Day of the Dead - Deadly Resurrection.. Too Much Corn Bread is Bad For You.. Corn Binder or Corn Bread?.. Just Don't Feed Them After Midnight..
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Day of the Dead - Deadly Resurrection
Sounds like a low budget horror flick, doesn't it? In reality, it is a real B-movie that was made in the 90's. Do you know what is really scary? I was actually in the movie! My first and only acting gig. My old Chevelle was also in the movie. I think it actually did a better job of acting then me! While that movie was total fiction, I recently discovered that getting a derelict old car road worthy is a lot like resurrecting the dead, it's impossible.
I decided to take on the impossible and put my '72 Cutlass, Number 1, back on the road. Now keep in mind that Number 1 has been out of commission for at least three years. I use to start it up every other week, but that lasted as long as a bucket of KFC chicken. So I decided to do a visual inspection to assess the mess that Number 1 had become. Both front tires were now flat and most of the trans fluid had leaked out. The engine hadn't been started in at least a year, and it seemed to be leaking from anything that contained fluid. The front rotors were rusted badly and were wafer thin, it needed new front tires, the trans needed to be serviced, engine oil had to be changed, front end lubed, gas tank hoses replaced, carburetor rebuilt, possible tune up, wiper blades, and let's not forget washing years of dirt and grime away. I was afraid to even look in the interior, suffice to say it needed help before I parked the car...
First things first, I had to see if the engine would still run, as this would give me some kind of indication of how bad things were. I decided to charge the battery and then see if old Number 1 would start up. Of course I did the basic fluids check to make sure I didn't damage the engine. To my utter amazement the engine fired right up. All I did was prime the carb with some gas! A true testament to the durability of Oldsmobile engines and synthetic oil. Hard to believe? I caught the whole thing on video. Check it out:
Pardon the camera shake, I'm kind of new at this. Come to think of it, it kind of reminds me of the horror flick I was in! Now that I know that Number 1 still runs pretty good, it's time to dig in. Gee, I can't wait...
Here it is all raised up and ready for me to start working. Hey, I don't have a lift yet so I use what works. Besides, I have to be able to get all of my girth under this beast.
I figured I would start from the bottom up, so I started with the front brakes, then did the trans. After that I replaced the fuel tank hoses, changed the oil and lubed the front end. To wrap up the underside, I did a complete visual inspection just in case I missed something. All I needed now was a couple of front tires so I could lower Number 1 back down
Ok, the new tires are mounted and Number 1 is back down to earth. Now it's time to dive in under the hood. The carb needs to be rebuilt, spark plugs changed, and I need to inspect the cap, rotor and wires.
When I was removing the carb I remembered that the passenger side valve cover had been leaking before I parked the car, and that leak had gotten considerably worse. I had done the drivers side a few years before so it was nice and dry. Oh well, I'll just add it to the list of repairs!
After removing brackets heavy enough to be on a Sherman Tank, I was able to get to the valve cover to remove it. Your looking at a valve train with over 300 thousand miles on it! The benefits of running synthetic oil are clearly visible.
After rebuilding the carb (the subject of a future blog) and replacing the valve cover gasket, it was time to replace the spark plugs and then fire her up. Now we know that it ran before I started all this work, so it should run great now, right?
Wrong! I couldn't get the engine to idle. It kept hunting for an idle and running rough. This picture is after I had remounted the carb after removing it to double check the float level and check for vacuum leaks. My experience told me it was a vacuum leak because the trans was not shifting correctly. Plus, I replaced the vacuum modulator when I serviced the trans so that ruled it out. After checking a few things with my vacuum pump, I discovered the leak in the distributor vacuum advance. One more thing that now needs to be replaced!
I am beginning to sense a pattern here, a parts replacing pattern! As I write this Number 1 is running good and is streetable. It may not look the best right now but I will be addressing that very soon. Next up is installing some bucket seats and cleaning up the interior. Stay tuned as Number 1 begins it's slow transformation from side yard fodder to a clean looking street machine.
Too Much Corn Bread is Bad For You
Note to self: Never buy a three-in-the-tree equipped vehicle again! Yes, you guessed it, I got burnt out shifting that beast of a trans in my International. Add to that a 35+ year old leaf spring equipped suspension and you have one heck of a miserable ride. These trucks are not made for comfort, they are made to work!
So I put it up for sale, not quite sure if there would be much interest in the old corn binder. To my suprise, it didn't stay for sale that long. Now someone else can have all that fun shifting that trans! I understand that the truck will be spending it's twilight years south of the border, in Mexico. If you happen to be down there and see it, say "Hola" for me. Now I'm off to buy mas cervesa!
Well, I sold good ol' Number 2, my latest Cutlass project. It was a great car and an excellent project, but I could see myself spending way too much money on it. In case you haven't realized it yet, I get bored with vehicles real quick. I feel good about the sale, not because I made a nice chunk of change, but because it went to a true Oldsmobile enthusiast. Maybe I'll see it someday at a car show...
Being flush with cash I was now on the hunt for another vehicle. (my favorite thing to do!) I decided that I needed a truck, pre-smog, and in the "dare-to-be-different" catagory. After a lot of surfing (the Net, not the ocean), I found my next ride.
Behold my Grandpa Green International 1100c pickup truck, fresh from the farm!
Most folks perceive Internationals as farm vehicles. Heck, there as comfortable as a hay wagon and as good as Grandma's corn bread. This truck was so stock I'm suprised the salesman wasn't in a casket in the bed! It even had the line card. For those who don't know, a line card to an International is like a build sheet to a Chevy. Back in the day you could literally build these when you ordered them, option by option. This corn binder was ordered with the 304 V-8, 3 spd heavy-duty trans, custom appearance group (side moulding), deluxe hub caps (I'd hate to see the non-deluxe), A/C (big spender here), push button AM radio, heavy-duty heater (the heater core was the size of a small child), and full length vinyl flooring... It also listed things like the rearend gear ratio, paint, seat material, gas tank size, etc, etc.
Here is the stump pulling 304 V-8. Yes, International engines really are that big.
So now I have myself a pickup truck. This will be my daily driver for awhile. Let's see how long it is before I get sick and tired of the three-in-the-tree shifter. You can't argue with the fact that it is unique looking, definitely a classic. You see, I just got held-up at gun point... oops, I mean, I went to the gas station to fill up and on the way home I got two "thumbs up". Ok, maybe one was a middle finger, but who's counting anyways? Well, off on another adventure...
Just Don't Feed Them After Midnight
Yes, I'm talking about Gremlins, but not the type from Steven Spielburg. The type I'm referring to are electrical gremlins. In some ways these are worse then the fictional ones. Given a choice, most folks would rather deal with the little furry creatures then an electrical problem on their car. My brown Cutlass, Number 2, suffered from it's share of electrical gremlins when I bought it. As regular readers of this blog know, Number 2 was a victim of it's previous owner, Jerry Rig. Ol' Jerry had his cousin, Mickey Mouse, help him on quite a few "repairs" on poor Number 2, and it was painfully obvious.
The electrical gremlin that Number 2 suffered from was no rear taillights. Nothing major, right? At least the brake lights worked on one side! This senario actually got me pointed in the right direction. I knew I had some power back there, so the first item on the agenda was a visual inspection of the wiring harness. I was looking for breaks in the wires, loose connections, cut wires, etc. This is what I found when I opened the trunk...
Loose wires are always a bad sign, and this scene was no exception.
Upon closer inspection of the wires in the trunk, I discovered this connection. A pretty heavy duty connector, but why was it wrapped in electrical tape??
I decided to do some testing to see if the taped connector was preventing power from getting to the tail lights. Although the test light lit up on quite a few terminals, on some it would go on and off just by me moving the connector.
Further down the line I was not able to detect any power, so I knew I had narrowed it down to the taped connector. Time to open Pandora's box.
This is what I found when I unwrapped the tape. The connector was not plugged all the way together. Hmmm, I wonder if that would cause any problems?
It turns out that it did cause some problems, a no taillights problem to be exact. What I couldn't understand was why it was apart in the first place, as the clip was still good on it. Oh wait, I forgot who use to own the car...
Of course I just couldn't plug it back together. It needed to be cleaned. Notice the dark color to the terminals, as well as some corrosion on them. This acts like an insulator and impedes the electrical connection.
After a good cleaning with a small round file, I was ready to plug it back together, only this time correctly!
With the connector securely snapped together, it was time to check all the lights again. Volia! We now have tail lights, and brake lights, and turn signals, and most important - safety! Of course I also replaced all the bulbs and cleaned the lenses, so I won't bore you with details of that, but I will tell you about another gremlin of a smaller variety.
While I was inspecting the connector, I noticed a pair of wires going into it seemed loose. It needed to come out to be checked. While this may seem like an impossible task to some, the right tools made this job rather easy. After removing the terminal, I did discover a loose crimp, so I soldered the wires to the terminal instead of trying to re-crimp it.
This is the wonder tool that was worth every penny I paid for it.
The connector pops right out. Hey, it looks like I actually know what I'm doing! Notice how the factory put two wires in the one terminal. These terminals can barely handle one wire, let alone two.
In case your wondering, I did get rid of the snap tight trailer plug connectors. I just thought they added that extra special touch of Mickey Mouse to the pictures. I can't wait to see what other "special" suprises I can find on Number 2. Until then, at least I have chased off the gremlins for now.
In California, the current price of gas is over the four dollar mark and rising almost daily. Few people, if any, are thinking about fuel additives. Folks are having a hard enough time just paying for a gallon of gas, let alone spending more for an additive. Now that a bottle of gasoline additive is about the same price as a gallon of gas, one would speculate that more would sell. After all, I still see zillions of portly SUVs racing around, gulping down barrels of OPEC's finest. The owners of these thirsty machines obviously don't have a problem with the price of gas, right?
Before I sold my SucksUnbelievableVolumes of gas (my Suburban), I would at least drive slowly, to try and conserve as much fuel as possible. Of course, this was as useful as putting lipstick on a pig, because all I would get was middle fingers and horns every where I went. Welcome to Southern California! Even though my Sub (literally) went through tons of gas, it was one of the most reliable vehicles I had ever owned. I never had a fuel system problem with it, even with over 250,000 miles on it! From the first tank of gas to the last, I had always used an additive as needed. For fuel injected vehicles, I was sold on the benefits. Benefits? What benefits? Let me explain...
Many years ago I was an Assistant Parts Manager at a Jaguar / Saab Dealership. As some folks know, both Jaguar and Saab switched to fuel injection years before the domestic car companies, putting them at the forefront of this "new" technology. One of the more common problems on the early injected cars was clogged injectors. A Jaguar technical guru claimed it was because of the different "blends" of gasoline being used. While this was probably true at the time, the injector design might have had something to do with it also. The result was a technical bulletin from Jaguar that instructed that a bottle of Chevron Techron fuel additive be installed at every service. We got the stuff in by the truck loads, and religiously poured a bottle in every tank of every Jaguar that was being serviced. I can tell you first hand that it made a big difference. The benefits were clear: engines were running smoother, performance increased, in some cases mileage increased , and most important to us, customers had fewer complaints. There was such a marked improvement that we started using the additive in the Saabs as well. I worked at that dealership for over five years and saw what a difference adding a simple bottle of fuel additive can make.
