PDA

View Full Version : 1986 Shelby Charger Saved from the JY!



Pages : [1] 2

RattFink
02-20-2010, 07:50 PM
What's up everybody. I've always kind of been a lurker on here, but I finally have a car myself to talk about. I sold my 4 daytona's when I moved to Georgia about 2 years ago. Ever since I moved I've been keeping my eye out for a new turbo dodge. Today was my lucky day. My wife and I left to go shopping this morning. We went down the road about 2 miles and I noticed a wrecker in somebody's driveway loading up some junk cars. The car the guy was hooking to the back looked like alot like an old charger so I quickly told my wife to turn the car around and go back. She thought I was joking at first but soon enough we were heading back lol. We pulled in the driveway and I got out. Sure enough, the wrecker guy was loading up a Black/Silver 1986 Shelby Charger. He said he was taking it to the junkyard because the guy that owned it had got some complaints from the county about too much junk sitting in his yard. I asked if he would sell it to me and he said $350 and it's mine. I had a quick conversation with the wife and we agreed it would be my early birthday present. I went back and asked the guy if he would take $300. He said he needed $350, so I said tow it to my house and I'll give you $350. 20 minutes later the car was in my garage. The wrecker guy was really cool and happy to see me buy it. He thought the car was in way too good of shape to be scrapped, he was right too. Not a spec of rust anywhere. Floorboards are perfect. Interior is in almost mint condition. No rips in the seats, everything there. No dents, ground effects not cracked, engine and transmission there, rear louvers, sunroof with original leather sunroof bag in the hatch. All 4 aluminum rims with center caps. This car is in really really good shape, just needs to be cleaned up. Downsides: no key, but my neighbor is a locksmith so it shouldn't be an issue. No title, but I have a bill of sale which according to the wrecker driver is all I need in Georgia because the car is so old. According to the wrecker guy the owner bought it ten years ago and "the headgasket started going bad so he just parked it and was gonna fix it up." Sorry for the long post but I'm really stoked about this.

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car4.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car11.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car9.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car2.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car6.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car3.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car1.jpg

1FastCSX289
02-20-2010, 08:26 PM
SWEET!! Nice find. I love stories like that. Would have been a real shame to see it rott away in some j-yard.

omni_840
02-20-2010, 08:33 PM
Nice find! Looks like you got some good help too:)

raccoon
02-20-2010, 09:26 PM
great save!

JohnnyIroc
02-20-2010, 09:52 PM
wow badass man!

RattFink
02-20-2010, 11:12 PM
It will be a great project. My 2 year old was all excited and grabbed a screwdriver and said "daddy let's fix it." I wanted to make this a project log so I could keep track of the progress and also show everybody. It will be a slow project though because money is kinda tight, i'm lucky taxes just came back and I could buy it lol. Tomorrow or sometime over the next week I will talk to the neighbor about possibly making a key for it. I also need to figure out the title situation before I drop too much money into it. Probably next weekend I will clean it up and maybe try to get it running. I will keep the pictures and updates coming though!!

WickedShelby88
02-21-2010, 12:37 AM
wow man you are definitely my hero today! Not only did you have a great find, but your wife helped you out too! That is an AWESOME starting point for an L body since most of the time you either fight rust or can't find interior parts. My first car was a twin to that one only difference being it was an 85. Glad to see this one NOT end up where it obviously doesn't belong for another 20 years or so it sounds like! I wouldn't get too worried about the title, sounds like Georgia is pretty flexible. Also worst case sometimes someone with a dealers license can help you with the title. Being as you got it so cheap and its solid it would be worth the trouble IF necessary.

butchsuppe
02-21-2010, 12:47 AM
Great save, wish I could get that lucky.

Skligmund
02-21-2010, 04:35 AM
Makes me cry when I read stories like this. I can never find those deals! I thought I was doing good when I spent $1,000 for my non-running Turismo... (it did run when I got it, before I knew better)

Good luck with the car, and make the most of it for me. :D

GLHSKEN
02-21-2010, 12:04 PM
Very Nice..... Congrats.

mcsvt
02-21-2010, 12:24 PM
Great find! Right place at the right time, the T-M gods were watching out for you :thumb:

raccoon
02-21-2010, 12:50 PM
think how many slip past, straight to the crusher.

RattFink
02-21-2010, 03:00 PM
Update: Went to Wal-mart this morning and bought a cheap 12V emergency tire inflator to air up the tires, I don't have an air compressor right now:( Aired up the tires and pushed it outside. The wife and little boy helped me wash it up and scrub all the mold off. My wife is all excited and can't believe we got such a good deal on it. Got the neighbor over and he made a key for me, I now owe him one lol. Hooked up some jumper cables and the thing actually turned over so it's not locked up! That's a good start. It is over full with oil and the coolant appears to be empty... I'm hoping the previous owner drained it before storage but I doubt it. There were 4 1 gallon coolant jugs in the hatch, all filled with water. The fuel gauage was reading below empty, but it probably doesn't work. I went out and got 3 gallons of gas for it. I will probably try to start it after I eat my late lunch, but i'm not gonna get my hopes up. I will post some pictures of it all cleaned up tonight.

I was definatly in the right place at the right time. I've always dreamed of being able to save a car like this and have an awesome story to tell. My dream has come true now.

The interior has some flaws, the center console lid is trashed, the heater control assy fell apart when I was checking out the switches, and the sunvisors/headliner are kinda funky. Are the sunvisors supposed be just plain black plastic? Mine are just plastic with no covering. Also, this may sound dumb, but does the center console open up? I've never so much as ridden in an L-body before let alone own one lol.

contraption22
02-21-2010, 04:20 PM
Nice find! good luck with it!

RattFink
02-21-2010, 06:02 PM
Good news! 3 gallons of new gas and some jumper cables later, I drove the car back into the garage under it's own power! It runs! I didn't run it too long because there is no coolant in it and a gas line broke and was spraying gas everywhere. This is all too good to be true, hopefully I can get a title for it. That will be the next step. Here are some pictures of it cleaned up a little, pictures aren't that great, but the car looks way better with all the mold off lol.

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/Car11-1.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/Car12-1.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/Car13-1.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/Car14-1.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/Car15-1.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/Car16-1.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/Car17.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/Car1-1.jpg

banger68
02-21-2010, 06:03 PM
Nice save! Good deals like this are hard to find nowadays.

blk86trbo
02-21-2010, 07:59 PM
Congrats! You are right, it sure cleaned up nice...exciting project for sure :thumb:

Also, you mentioned the crankcase is overfulll...be careful with running the engine, there may be coolant in the oil!

turbokid
02-21-2010, 08:02 PM
Wow that looks SUPER CLEAN!
Great SAVE!
Sounds like my Laser I found.

CoolV300C
02-21-2010, 08:03 PM
Lucky find - good luck with your project. Looks like you got a pretty sweet deal.

spoolinhard
02-21-2010, 08:08 PM
awesome save! If you need any parts give me a shout, I have a few parts cars. And no, the visors are supposed to me the same color as the headliner.

Matt86
02-21-2010, 10:52 PM
Great save! I'd hate to see such a car end up at the junkyard. I see too many cars as it is that don't belong there.

Local Atlanta member too! I'm in Marietta. If you ever need a hand working on the Shelby....let me know!

Chris W
02-21-2010, 11:24 PM
Nice Save! That's a keeper!! :eek:

The wife too for seeing the value of the car and supporting you with the purchase.:thumb:

Chris-TU

boost geek
02-21-2010, 11:35 PM
Nice car! Don't use it for d.d., keep it in the garage for a fun car. I'm glad mine is retired from d.d. duty, always thought some shmuck would rear end me or something...

RattFink
02-27-2010, 10:46 PM
I most definatly won't use this car as a daily driver, no worries there! My first plans are going to be just getting it back to good stock running / somewhat dependable condition. Money is a little tight right now so there will be no major performance upgrades. I called the tow truck driver back today to see if I could get any more info on the car. Apparently the guy that owned it got it from a friend 10 years ago and it was in need of a head gasket. He never got the title transfered so it is still in his friends name, who was the original owner. He then parked it at his mom's house with all his other cars and forgot about it. Fast forward ten years, the guy now lives in Maryland and his mom kept getting complaints from the county about having too much junk, so he just called a wrecker to get everything towed away intead of trying to sell anything, that when I found it. I'm not too worried about a title though because apparently if a car is 25 years old in GA you just need a bill of sale to register it, so I will just wait a year and be good to go. I went out to the garage today and decided I would fill up the radiator with water and run it for a bit. Filled it up and found water leaking... out of the oil pan gasket :( Definatly will need some major work, all the water went into the crankcase. I was debating on pulling the head off but noticed the puddle of transmission fluid under my daily driver just getting bigger so I decided to set my priorities and fix that first.

tommyturbo
02-27-2010, 11:06 PM
I'm so glad to see you save that car! it looks solid and worth fixing! And your wife sounds like a saint for not hasseling you on it and helping you out with it!

By the way , what is it about mold on cars in the south? I lived in Savannah for 4 years and noticed it on cars alot down there. Being a native cali guy I had never seen that before.

rx2mazda
02-27-2010, 11:07 PM
nice save!

86seeS
02-28-2010, 03:33 AM
great save man ill be watching this thread for sure

RattFink
03-06-2010, 01:05 AM
Had a long week and needed to relax, so I went out into the garage for a couple hours tonight lol. Started taking the head off the Charger to see what the damage is. Got it mostly apart, just need to take off the exhaust, a couple fuel lines, and the valve cover and head bolts. I must say though, I love southern cars! No hassle with anything so far, except that I broke just about every vacuum line on the thing. No biggie. Tomorrow I will probably finish pulling the head off after I change the trans fluid in my wife's car... I've been putting that off for awhile now. Will update sometime this weekend.

Abkshelby
03-06-2010, 10:52 PM
Thanks for saving such a nice car from being crushed or sold for parts.

Birddog
03-07-2010, 09:43 AM
Sweet find! I've had dreams of that exact scenario!! Having a year to work on it should ease the $$ burden a bit too..
I'm going to check out a black/silver SC locally next week thats sitting in a similar situation.. It may be the last L body in northern Il Turbodave dosent own...

RattFink
03-13-2010, 09:55 PM
Well, last weekend turned into a bust. Was gonna go junkyarding with Matt86 but some family stuff came up, sorry to bail man! Was also hoping to get the head off the Charger but that didn't hapen either. To top it off, my garage door came off the tracks and the spring unwound last Sunday, so now that needs to be fixed :mad: I did get a chance to build a workbench so my stuff isn't scattered everywhere. That will make things alot easier. I went out last night and got the exhaust downpipe off, removed the timing belt, and removed all the oil and coolant lines. Literally I just have to take the valve cover off and then the head bolts. Not sure if I will work on it tomorrow as I'm not feeling to good this weekend. Here are some pictures from last weekend.

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car118.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car113.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car112.jpg
High performance Daytona ES work bench!

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car11-2.jpg
The other Dodges in the family, both 2.4's :evil:

JohnnyIroc
03-13-2010, 10:29 PM
wow that is a very deep garage! how big is that?
cars looking great!

RattFink
03-13-2010, 10:34 PM
Not too sure on the specs of the garage. Our landlord said he built it so he could store his boats. Works out good for me though! I can pretty much cram two cars end to end and still close the door lol. When my wife and I were looking for a house to rent, one of my must haves was a big garage. She found the house and liked it, and I liked the garage!

Matt86
03-13-2010, 11:13 PM
We can always go for some Junkyard action later this month. I have to finish the front end work on the Acclaim tomorow but maybe next weekend assuming this rain crap is gone. Plus they might have some new inventory in.

I love the garage and the work bench! I wish I had a garage of my own.

Also dig the dual cloud cars!

RattFink
03-21-2010, 07:12 PM
Well, I finally got the cylinder head off today. I have never seen such a blown head gasket! I can't beleive the car ran. Everything else looks pretty good though. The block and head look ok as far as I can tell visually. The turbo shaft has minimal play, no up and down, a little side to side, spins freely with no noise. There was a tag on the throttle body that said "Garrett Factory Remanufactured." I guess the turbo was replaced at one point, and I'm assuming that the head must have been off for that. If that's the case maybe somebody did a bad job on the headgasket? Just trying to piece together the puzzle. Here are some pics.

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car1-2.jpg
Cam is pretty rusty and nasty looking.

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car-1.jpg
Block.

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/car2-1.jpg
Headgasket as it came off.

I'm gonna take everything off the head and clean up all the pieces. I will take the head to work and check it with a straight edge. If it checks out ok I will probably take it to the place we get our heads at work done. My boss says they cut us a good deal to go through the head completely. Found this add on craigslist locally too, i'm kinda tempted to make an offer. I e-mailed the guy for some more info.

"I have a 2.2 turbo stock cylinder head, ported intake manifold, ported exhaust manifold, throttle body, fuel injectors, & fuel pump. Head is off a 86 Omni GLH. All other parts came from Lambrose Race Engineering. I still have the reiecpt from when I bought the parts. The head is used but nothing was wrong with it when I took it off, upgraded to a better head. All other parts have never been installed, they are new and still in the box. Make me an offer. I do not have any pictures but contact me if you are seriously interested."

I will keep updating as I go along.

blk86trbo
03-21-2010, 08:16 PM
Keep it up man, your halfway there to getting it going :thumb:

Matt86
03-26-2010, 10:21 PM
Man that head gasket is nasty! I did one on a 2.2 S-10 a while back that was almost that bad. It was totally blown out across all the cylinders because the bloke who did the head job a year ago reused the old bolts.

Keep up the progress! Hopefully the weather will finally make up its mind and be nice this weekend. I'm tired of this 45 degrees, then 75 degrees then rain days.

amoparx
03-26-2010, 10:59 PM
Nice find. On behalf of Turbo Dodge guys everywhere, Thank-You! That gasket went out on the corner that usually goes first. Usually not that bad though. I can see why the engine was filling with water.

turbokid
03-27-2010, 12:29 AM
Wow that is hella blown.
But definitely keep trucking and keep up the good work!

RattFink
05-03-2010, 10:37 PM
Well, last month was crazy and I didn't have much time to work on the Charger :( Had to make an unplanned trip back to MI for a family emergency, and work has been crazy too. Anyway, I contacted the machine shop that does our cylinder heads at work, and they quoted me $175 to completely re-build the head. Seems like a good deal to me, will just have to save up some money before I can get that done. While saving I decided to start work on the interior since it won't cost much to get looking good. I will probably start a thread in the interior section for some tips/advice on that. One thing I did do over the weekend was customize my gas cap. I didn't have a key to fit the gas cap when I got the car, so I had to drill out the lock cylinder. I took the gas cap apart Sunday and removed the lock cylinder completely, which pretty much makes the gas cap stay in the un-locked position. I then installed a thin piece of black plastic where the lock cylinder was. Not perfect but will work for now, probably not too easy to find a gas cap with matching key nowadays.

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/DSCF1645.jpg

OneOfMany
05-04-2010, 12:53 PM
Just caught this thread, and wow.. talk about right place, right time! Always loved these, and it looks to be in great condition. There was one being stored locally where I used to store one of my projects, but the owner obviously was paying for nothing. Heck, I was the one that kept pulling the weeds from around it, and covering it up, even rolling up the window! Would have tried to buy it, but was mucho rusto

Grant

bradp
05-04-2010, 01:12 PM
What part of ATL are you in? I have a good frien that lives in Newnan that's a transplant from MI too and he's owned a few TD's. I used to live in Conyers and Lawrenceville.

Captain Chaos
05-04-2010, 01:20 PM
Nice snag! Hope the title thing works out for you. I wouldn't spend too much until you're sure its going to be yours and legal.

minigts
05-04-2010, 07:26 PM
I too just saw this. Great to hear about something like this, although I'm jealous you got SUCH a good deal. I've been scouring the Internet for a $500'ish Charger that is fixable and no luck. :( Keep up the good work!

Matt86
05-04-2010, 08:02 PM
Glad to see some progress man! You haven't had an update in a while...getting worried I may have to "adopt" that Charger! :)

RattFink
05-04-2010, 09:35 PM
bradp - I am located in Marietta Ga, a little bit north of Atlanta.

minigts - There was a guy down here selling a black 85 or 86 Shelby Charger awhile back. He lists turbo dodge stuff on craigslist about once a month. His current ad is showing cars I've seen listed before, so he might still have the charger. I can call and ask him if you want. IIRC it needed an engine but he was including one in the sale. He didn't want much either, maybe 800 bucks.

Matt - You're welcome to come work on it anytime! We still need to hang out sometime. Things have calmed down a bit so I'm open on weekends again lol.

minigts
05-04-2010, 11:09 PM
bradp - I am located in Marietta Ga, a little bit north of Atlanta.

minigts - There was a guy down here selling a black 85 or 86 Shelby Charger awhile back. He lists turbo dodge stuff on craigslist about once a month. His current ad is showing cars I've seen listed before, so he might still have the charger. I can call and ask him if you want. IIRC it needed an engine but he was including one in the sale. He didn't want much either, maybe 800 bucks.

Matt - You're welcome to come work on it anytime! We still need to hang out sometime. Things have calmed down a bit so I'm open on weekends again lol.

Man find out something. I really need a car, although I'm looking at some cars in MI (Conquest), but I'd take a tiny project car to transplant! If he has anything for sale, I'd be interested to find out what.


Thanks man and keep working on the car, it will be awesome!

Matt86
05-05-2010, 12:43 AM
Matt - You're welcome to come work on it anytime! We still need to hang out sometime. Things have calmed down a bit so I'm open on weekends again lol.


Very true! The yardage has been pretty crappy lately at the Pull-a-Parts, but Pick-a-Part has an intact 89 T-2 Lebaron GTC and a few other turbo mopars.

RattFink
07-11-2010, 08:13 PM
Not much headway on the car itself, but good news on the title. I finally figured out exactly what I need to do to get a legit title for the car. Basically a 4 step process.

1) get a title bond, I found a local company do get me a legit bond for $125

2) fill out some papers and get them notarized, found out my boss at work's wife works at a bank and can notarize anything I need.

3) have a police officer come out and inspect the vehicle and fill out some paperwork, I have all needed paperwork printed off and ready to go.

4) bring all above items to tag office and apply for title in my name and pay $18

Basically I have everything I need set up, just have to do it! I ran a carfax today and ran the VIN at the NICB.org website. The car appears to be clean and not stolen or anything, so that's good. I plan on having an officer come out this week to inspect the car, and as long as that goes good, I will then purchase the title bond. My wife and son are on vacation all week with her family, so it gives me some free time to get everything done. I might borrow my father-in-laws pressure washer and blast the entire car. All the broken interior parts are removed and a list made of what I need. I am going to MI to visit my family at the end of the month, and plan on hitting a very good Junkyard with my dad, hopefully I will find everything I need interior-wise as I know they have tons of TD's.

On a side note, I sadly missed a good deal on an entire engine for the car. Found on craigslist "1986 dodge 2.2 engine removed from totaled car many years ago. Car had 36,000 miles when removed. Spins over freely. $300" Would have been a great deal, but add was gone today. :(

86seeS
07-12-2010, 03:08 PM
great news man hope all works out for you keep the posts coming

RattFink
09-07-2010, 05:18 PM
Well, I have all the interior pieces I need except the center console arm rest. I may have to try and re-cover that piece myself. I just had a police officer, literally 5 minutes ago, come out and inspect the car and fill out the required paperwork. No issues with the inspection and the officer seemed pretty cool and thought it was a cool car. I may apply for the title bond tonight, that way I can buy it when I get paid Thurs!

blk86trbo
09-08-2010, 10:29 AM
That's awesome news, best of luck and congrats!

RattFink
09-28-2010, 08:02 PM
The TM gods are watching out for me. More updates to come later, but I basically just got the entire top end off an 88 T1 daytona for $50. The BRAND new head was installed, engine started knocking, and car driven home and parked 2 years ago. Basically the head I just bought has less than 20 miles on it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

RattFink
09-28-2010, 09:37 PM
Craigslist add said "1987 Shelby Daytona parts for sale."
I called to see what all the guy had. Basically, he's and old school TD guy and bought this daytona to put a V8 out of a Shelby Dakota into. He wanted to see the engine parts go to a good home. Supposedly, he picked the car up from a mechanic, who put a brand new cylinder head on the car, and then the customer never payed, so the car sat. He saw the car sitting there, and picked it up. He actually drove it home, and the bottem end developed a small knock. I asked if he'd just sell the brand new head and for how much. He told me "whatever you can afford, I just want to see somebody use it." I was stoked. Went and picked it up today. Must have been an 88 because it doesn't have a log intake. Basically I got a brand new head and a good start to a T2 conversion! Also made a friend, he want's to cruise once I get the car done.

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/head3.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/head2.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/head1.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/head.jpg

WickedShelby88
09-29-2010, 08:54 PM
What may be in your favor is that many TM's get what people think is a knock and its actually wristpin rattle. If there isn't any material in the head or in the cam journal area chances are you had a very good score and it wouldn't be a bad idea to look into the bottom end if your looking to go T2.

RattFink
09-29-2010, 09:13 PM
I'm not sure I'm going to go T2 yet, just want to have the parts around just in case. I would like to get the car running in stock form. I like the idea of an all original resto. I feel like if I'm going to mod a car for speed, I will probably get an ES turbo model or something like that. The head really is in amazing shape. The spark plugs in it look like they just came out of the box lol. Theres an overheat button glued to one side of the head and it says "Dover Cylinder Head" They are a very well known company around here, and are the same company we use at work. I probably will pull the cam this weekend and have a look. Finding this has got me re-motivated!

turbot11
09-29-2010, 09:24 PM
Just saw this thread, congrats on such a sweet find and a great save! Would've been a shame to have seen it go to the yard, I'm glad you were at the right place/right time! I'm gonna keep an eye on this thread, cant wait to see it up and running!

WickedShelby88
09-30-2010, 10:24 PM
Good call on the keeping it an original resto. My friend and his dad raced a while back when his dad had an 87 SC all stock and he had an all stock 88 Shelby Z tona. The log car kept right up with it. An SC can be a fun car and still look original. Glad your going to be able to get the title. That stops too many potential saved survivors all too often.

RattFink
10-02-2010, 07:48 PM
Pulled the cam out today, the came journals look great. Started cleaning the head up a little, no major cracks between the valves. Did find some cracks beetween the cross-drilled hole and the triangular water jacket. From my research, that is no big deal really. My buddy at work who has built alot of engines told me to pull the cam, and pour some parts washing liquid or gas down the intake/exhaust ports to see if the valves and seats seal good. Unfortunatly, mine don't seal at all lol. Head will have to go to machine shop I suppose.

RattFink
11-13-2010, 07:42 PM
All the paperwork to obtain a title is in order. I am heading to the DMV Monday after work! This is almost as exciting as when I got the car! I also borrowed an engine stand from somebody at work and am getting ready to pull the motor. My father-in-law keeps hinting at getting me a propane heater for the garage for x-mas, so it could be a productive winter for the SC. My goal is to drive it on my birthday, April 5, so we'll see how it goes. Expecting my second son at the end of Dec. also, so that will put the Charger on hold lol.

RattFink
11-15-2010, 09:34 PM
Went to title office today, all went well. Title should arrive in the mail in 3-10 days. I am officially the second owner of the car!

RattFink
11-17-2010, 09:09 PM
I'm going to look at a super low mileage 2.2 turbo engine this weekend. Was pulled out of a wrecked lebaron with 36,000 miles on it. Has been sitting around this guys garage for years and now he's selling it. He says it turns over freely still. Comes with turbo, manifolds, injectors, everything. The Charger might be on the road quicker than I thought!

Riverratt
11-17-2010, 09:42 PM
Good luck and great thread!!!!

blk86trbo
11-18-2010, 02:25 AM
Awesome news on the low mileage motor, I hope you are able to score it :thumb:

Juggy
11-18-2010, 11:26 AM
nice car! great price too

RattFink
11-20-2010, 03:00 PM
Picked up the engine today. Just got it home. Supposedly only has 36,000 miles on it. Turns over nicely and looks good under the valve cover. I'll post some pics after I get it on the engine stand.

RattFink
11-21-2010, 12:11 AM
New engine:

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/engine3-1.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/engine1-1.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/engine-1.jpg

RattFink
11-21-2010, 05:32 PM
New motor looks good where it counts. It's gonna get a t-belt, water pump, gaskets, thermostat, and goin in the charger.

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/engine1-2.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/engine11.jpg

blk86trbo
11-21-2010, 06:15 PM
That's great man, glad to hear things are coming together

RattFink
12-22-2010, 02:19 PM
The title finally came in the mail today! The lady at the office said it would take 6-10 days, that came and went. I looked online and it said to wait 4 weeks until contacting somebody. I was actually gonna call today and it came in the mail. I'm so excited. I was kinda getting worried that something went wrong but the car is all mine now and I can prove it! I pulled the old engine out a couple weeks ago. I'm gonna freshen up the new motor after Christmas.

RattFink
04-16-2011, 07:57 PM
Wow, been awhile since I posted! Progress is slow, but it's coming along. I decided to tear down and inspect the engine I bought. All the main bearings looked great so just cleaned and re-installed. 3 rods bearings looked good. Rod bearing on number 3 was a little funky looking. The crank looked good though, so I threw a new bearing on number 3 just for good measure. Bottom end is all together. Oil pan is on, new rear, front, and intermediate shaft seals are installed and block/oil pan painted black. Cylinder walls look good so just gonna run it. I have a new head set, head bolts, water pump, clutch, timing belt and tensioner all sitting on the shelf. As far as the engine goes, the only thing left I need are the turbo lines. The coolant lines look ok, I may re-use them. The oil feed line is pretty messed up, I will probably just get a stock replacement for this build. I want to get the trans out and cleaned up. Will probably install a new input shat seal and call it good. Then engine/trans combo can go back in.

RattFink
09-17-2011, 09:23 AM
Progress has been non-existant lately! First, money was being saved for a vacation, then money got really tight, then the little one had some medical issues, etc. Life happens. Things have calmed down now. The garage became a mess within the last few months. I took last weekend to clean it out really good. I'm gonna try and push the Charger out this weekend and wash it to get all the cob-webs off. I have come to the conclusion in my head that I cannot afford to do the car the way I really want. I am basically gonna throw the engine together using the best parts out of the two and a half engines I have laying around. It will be bone stock and when it is running I can work the kinks out. It does not have to be daily driven so that is not an issue. If the engine I put together goes, I'll have my other engine on the stand getting ready to go in. On a side note, I may be getting a promotion at work. Fingers crossed. It would require a longer commute which would take up more of my time, but the money issue would be helped.

austinlarg
09-17-2011, 01:55 PM
Hey rattfink, this thread has been inspirational haha. I have an 84 Turismo that I've been trying to get going over the past two years. The problem for me is both money and my lack of know how on cars. Its basically a learning process. But its been fun the past half hour reading along on your journey.

RattFink
09-17-2011, 08:53 PM
Glad to have been an inspiration! Lack of money really sucks. I am a mechanic for a living, I know what the car really should have to be done right, but I can't afford all that! That's been a big internal battle for me. Don't worry about your lack of know how, get out there and start wrenching, that's how you learn the best! I pushed the car outside this morning and washed it up. My 4 year old gave me a helping hand. When we were washing it he said, "Daddy, I think the Charger is happy." That really made my day, kid's are awesome. Well, I have most of the parts to get the engine put back together. I'm gonna start on it again next weekend. I find it easier to just do little pieces of the project at a time. Looking at it as a whole is very intimidating. Lots of work to be done...

minigts
09-18-2011, 12:04 PM
Keep working at it, I'm sure it will come out fine. If you need any diagrams for the car, I have the service manuals for my 1985 Charger. I don't know what all the differences were, but I'm fairly certain the electronics for an 85 and 86 are pretty similar, enough so that you can use them.

Post up a current pic or two so we can see it. :)

RattFink
02-05-2012, 04:02 PM
Well, I was out in the garage today cleaning up a bit. I devised a way to use the free transmission jack I picked up to put the engine back on the new/used engine stand I got. I got some new shelving today to help clean things up out there. I had started lapping the valves a few weeks ago but never finished it. Hopefully I can finish up that tedious job soon and then roll along on putting the engine back together. I also got my shift linkage kit, so that can be fixed also. I really am lacking no parts engine/trans wise to get it going, so I have no excuses now!

RattFink
04-11-2012, 08:30 PM
Well... I need some motivation!! I bought upper and lower radiator hoses, they came today from RockAuto. I've got enough in my parts stash to get this project rolling. I also got an engine hoist dropped off today. It is on indefinte loan to me, so that is a bonus too. I can actually put the engine in when it is finished now! I made a little bet with my dad over the weekend also. He is working on a 73 Dodge Challenger. He's hoping to get it road worthy by the end of July, so we have a little race going on.

85boostbox
04-11-2012, 09:17 PM
Get it done!!!!!

turbovanmanČ
04-12-2012, 01:42 PM
Sweet build, :nod:

Are you going to convert to the one piece intake?

RattFink
04-12-2012, 07:26 PM
I plan on keeping the one piece to get the car on the road and start working all the bugs out of the car. It has been sitting for 12 years now, so I'm sure there will be a lot of issues to resolve. After it is running good I will start building the second (original) engine, that way I can start upgrading while driving the car, then just swap the new motor in some weekend. That is the plan as of now, but a 2.4 swap is aways nagging at the back of my mind...

turbovanmanČ
04-12-2012, 08:42 PM
Yeah, 2.4 swap, :nod:

RattFink
03-05-2013, 09:42 PM
It's been awhile! Progress has been slow due to life, but I've seem to found some motivation. The long block is together on the stand, the turbo is at work getting cleaned up for the install, and I ordered some turbo lines from FWD Performance last night.

SilverFleet
03-06-2013, 11:09 AM
I just saw this thread, and it reminded me of my own story with my CSX. I also bought mine in 2010 and it still isn't done. Just keep plugging away at it and you will get there!

RattFink
04-14-2013, 08:59 PM
Progress! The engine is ready to go in and I installed a new input shaft seal on the trans today. I have the shift linkage in my toolbox at work where I am modifying it for the upgraded kit from Great Lakes Hot Rods. The exhaust donut and springs/bolts came from Rockauto this past week, unfortunately they sent the wrong part instead of my O2 sensor so I need to straighten that out. I also got a couple hundred bucks for my birthday so this thing should be running within a few weeks!

RattFink
07-08-2013, 10:24 PM
Progress is slow, but there. The engine is on the floor complete with machined flywheel attached, I just need to put the clutch on. I need to order some motor mounts and misc. parts for the install. The shift linkage is all installed on the car. I just got done pulling the fuel tank. I was hoping to clean it out and re-use, but it's pretty far gone. Rusted from the inside out. The sender and hanger is a mess too, I will have to order all new. Tanks are cheap at RockAuto thankfully. I also pulled the back seat to clean underneath it. I've been making an effort to work on the car consistently and it is coming along.

turismolover22
07-08-2013, 11:54 PM
Hey in some of your first pics, it looks like you had a cs oil cap on it. Looks like it just lost the center cap decal.

Turbo Joe
07-09-2013, 12:01 AM
wow just saw this thread now.. good save ! you got a great deal on that.. when i was stationed at Ft. Benning I would go riding around town all the time looking for stuff like that. I never saw anything though..

RattFink
07-15-2013, 09:10 PM
Engine is sitting in the car, not all buttoned up but it's in!

minigts
07-15-2013, 11:56 PM
Still waiting on some pics of the build, you RattFink! Wait a tick.... :|

RattFink
07-16-2013, 10:21 PM
LOL! I'll try to get some this week. Not too much to see really. I'm wishing I would have detailed the engine bay when the engine was out, but don't have much extra time to do that kind of stuff. I'm thinking I will call this "Project Ratt Rod." Function is greater than form with this build!

- - - Updated - - -

Engine In:
http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/IMG_1040Small.jpg
http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/IMG_1041Small.jpg
http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/IMG_1042Small.jpg

- - - Updated - - -

Interior, still need to do something about the center arm rest:

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/IMG_1044Small.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/IMG_1046Small.jpg

- - - Updated - - -

Fuel pump/tank. If anybody has a good L Body sender let me know.... I hate to buy a whole new assy. when I already have a fuel pump I planned on using.

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/IMG_1069Small.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/IMG_1070Small.jpg

- - - Updated - - -

Rust free underneath!

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/IMG_1071Small.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/IMG_1072Small.jpg

http://i927.photobucket.com/albums/ad118/Mattikus17/IMG_1073Small.jpg

- - - Updated - - -

Finished adjusting the shifter today too, much props to Great Lakes Hot Rods for the awesome shift rod kit!

minigts
07-16-2013, 11:35 PM
That's what I'm talkin' about!!! Keep on it man, glad you're making some progress. Did you check Rock Auto for a tank? I think they sell them and not too expensive from what I've seen people buy. Not sure about L bodies though.

zin
07-17-2013, 02:32 AM
Do what you can, when you can, don't worry about making it pretty just yet (unless it's along the way, like the engine... looking very good there!), just do what needs to be done to get it out and on the road so you can enjoy the fruits of your labor a bit!

Nothing worse than pouring your heart and soul (not to mention precious $$) into a project that never seems to have a real payoff!

Mike

RattFink
07-17-2013, 12:27 PM
$83 plus shipping for a tank from rockauto, very reasonable indeed. I do want to enjoy this car I'm sick of it sitting in the garage!

Sent from my LG-VS700 using Tapatalk 2

RattFink
07-21-2013, 03:01 PM
All motors mounts/brackets in and tight. All bellhousing bolts in. I'm going to try and convince my wife that we can fit a fuel tank in the budget this week lol. I'm also chasing a lead on a used fuel pump hanger so I can use the pump I already have. Next weekend I will bolt the downpipe up, install O2 sensor, and install the starter. I may be able to turn it over next weekend!

zin
07-22-2013, 10:39 PM
Awesome!! keep the momentum up as best you can, you're almost there!

Mike

RattFink
07-27-2013, 09:25 PM
No work done this weekend, too busy with other things! I am going to order the gas tank tomorrow for sure though. I may also hit the junkyard after work this week to try and find a Nippon-denso starter.

RattFink
10-06-2013, 06:01 PM
A lot of things going on lately, been too busy for the car! I got out there today and installed the starter, bolted up the exhaust downpipe, and installed the O2 sensor. Next weekend: remove passenger side axle and fix the ripped boot, install wiring and new battery, hook up oil pressure gauge and spin it over.

zin
10-06-2013, 09:01 PM
Good to hear progress, just keep "picking" at it! It'll be on the road in no time!

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

Good to hear progress, just keep "picking" at it! It'll be on the road in no time!

Mike

RattFink
10-13-2013, 12:02 AM
Well, got the starter/wiring all hooked up. I spun it over finally! Next question, how long do you need to crank it over to register oil pressure on a mechanical gauge? I hooked up a brand new OTC oil pressure gauge to the oil pressure sender block on the front of the engine and spun it over a good bit, my gauge hasn't budged. I'm kind of worried, but the engine was torn all the way down so I am not sure how long it takes turning the engine over to prime the system.

86Shelby
10-13-2013, 01:06 AM
Pull the spark plugs and disconnect the HEP to help it crank easier. It should register oil pressure within 20 seconds or so.

zin
10-13-2013, 01:46 AM
You might want to spin the IM shaft with a drill until you see oil pressure, it'll spin the pump faster and not have any danger of wiping the bearings or killing the battery.

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

You might want to spin the IM shaft with a drill until you see oil pressure, it'll spin the pump faster and not have any danger of wiping the bearings or killing the battery.

Mike

slasky
10-13-2013, 08:52 AM
You might have to prime the oil pump. You can pull off the oil filer and pour some oil down the hole in the block that leads to the pump.

RattFink
10-13-2013, 05:33 PM
Good tips everyone, thanks much. The battery is pretty drained already so I will take it to work tomorrow and charge it. It was sitting un-used for a long time. I was able to pick up a Chilton Repair Manual at the local library book sale today for a mere 50 cents. "Omni, Horizon, Rampage 1978-1989." It has a picture of a silver/blue Shelby Charger on the front! This will be a nice quick reference for in the garage. I will take the passenger side axle to work this week and install a new outer boot on my lunch break. Also, I will finish plumbing the fuel lines under the hood this week. Soooo close to running it, just need to order a fuel pump and some other misc. items.

RattFink
10-13-2013, 06:00 PM
Just pulled plugs and primed pump as stated, couldn't wait lol! Got 45 psi after cranking about 15 seconds.

zin
10-13-2013, 11:29 PM
Great news! It'll be on the road in no time!

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

Great news! It'll be on the road in no time!

Mike

RattFink
10-16-2013, 09:21 PM
Alright. Yesterday I charged the battery at work and installed a new boot on the passenger side outer cv joint while on my lunch break. I also picked up some fuel line and clamps to re-plumb all the rotten lines. The main piece I was lacking was the fuel pump assembly and money is always tight so I got a little creative. I brought the old assembly to work and was able to clean it up pretty nicely. The float and fuel level sensor were too far gone, so I just cut it all off and will go without a fuel gauge for a little while. I had a known good fuel pump out of a GMC truck sitting in my tool box, so I modified the hanger and attached it, wired, and plumbed it up. I installed this Frankenstein unit into my new fuel tank this evening. I also installed the new fill tube grommet and rollover/vapor valve into the new tank. Tomorrow I will pick up some rubberized undercoating to spray on the top of the tank and then it will be ready for install.

zin
10-17-2013, 11:34 AM
Sounds like you'll be shaking her down this weekend!

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

Sounds like you'll be shaking her down this weekend!

Mike

RattFink
10-18-2013, 11:38 PM
Successful night! Passenger side axle re-installed, under hood rubber fuel lines re-done, RH motor mount tightened up, all brackets/suspension on RH side re-installed, found and repaired front sway bar that was about to fall out, re-installed coil, removed charcoal canister, both axle nuts re-installed, front tires back on, LH plastic splash shield re-installed, misc. a/c hardware and brackets removed. Hopefully I can install the fuel tank, plugs, wires, and vacuum lines this weekend yet. Note to myself: get new cotter pins for the axle nuts and RH tie rod. Also, I'm not sure how I ever got by without an electric impact wrench. I highly recommend the sears 19.2 volt 3/8 drive, very good bang for the buck.

zin
10-19-2013, 10:53 AM
I'll second the handiness of cordless impacts! My next one will be the highest torque /smallest form factor unit I can find/afford.

I like them so much, I'm disappointed when I can't fit it in when I want to use it!

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

I'll second the handiness of cordless impacts! My next one will be the highest torque /smallest form factor unit I can find/afford.

I like them so much, I'm disappointed when I can't fit it in when I want to use it!

Mike

RattFink
10-19-2013, 02:16 PM
Compression: 140 140 140 120 retested number 4 and it was a little lower than the first time but battery was getting low. This is on a cold engine that hasn't run since 89 so we'll see how it runs... oil pressure was hitting 60 psi during compression test. Getting close to starting it. Found some damaged wires to the coil I need to fix and still need to install alternator and fuel tank.

85boostbox
10-19-2013, 02:45 PM
Dump a little sea foam or marvel down into cylinder 4 when you go to start it. Might help the rings reseat themselves.

RattFink
10-20-2013, 02:21 PM
Plugs and wires on, coil wiring soldered back together and installed, alternator and belt installed. Not sure it will run today, my wife has a work thing going on so I'm in charge of our 3 little hooligans today lol.

RattFink
11-03-2013, 01:35 PM
Well, the fuel tank is up on a jack and in place. I was having a hard time getting the nuts on the straps started last night so I just left it up on the jack. I did install the fill tube and 4.5 gallons of gas, I ran some quick fuel lines and tried starting it. No luck there, I need to check for spark. I also have a fuel leak to take care of. Does anybody know what the stock fuel pressure should be on this car?

slasky
11-05-2013, 01:17 PM
Well, the fuel tank is up on a jack and in place. I was having a hard time getting the nuts on the straps started last night so I just left it up on the jack. I did install the fill tube and 4.5 gallons of gas, I ran some quick fuel lines and tried starting it. No luck there, I need to check for spark. I also have a fuel leak to take care of. Does anybody know what the stock fuel pressure should be on this car?
55 psi with the vacuum hose disconnected.

RattFink
11-06-2013, 07:34 PM
It runs! Still some bugs to work out but it is officially running.

zin
11-06-2013, 08:36 PM
OUTSTANDING!!:thumb:

Hope you are enjoying it! There will be plenty of "bugs" to work out (hopefully no actual bugs!), hopefully they are manageable and don't interfere too much with your enjoyment.

Mike

RattFink
11-09-2013, 09:03 PM
Drove it out of the garage today. Issues: runs poor has a dead miss, can't shift into reverse, misc. Items to take care of still. Here's a pic:http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/11/10/4yduzage.jpg

zin
11-10-2013, 01:16 AM
Judging by the critter by the front wheel, the "Kitty magnet" isn't broken .... very nice!

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

Judging by the critter by the front wheel, the "Kitty magnet" isn't broken .... very nice!

Mike

RattFink
11-13-2013, 11:20 PM
Lol the cat magnet is definately not broken! Alright so today I used a stethoscope to find that injector 3 is not firing. Test light shows power to injector, noid light doesn't flash so no ground. Its in the injector harness for sure. I've got another harness in better shape but I didn't use it because the connector on the car side is different, from a lebaron I think. Regardless every connector on this car is trash because nobody cared about weatherpack connectors back then I guess lol. I'm gonna snag both sides of a 5 or 6? Pin connector from a salvage vehicle and wire it up to the car and injector harness. I also dug an old mastertech up which has all the right software and connections to hook up to the charger. I tried it out but it wouldn't communicate so I need to look into that too. Probably more wiring problems lol. Also, I've got some thick black goo dripping from the muffler. Most likely from the previous engine failure many years ago as the car isn't smoking or anything. I still haven't run it too long because the cooling system isn't quite finished.

RattFink
11-14-2013, 11:47 PM
Wiring fixed seems to run a little better. Still need a new cap and rotor and to set timing.

zin
11-15-2013, 01:41 AM
Timing could make a pretty big difference, as a quick "fix" for the cap and rotor, you can dress the rotor tip with Emory cloth, same for the wires/distributor contacts. Not a Long term fix, but doesn't cost and will show an improvement.

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

Timing could make a pretty big difference, as a quick "fix" for the cap and rotor, you can dress the rotor tip with Emory cloth, same for the wires/distributor contacts. Not a Long term fix, but doesn't cost and will show an improvement.

Mike

RattFink
11-16-2013, 11:19 PM
Cleaned up the cap and rotor, no change. Set the timing to 12* with temp sensor unplugged, idles a little better but still missing bad and stumbles/whole engine shakes when you give it gas. Pulled wires one at a time. Car about dies when you pull wires one or two, no change when you pull three or four. I've got two dead cylinders, hopefully nothing serious :( plug three is dry and has black soot, plug 4 is wet.

RattFink
11-16-2013, 11:47 PM
Laying in bed thinking about it and remembered 3 and 4 are next to eachother in firing order. Ran outside real quick and sure enough.... I had the plug wires switched, epic fail! :banghead:

zin
11-17-2013, 01:11 PM
Also "epic fix", I bet she runs great now! (Or at least a whole lot better!

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

Also "epic fix", I bet she runs great now! (Or at least a whole lot better!

Mike

RattFink
11-17-2013, 02:17 PM
Yeah its better, cyl 3 still isn't hitting, no change when you pull the plug wire. That plug is dry to so I'm thinking maybe that injector is junk from sitting so long.

zin
11-17-2013, 06:16 PM
Possibly, try some sea foam and check the harness, or move the injector to a different cylinder to see if the dead hole "follows".

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

Possibly, try some sea foam and check the harness, or move the injector to a different cylinder to see if the dead hole "follows".

Mike

RattFink
11-18-2013, 10:43 PM
Ugh, well I swapped another injector in from my spare pile, no change. The injector is pulsing on my noid light, I have spark at the wire when I remove it for a power balance test. The plug is dry, and I can't here the injector "clicking" with my mechanics stethoscope. With the stethoscope on the other three injectors you can here that nice dull thud of them working. I may have a terminal tension issue I suppose. I was hoping to get it running good before we left to go to Michigan this coming Saturday, but I don't think I will be able to find the time. I'm literally going out in the garage for 20 minutes at a time right now lol. Anyway, I don't think it's anything too serious, time will tell.

zin
11-19-2013, 02:39 PM
Move one of the known good injectors to the "dead hole" to see if that brings that cylinder back to life. If it doesn't, it's not the mechanical side of things, but more likely a bad connection.

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

Move one of the known good injectors to the "dead hole" to see if that brings that cylinder back to life. If it doesn't, it's not the mechanical side of things, but more likely a bad connection.

Mike

RattFink
12-07-2013, 02:48 PM
Alright so I dug out an old otc injector tester we had laying around at work and borrowed it for the weekend. Injector 3 wasn't working at all when tested. I hooked the tester up to some spare injectors and none of them worked, I was starting to think the tester was junk lol. Anyway I hooked it up to one of the good injectors on the engine and it worked, so I hooked it back up to cyl 3 and about halfway through a test the injector started working. I retested it and it worked through the whole test. Started the car up, runs pretty good now, hitting on all 4. Idles high and smokes a little, probably running rich still some bugs to work out but a step in the right direction.

RattFink
12-07-2013, 02:48 PM
http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/12/08/ahydapab.jpg. Here's the tester I used.

RattFink
01-04-2014, 03:23 PM
Got the shift linkage figured out, backed the car out of the garage ;). I also installed a new cap/rotor, re-installed the back seat, and installed a newer style stock Chrysler CD player. Sadly it appears to not read cd's anymore, but the radio works fine. Some parts are in from RockAuto so hopefully I can get the cooling system installed soon and actually let it run awhile.

zin
01-04-2014, 04:39 PM
'NICE!! Keep it up, you're making great progress!

That's going to be a fine ride in short order.

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

'NICE!! Keep it up, you're making great progress!

That's going to be a fine ride in short order.

Mike

blk86trbo
01-04-2014, 06:41 PM
Yeah this is going to be a nice ride!

RattFink
01-05-2014, 04:48 PM
Thanks guys! It wasn't too cold today so I went out and installed the PS belt, getting closer every day! My goal is to get it drive-able by my birthday in early April and then start enjoying it a little bit. My biggest hurdle is going to be affording tires, but tax time is right around the corner :).

zin
01-05-2014, 09:35 PM
I hear ya! I've been there, been more than once I was happy to just have tires that were round and held air!

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

I hear ya! I've been there, been more than once I was happy to just have tires that were round and held air!

Mike

RattFink
01-18-2014, 06:37 PM
I just cleaned the garage out and decided to tinker a little bit while I was out there. I just re-installed the radiator, a new thermostat, and the upper rad hose. I might go out later and install the lower hose. I'm thinking I might not even hook up the heater core at this point as I'm afraid it will leak and the car will probably only get driven in the summer. I can always hook it up or replace it later on, I just want the car to be road worthy!

zin
01-19-2014, 02:10 AM
Keep picking away at it, before you know it, you're on the road with a big grin!

Mike

RattFink
03-02-2014, 08:43 PM
I buttoned up the cooling system today and let the car run for awhile. I don't think the temp gauge works, but the fan came on every now and then and everything seemed ok. The car idles poor, but I did a couple runs up/down the driveway and on the gas it runs great, the engine feels really strong. I was chirping the tires without even trying :) I've got a to do list of things that need some finishing touches under the hood, then I'll start working on the brakes/tires.

zin
03-02-2014, 11:41 PM
IT'S ALIVE!!!!

Sorry, couldn't resist!

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

IT'S ALIVE!!!!

Sorry, couldn't resist!

Mike

RattFink
03-19-2014, 10:24 PM
I've been busy! Working on a lot of friends cars lately. The Charger has been mobile in and out of the garage lol! I'm going to call and get insurance on it tomorrow, then go get some tags in early April. A friend is working on trying to hook me up with a free paint job, hopefully that works out :)

zin
03-20-2014, 11:01 AM
Paint will make a big difference, always nice to work on cars that look good too!

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

Paint will make a big difference, always nice to work on cars that look good too!

Mike

RattFink
06-18-2014, 10:05 PM
Installed another PS belt, first one was too short. Ran a basic vacuum line setup that looks good, built and installed a new fuel injector harness, and made a nice little to do list.

RattFink
06-22-2014, 11:33 AM
Ran my pcv setup, fixed the sticky throttle cable, secured soe more wiring.

zin
06-22-2014, 09:53 PM
Keep chipping away, before long your biggest challenge will be keeping it clean!

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

Keep chipping away, before long your biggest challenge will be keeping it clean!

Mike

RattFink
06-28-2014, 03:24 PM
I re-installed the hood today. Also, I removed the alternator wiring harness to take to work and clean up on my lunch breaks next week. The power module was removed last week and I took it to work to try and come up with a better way to do the connectors on it. I found the female pin of a weather pack fits very snug on the PM terminals. Anybody interested on seeing what I come up with on the PM can follow this thread: http://www.turbo-mopar.com/forums/showthread.php?75283-Power-Module-Connectors-L-Body&highlight=

minigts
06-28-2014, 03:56 PM
If you find a plug that fits in the stock PM socket and has replaceable terminals, I'm all eyes and ears.

RattFink
07-06-2014, 04:37 PM
After hours online with no luck, I decided to go out and try to clean up the stock connector at the power module. The PM was removed, taken apart, and cleaned. On the connectors I sprayed them with electrical cleaner and scrubbed the tops with a small wire brush, sprayed them some more and used a little pick to bend the contact points on all the female terminals back in to make a tight connection. I then cleaned everything again, applied dielectric grease around the outside of the connector, and some stabilant on the terminals. I am actually really pleased with how it turned out and am confident it will work good until a betterr solution is possible.

RattFink
07-10-2014, 11:42 PM
Alt. Harness back in, started it up a bit. Didn't feel like sleeping. Im happy with all the wiring now.

RattFink
08-03-2014, 03:53 PM
Alright, I've been picking away at the to do list! Today I removed the rear brakes. I have new wheel cylinders/shoes/hardware/adjusters already. The drums are in good shape and I will probably turn them at work this week. I removed the entire backing plates so I can just take everything to work and clean up, repair, and replace everything on my hour long lunch break that gets boring lol. I need to order wheel seals and a master cylinder still. I also grabbed a spare TPS and IAC to try and clean up/repair wiring on to fix the poor idle/wanting to stall when returning to idle issue.

zin
08-04-2014, 11:06 AM
Check rock auto, lots of blow out prices on this era cars, particularly breaks...

Mike

RattFink
08-10-2014, 09:00 AM
New rear brake hoses installed, spindles removed and cleaned, backing plates removed cleaned and painted, spindles and backing plates reinstalled with new wheel cylinders shoes and hardware. I just ordered two new wheel seals from rock auto so I can repack the bearings. I'm gonna source new drums also as the old ones were too far gone. It's soo nice that this car is not rusty, didn't fight any of the brake lines :)

zin
08-10-2014, 12:49 PM
It's nice when you can afford to completely redo the rear breaks, everything clean and like new!

Oh, and they stop like new too.

Check rock auto under other make/model/years for the drums, they're the same for many years, so you'll likely find some on close out for cheap! Just know what diameter you need, there were a couple of different sizes.

Mike

- - - Updated - - -

It's nice when you can afford to completely redo the rear breaks, everything clean and like new!

Oh, and they stop like new too.

Check rock auto under other make/model/years for the drums, they're the same for many years, so you'll likely find some on close out for cheap! Just know what diameter you need, there were a couple of different sizes.

Mike

RattFink
08-10-2014, 01:29 PM
http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/08/11/sanaveva.jpghttp://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/08/11/a8ypajym.jpg

Very happy with how it all turned. Rock auto has been great, I've bought almost all the parts for this car there. They do have cheap drums but shipping is killer, may just go local for drums and rotors.

RattFink
10-30-2014, 06:21 PM
Progress is slow lately. I'm back in school, working full time, and three kids! I'm gonna try and get the brakes totally done before December so I can move it around again.

zin
10-30-2014, 09:57 PM
Just budget a hour here and there, maybe once or twice a week. Stick to your time-table and the sense of urgency will have you finished in no time, and, since you're not under the gun to "make it run so I can go to work", when times up, leave it be and walk away!

While this project is clearly (and rightly) towards the bottom of the priorities list, we can almost always find an hour here and there, especially if the time spent is enjoyable.

At any rate, it's looking good, and I hope you can maintain a bit of headway on it.

Mike

RattFink
03-12-2015, 03:54 PM
Well... I had set aside some tax money for new tires, BUT I got myself a hefty $300 dollar traffic ticket so tires are going to have to wait. I did re-pack the rear wheel bearings and re-installed the rear hubs today. I will order my brake drums soon.

zin
03-12-2015, 09:25 PM
Keep at it, sounds like you're making good progress! As a bonus, lots of parts for these cars are CHEAP on RockAuto.Com, as many are "closeouts". New drums for less than $20.00 each, etc. Lots of carryovers from other cars too...

Mike

RattFink
03-14-2015, 09:38 AM
Hmm... With 20% off and free shipping at Advance Auto online, needed parts are only $7 more than Rockauto. Returns would be much easier if needed as I could go in store. As much as I love Rockauto, may have to change it up a bit! Does anybody know the rear wheel bearing preload on an 86 charger? My manual says 20-25 lb/ft but that seems too tight!

zin
03-14-2015, 12:51 PM
Sounds about right, you don't want to distort the carrier, etc, just hold them in place firmly.

Mike

135sohc
03-14-2015, 01:17 PM
No,no,no!!!

You torque the nut while spinning the drum/hub in the opposite direction to seat the bearings, hold the drum/hub stationary and flip your ratchet into reverse and break the nut loose then retighten the nut finger tight or even just a touch more if you cannot get the locking cage to line up with the cotter pin hole in the spindle. Those bearings will smoke themselves if there torqued anything much beyond finger tight and driven that way:eek:

RattFink
03-14-2015, 01:58 PM
I torqued to 25 lb ft while turning hub in opposite direction then backed off and went finger tight. They just feel kind of tight, take more effort to spin than you'd think. I double checked the torque spec on prodemand and it's the same so I guess it's good.

RattFink
03-15-2015, 11:43 AM
I installed the wheel and spun it, it feels fine I think I am stressing too much lol. I just placed the order for the brake drums so should be able to install the drums and put the back wheels on this week. Hopefully I will have time to tear into the front brakes next weekend. The daily driver needs some work too so we will see.

RattFink
04-04-2015, 10:11 AM
I re-built the front calipers at work last week. This is my first time attempting this, so we will see how it works out! The new drums are installed on the back of the car so the rear brakes are all done. I already have new pads and hoses for the front to install. I've got some rockauto gift cards for my birthday so new rotors and master cylinder will be here next week!! This should finish up the brake system. The to do list is getting smaller!

RattFink
04-06-2015, 10:34 PM
Alright so I just ordered 2 front brake rotors, 1 master cylinder, 2 outer door handles, wiper blades, lift supports, and all wiper linkage bushings from Rockauto! Parts will be flowing in all week woot woot! My wife also got me a boost gauge for my birthday and I am already busy deciding/planning where/how to install it. It is going to be a good year for the Charger!

zin
04-07-2015, 10:50 AM
Outstanding! Its come quite a long way, hope have some "before" pictures to illustrate just how far.

Sounds like will be cruising it this summer. :thumb:

Mike

RattFink
04-07-2015, 06:21 PM
http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/15/04/07/c1218b0b240f2af64f7cb8a2eb4682ec.jpg
Boost gauge mockup

RattFink
04-12-2015, 10:56 AM
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/04/12/4a831ed4e2f23cf85671692702819fe1.jpg

zin
04-12-2015, 11:23 AM
Brakes-a-plenty! ☺

But they don't help much off the car...

Mike

RattFink
04-12-2015, 04:17 PM
Just showing off my boost clock http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/04/12/55e32add451b74804e4728e9b1c045d6.jpg

RattFink
04-13-2015, 05:41 PM
Brakes-a-plenty! ☺

But they don't help much off the car...

Mike

No they don't! I went to start installing things and realized I ordered brake pads for an n/a! I just ordered the right ones. I also picked up some misc. things locally, master cylinder bench bleed kit, copper washers for front hoses, brake clean, etc. Once these pads get here then I may pull a late night next weekend putting it together.

RattFink
05-02-2015, 09:33 PM
I just installed front rotos/pads/calipers/hoses just need two copper washers for RH caliper. If time permits tomorrow will install the new master cylinder and swing by the parts store for the washers.

RattFink
05-03-2015, 11:12 PM
Master cylinder installed, rf line installed, just need to bleed everything and the brakes are done!

zin
05-04-2015, 09:49 AM
Sounds like a road test is in your near future! 😊

Mike

RattFink
05-04-2015, 11:37 PM
Bled the master cylinder and hooked up the lines to it, cracked all 4 bleeders and let it gravity bleed. Fixed a leak at LF caliper and a clog in RF line.

RattFink
05-05-2015, 10:02 PM
Gravity bled the system more, charged the battery and started it up. Pedal feels pretty good hard to tell without driving around but maybe I'll put the wheels back on tomorrow.

RattFink
05-07-2015, 10:54 PM
Back on the ground, backed out of the garage and the brakes actually feel pretty good. I may bleed them once more just make sure but I am happy with how it all turned out. I took apart and cleaned a spare IAC motor and installed it and the engine seems to run much smoother, but now instead of a poor idle I have a high idle. 2500 to 3000 rpm. I have another IAC and tips at work I am cleaning up and building a new wiring harness for so I will try that next.

RattFink
05-07-2015, 11:08 PM
To do before test drive:

Torque wheels
Fix idle problem - in progress


Remove radiator and get repaired - leaking pretty good when warm
Hook up scan tool and monitor pids to insure everything is a go
New tires! - I have a lead on some very low mile used tires

Get license plate

zin
05-08-2015, 02:45 AM
There is a procedure for reseting the idle control when the unit is replaced. Do a search for iac rest or similar and you'll probably have what you need to fix that one.

Mike

RattFink
05-11-2015, 09:55 PM
The complete wiper system is done, installed, and working with the exception of a tee to connect the washer to the 2 nozzles on the hood as the stock piece is broken.

zin
05-12-2015, 12:59 PM
Congrats, I'm still needing to do that to my wagon... My hands are just too damn big to get in there and "snap" the bushings in place...

Mike

blk86trbo
05-12-2015, 02:14 PM
You're doing a great job...you guys that plug away at your projects inspire me to get things done too, keep up the good work :clap:

RattFink
05-14-2015, 10:59 PM
Thanks for the motivation! Progress on the idle problems tonight, I have some other threads open and am receiving good help with that problem!

RattFink
05-15-2015, 06:04 PM
Got the idle at a steady 1000 rpm today and am happy with that. I still get an occasional miss and stumble but I think I can sort thay out once I get a scanner hooked up.

RattFink
05-16-2015, 09:16 PM
3 gallons of fresh gas and a half a can of seafoom does wonders for how it runs, now if I could get this dang scan tool working...

RattFink
05-17-2015, 03:19 PM
LF brakes started leaking again. Took the wheel back off and found a defective copper washer. Since that was apart I when ahead and removed the cover off the side of the trans and am letting the fluid drain. Looks like it was filled with ATF.

zin
05-19-2015, 04:42 PM
There's lots of threads regarding the best fill for the trans, one thing that is pretty much agreed upon, ATF is NOT the best choice. I'll leave you to come to your own conclusions as to what to put back in there when you change it (I imagine it'd be fine to just top off for now).

Mike

RattFink
05-19-2015, 05:18 PM
Yeah I've done some reading and am just gonna use engine oil for this trans.

RattFink
05-19-2015, 05:19 PM
Cover off LH side cleaned it up at work today and sprayed it with undercoating as it was very rusty and nasty looking I figured undercoating might hold up better.http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/19/5bc6b9eb7431b93abae7bb63fcfa75df.jpg

RattFink
05-19-2015, 11:09 PM
I fixed the brake fluid leak at the LF caliper, the cheap copper washers Advance carries are too thin. I then flushed and bled through 4 pints of brake fluid and got nice new clear fluid coming out of every corner. The brakes are done and feel great!

zin
05-20-2015, 01:58 PM
If the undercoat doesn't hold up, you might try POR15, it's kind of an undercoat, but chemically changes the rust. POR stands for "paint over rust". Not supper attractive, but a good choice for rusty under-car parts!

Mike

RattFink
05-20-2015, 07:59 PM
If the undercoat doesn't hold up, you might try POR15, it's kind of an undercoat, but chemically changes the rust. POR stands for "paint over rust". Not supper attractive, but a good choice for rusty under-car parts!

Mike
Yeah I've heard good things about that. I'm really keeping my eye out for a different trans for future use and that will be the one that gets the full nice treatment.

ajakeski
05-20-2015, 08:08 PM
Chip Guard or truck bed coating hold up really well.

RattFink
05-20-2015, 10:20 PM
Trans cover back on and refilled with 2 qts 5w30. Ais wiring final repairs done.

RattFink
05-24-2015, 11:15 AM
Ran vacuum line for boost gauge. Also installed new rear hatch lift supports, they lasted for all of 20 seconds... need to email rockauto.

RattFink
05-24-2015, 11:28 AM
I also found some minor rust on the body where the rear hatch sits, surface rust thankfully.

RattFink
05-28-2015, 11:25 AM
Passenger door wouldn't open from the outside, took the door panel off and found the plastic clip holding the latch rod to the handle broken. Quick run to advance auto help section got some gm style clips and modified one to work put it all back together.

zin
05-28-2015, 12:02 PM
Yeah, I gotta do that too, on the driver's side... Nothing like lifting up with the expected force to unlatch the door, only to literally "fly off the handle"!

Mike

mopar-tech
05-28-2015, 12:48 PM
Passenger door wouldn't open from the outside, took the door panel off and found the plastic clip holding the latch rod to the handle broken. Quick run to advance auto help section got some gm style clips and modified one to work put it all back together.

Just an FYI- These are the same as old school Mopars. I broke one on my '87 CSX and wandered out to the barn and pulled one off a '68 Coronet door.

RattFink
05-28-2015, 03:16 PM
Just an FYI- These are the same as old school Mopars. I broke one on my '87 CSX and wandered out to the barn and pulled one off a '68 Coronet door.
Good to know! I will try to find the right ones online and keep some stashed away.

mopar-tech
05-29-2015, 05:55 AM
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dodge-Plymouth-door-lock-rod-clips-Mopar-4-pcs-Charger-Coronet-Dart-Cuda-Fury-/121206463401?hash=item1c3877dba9&vxp=mtr


54900

RattFink
05-29-2015, 10:01 AM
Boost gauge is hooked up completely

RattFink
05-29-2015, 10:04 AM
Things left before safe test drive:

New tires
Repair or replace radiator
Get license plate
Get a scan tool hooked up to monitor data

RattFink
05-29-2015, 10:17 AM
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/29/0c3523daf8b11fb627846d3edab1f198.jpghttp://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/29/6979c6ddf76d8f4903eee4eef914841c.jpg

RattFink
06-01-2015, 08:38 PM
I removed the radiator today, it took all of 5 minutes lol. I am going to try to get a quote to have it repaired that way I can decide if I will fix or buy new. Working a lead on a set of used tires with very little use on them.

RattFink
06-06-2015, 11:08 AM
Alright so the radiator is out and at my work. Monday I will remove the fan and everything and get it sent to the radiator shop. In the meantime I will clean and paint the fan shroud and mounting brackets. The used tire deal fell through so I am looking to buy new BUT my wife is on maternity leave from work and we are saving for a vacation next month so the tires will have to wait. I am hoping to have the radiator in and license plates before vacation.

RattFink
06-11-2015, 10:20 PM
Went to tag office today but they couldn't verify my insurance in their system so no license plate :( Found out my insurance company had the vin wrong! Called them and got it fixed, and also got a quote on a better policy with an agreed upon value of $2500. Will try the tag office again monday. Radiator not sent out yet, the only parts guy at work I trust to give it to is on vacation till monday...

RattFink
06-11-2015, 10:24 PM
Oh and the alternator on my daily went out today when I was almost home from work (06 dodge stratus 2.4) so that set me back $110 luckily it is super easy to install just finished it up now.

RattFink
11-04-2015, 12:58 AM
Car is in the front yard right now while I clean out the garage... again... I'm starting a new job this month. The new job will be 11 miles from home vs 40 now. It pays better, and supposedly I won't work Fridays much, if at all. Time and money may just be starting to look better.

zin
11-04-2015, 10:58 AM
Great to hear that! I was almost going to call you out on not posting updates, but expectedon't there was a good reason.

Mike

RattFink
11-21-2015, 01:03 PM
Phew first week at the new job done! Went good. Working Fridays will be rare! Brought my tools home from my old job so I have everything on hand now, no having to bring tools home for the weekends! I'm going to buy a new radiator for the Charger next weekend, hoping to catch a black Friday or cyber monday deal. Charger is lonely in the front yard still but I did pull the battery and hook it up to the battery charger. My wife got rear ended in the van yesterday :( damage doesn't look bad, but will hear from the ins. company Monday.http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/11/21/0b90799711e84f9c31cf94f79fa3f952.jpghttp://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/11/21/eea3ede6629ca730e6353777ad25c9ba.jpghttp://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/11/21/f5cc8f878b61628cad4f8062e5af312c.jpghttp://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/11/21/7f0074adf6d18ff90ee3971dc2ab3c6b.jpg

RattFink
11-24-2015, 07:01 PM
I was doing inventory at my new job today, found a Chrysler Star-Scan, DRB 3, and an OTC4000 with 83-86 Chrysler Cartridge!!!

zin
11-25-2015, 10:40 AM
Score! :thumb:

Mike

RattFink
11-25-2015, 11:07 PM
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/11/25/9bedbde1e5cde62360bc059e7e371152.jpg[/IMG]

RattFink
11-25-2015, 11:11 PM
Noticed some rust under the battery tray, pulled the tray, power module, coolant res. for access. I'm gonna clean it up a bit and spray it with some paint just to prevent it from getting worse. Car started right up and idled great, pulled it back into the garage. It's NICE having all my tools at home. Also can't wait to borrow that OTC4000 and hook it up :)

blk86trbo
11-26-2015, 01:08 PM
You've got lots of room in that driveway for a few more turbocars :thumb: And that OTC is a handy tool, I enjoy owning one, congrats!

RattFink
01-08-2016, 05:37 PM
Been busy but got some work done on the car. The daytona radiator went in, battery tray cleaned and painted, under battery tray cleaned and painted also. Just need to get a different upper rad. Hose and some coolant. Oh and my battery is junk but think I can still get a free replacement from Costco, 36 month free replacement warranty.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160108/d2584054f27bdf2baf1462e158dd2d9a.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160108/ff1e8de0da7f0e56aba7a58a88fbf0da.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160108/90bc5c37be6c426eb38e1078015f0c38.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160108/d77fbf9ee979435243ae20ecec352315.jpg

RattFink
01-18-2016, 02:58 PM
Day off today. Finished radiator install with new upper radiator hose. Added coolant. Fixed a leak. Went to costco and returned the failed Kirkland brand battery, they gave me a full refund, and now sell interstate batteries so got the new interstate and ended up with 10 bucks in my pocket lol! 5 gallons of fresh 93 octane, cars been running awhile now. Fan has cycled on/off 4 times. The longer it runs the better it runs.

RattFink
01-18-2016, 02:59 PM
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160118/0d8fc154c529efc755126487754980c9.jpg

RattFink
01-18-2016, 03:38 PM
Of course as I mention how good it runs, it randomly stalls out! Started up but ran poor. I did hose down the engine bay where some coolant had spilled over. I shut it off, let it sit awhile, then it went to starting and immediately stalling out. Fuel pump was still priming. I wiggled the connections at the power module and unplugged/plugged in the 2 HEP connections and it started up and ran ok, pulled it into the garage. That's it for today. 4 new tires and it's road worthy. I'm thinking a new HEP and sending the injectors out for cleaning would be a good idea too.

zin
01-19-2016, 08:05 PM
Definitely get the injectors serviced, they are key to it running well and getting proper gas mileage, don't just have them "cleaned", send them to someone like RC Engineering ( http://www.rceng.com/ ), they'll get them clean and balanced, with a proper spray pattern, which will go a long ways toward a happy driving experience!

Be sure to check the cap for moisture after a hose-down, and I'd suggest re-setting the IAC to be sure that's not the issue, your recently acquired automotive library and scan tool should make it an easy thing to do (compared to those of us not so blessed!).

As a matter of "old car maintenance", I'd recommend cleaning and re-greasing the pins in the Power Module, seems they get sketchy as time goes on, and a good de-oxidizing and weather proofing (greasing) will also go a long way to ensure trouble-free fun.

Looks like you'll be on the road and having fun with it this spring/summer!

Mike

Keito
01-20-2016, 07:32 AM
Check codes?

Dr. Johny Dodge
01-20-2016, 08:26 AM
Definitely get the injectors serviced, they are key to it running well and getting proper gas mileage, don't just have them "cleaned", send them to someone like RC Engineering ( http://www.rceng.com/ ), they'll get them clean and balanced, with a proper spray pattern, which will go a long ways toward a happy driving experience!

Be sure to check the cap for moisture after a hose-down, and I'd suggest re-setting the IAC to be sure that's not the issue, your recently acquired automotive library and scan tool should make it an easy thing to do (compared to those of us not so blessed!).

As a matter of "old car maintenance", I'd recommend cleaning and re-greasing the pins in the Power Module, seems they get sketchy as time goes on, and a good de-oxidizing and weather proofing (greasing) will also go a long way to ensure trouble-free fun.

Looks like you'll be on the road and having fun with it this spring/summer!

Mike

do not insert anything into the barrels of the connectors that go to the power module thinking you're gonna scrape em out nice and clean

the barrels don't make the actual contact with the pins on the pm
rather , there are small tangs inside those barrels that scrap on the pins

sticking something in the barrels bends the tangs and causes the connections to fail

I had a long night in the garage long ago when I went back out to the garrage to find my buddy doing exactly this to his car

it was a much longer night than it needed to be spliceing another set of plugs on to his wireing after he fubar'ed his useing my torch tip cleaner to ream out the barrels in the connectors

RattFink
01-20-2016, 06:00 PM
I've had the PM out disassembled/cleaned. I cleaned every pin on the 2 connectors going to it with electrical cleaner, and bent the little tangs on every pin back out and performed a pin drag test. It was reconnected with dielectric grease around the connectors. The iac has been disassembled/cleaned/reset per procedure. The injectors are original and have been sitting. I will probably send four other injectors I have laying around out for the full treatment. It will idle fine at 1000 rpm but stumbles coming off idle and returning to idle. If you hold the pedal steady at any rpm it runs smooth and runs great in first gear pulling up the hill that is my driveway granted I can't get going fast. I'm sure the stalling issue was from hosing it down. I've got 2 spare heps in u known conditions.

RattFink
01-23-2016, 03:25 PM
Started right up today in the cold, snowy weather. It actually ran great. I let it run awhile and the lower rad. Hose was leaking. Tightened that clamp some more. I priced out new tires. $250 shipped, I'll see where I'm at next paycheck I suppose, may just wait for taxes. I may bring the drb home next wknd and monitor everything.

zin
01-25-2016, 09:10 PM
Great idea to monitor things via the DRB, it can show you when a sensor is "wrong", not necessarily "bad". Map sensors in these years tend to get moisture in them and can read wrong, but not be failed completely and therefore not show a code. Same kind of failure mode can happen with the coolant temp sensor, though not as likely.

A little annoying that the two biggest factors in fueling on an injected engine are like that! Both the charge temp and coolant temp should read the same on a cold engine, so if they aren't real close to each other, the one that doesn't read correct ambient temp is "bad".

$250 for tires is pretty good. What size? And where from?

Mike

RattFink
01-28-2016, 10:32 PM
205 50 15 kumhoa at discount tire direct. 256 before tax, free shipping. Last week they had a 25 dollar off promotion which would have made it under 250 before tax. Forgot to grab the scan tool, kinda had a long week full of not enough sleep lol.

RattFink
02-25-2016, 08:50 AM
Just ordered tires, 247.09 shipped from discount tire direct. Kumho Ecsta AST

RattFink
02-25-2016, 07:28 PM
I called my insurance company today (Progressive) and established an agreed upon value of $3,000 for the car. The lady on the phone asked if it was some type of special edition. I told her it was a Shelby, to which she replied, "I thought those were only mustangs." LOL. Full coverage with towing and roadside assistance and an agreed upon value of 3k for another $50 a month. I'll take it.

zin
02-25-2016, 08:37 PM
Nice!

Good that she even knew about the Mustangs...

Cruising this weekend? ☺

RattFink
02-27-2016, 09:17 AM
So, I ordered the tires Thursday at 6:46 am, I received shipping information at 3:39 pm the same day, and they were delivered yesterday, Friday, before 4:00 pm.... WOW. I'll take it for free shipping! The plan is to bring the tires/wheels to work this week and get them installed. I still need to get a license plate also. I'm not going to know what to do with this thing being drive-able LOL!

RattFink
03-11-2016, 02:19 PM
I took the tires/wheels off and brought everything to work today since I had to go in for a couple hours. I also stopped by the tag office and grabbed the license plate! New tires are mounted and balanced. I got stressed when they said I would have to pay back taxes on the car before I registered it, BUT the taxable value of the car is a whopping $40.00, so all my fees came in just under $40 and the tag is good through April 2017. I've also got an OTC 4000e sitting in the back seat of my car. Maiden voyage may very well be today..

RattFink
03-11-2016, 10:42 PM
Tag has been installed, legal documents in glove box, spare HEP and screwdriver in glove box, fluids checked, wheels tires on and torqued. Let it run awhile with scan tool hooked up. Ambient/ECT matched on startup, O2 switching, RPM signal good, fan came on at 210, shut off as cooled, tps ranges .88v to 4.5v depending on throttle, MAP/Baro accurate. Still stumbles right off throttle and has a hard to returning to idle. It got too late for the maiden voyage as I don't want to drive it in the dark. Tomorrow when my wife comes home from work though!

zin
03-12-2016, 01:05 AM
Awesome!

RattFink
03-12-2016, 09:26 PM
Well, today was a busy day, but.... I finally drove it! I checked everything over again this morning and let it run a good hour before hitting the road. I was looking at scan tool data before driving and noticed the VSS registers up to 15 mph while revving the engine sitting still, so that may be my problem with it returning to idle. Anyway, the power of this car surprised me pulling out of the driveway, I lit the tires up in first and chirped them in second! It pulled hard and boosted to about 6 psi at maybe 3/4 throttle. That is with the waste-gate hooked directly up to engine vacuum. I took it to the gas station 2 miles up the road where I stopped and filled it up. Started right back up, drove home, then back out for a couple more miles. It ran better than expected and never stalled out on me. I will probably slowly start taking it farther and farther from home at this point. Things to look into/fix:

LH and center brake lights are dim compared to the RH
Turn signal lever doesn't click into place in one direction, have to hold it
VSS issue
Brakes feel slightly mushy, but stops great. May need another bleed or I need to get used to a 1986 brake system lol. They haven't really been broken in either though...
Sitting on the original suspension still, can definitely tell on the turns...
Shift linkage needs some minor adjustments, hard to engage first

I am very happy overall. The car felt more powerful than expected, didn't need to be towed, and was a BLAST to drive.

RattFink
03-13-2016, 08:16 PM
Drove it more and more today. Total miles put on it so far: 28.8 I'm surprised the odo, speedo, and tach all work. Kept getting harder and harder to engage first/second gear, to the point where I was having to use second/third to get going... My clutch didn't really like that... Anyway, I'm sure it's just an adjustment issue as it wasn't quite right to begin with. Also, the oem starter is kinda weak after it gets warm under the hood. I may hit the junkyards and try to find a Denso unit.

OG_SRT4
03-13-2016, 09:20 PM
Can you pop it into first with less effort if the engine isn't running?

RattFink
03-13-2016, 10:07 PM
Can you pop it into first with less effort if the engine isn't running?
No, can't engage 1st, 2nd, or Reverse with engine off or running. There's an adjustment under the shifter with a clamp type bolt/sleeve that holds the shifter to the shift rod, I think that clamp wasn't quite tight enough and slipped slowly while driving. I'm pleased with the overall performance so, I'll look into that issue more this week/next wknd.

cordes
03-13-2016, 10:53 PM
No, can't engage 1st, 2nd, or Reverse with engine off or running. There's an adjustment under the shifter with a clamp type bolt/sleeve that holds the shifter to the shift rod, I think that clamp wasn't quite tight enough and slipped slowly while driving. I'm pleased with the overall performance so, I'll look into that issue more this week/next wknd.

That'll certainly do it. You know you live down south when that's a possibility due to the shaft not being seized up due to rust.

RattFink
03-13-2016, 11:00 PM
That'll certainly do it. You know you live down south when that's a possibility due to the shaft not being seized up due to rust.

LOL! It's true, I have yet to run into a stuck/rusty part on this car. Even the brake line fittings were all removed easily. I grew up in Michigan, I know how that rust stuff works!

RattFink
03-15-2016, 08:33 PM
Fixed the shift linkage, put a few more miles on it.

OG_SRT4
03-16-2016, 01:31 AM
Shifts normal now?

RattFink
03-17-2016, 05:53 PM
Shifts normal now?
yes, it shifts good now. Drove it a bit more last night.

OG_SRT4
03-18-2016, 12:45 AM
Sweet!

RattFink
03-18-2016, 01:23 PM
Messing with the VSS, the wires broke off at the sensor, right where they go in. Barely touched them, probably original sensor. Car still drives down the road fine with no VSS, is that normal? No power loss light or anything... It wants to stall at EVERY stop sign now, but seems to idle better. The shifter has been fine. The timing belt is riding too far on the outside edge of the cam pulley, is that a sign of it being too tight or too loose? I also noticed the alternator adjustment bracket is rubbing on the lower radiator support, looks like it has been all it's life judging from the groove in the core support. I'm going to go price some VSS sensors...

zin
03-18-2016, 01:33 PM
IIRC, the belt running too far away from the valve cover indicates too much tension, while the opposite is true for too little. The VSS should fix the stalling problem, it sounds like it might have been having issues before the wires broke. I've driven cars with them not functional and they were fine, except for the idle being weird. Good that you replace it.

The rubbing may be a sign of the engine not being aligned correctly, or a mount that's not right.

Great to hear that it's on the road!

Mike

RattFink
03-18-2016, 05:28 PM
Not only did Autozone have it cheapest, they can also have it by tomorrow morning!

RattFink
03-23-2016, 10:30 PM
The new VSS made a world of difference, returns to idle much better, doesn't want to stall anymore, etc. It still doesn't have a perfect idle, but getting better.

Keito
03-24-2016, 05:46 AM
I had the same experience when the VSS went out on my GLHT

PT Lifter upgrade wouldn't hurt, I've read it smooths out the idle, I hope to have a set installed this spring.
Also I noticed a huge difference when I switched the 02 sensor to a 3 wire.
Should have went 4 wire but at the time I didn't know any better.

zin
03-24-2016, 04:04 PM
Big +1 to the O2 sensor, the added wires are for the heater circuit, which means it will come on-line sooner and stay there, with more accuracy and live longer if you run leaded gas from time to time.

There is a blue wire that provides power to the injectors and the group of solenoids on the fender, which is the one I'd splice into for power on the O2, the other wires are just grounds.

Mike

RattFink
03-24-2016, 06:18 PM
I'm still running the 1 wire, maybe I'll upgrade to a 4 wire soon. I really need to look at the timing belt next, it's definitely too tight. Unfortunately I have a family member's mini van in my garage all torn apart right now! Front struts and alignment will be done soon too, can do it at work during spring break.