Beginnings 72 Coupe Resto

[OzCoupe72]

Been laying low for a few weeks waiting on parts to get my project nearer completion

Took it for its maiden voyage a while back and while everything was going well unfortunately as I was reaching my destination the power steering hose blew and eventually destroyed the pump as well. Had to get it brought home on a truck which was a bit of a bummer.

Not wanting to go with the Saginaw pump again I decided to upgrade to a pump that would match my rack & pinion and of course upgrade the hoses

Took a while to find the right pulley to match my application but luckily Moroso make the correct pulley

Pump is a GM Type 2 (sorry!)made for higher RPM and came with a bunch of brackets but luckily only needed one bracket and a couple of spacers

Also have color sanded and compounded the paint work a month ago or so and today sealed it with a polymer sealant

Has come up pretty good but still have a few paint chips and other cosmetic issues to deal with

Anyway pics below and next up is to sort out some bugs then get it on the dyno

The DOT wants me to get a report as I have to remain below 400 RWHP which I reckon I will exceed however with some creativity will be able to keep under this for the initial report by tweaking the timing etc



Power steering pump installed, certainly much smaller than older style pumps



Remote reservoir was mounted on the fan cowl as there was no more room

 

[Pegleg]

Looks awesome Ozcoupe. You should be proud of all you have achieved

 

[mach71351c]

Nice job Congrats on a job well done.

 

[OzCoupe72]

Thanks guys, appreciate the feedback

Now all I have to do is get it past the engineers and licensed so I can legally drive it

Probably only driven it 10 miles all up so still breaking the rings in but it certainly is a beast so far!

 

[Fabrice]

[the power steering hose blew and eventually destroyed the pump as well]

You're one lucky guy...

No matter the odds against you, you managed to pull it off and it looks gorgeous! You can be proud!

For the rear seats belts, are you forced to have them on top by law?

Also you said, your engine needs to remain below 400 RWHP. What is the logic behind this law? A 395 hp car is ok, but 410 dangerous?

Or is it a tax category?

 

[OzCoupe72]

[the power steering hose blew and eventually destroyed the pump as well]

You're one lucky guy...

No matter the odds against you, you managed to pull it off and it looks gorgeous! You can be proud!

For the rear seats belts, are you forced to have them on top by law?

Also you said, your engine needs to remain below 400 RWHP. What is the logic behind this law? A 395 hp car is ok, but 410 dangerous?

Or is it a tax category?

Thanks Fabrice, still a few bugs to sort out but nearly there

Rear seat belts was forced to have fully retractable due to 20% increase in engine power and was easier to mount them on the parcel shelf although I had to mount the 6 x 9 speakers underneath to accommodate the belts.

With engine HP apparently there is a rule of max 180 RWKW per tonne of the heaviest variant with ours being the 429 SCJ drag pack which works out at about 1670kg or 300 RWKW which I reckon I will exceed

The Dyno tuner is aware of this and can tailor my initial tune report to meet this requirement, nudge nudge wink wink you know what I mean

Not a tax category just the nanny state government keeping its citizens safe from old lead footed blokes like me lol

 

[jpaz]

Looks great OzCoupe72! Hopefully they will pass it and you can finally get to enjoy it. Great job and good luck with it!

 

[OzCoupe72]

Today had the vehicle on the dyno and went well apart from throwing an alternator belt

Had to change the carby jets and a few minor adjustments

With the rev limiter set at 5900 RPM it went 362hp/270KW at the rear wheels with 1440 lbs torque

This keeps me below the requirements and more than happy with its performance

Sean was very impressed with the torque figure but not sure yet how to calculate this to flywheel torque

Engine flywheel horsepower about 450 - 475 which is fine by me but would be good for bragging rights to get to the 500 mark

Below is a video of the test and a printout


Dyno test.pdf

 

[Fabrice]

I think it's time to put a bottle of champagne in the fridge! Getting your road papers is a formality now no?

 

[OzCoupe72]

Well old mother bad luck is still following me around and it's not good

After pretty much finishing my project sorting out a few bugs, dyno testing and preparing it for engineering inspections I finally organised two engineers to put it through inspections, took a day of my new job which wasn't easy, got up at 3 am, woke the neighbours starting the car then proceeded the two hour drive to Perth on a cold morning.

All was going well and was enjoying its first long drive until about 40 minutes later I heard a sound coming from the engine then quickly looked at the oil pressure gauge which normally sits between 50 and 80 psi

To my horror it was at 40 psi so being on a freeway I had to find the nearest parking bay which thankfully was a mile up the road

By this time oil pressure was getting lower with nearly zero once I parked the car

My first thoughts are unprintable on this forum however I knew it was serious so popped the hood and no sign of any oil leaks, dipstick was full and oil clean

Hmm looks like I'm going to have to call the tilt tray again!

Anyway $400 later and no where near getting this car passed by the engineers I'm not a happy chappy

When finally home after a cold morning by the freeway I checked the oil again after it had sloshed around getting on/off the tilt tray there was color on the dipstick so my reckoning is a spun bearing so will remove the engine on the weekend and tear it down

Not good, broke again and need a change of luck(or engine)

Certainly not a time to crack open the champagne!

 

[Don C]

Well, that really sucks. I hope it's not too bad.

 

[Fabrice]

aaaawwh no man, come on.

You got to buy some magnetic copper bracelets, shoot all black cats you see, hang some rabbits parts on top of your front door, offer some chicken mac nuggets to the V8 gods while blowing a nice melody from your didgeridoo...

I know you're gonna nail it and fix it, but really, how on earth can one man be so unlucky!?

 

[73pony]

Wow. That sucks. Sorry.

 

[OzCoupe72]

Thanks guys

I think I'm starting to get used to things going wrong

That's what happens when you try to do everything yourself and perhaps overlook an important detail

Anyway will have a break from it for a while as funds are low

Will post the forensic analysis later but suspect a spun bearing but hoping crankshaft is okay

 

[OzCoupe72]

After crying in my beer for several days over my misfortune I finally got up the courage to remove my engine and do an autopsy on the damage

Without completely disassembling the engine my worst fears were realized once I removed the cylinder heads to discover that number four and eight cylinder bores in particular were badly scored with number three and seven slightly scored.

This would make sense with oil starvation as these are the last cylinders to get oil but why the oil starvation is still a mystery

I only removed one bearing cap and the crank journal isn't too bad but the bearing shows some slight wearing

There is very little debris in the sump and the oil pump looks okay

I think I will leave this up to the experts and send it to my machinist for further inspection and regardless of who or what is to blame I want it fixed

The only fortunate thing so far is that I have a spare standard bore block so just need to hope the crankshaft and pistons are able to be saved, regardless this will still be a costly exercise

Number 4 below



Number 8 below

 

[OzCoupe72]

Ended up boring the block to .030 so didn't need to sleeve number 4 cylinder

Engine and trans in last weekend and this weekend fitted all the bits and pieces ready for first (or second) start up

Wasn't happy with the torque convertor gap so made some .080 spacers including for the starter to move the trans back a little

I static timed it to about 20 degrees then turned it over but although it wanted to fire it didn't fire up plus there was a tapping noise which was a worry

The noise was two things. one was I had put the torque converter inspection plate the other way around and one of the studs on the Hughes convertor was slightly longer just hitting the plate, the other noise was a top end noise so thinking I had not adjusted the rockers properly I redid the valve clearances but they were pretty good

I remembered when I first fired it up it needed to be advanced more so I gradually advanced it until it started to fire and eventually it ran but still had a lifter noise but this went away after a few minutes

Anyway glad I got it going again, took it for a spin around the block and with the new high stall converter it seems to be even more responsive even with the rear wheels getting a bit loose stabbing the throttle in second gear

Fingers crossed for the next few hundred miles

 

[73pony]

Good to hear you got it back on the road.

 

[Don C]

Well done, that first ride after the rebuild must have been great.

 

[Fabrice]

Woohoooo!

Now isn't it really really time for champagne m8! ?!

I think you deserve it!

 

[OzCoupe72]

Thanks guys but I won't be cracking the champagne just yet

Was good to get to drive it though and will try to get some more miles on it this time