So whats everybody doing for mods this winter? Post your progress.

Saw this posting on the New England B & D board; had some interesting postings. Let's try it here.

Here's what I have been doing:

I rebuilt extra front door panels that I have for the RMW. If you have a RM, you know how easily they break Can't buy new ones, so you gotta repair.

The Fleetwood is in the garage, all jacked up. I am refreshing the underneath, cleaning painting and undercoating. In a few minutes I will be putting the gas tank back up, as I dropped it to redo the straps.

About 5 or 6 years ago, Santa bought me a creeper. I never used it once, I am now. It is great.

Oh, and probably the biggest thing I did was put a heater in the garage. Makes it nice! We've lived in that house 24 years, and it was always too cold to work in the garage in the winter (apply slap to side of head).

Picked up a nice set of factory Caddy chrome rims, which are had to find. Thanks to Matt T (B & D) for finding the Caddy at Jack's JY, and to Dave 95BRMW for pointing that out to me.

Have RM "bucket seats" in the front. I have an extra seat, that needed minor upholstery work done to it. Done!

Tentatively planning on going to FL for a WagonFest, with Cadet, 95BRMW, Lynol & GasTT at the end of March.

Tom

I hope you make it! It's been great the last two years.

I am modifying my odometer....... Keeps going up!!!

Stingroo wrote:

I hope you make it! It's been great the last two years.

I'm planning on it, I know Dave and Lynol can't say enough about it. May bring down the Fleetwood, but possibly the RMW

BigBlackBeaSSt wrote:

I am modifying my odometer....... Keeps going up!!!

That's illegal!

Tom

Modifying it one mile at a time.

Oh Oh.........OK

Tom wrote:
Tentatively planning on going to FL for a WagonFest, with Cadet, 95BRMW, Lynol & GasTT at the end of March.

Looking forward to seeing you down here. Yes, it is a good time. The cookout last year was great. Glenn

Haha we are going to upgrade our cookout game this year, for sure.

I promise.

This:


brakelines, shocks, water pump, and more

I put another engine and trans in the Starship. Had to get the trans rebuilt. Did some upgrades before installing, and it has a lot more power now, comes on at about 3K and pulls strong. Added wrapped headers, duals, and larger throttle body. Trans has a shift kit and Corvette servo, slams into second. A few minor bugs to work out. I have to repaint the roof, and replace the glass from the B pillars back. I have the glass, just need the urethane, and make the effort. (anybody know where I can get a long handled box cutter cheap?) I hate to loose the tint. Also have to fix hold down bolts for the roof rack, and paint. I may paint it black to match the vista window, and make the car look lower. I would like to hit the Spring Turkey Run...the cookout was great last year...how can that improve.

I gotta do the brakes on my RMW before Florida and hopefully in the next few weeks get the car into paint. I need some fresh DCM!

Doing exhaust on the caddy this weekend. After I do the exhaust, I will be doing a locking gas cap, adding gas (because someone siphoned my tank dry last month), and taking it home.
I snagged mint biarritz back seat skins for if I decide to redo the inserts in my buckets with button tufted leather. I also plan on finishing my console project (I have to make the radio/ 2" gauge panel and install the switches in it for various things, rebelt my Harman Kardon radio and get it back together, refoam a couple sets of speakers for it, and hopefully finally get the turbines to put on it.

Well I guess I should have knocked on wood when I mentioned in another thread about an oil leak that miraculously went away. Now that the temperature got colder my oil pressure on cold start up increased like 20 psi which made Ms. Roadie start leaking oil like a drunk'n sailor in a pissing contest. So this winter, this weekend actually, I'll be replacing the oil pan gasket, the timing chain cover gasket, and oil filter adapter gaskets. DOH face-palm.

I plan to change the transmission fluid filter and pan gasket this weekend too.

Oh and if I get around to it I will be installing my digital guage cluster this weekend also. I've been putting this off for a while. Getting unemployed for a month and a half kinda changes your priorities ya know.

Dont even know where to start...

On my Chevrolet Silverado, Im flushing alllll the fluids. Brake, Trans, power steering, cooland, both diffs, transfer case. Im going to put on new brakes, add an extra leaf spring in the back and replace the bolts that hold my torsion bars with longer onces so the front wil sit up another inch. Then I will put on new cat back duel exhaust. Simple system to give it a little more noise.

Then once the snow melts. I got some work for my wagon!!! I need to put in a full exhaust system, theres nothing on it. From headers to tips. I have a few parts from Jay I will pick up, but I am still missing a few parts. Before those on on I will change the plugs and wires. I think Jay wants to change the shocks from one of his wagons for mine, They sit a little lower and mine are stock. I think he would prefer to sit a little higher.

I also, regret to say this and I am SURE I will get some flack for it... but I have a 96 Toyota Corolla. I only drive it because its good on gas really. Not bad in the winter. and I traval a fair bit for hockey. Its easier on my wallet. But the rad is rotting so I will need to instal a new rad..

Thats all I have for now but im sure more will come up. No doubt about that. Theres always something right?

Well, I used to say that two things on my 9C1 were still untouched: the AC and the longblock. Now it's just the longblock. Today I replaced the AC compressor, compressor hoses, all O-rings, orifice tube, and the dryer. Honestly, wasn't that hard of a job. There are a lot of horror stories on the ISSF about doing the compressor - I got it out in an hour.

Just put all that info over here. This will be a lifesaver for someone.

While i was home for the holidays,.
i put mouse bait and mothballs in and around the wagons,.



nick

Hmm. I do have a to-do list on my '92 OCC. Well so far this fall/winder I have totally re-done the stereo and speakers, installed new rear springs and shocks, a new radiator, o2 sensor and full tune-up, plus the trans service and rear axle fluid changes. Oh and the power window repairs.

Hopefully still can afford some kind of wheel/tire mod and a different steering wheel soon. Also need to re-paint the rear bumper, do some underhood detailing, and replace the stock front shocks with KYB's. Would love to do dual exhaust as well.

Projects!

-Mike

phantom 309 wrote:

While i was home for the holidays,.
i put mouse bait and mothballs in and around the wagons,.

please please please have your son get those mothballs out of the wagons - it is impossible to remove the stench of mothballs from fabrics!

81X11 wrote:

Hmm. I do have a to-do list on my '92 OCC. Well so far this fall/winder I have totally re-done the stereo and speakers, installed new rear springs and shocks, a new radiator, o2 sensor and full tune-up, plus the trans service and rear axle fluid changes. Oh and the power window repairs.

Hopefully still can afford some kind of wheel/tire mod and a different steering wheel soon. Also need to re-paint the rear bumper, do some underhood detailing, and replace the stock front shocks with KYB's. Would love to do dual exhaust as well.

Projects!

-Mike

If you are going to put duals on it, get the cross shaft for the trans linkage from an LT1 car. It will give you about another 1/4- 1/2 inch more clearance for the pipe at a crucial point where you need the clearance. You need the pivot on the frame to swap it, because it is about 1 inch longer than the original. Putting headers on at the same time will give you a bit more power. If the header on the driver's side has the O2 bung on the side, it will interfere with the brake lines. You can either put one on the front, or put it on the tail pipe just beyond the flange. If you put it on the tail pipe, you will also need an extension for the lead to the harness connector. I used a standoff with a cable clamp and mounted it on the top torque converter cover plate bolt. Most muffler shops have plugs for ill placed O2 bungs.

There are crossmembers made for duals, but you can make one rather easily from your original. I made a part from a piece of scrap crossmember, and welded it to the top, then cut the bottom away to the inside of the top of the original tube, and closed off the holes with more scrap. The channel should be at an angle to the crossmember tube, because it sits at an angle in the car. You should mark it before you remove the crossmember. The LT1 cars had the driver's side pipe flattened where it goes under the drive shaft hoop. I routed it around the hoop end instead. If you cut the end of the hoop between the two bolts, you can just make a single S bend in the pipe like the pasenger's side.

Shammoo is hibernating in a garage.

Fred Kiehl wrote:

81X11 wrote:

Hmm. I do have a to-do list on my '92 OCC. Well so far this fall/winder I have totally re-done the stereo and speakers, installed new rear springs and shocks, a new radiator, o2 sensor and full tune-up, plus the trans service and rear axle fluid changes. Oh and the power window repairs.

Hopefully still can afford some kind of wheel/tire mod and a different steering wheel soon. Also need to re-paint the rear bumper, do some underhood detailing, and replace the stock front shocks with KYB's. Would love to do dual exhaust as well.

Projects!

-Mike

If you are going to put duals on it, get the cross shaft for the trans linkage from an LT1 car. It will give you about another 1/4- 1/2 inch more clearance for the pipe at a crucial point where you need the clearance. You need the pivot on the frame to swap it, because it is about 1 inch longer than the original. Putting headers on at the same time will give you a bit more power. If the header on the driver's side has the O2 bung on the side, it will interfere with the brake lines. You can either put one on the front, or put it on the tail pipe just beyond the flange. If you put it on the tail pipe, you will also need an extension for the lead to the harness connector. I used a standoff with a cable clamp and mounted it on the top torque converter cover plate bolt. Most muffler shops have plugs for ill placed O2 bungs.

There are crossmembers made for duals, but you can make one rather easily from your original. I made a part from a piece of scrap crossmember, and welded it to the top, then cut the bottom away to the inside of the top of the original tube, and closed off the holes with more scrap. The channel should be at an angle to the crossmember tube, because it sits at an angle in the car. You should mark it before you remove the crossmember. The LT1 cars had the driver's side pipe flattened where it goes under the drive shaft hoop. I routed it around the hoop end instead. If you cut the end of the hoop between the two bolts, you can just make a single S bend in the pipe like the pasenger's side.

Thanks for all the info. It's amazing how much effort it is to do this on these TBI cars when the LT1 cars had factory duals. In a perfect world it'd be an easy bolt-over swap. Oh well!

Well she's not leaking oil anymore. Got the new oil pan gasket and oil filter adapter gaskets installed. Turns out the timing cover didn't need replacing. Good thing too because I forgot to rent the damper puller. I never got to the inside of the car this weekend. I'm trying to convince the CFO to approve funding for stereo and speaker replacements so I can tackle that when I remove the dash pad too. At least she's not marking every parking spot I put her in now. Not to mention I feel like I should have been searching for Noah's arc with all the rain we got in Kentucky over the weekend.

Just put the car into storage til March, but I have a small laundry list before Daytona:

Install new rear end (been waiting to get a weekend on a lift at a friends shop)
Install suede headliner
One piece smoke headlights
Get summer tires mounted on new rims
Fleetwood horns
Front speakers
Timing chain and 9C1 green hoses
Oil filter seal

All the mechanical things can get done at the same time I do the rear, I've already mapped out my plan of attack. The small mods can wait til it comes out of storage two weeks before Daytona.

Justin I know it's a drive but, come by my shop (now in Wareham) any Saturday after 12 and we can get the rear end in. I can mount the tires for you at the same time.

The mod list seems to be a maintanence list too, so I'll join in. My new to me '95 Caprice sedan (4.3L, Black, gray leather, 166,000 miles) winter car needs a bunch of work. Leaks fuel, and coolant, needs/ needed a tune up, ft. shocks, tires, alingment, idler arm, center link, tie rods, and a good int. bath.

So.... First I gutted the int. and washed the carpet, now it smells spring time fresh. Next I got the steering parts replaced, then found 4 nice looking 9C1 wheels with fair Firestone winterforce tires off CL ($200), an alingment, inspection, and got it registered with the State of New York.
I've been driving it daily since Thanksgiving, and now the coolant and fuel leaks are getting bad, so that's the step I'm at now. Last night I replaced the fuel sending unit, fuel pump, and the fuel line connecters that attach to the sending unit. Leak fixed. Tonight I'm fixing the leaking water pump, the tune up, cap rotor, (maybe opti), plugs, and wires. While I'm in there I'm removing the a/c comp. and related parts, along with the air pump. Oh, and If I get bored, I'm going to put on a duel exaust, front and rear sway bars, off an Impala SS, and front shocks finally. I'll get pics of the beater soon.

Mike

Not much. I'm stuck 6000 km away from home until late spring, maybe early summer.
When I went back home at Christmas I had to replace both driver's rear window rollers in the black & tan. My fiancée has been driving it during my absence and they both broke. The window didn't shatter but it did make a big scratch in the tint. I'll replace that when I get back. I'll take a look at the rear vents as well, because they are letting in quite a bit of water that pools in the plastic fender cover (not too sure what you guys call that removable piece).

i am doing up a 9 c1 rear and cleaning up the bottom of the wagon up i will have some info in the rear section of the forum

jasonlachapelle wrote:

(not too sure what you guys call that removable piece).

The water pooling device....

I call them the mosquito swimming pools here in Va!

Swiss cheese air box to go along with the home plate and 1st base delete.

I finally(yesterday) changed the intake gasket on my ride because the other side blew out so I couldn't even drive it. Dam that was a long day. Which still isn't done because I need TBI base gasket. and I am puttning in my K&N air fliter.

Oh yeah does anybody have a TBI aircleaner laying around I need the front section, that covers the filter and goes to the rad support.

Been waiting for a warm enough day when I'm not busy to do my valve covers/ gaskets. Fixing that will make my car much more livable (because after a couple minutes, the oil starts leaking out the seal, hits the headers, and the car reeks).
Also, my turbines should be here in under 2 weeks. I'll probably wait til spring to mount them (and I'll get a tire put on one of my spare turbines so I have a set of 5 in the car)

GMjonn wrote:

Swiss cheese air box to go along with the home plate and 1st base delete.

Lol! With holes that small, does it whistle????

I used a 2" hole saw on my old wagon. There wasn't much left to it... I'll have to look for the pic when I'm on a real computer and not my phone.

Heck no
Ever hear of the Venturi effect?

I've been procrastinating on the engine build for the black WB4 (actually dealing with three herniated discs), so I did what anyone does with time on their hands: internet shopping! Here's my new buy. It arrives at Jarrod's house tomorrow from Arkansas. Bill and I will trailer it back to my place. 1965 C10, 79k miles.

That's awesome! I love the color!

Yes, it's a one year only colour, and just happens to be a nice match for my 65 Impala.

Nice looking truck. C U Tmrw

Nice old chevy truck especially that gorgeous color!

Very nice find! Great color too

jayoldschool wrote:

I've been procrastinating on the engine build for the black WB4 (actually dealing with three herniated discs), so I did what anyone does with time on their hands: internet shopping! Here's my new buy. It arrives at Jarrod's house tomorrow from Arkansas. Bill and I will trailer it back to my place. 1965 C10, 79k miles.

THat'll be alot less work than a basket case Healey! Yaaay, my birthyear so it's a good truck for sure.

Rims are coming in tomorrow. I'm stoked...now I just need to find my chrome lugs and locks for them

Home safe from picking up the truck. Thanks Jarrod, and BIG thanks to Bill for driving. Truck is filthy, it's coated with sand from the road trip north. The guys definitely ran into some weather. It was funny, they were from Texas, and couldn't believe how cold it was! BTW, it was 35F today in upstate NY. This will be a fun project.

The Cadillac showing that truck who's boss!

Probably the first time your new truck has been exposed to salt!If it warms up enough,time to powerwash it for about a hour or two.

Well I hope to get the new lee 12:1 box installed by Mon or Tues and depending on how it feels depends on when the shaft will get replaced.

Thats something I want for my OCC sometime down the road in that same ratio.Was the
steering shaft included with the box or was it extra?

The shaft is a Jeep unit I got from someone on the ISSF board. He sells a lot of them on different forums $70.00 shipped.

Here is a link to the thread.

-New wheels on the way for spring after I sold my Impala SS wheels.



-Just changed my leather boot from black to tan.



-Have a better carpet I would like to get it but no chance for that.

-Tomorrow hope to change oil - change water pump - adjust roller rockers - new header gasket - new rear sway bar bushings.

-Hope to either have a new hood or the old one fixed before spring.

-Finish Garage!!!!!

Now you need to do the seats to match the new boot!Always something isnt it!

looks fine to me...........