labrat

This isn't my Z, its my newest donor, but i have gone through 3 ignition switches today. 78 el camino. 350/th350 I took off the intake manifold to change out the lifters (had a wicked tap), so as I was putting things together and timing the motor, (stabbing dizzy) bumping the starter to turn the motor to get close to TDC, i bump three times then nothing. No fourth bump. won't do it. also have no radio, guages, b+ to dizzy, nothing that comes on with ignition. Replace ignition switch, check for shorts, figure the choke wire was loose and grounding out or something. Lights/guages come on for 5 secs then die. Buy another ignition switch, check VERY CAREFULLY for shorts in the work from where I had intake off... new ignition switch lasts 30 seconds. What is the best way to figure out which circuit is causing the problem without burning up $20.00 ignition switches that aren't that easy to swap? Could the starter solenoid possibly be shorted out, drawing too much current when I start the car, smoking the switch? same question, only electric choke on edelbrock 750cfm carb? Any thoughts, random or on topic, are appreciated. Sorry if I come through as a

You may need to tighten it a little tighter, then. There needs to be good contact between the module and the metal mount, the grease is just to assist it in conducting heat. Squeeze all of it out that you possibly can to get the best themal transfer. You may also want to look at computer heatsink grease, some of it has excellent heat transfer properties.

That looks almost exactly like the mounts I used in my 81 ZX with a 350. Spacers misaligned and all I painted mine orange like the motor, though. Both sides of mine ended up being more than 3" though. Used 3 plates on each side, and then some oversize nuts as a little more spacer. In case it's not clear from the photo, the spacers go between motor mount and block, and the motor mounts bolt right up to the frame horns.

Naw, as long as I stay off of Pr0n and gambling sites, I'm cool. That's the cool thing about IT (and third shift at that) I can pretty much get away with anything I want. I keep a pillow in my desk drawer As long as I answer the phone coherently whenever it rings. /helpdesk ninja

I've hit 230+ mph on that straight stretch. The banked corners rock as well. On xbox. In a ferrari enzo. I drove on that track in my dreams for several days after getting project gotham racing 2 on xbox. must have been a blast to drive it for real. Bill

You can do a search for my username, I also sbc swapped a ZX and did several write ups on it. Entirely different beast in the engine compartment, trust me. Bill

on halo 2, look up gamertag "biyotch". And prepare to die... MWAHAHHAHAHAHAHA! /evil laugh Bill

The coolest thing about reloading is the special rounds you can make. Imagine, if you will, molding .45 caliber lead balls onto.... say, oh..... a guitar string. Or piano wire. Every 6-8 inches or so. Then load this little lead and steel wire bolo into a 12 guage shotgun shell. Much fun ensues. Or propelling a broadhead hunting arrow out of a 12 guage (just remove the lead shot, then stick the arrow down the barrel). Hilarity will ensue! Bill

Well, I didn't do a complete teardown, but i did pull the motor and pan and cleaned the metal out, epoxied a rare-earth magnet in the pan to catch any left over metal, and replaced the oil pump with a high volume unit just in case.... Which did, exactly, DICK. Got a new shortblock from the machine shop today, now in the process of swapping all the hardware from the old motor. It was great, the motor was in my garage, and me and my girlfriend absolutely RAPED that motor and had it down to the rotating assembly + block in 1.5 hours flat. She was breaking bolts loose with the breaker bar, and I was following behind her with the electric drill. Every bolt and small piece of hardware was bagged and tagged in ziploc bags. I've never had a motor come apart like that one. Bill

Ok guys, can you help me out with this one? I have an 89 stang LX 5.0, and I just had a very bad thing happen. The rear bearing on it is, um... Toast. No copper left at all. I checked the mains from front to back, and the first one looks great, the next 3 are all copper, but the last one doesn't even have any copper left. I noticed that oil pressure would drop at idle (like, to 0), but any rpms at all would bring it right back up to the green zone. After a little while, though (like 10 miles maybe) oil pressure wouldn't come up till 1000 rpm, then 1200, then 1500, then 2000, then screeching bearing death. The car sat with a blown headgasket (no coolant in oil, though) for maybe 2 years or so before I bought it. I changed out the headgaskets, put a new cam and lifters in it, and thought that would do it. The cam had a lobe eaten off where the roller bearings in the lifter failed and another lifter had galled the roller surface (i'm guessing this is all due to oil starvation). What I would like to know is what could have caused this? Is it just excesive clearances in the bearings? It was running fine when the headgaskets went. What could have caused my oil pressure problems? When I first noticed teh problem, I dropped the pan and replaced the oil pump, but that did nothing. I'm ready to put new bearings in and get the crank turned, but I wanna make sure this isn't going to happen again. Any input would be greatly appreciated! Bill

Here's one (of MANY!) for ya... It was wintertime in West Virginia, so I decided to do a little indoor (in the garage) work on my old beater Jeep. I sanded down most of the worst of the rust spots, and started to prime it so that it didn't just rust again with the salty roads and such. All was going well till I was getting the bottom of the rocker panel and dropped the almost full can of primer. It landed straight down on the nozzle, which broke off clean and wedged the little tube down in the can, locking it open and spraying primer directly out the top of the can. The pressure, by the way, was sending the can spinning wildly in all directions... Where it happpened to come near my LP gas space heater. So, I now have an out of control flamethrower spinning wildly in my garage, mostly underneath my jeep where I can't reach it. So I grab a rake and smack the can to get it out from under the Jeep where I can safely put it out or something. The whirling flame thrower of death then proceeds to bounce off the far wall and head straight up in the air, near the rafters of the garage. Which is where the propellant from the previous 5 cans of primer is residing. Did I mention it was wintertime? I had the garage all closed up.... BOOM! No more windows in garage. No more lit space heater. No more burning paint can (never did find it), no more eyelashes, and no more hearing in my left ear. Wow, was that fun. I did eventually regain my hearing (I think), my eyelashes grew back, and I got most of the smoke and soot stains off the inside of the garage, but I will never paint indoors again. Bill

Thanks for the explanation on this, I thought you just liked screaming... Bill

If you're looking for something fast, go with a turbo motor. It's much easier, less fabrication, and cheaper in the long run (trust me on this one). If you want something that turns the heads of the in-the-know crowd with something unique, go for the V8 swap. If you go the V8 route, keep this in mind. It will take AT LEAST 3 times at long as you plan for (probably longer) and cost AT LEAST double what you estimate, maybe more if you get the "while I'm at it" syndrome. I started out doing a simple drivetrain swap from a 72 chevy PU to a 1981 280 ZX (estimating 3 weeks and 1200 bucks). Three years and $6Klater, the car actually ran and drove, but still had no paint, interior, or suspension work done. The only thing I ended up using from the truck was the engine block itself. A turbo motor, on the other hand, can usually be swapped in for well under 1000.00 from a junkyard, and everything bolts up the first time. You can get the motor running well, then add a big intercooler and turn up the boost for some go-fast fun! Just my $.02 ...... Bill

I would love to do that with the trays, though. I've been thinking about doing it for a while... Now I just gotta go to McChucks and pick a couple up... Bill

Okay, for all of you who say FWD cars suck... My neon (yes, an '04 SRT-4) ran a 13.8 at 107 at the track ltwo weeks ago, and I'll prolly pull half a second off of that tomorrow when I test out the new motor mounts and actually figure out how to launch this beast (2.4s 60'). Yes, most HybridZ's (including the one I just sold to buy this car) have more horsepower and torque. But the neon's still faster. My Z had crushing accelleration through the top of 4th gear (about 110 mph) then it just kinda died. 4th in the neon doesn't really start pulling till 120 mph. I've hit 135+ in 4th in a surprisingly short time. With the boost hold feature of the PCM, I can leave the pedal in the carpet, blip the clutch and shift while the tach stays on the rev limiter, and not have to spool up again when I hit the next gear. Third gear scratches at 65 mph or so are not uncommon. This car continues to amaze me every day that I drive it to work. When I got on the Z to pass, etc., it would make an unholy racket loud enough to set off car alarms at 50 paces. And attract the attention of every peace officer in the tri-county area. I got a speeding ticket in a burger king drive through because the cop, parked on the other side of the building, *HEARD* me driving too fast... The Neon is completely different. Step on the gas and WHOOSH you're doing 80. I guess what I'm saying is not only is my neon fast, it's also refined like the Z could never be. Good working A/C, power steering, CD player, and a back seat even! All at around 2850 lbs. 235 HP stock, and 300+ isn't too hard (expensive) to hit. $4K will actually get you really close to 500 HP. Even then, though, I'll still be in the mid 12's. At around 125 mph...