 cranks 30psi 5 cranks 60 with oil 60
Cyl 5 3 cranks 145psi 5 cranks 150
Cyl 6 3 cranks 140psi 5 cranks 145
Since it did not come up with oil in the cyl I am assuming bad valves on Cylinders 1 and 4. What do you all think? Might just pull the head and have the valves done and see what I get. I pulled the valve cover and the rockers for those cylinders were moving comparable to the others so I don't think anything is stuck. Under the valve cover is super clean. No sludge anywhere so it appears the engine was taken care of from an oil change standpoint. This one goes on the back burner for a month or two.
Also, there is very little play in the distributor when I rotate the balancer back and forth so the timing chain is tight.
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How many miles on the 4.0
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Near the century mark as far as I can tell.
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That is low mileage for that motor to have such bad compression on two cylinders. I wonder if it sat a lot?
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The guy I got it from had it sitting in his garage for a year or more.
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I have seen engines that sat a while have valves that went south.
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Any valves that were open while it was sitting, could be rusted and not sealing.
Eddie
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You know, you may be on to something there. The 2 weak cylinders are 1 and 4. they follow each other in the firing order so if that is where the engine was when the key went off for the last time it could be deposits under those valves.
Think I will go ahead with having the head done. The compression on the rest of the cylinders was pretty darn good so I may assume that all the rings are good and it is the head that has the issues. Once I pull the head I will get a good look at the cylinder walls and the innards to see if it tells me anything.
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It ended up being more cost effective to get a rebuilt head from Rockauto. Put it on tonight and got good compression across all cylinders. Now I will go into cleaning mode and figure out all the annoying little things like AC compressor, power steering, wiring etc. It is by far a lot cheaper to just put a carb and HEI on it but I think I will work through it and get the EFI on too. Have to scope out the oil pan issues too.
Time is the critical element here as I want to drive the car and with Skeezix's health issues I have nowhere near the free time I used to have.
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GOT SNOW??
It snowed a lot while Skeezix was in the hospital and then we got more last night before I had a chance to dig it out from the previous storm. This will take a while! ;D
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/P1010279.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/P1010280.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/P1010281.jpg)
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WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Eddie
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I guess it did. I think there is something under that snow drift?
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That's quite a bit of snow. Most all I've seen is slush... both back home in Missouri and here in Washington.
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Well folks, I believe the Money Pit is headed to a new home. One of the list members just called me and a deal has been made. Once the financials are completed I will make a last post on this thread and let you know who will take over. Sad day to see it go but glad to know it is going to a good home.
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One of those happy/sad days. Another member buying the money pit means a good new home.
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Well, the deal is done and the financial transactions complete. When the new owner picks up the car there will be a final post and sendoff pics. :-\
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That is good news Smitty. Current member or one we hopefully will be seeing here soon?
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Very current member. The Money Pit will not be lonely as there is another Eagle in the flock.
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That is good.
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Well, I guess the new owner has some work to do. A tree top the size of a telephone pole broke off last night in the storm and decided the Money Pit looked like a good place to rest. Guess I need to look for parts and see if Phil still has the hatch from the parts car we shared. I will say the SX/4 is one tough little car to have as little damage as it does. A new hatch and a little jacking on the rear of the roof panel and it should be good to go.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Garage2008/garage003.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Garage2008/garage007.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Garage2008/garage010.jpg)
The garage also suffered damage:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Garage2008/garage009.jpg)
Note the bees nest. Are they now displaced homeowners?
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Garage2008/garage012.jpg)
And lastly, Skeezix is not happy that her Jeep was involved:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/Garage2008/garage006.jpg)
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Poor old money pit. Still finds ways to be one. Looks like the house and bees fared worst of all. Nice thing is that no one was hurt. I know what it is like to get hit by icy covered tree parts. Didn't find my glasses for over a year.
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too bad about the car. you dont look like the snow hit bad just the wind. west and a little north of utica some of us got a foot or better. good ole ny weather.. hopefully this is all the bad luck you will get
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DRATS , oh well , I guess the ole Money Pit will be true to it's name even for the new owner. :o
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Yep, as long as it stays here, there will be the sound of the Hoover sucking $$$. ;D
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How much for the Kirby ?I heard ya can paint a car with them and vaccum the oriental :)
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I think the new owner should rename it the Hoover since it will continue to suck money ;D
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LOL< I am sure the old owner has a complete documented testement to that,the new owner should bring it out west and have people pay for it to be parked on thier property to bring in a cloud, or a storm. Heck bring it to a logging company and park it in the woods,trees will just drop at the sight of it. ;D all in good fun my friend.
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Yes, the new owner might be able to make some money that way. ;)
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Time to reveal all!!! ;D The new owner, who we will name Turtle since it took him 9 months to actually take physical ownership of the car, has left the house. The Eagle has taken flight even if on a tow dolly.
At 7:30 this morning I went out to the barn and hooked the charger up to the money pit and cleared some of the weeds away.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/P1010270.jpg)
After a few minutes it fired up and I pulled it around to the main driveway to await its fate
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/P1010271.jpg)
Finally, Mr Turtle arrives at about 11. Of course he does not know how to back up a trailer so we unhook the dolly and position it by hand. We then go to the toy garage and load up the 4.0 and a pile of "extra" parts.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/IMG_4026.jpg)
Mr Turtle then pulls the truck around and we load up the Money Pit. I get to drive it for the last time :-\ and then it gets secured to the dolly
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/IMG_4036.jpg)
It is then time to finish the deal with the paperwork and handoff of the title.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/IMG_4032.jpg)
Any and all warranties are now voided once Mr Turtle hit the end of the driveway ;D
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v105/Superglider/SX4/IMG_4038.jpg)
Good luck with the Money Pit Mr Turtle aka Randy aka 68AMXGOPAC. I hope Randy continues the saga. Seriously, I hope Randy gets home safe with the car and will continue to update this thread with the Money Pit's ability to suck money out of his wallet.
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Congratulations to both of you.
The Pit doesn't look as bad as I expected.
Incidentally, I sympathize about Mr. Turtle about backing the dolly.
I can back a trailer, but the dolly ain't your ordinary trailer. It took me 2 or 3 tries
to back the dolly up to our parts car.
Many thanks for the update.
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Farewell from one home and onto its new one.
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too true jim. backing a dolly is a pain in the rump. even harder with a vehicle on it and dern near impossible if its a center pivot style dolly.
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And there you have it Wagonmaster , it was a swivel type! AH HA now I don't feel so bad about it giving me a hard time.That and I have never owned a trailer before.Hey at least I got it between the posts ;D.
So yes Smitty it did make it home ok, alot of traffic,and the ole borrowed truck was loaded , but did fine.My hat's off to Smitty for all his help, patience and generosity with Mr.Turtle.Let it be known that Mr.Turtle is also the man on the roof doing the chimney : ).O wait that took him awhile to show up for that too!! I wonder what Smitty will get now?? He seems to have extra garage space : )
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Yeah, I was maybe a little unfair about backing up the dolly. If you can't see it then it is near impossible to back up with it. I don't think anything else will be going in the garage anytime soon as I have a ton of work to do on Skeezix's Cherokee and you saw how much is left to do on the 69 Ambo. Although if a 2 door Eagle shows up on EvilBay or Craigslist ya never know what might happen.
Good luck with the car. Your son did not look too impressed with it. ;D
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Good Luck with the Money Pit, GoPac. I can sympathize with the wallet and the money sucking etc., I've had my fair share of that as welll.
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Yeah, I was maybe a little unfair about backing up the dolly. If you can't see it then it is near impossible to back up with it. I don't think anything else will be going in the garage anytime soon as I have a ton of work to do on Skeezix's Cherokee and you saw how much is left to do on the 69 Ambo. Although if a 2 door Eagle shows up on EvilBay or Craigslist ya never know what might happen.
Good luck with the car. Your son did not look too impressed with it. ;D
Well the son has actually taken a good interest in it now. We vaccumed all of the glass out,(most of it) still some hiding somewheres I suspect.The hatch actually does open and close, we covered it back in with plastic as it sat outside for a week.It's now inside under cover.
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That is good. So what does it need, body wise?
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Well it definetly needs the new hatch from the parts rig.Figure we will sand it down and paint it before it goes on,and it does lok like we can jack the roof back in shape good enough.Probably have to remove the sun roof before,just in case,allthough it did survive the tree hit.
It really is in decent shape, and as the thread goes, we know Smitty sure put alot of cash and effort into it , bummer is after all that it had an engine issue.( or I am thinking it would still be his if not for that ).
And even funnier ( kinda) is that I sold the sending unit out of the oarts rig,and I don't think the one in the money pit works! LOL.
My son doesn't want to admit he is liking it,but it is evident : ).
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Yes, I am sure the wheels in you son's head are a spinnin'.
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Keep us all posted on the progress and if you need any info on how I did something (right or wrong) just give me a buzz. I am sure I won't remember anything but it can't hurt to try.
What sending unit are you talking about, the fuel tank? That worked the last I knew but maybe the tree hit shook something loose.
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OK Randy,
What have you done with the Money Pit? Have not heard anything.
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Arrrrg , not sure how I missed this before.?? Hi Ya Smitty n Skeezix , it is now resting comfortably in a heated (45*) garage.We cleaned all the glass out of it, and washed up the interior.I have pulled all the parts of the parts rig and sent it on it's way.It looks good resting, sitting up on those nice rims and tire combo,but it is dormant stage for the moment.I have been busy with outside stuff , a tarp garage,drainage, caving in foundation wall , etc etc.
Plus alot of my time is now dedicated to getting that Minneapolis Molines done and rolling.Seems our next project is to boost up the HP on the 52 GMC pick-up, than build and airplane.But I am honing my skills and gaining others.
Not to worry it will be treated well, and roll again : )
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Smitty, where did you get the grille/ brush gaurd for your SX/4? I would love to get one for my wagon
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It was a factory/dealer unit that was on the car when I got it.
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I didn't know they made them for Eagles. Would they fit the wagon? Would love to get one of those
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Bumping for an update, As this is very much a sister to my own SX/$ I am curious as to it's health and rehabilitation? Please, this car was SOOOO close, I nearly cried when I seen that tree in the middle of it, But cheered when I seen how little actually it did to that beast. Yeah it's bruised and beaten but it didn't look dead to me.
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68AMXGOPAC has it now and has been running it some. Not sure of the current status, He has dubbed it Money Pit II. So Randy, what IS happening with the ole girl?
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Bumping for an update, As this is very much a sister to my own SX/$ I am curious as to it's health and rehabilitation? Please, this car was SOOOO close, I nearly cried when I seen that tree in the middle of it, But cheered when I seen how little actually it did to that beast. Yeah it's bruised and beaten but it didn't look dead to me.
there's a good shot of it going in the calander : ) - coincidently right under an Eagle sign from an old dealership.
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68AMXGOPAC has it now and has been running it some. Not sure of the current status, He has dubbed it Money Pit II. So Randy, what IS happening with the ole girl?
Hi Smitty ! Didn't know you still lurked around these parts : ). The best to you and Lisa,hope things are going well up there in the north country. The MoneyPit II is doing ok, drove it quite a bit this summer , just replaced the valve cover gasket a couple weeks ago.I still never did anything with the engine etc. , just did the hatch replacement and spoiler, and jacked it all back up.Stil some wrinkles in the top but it is what it is at the moment.Sitting restinf waiting for snow. I did have to replace the tranny/and did the Diff. too,that was a task alone, but my son helped me put it back in. I also bought Touges wagon wich had the complete EFI switch over done allready, but that too has a bad cylinder--- arghhhhhh !! Someday. How is the Ambo comeing along ?? Really need to take a trip up and see you one of these days man. Peace.
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Tha Ambo is not much farther along. Too many things needed to keep the drivers going. Lisa says come on up!! I will be retiring in July so I should be able to get the two Ambos finished. There is an 88 Eagle wagon I really want to get ahold of but I need to clear the garage first.
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Are there like a couple of engines in the way ?? : ) You were makeing some great progress on it last I saw it in a post link,it looked great.
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Hey Smitty, Glad to see ya, thanks for the update to both, I am sooo glad to hear that she isn't forgotten, Best of luck to all, I know how life is so don't mind me too much.
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I know I just picked up a 85 Eagle wagon an already making plans for it over the next few years an its going to cost. I am going to change bout everything on this car an use it for a daily driver. Right now it needs exhaust an I am going to go with magnaflow 2.5 duals on it. Keep us posted & have fun with it you dont see many Eagles on the road any more.
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Money Pit II is still going strong.Haven't really done much of anything to it.Run it areound town mostly when it gets out , an hour trip one way is about it's longest venture.Thanks for keeping it bumped -lol.
Getting it ready for snow now , been working in the bike shop and haven't had any time for my Eagles , or Caddy's.
Sold my 68 AMX around May , and it is still here in my garage , bought and paid for but never picked up yet - arghhhh pains me to still have it here but........least I get tocrank it up once in awhile !!
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WOW, took a while to read through all of this again. Not sure if the ole Pit is still out there or at eh Mens Mall. Hope it has survived. Man, I put a lot of hours into that one!!
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Looks like a nice SX/4!