Don and Peter's Hot Rod Corner

Started by MountainDon, February 13, 2007, 12:55:02 AM

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benevolance

The Yenko car had a few great features...

Quick ratio steering...Oil cooler...Disc Brakes...larger sway bats and he tinkered with the engine cam and exhaust to add a few more horsepower

His car would be a better race car...I just added a lot more power

As for the stingers themselves there was several stages... If you wanted an all out stinger they were extremely fast and modified a fair bit from a stock original car...

The only one I have ever driven was a stage III...Awesome was the only word to describe it...

A Shame that no a single penny of GM money went into racing or racing development for the Corvair

Simply having GM come up with a beefed tuned suspension...a hotter cam and exhaust would have made the Corvair a  true SCCA racing legend

glenn-k

#51
Here's a question for you Peter.  Would you happen to have a 5 speed  transmission laying around for a '91 Dodge Stealth twin turbo - 300hp?  I probably couldn't afford it anyway.  It's pretty well by itself - maybe one other model year will fit it as I remember.  Changed the transfer case input shaft splines later I think.  I had it to it's top speed at an undisclosed location. :o

Mine is jambed and won't go into first so  I'm thinking of having my neighbor pull it - probably bent the synchro's or something stupid.  


MountainDon

QuoteMine is jambed and won't go into first  

slightly better than being stuck IN first   :)  not kind to the clutch tho.  :'(

benevolance

Yes Glenn it is likely the synchros... Most 5 speeds main shaft runs off third gear...I may not be explaining that well....So if there is no noise in third gear it is not the main cluster gear....Might have broke first gear....I cannot see that ever happening....Did you miss a shift... how did it break?

Likely the synchros

I don't have one I will check for you though....I bet one can be found....But it is the ridiculous price that will bother you...

-Peter

benevolance

Glenn

I have an idea for you...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190088678936&fromMakeTrack=true

I am close enough to this to pick up...If you buy the whole car for $1000....It has a noise in the crank...Meaning it needs to come apart be turned 0.10/0.10

At any rate....If you wanted t obuy the car...I could pull the trans for you...And next time I head west I can drop it off....I can part the rest of the car on ebay or a dodge stealth website and we can split the proceeds...You should be able to recover most all of your transmission cost...

If by chance you can buy a transmission out there with warranty for a couple hundred bucks... go for it...

But this car has oodles of parts...the all wheel drive... twin turbos, engine...Rally wheels....Body parts....Etc... etc....

Cheap cars are almost always worth 3 times as much parted out.... So this car should part out for $3000....We need to subtract whatever a junkyard would charge for the transmission....

This may not be a great idea...or even a good one....But it is an idea...

And the cool thing is I get to load and unload the car on the trailer so I get to shift it... through the gears


glenn-k

That may be an idea- what do you think max value would be?  It's up to 990 now.


Miss a shift - moi?  I did light up all 4 once - that could have stressed it but it was working after that.  It just started absolutely refusing to go into 1st.  Couldnt even tap the shift levers to get it in.  Researching it on the net showed that it was an occasional common problem.  There were better replacement parts available if I recall correctly.

benevolance

Glenn

Ebay is a funny place.. cars you think will go high often do not get a bid.. and vice versa... I will try to locate a damaged car or a trans for you... I can usually find stuff in local auctions or whatever... I will keep you posted...


glenn-k

Yeah - it keeps going up.  I once offered 1500 for a Bobcat type machine and thought that was too much - engine was toast -- It went for 6000 on Ebay.

No big rush - I probably won't drive it much anyway.  I may have my neighbor pull it for repair-  I don't really have time to get into it.  Maybe better to sell it but they don't seem to bring much.

benevolance

Glenn

Well with the car all tore up it definately will not bring much...Getting an affordable transmission will be a good start to getting it back on the road...

I can only imagine how much fun it is to drive... ;)


glenn-k

#59
You are right about that.  

It is a real blast to drive when running right.  It's a regular little rocket. :)  Currently has some ignition problems too - probably plugs or wires or something but I don't drive it enough to fool with it in the condition it's in.

The Ebay one went for 2025 :o

benevolance

Glenn

We could have parted it and you likely would have gotten the transmission for less than buying one at a junk yard...I bet they want $1000 for one used if you can find one.

Some things are stupidly expensive...

glenn-k

Souped up the Dodge truck a bit more today.  4" straight pipe exhaust from turbo to tail pipe.  It is supposed to add appx. 28 horsepower to the 24 Valve Cummins  and drop exhaust temp about 100 degrees.  Now to go out and give it a try.  Should be putting out around 310 HP now - maybe a bit more but don't know what some of the other mods do for improvement.

Pre-bent factory kit from Farmboy's Diesel Performance in North Carolina fit perfectly and even gave me enough slack to make it fit good under my hydraulic hoist for the dump bed.

MountainDon

The drop in the exhaust temp is especially nice. That'll enable it to work harder and not get all bothered. Not to forget the extra horses.   :)

glenn-k

Tried it out - the additional horses are a bit hard to tell but what is not hard to tell is that I'm getting 3 lbs more boost now.  I was running 24 lbs and now have 27 on the same hill so the horses have to be there.  Exhaust ran a bit cooler but didn't watch it real close and it varies also.



glenn-k

Yup - Pyrometer, fuel pressure gauge (only way to keep a VP44 alive), boost gauge and transmission temperature gauge.

I think the pyro was down about 50 degrees or so - will have to watch it better next run..  I never used to get over 1100 degrees, now seems it was about 1000.  Better data later.  I plan on adding more horsepower later so put the pyro on it.

Fuel pressure minimum on a 2nd gen Cummins is 4 lbs - I have about 6 at wide open throttle - 12 at idle.  Injector pump is cooled by fuel only.  Plug a filter or loose a boost pump and its $1200 to $1400 for parts.  :'(

MountainDon

Glenn, as the local diesel hot rodder I have a question. I've heard of (and don't know any more about it) a propane injection system for diesels. IYO is it any good? Is it cheap horsepower?

I've come across a hail damaged (body) '02 2500 that could be a cool way to haul my Cherokee (on trailer) to the cool 4x4 spots in UT.

glenn-k

#67
A bit of a hassle with having to carry another fuel and refill a separate tank - screws up fuel mileage estimates a bit, but yes - it is a good safe way to pretty greatly up your horsepower if the transmission has been upgraded to handle it.

See here:  http://www.cumminsdatabase.com/read.php?id=41  DIY is last.  I haven't done it yet but thinking about it.  Safety is a concern - must be failsafe for me to DIY.  Otherwise the purchased units are probably the way to go.

Note that Fred tore the Torque Converter out of his Ford Powerstroke last weekend - same problem as other factory torque converters when you really try to work them with a diesel.  Get a trans temp gauge put in the proper place - after the fluid exits the torque converter on its way to the cooler.

Torque converter and valve body need to be changed for dependability then after the rest of the trans goes it can be beefed up.  Rest of it seems to be OK for a while -maybe a long while at least on the Dodge, after the above 2 parts are changed though.  Per my supplier, Gus and my experience based on his advice.  He seems to be correct.

benevolance

A friend of mine owns a torque convertor business....Stock convertors are absolute trash....They glue junk clutch disks on the covertor...Making it unrebuildable...

When they cut them open on the lathe...They machine the convertor and upgrade it so that the better clutch disks can be installed..These are changeable...A huge improvement...

And it takes a few minutes to do it....The parts are dirt cheap...astonishing huh?

Makes you wonder why the dirt cheap, sturdier parts are not installed from the factory?

Just about any automatic becomes bulletproof with a better valve body and better clutches in the convertor....This way under load they still shift exactly as they were designed to...Meaning no additional wear and tear happens...And it prevents excessive heat...

I recommend aftermarket aluminum pan covers with fins for much improved cooling...and I recommend a massive and I mean massive trans cooler...Something the Size of your AC unit that sits in front of the radiator.

I also run lucas blend in my automatic transmission on my truck...Helps it run cooler and prevents the fluid from breaking down under a load when it gets hot... I do not believe all the crap about miracle fixes for a transmission...But it can sure as heck save a transmission from imploding if used properly.


glenn-k

#69
QuoteMakes you wonder why the dirt cheap, sturdier parts are not installed from the factory?

Once again this can be answered with the simple advice - "Follow the money".

Parts and repairs are 40% of American auto manufacturers business.  If something gets to be too good, they must re-engineer it to fail slightly after the warranty expires in most cases.  Note that these weak link vehicles will perform OK for most people but will not stand up to heavy use.

76 Chevy pickup automatic was designed with plastic thrust washers so they would fail under heavy use.  Brass parts were available to purchase on rebuild.  This was no accident.  It stopped me from ever buying GM products again.  The Ford from hell stopped me from buying more Fords.  Note that it was named that by the people who got it after I gave up on it.

Older Fords and Chevy's were better I think.  I'm just plain sticking with the Dodge now and building it exactly the way I want it.  Once I decided what and how I wanted it to be I find that it is much more useful here than any other truck I've had.

It still takes larger trucks for much larger jobs but this one has really increased what I can do on the small to medium jobs and saved much fuel too.  Uses only 1/2 to 2/3 of the bigger truck to do much of the same work.


benevolance

If I go Diesel...I think I will get a Late 80's early 90's international...The DT 466 is about the best diesel engine I have ever seen....Not overpowering.. but great mileage and they lasted forever.

I would love to find a low mileage crewcab...And then I would Put a headache rack on it so a car could go overhead...And then I would get a 4 or 5 car trailer...Depending on what the truck would scale....With me not having to get a CDL...

Being a crewcab I could sleep in the back when tired....Great for storage also...

Just an idea I have had for a long time now.... I am not a big diesel guy...And it makes me mad that they are pushing the price of diesel way above gasoline....

When it costs a fraction of the amount of gasoline to make the same amount of Diesel....

Why cannot we as a consumer do something about anything?

glenn-k

What I like about the 94+ Dodge  engines is the ability to instantly boost the horsepower with a chip.  Then there is the rest of the truck to consider and other brands will do the same thing but I don't know that much about them.

I know the Dodge is much easier to work on than the Ford as there is no room at all under the hood of the Ford.  So - labor charges can be less if you hire it out....  but then which shop can you trust.  The majority are not trustworthy.  Mechanics and shops need to be researched and chosen carefully.  I do my own work or use a few trusted friends.  Dealers are pretty well off of the list except in emergency.

benevolance

Glenn

even if you found a decent dealer or repair shop...They charge $80 and $90 an hour here to do repair work...OMG :o

I would not even pay that much for an hour of Carmen Electra's time... Not that a married man like myself would want anything to do with her ;)

MountainDon

#73
Thanks for the propane/diesel info Glenn. Went and looked at it and he wants too much considering the mileage (150,000), all the hail dings, and that it needs tranny work. I've just started looking tho'; no rush at all

I agree the V8's (Fords are the only ones I've seen) are way too crowded under the hood. I also have other grudges against Ford; never owned a GM product in my life. The guys I know with the Dodge/Cummins all love them. Mind you so the the guys I know with Fords...  :-?  


glenn-k

#74
The rates are similar here Peter.  Not for me.  I'm too tight and won't spend that kind of money on something I can do.  These are mechanics, not brain surgeons.

Don - the Ford guys here like their Fords too - but the ones I know say they (the engines) are a real pain to work on.