Oh yea, my shifter arrived from Ebay, and in typical eBay fashion, it needs some work not mentioned in the ad lol. was missing the pivot bushing, so I got one ordered. I did get it lined up with a bolt enough to temporarily install it long enough to get the shifter linkages laid out and fitting proper. So, I now can get the motor and trans installed, and then when the pivot bushing arrives, if the motors in, I'll just get to spend some time on my back to install the shifter and get linkages on. I would have rather have it all together, but its Oregon...Monday and Tuesday are supposed to be sunny...we may not get sunny days for a while, and I don't want to drop the motor in the rain...so crossing fingers and toes...send the rain elsewhere as I don't want to wait to drop the motor in.
My 1978 Z28 Camaro (I Know Not A Firebird)
- Thread starter 70formula
- Start date
Got her broken down, and new parts ordered to get her back to new, and got the body repainted.
Big day here, as my z28 finally got her motor and trans in.
Ended up having to pull the nose and bumper off to get the engine lift in far enough to set her down, which is disappointing as the nose is a pita to get on. But such is life.
Once I got the bumper off, we were able to get her back far enough to see that I would indeed also need to pull the headers off the engine to get it to slide in, which was pretty expected. After that was smooth sailing and got the big ol 454 motor installed with the Muncie m20 4 speed behind it. After she went in, got the trans crossmember in so everything is supported and where it needs to be. After that, I slid the headers in from the bottom and got them bolted in. I was very happy to see that the stock oil pan cleared the cross member, so I wont / didn't have to pull it all back out to swap oil pump, oil pickup tube, and oil pan. Also, the headers have great ground clearance, so shouldn't scrape. Big milestone to have the heart installed.
I also put the hood back on afterwards, just as the rain started back up.
Ended up having to pull the nose and bumper off to get the engine lift in far enough to set her down, which is disappointing as the nose is a pita to get on. But such is life.
Once I got the bumper off, we were able to get her back far enough to see that I would indeed also need to pull the headers off the engine to get it to slide in, which was pretty expected. After that was smooth sailing and got the big ol 454 motor installed with the Muncie m20 4 speed behind it. After she went in, got the trans crossmember in so everything is supported and where it needs to be. After that, I slid the headers in from the bottom and got them bolted in. I was very happy to see that the stock oil pan cleared the cross member, so I wont / didn't have to pull it all back out to swap oil pump, oil pickup tube, and oil pan. Also, the headers have great ground clearance, so shouldn't scrape. Big milestone to have the heart installed.
I also put the hood back on afterwards, just as the rain started back up.
Well, progress has been happening in between rainstorms. I been slowly working on getting ready to fire the motor up. I got the fuel lines installed from the tank up the frame rail and have a return temporarily soft line from the frame rail to the fuel pump, and got the fuel line from pump up to the carb. I also got the heater core lines ran to the intake / water pump. The front sway bar and end links are now installed as well. I also got the motor filled up with oil as well.
with the crazy weather we been having I didn't get pictures of all that yet but will get some posted up soon.
The current issue I been working against, is getting the yoke and driveline figured. The Muncie has the 27-spline output shaft, while the driveline was for a St10. the yoke I bought I test fit today, and I'm a newb so not sure if this is correct....
The shaft is inside the trans roughly 3 inches, and this is the overhang out of the back I got...Not sure if this is to much / to little. (Obviously there's no bearing caps on the u joint, didn't want to install if this yoke / shaft isn't going to work)
What are your thoughts?
with the crazy weather we been having I didn't get pictures of all that yet but will get some posted up soon.
The current issue I been working against, is getting the yoke and driveline figured. The Muncie has the 27-spline output shaft, while the driveline was for a St10. the yoke I bought I test fit today, and I'm a newb so not sure if this is correct....
The shaft is inside the trans roughly 3 inches, and this is the overhang out of the back I got...Not sure if this is to much / to little. (Obviously there's no bearing caps on the u joint, didn't want to install if this yoke / shaft isn't going to work)
What are your thoughts?
well, my goal was to get the motor to run before classes started...today. Spent the weekend in the rain, and under the car. Got things wired, radiator in, upper / lower hoses done, filled with oil and coolant. Filled trans with fluid. gas lines installed. Tried my best, but the weather and things fought me. got everything to where it should start...power at starter, power at the push button, but it wont crank. After putting starter back on for the 3rd time in the pouring rain and being as soaked as soaked gets, I threw in the towel and accepted, I wouldn't hear it run before the new school term starts. time wont be my friend again for a while. such is life.
So, another big milestone, but not really mechanical, but nevertheless, important milestone. This car didn't come with a title. When I bought it for the roof, I wasn't too worried about paperwork, other than verifying it wasn't stolen. Once it was clear I was going to build it instead, obviously I had to deal with the paperwork. My brother-in-law works at a scrapper, so I used his connect to get a possessory lien going. I just heard back that the 60-day countdown officially started on the 5th, so previous owners now have 58 days. We did it at 9200 bucks, so either the Camaro will be in my name, or they will have to pay 9200 to get the vehicle back.
Hit one of the best milestones in any build...let alone one like mine that started as a fully striped shell.
First test fire on the 454. Still needs some timing and some tuning but nothing like the sound of a big block with open headers to bring a big ass grin and make all the work feel worth it.
ah two steps forward, one step back. I put the Z-bar on, and hooked up the clutch fork return spring. Used actual vacuum line plugs to seal up any Went to start it to get the timing dialed in, and now there's a metal on metal grinding nose. Seems to be either the trans wanting to be in gear or maybe the starter to flywheel.
