I got to work on the GTO yesterday & tonight. I got the gas tank installed, the brakes all plumbed, and the exhaust sytem in place.
The exhaust is a Magnaflow stainless system. It seems to fit very well (once I can get it all tight, I will know for sure). I need to have front pipes made to mate with the OEM manifolds. When I build the new motor, I am going to install headers. Pontiac motors use two different exhaust port configurations, so I didn’t want to buy two sets of headers, when I go with the round port Edelbrock heads. My stock 389 heads are D port.
The brake system just needs fluid, which I didn’t have any at my house. The I will bleed the system. I need one little bracket for the e-brake & then it will work.
Tonight, I bolted all of the carbs on & connected the throttle cable, fuel lines, cable & linkage, I tried to bleed the brakes, but the Proportioning valve seems to be stuck. I can get fluid into it & out to the fronts, but the rear output is completely dry. I am going to try a vacuum pump to suck the fluid through. I have to borrow one, because I don’t have one. I had the button pressed in while I was bleeding it, so that’s not the problem.
Here is some pics of the Carbs & Linkage. It looks complicated, but is a really simple setup. It is basically a 2 barrel when driving it normally. The linkage is progressive, so when you stand on it, the slotted linkage on the driver’s side goes against the stop and then opens the rear carb. The rear carb is connected to the front carb with a rod on the passenger side.
These carbs are kinda nasty looking, but they are rebuilt. They are not the correct carbs for a '66 GTO TriPower setup. I have another set of carbs that I will take apart, refinish, & rebuild so they look as nice as the rest of the motor. And yes, the fuel line routing is correct. Odd looking, but correct.
I’ve been pretty busy lately & have not had any time to work on the GTO.
I did buy some more parts, though. I went up to Carlisle last week & bought the whole interior for it (carpet kit, seat cover kit, door panel kit, sill plates, rear package tray, floor mats, welting for around roof & doors, etc). This is basically restoration stuff to make the interior look “as new”. Here is a couple of pics…
I received my dash bezel today. I have been waiting for this thing for a coulpe of months. It is actually like brand new. I sent it out to a place called MrGs http://www.mrgusa.com/index.html They do alot of dash bezel restoration. The process was only like $250 or so, but the results speak for themselves. Here is what the dash bezel looed like when I put it in a box to send to them:
Here is what it looked like when I opened the box from them today:
Here is a shot of it with the new wood insert (real walnut), all the guages installed & in the car:
Also, I decided to try to clean up the steering wheel. It is an optional 1966 Wood Sport wheel that was in kinda poor condition. I looked into buying a new one, but they want over $500 for it & it is not all that nice form what I hear. Basically, I just spent about an hour or so with some 000 steel wool on both the chrome & the wood part of the wheel. The wood is really painted/textured plastic. The chrome is still pitted, but it looks good from a foot or so away.
Yesterday, I started to take the seats apart. These are fun. There are about 200 ‘hog rings’ holding the covers, foam padding, and burlap onto the frame/springs of the seat. I only took the seat apart to a point where I decided to leave it & revisit them later. I have many other things that need done before I worry about the seats.
Wow…I can’t believe I haven’t updated this thread for a year. This project did come to a complete stop back in June '07 & it was kinda put on the back burner for a while. Then with the loss of a bunch of my parts when my parent’s house burned, it kinda slowed it even more.
Some updates…
The seats have been done for about 8 months & sitting in my gameroom. I have all of the interior (new) & ready to go into the car, but a few things are still holding me up (dash needs painted, mods to the A/C box to fit the non-A/C car, front speaker plate for two 4" Bostons, & I need to get a blower motor). I need to get these things done in the next week or two, so the interior can be installed. Here is one of the seats with the new Legendary cover, new foam pads, etc:
I cut the holes in the dash for the A/C vents
I painted the whole inside of the car with a Chassis Saver paint that keeps any rust from coming back & protects the surface from any moisture.
I dismantled/bead blasted/painted/rebuilt the steering column to new specs (no pics)
This past weekend, I bolted the doors on & reassembled some of the front clip. It is starting to look like a car again.
This coming weekend, I am towing it to a friend’s place to bend up the head pipes to mate my OEM manifolds with the Magnaflow exhaust. I need some small items to start it, but nothing major. Hopefully within the next couple of weeks it will run & drive.
