When we left off last time we were were doing finale assembly of the engine/trans/cradle & getting ready to final install it in the car.
Well, we did that & installed the exhaust system, most of the cooling system & worked on other cars while we waited for the wire harness to come in.
The harness came in just after 2pm today.
This is what the engine looked like at 3pm today.......
The guys wanted to hear it run yet today so they put on the hustle and by 5:30pm it was ready to fire it up. This is what it looked like.....
After we pumped fuel up into the fuel rails, we turned the key and it fired right up & ran great. We've done a lot of these V-8 swaps but we can tell you that when you fire it up for the 1st time it's exciting & is the perfect way to start the weekend.
Now that we have power to the chassis, we can finish installing the windows, do a little welding here & there & button this thing up.
Nite
Archie
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12:47 AM
Dowdian Member
Posts: 205 From: Cluj-Napoca, Cluj, Romania Registered: Jul 2004
Congratulations! I know you guys have done this a million times like you said, but it's still quite a feat to get everything right the first time. You guys do great work.
Congratualtions!! I've always liked the LM1, I think it's the best looking SBC there is with the TPI setup...(with the possible exception of the LT5) Anyway I'm saving my pennies for that LS1 kit
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01:17 PM
Feb 22nd, 2005
Archie Member
Posts: 9436 From: Las Vegas, NV Registered: Dec 1999
We got the interior almost all put back together, had to take it out for a run around the neighborhood to make sure it was going to run thru the gears ok.
Looks pretty good too......
While doing the headliner for this car I think we've found a new idea for repair of the headliner board.
I think I'll post that to a new thread, so I don't take this one off topic.
Archie
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10:09 PM
jscott1 Member
Posts: 21676 From: Houston, TX , USA Registered: Dec 2001
I see Archie is slinging the red primer pretty good there? Lots of info & unanwered questions in these pics? Hmmmmm....? Hey Dowdian are you get the big brake kit too?
Hey Archie, I see you have a wide-body notch-back. Is it getting a chop too?
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11:55 AM
Feb 24th, 2005
exoticse Member
Posts: 8654 From: Orlando, Fl Registered: Jun 2003
I'm all packed and ready to go! My flight leaves in a couple of hours for Chicago where I'll spend the rest of the day working for Archie (kinda like washing the dishes in a restaraunt when you can't pay the tab). If I do a good job, Archie says I can drive the car home tomorrow!!!
Today is gonna be a good day.
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07:11 AM
Miss-Tress007 Member
Posts: 541 From: New Orleans, LA, USA--now in Greensboro, GA thanks to Hurricane Katrina Registered: Feb 2004
Roll up your sleeves and "whistle while you work" Have Archie take some pics of you in the ride for the first time and post 'em so we can share in your good fortune! Oh and if you need someone to test drive the car for a month or two or three, let me know
--Tress
------------------ I may not know alot about cars...but I make a Fiero look good! "The Hottie" Coming Soon!
[This message has been edited by Miss-Tress007 (edited 03-04-2005).]
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10:11 PM
Mar 5th, 2005
exoticse Member
Posts: 8654 From: Orlando, Fl Registered: Jun 2003
I forgot to get a "curley pose" next to my car when I was leaving Archie's. I guess that means another trip up there...
Well you're more than welcome to come up here & get your Curley Pose next to your car. Or you can do it at home..... get your picture taken standing next to your car with your hands in your pocket & act like you're freezing your butT off.
Like this.............
Now just tell me....... doesn't he look cold!!!!!
Archie
[This message has been edited by Archie (edited 03-05-2005).]
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06:05 PM
Mar 6th, 2005
Ales Member
Posts: 249 From: Milwaukee, WI Registered: Mar 2003
I'm home in North Carolina, safe and sound. The trip was great and the car is phenominal! Driving 80mph through the mountains of West Virginia is a helluva lot of fun!
I just took a hose to her to get all the road salt off. Now I'll get something to eat and I'm off again to show her to a few good men who are getting shipped off to Iraq this week. MelinniumFiero is at Camp Lejeune until Wednesday, about four hours from here, so I'm going out there to visit before he goes.
If we're lucky, we may have a few more converts by the end of the day.
Cheers, Dowdian
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11:13 AM
Mar 7th, 2005
madcurl Member
Posts: 21401 From: In a Van down by the Kern River Registered: Jul 2003
I just took a hose to her to get all the road salt off. Now I'll get something to eat and I'm off again to show her to a few good men who are getting shipped off to Iraq this week. If we're lucky, we may have a few more converts by the end of the day.
Cheers, Dowdian
Okay, we need some road trip stories. Did you get any looks? Hehehehe.
Your still going to Daytona right?
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05:25 PM
Mar 8th, 2005
Dowdian Member
Posts: 205 From: Cluj-Napoca, Cluj, Romania Registered: Jul 2004
I was just starting to get the hang of driving the monster she has become when I got in to West Virginia and hit the mountains. The weather was perfect and traffic was light, so I got to do between 70 and 90 up and down the mountains on an eight lane divided highway for the better part of two hours. I probably could have pushed her a bit harder, but I don't think my heart could have taken it. When I got in to Virginia, I had to pull off the road for about 15 minutes and let it all sink in.
I got in to North Carolina just before 1am. I-77 stretches out there a bit after the roller coaster of WV and VA, and because I had the whole highway to myself I figured I'd let Sharona stretch a bit too. I took her up to 110 for just a few minutes before coasting back down to cruising speed. She had plenty more to give, but I didn't want to push my luck too hard so early in the game. Besides, that's the fastest I've ever driven, so it was plenty enough of a rush for me.
Overall, the whole trip was flawless. Meeting Archie, Rob, and Chris was a real honor for me. These guys are real professionals and unbelievably good at what they do. I also had the good fortune of meeting John Strickland who was up from Kansas picking up a new Fino kit. I got the opportunity to watch Rob and Chris start with a running car (mine), dismantle and remove the engine, switch out the transmission, reassemble and replace the engine in the car and have it up and running again in FIVE HOURS. I learned more from them, Archie and John this weekend that I have in 18 months on this forum, and that's really saying something because I've learned a hell of a lot in the past 18 months.
Overall, the whole trip was flawless. Meeting Archie, Rob, and Chris was a real honor for me. These guys are real professionals and unbelievably good at what they do. I also had the good fortune of meeting John Strickland who was up from Kansas picking up a new Fino kit. I got the opportunity to watch Rob and Chris start with a running car (mine), dismantle and remove the engine, switch out the transmission, reassemble and replace the engine in the car and have it up and running again in FIVE HOURS. I learned more from them, Archie and John this weekend that I have in 18 months on this forum, and that's really saying something because I've learned a hell of a lot in the past 18 months.
I can't wait to do it again.
Mike,
I gotta say it was great to have you in town to visit & shoot the bull. It was also neat to have John there at the same time.
To fill everybody in, I had purchased 3 Getrags in the last several weeks before this this car was done. They all appeared to be good transmissions. The 1st one we put in the car, was in there for a couple of weeks but because we were working on other things that had to be finished, we never got a chance to really test drive the car until late Wednesday evening. We detected a little shake but went home thinking that we'd switch axles on the left side in the morning & it would all be ok. Come Thursday morning while changing the axle we found the transmission had a bad differential bearing. So Rob & Kris changed it out completely in just 8 hours. They even had time to run it around the block a few times. Then Friday morning while I was getting Mike from the Airport, the guys were test driving the car. When we got back from the airport, I took Mike for a ride in the car & guess what, this transmission had a problem too. After getting it back to the shop, we decided to switch to the 3rd transmission. Like Mike said above, Rob & Kris kicked butt & had it completely swapped out & back under it's own power in just 5 hours.
They're the BEST & Saved the Day twice in just one week.
Archie
[This message has been edited by Archie (edited 03-08-2005).]
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11:30 PM
Mar 9th, 2005
jscott1 Member
Posts: 21676 From: Houston, TX , USA Registered: Dec 2001
Hey, Mike thanks for driving all the way to North Carolina to show me your car. It was really cool to see a choptop in person. Glad I got to sit in one too!
