Lime Green 71OLDS 442 convertible [Archive] - Page 2

71OLDS

11-29-2017, 08:45 AM

Thanks Dan. I'm supposed to pick the car up from Frank's shop in Beltsville, MD on Saturday, December 16th and drive it back home to Virginia Beach barring any show stoppers that come up between now and then. So many upgrades since I drove it last. The biggest is obviously the Magnum 6 speed with the 4.10 gears but there's also the roll bar, including the new shoulder harness belts, the new front spoiler, the shocks put on the fiberglass trunk so it opens slowly now, an oil cooler so I can pound on the car more now even with the AC on in the summer time, the entire front end/suspension upgrade from the B-body spindles to the AFX Spindles, SC&C adjustable tubular uppers, and chassis brace, the new Lee 800 steering box and upgraded the front coil overs from 500 to 600 lbs. In the rear had the UMI relocation brackets added for better launching and the new UMI chassis mounted sway bar. I had Frank set the car up so the front parking lights stay on all the time like the Corvette's day time running lights. I just really like the way the car looks with the front parking lights on at all times. There were lots of little upgrades done too including switching back to my old Holley 830 carb from the current 770, Adding back the factory hood light and windshield squirters to my repro ram air hood, hooking up the line lock to the cruise control button on the dash (still to be completed), setting up the 2-step option on the MSD digital 6 box so I can launch off the line each time putting the gas pedal to the floor but the RPMs stopping at a set RPM (around 3500 ish), shortening the battery shut off switch on the rear bumper and making sure it can be locked so my alarm can't be shut off - bottom line is TONS of upgrades - I'm sure there will be some testing and tuning and working through all the adjustments with the new upgrades but I can't wait to get the car back on the road and start putting some hard miles on it again.

badolds

11-30-2017, 04:06 AM

146571

I have two line lock solenoids, one front one rear. When you press the red button on my shifter it locks the front line lock for the burn out. When you flip a switch on the dash the red button now locks the front and rear line locks and activates the adjustable two step. It is a streetable version of a trans brake.

Dan

71OLDS

11-30-2017, 06:52 AM

Very cool setup Dan. I've never had the line lock or the 2-step but looking forward to using both - especially the 2 step with the manual trans for consistent launches.

71OLDS

12-01-2017, 05:18 PM

Lots of things getting finished up since pick up is 2 weeks from tomorrow:

Vertical part of back seat has been notched for the down bars and re-installed. This will be professionally re-done later by an interior company but wanted it back together for now:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/rvNzCIj-1.jpg

"442" shifter handle with 6 speed shifter ball installed with the stock console:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/fT6cVJJ-1.jpg

with Door bar attached:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/o5HICH7-1.jpg

Kick panel speakers had to be relocated because of the location of the new removable door bar bottom connection on the floor board. Had to also make sure there was room to press down the emergency brake on the drivers's side:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/SEOdTjS-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/RmO2zo2-1.jpg

71OLDS

12-03-2017, 02:56 PM

Line Lock is now working using stock cruise control button on the dash - put in on position, touch the brake and it locks the front brakes, push cruise control button to off to unlock. - really happy with that.

Original glove box trunk button is now working -so the glass deck lid now opens much slower with the 2 shocks added and works using the glove box button. Will also have it set up so I can use the key fab to open the trunk. I know this is a little thing to most but since that glass decklid is so light it flew up way too fast and would almost rip off the hinges. Now it's nice and slow and can press a button to open - plus the light is working how it should - love getting all these little things dialed in. Here's a quick video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2EeTGomekE

Horizontal part of rear seat is back in but not locked yet - still need to get the rear belts re-installed. Was a tight fit in the corners where the shoulder belt retractors are mounted at the bottom:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/qEXQRMw-1.jpg

wfo guy

12-03-2017, 04:10 PM

Progress is good. :)

71OLDS

12-07-2017, 04:07 PM

Got racing harness belts all set up. They will only be used for racing when door bars and cross bar are attached - will use the shoulder harness belts for street driving w/no door bars or cross bar:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/FCpaz2y-1.jpg

rear belts added and horizontal part of rear seat is locked in

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/8Xy0q1S-1.jpg

Frank went on the first test drive with the new trans - said it shifted through the gears like butter. Still lots of little things to work on. Didn't want to get too crazy with the brand new trans and brand new 4.10 gears. Will slowly increase length of test drives and how aggressive the driving is. New 830 carb still needs to be leaner but car didn't get that heated up on the short drive so don't want to change/adjust anything yet.

71OLDS

12-08-2017, 11:45 PM

Years ago I ordered a fiberglass bumper, front spoiler, and rear decklid. I'm fairly certain they all came from Glasstek but it's been so long ago now I'm not 100% on that. I happen to have some of the original pics when they arrived. I'm guessing this was around 2004 or 2005 and I believe this was Brian Trick's driveway in Erie, PA:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/KEbEDif-1.png
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/i9UWsGO-1.png

That glass rear decklid is the one on the car now but that bumper was sent back because I wanted it without the holes. I was trying to copy the front end look of the Buick GS with no holes in the bumper and the front spoiler:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/yEwWQDp-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/anJmlb3-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/NWvailr-1.jpg

so I ended up getting the bumper redone w/o the holes which is on the car now:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/NNsvXxQ-1.jpg

I actually found an original Olds dealer pic of a 1971 442 with a front bumper with no holes in it. Not sure if this was a prototype or why it had no holes. I've never seen another one like it and I have the hard copy of this article/pic saved. I'm guessing it was originally planned to have the front bumper have no holes like the Buick GS but obviously at some point that changed:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/MISjqle-1.jpg

Here was an Olds wagon I showed in some pics earlier that had a similar look;
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/07/unNBIiP-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/07/5SRPdeu-1.jpg

You can see this wagon still has the holes in the bumper but the design of that front spoiler is spot on to what I envisioned on my car.

So I asked Frank to take my flimsy piece of fiberglass in that first pic above and mount it to the front of the car to look like the pics above and oh by the way make sure it can withstand driving at 150 mph (one of the future goals of my car). He came up with this metal frame idea from a pic I showed earlier:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/07/oLEol94-1.jpg

Here is the end result:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/zeDv6Ft-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/ivru5ip-1.jpg
and the underneath metal frame for support:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/xYHMa2K-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/p1rj0KU-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/B9JDXuZ-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/e6Gs2Sc-1.jpg

71OLDS

12-09-2017, 12:05 AM

When I have all the fiberglass fixed up for the paint and body work the spoiler will be made to look pretty but really happy with the way it turned out. To make it even worse for Frank I also asked him to install a hook for towing so the car could be pulled onto a flatbed w/o having to remove the front spoiler. Obviously if chains were hooked to the frame to pull the car on a flat bed it would bend or crush the spoiler and I don't want to have to remove the spoiler to be able to tow the car so Frank is working on the hook plan now.

chuckd71

12-09-2017, 08:10 AM

Now that he has built one, do you think the guy who made the roll bar could do another? I wouldn't need the part going through the rear seat as I plan to run mine in the middle, but the rest of it looks like it would work.

71OLDS

12-09-2017, 09:52 AM

71OLDS

12-10-2017, 05:45 PM

Frank is going to make an L bracket off the front bumper bolt and the frame for the tow hook. This will give the vertical face needed to screw the tow bolt through. The L bracket will fill up the inside of the frame opening:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/5TteXBM-1.jpg

Painted the underside of the front spoiler and metal frame:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/pLLlHEO-1.jpg

badolds

12-11-2017, 05:47 AM

[QUOTE=71OLDS;1250000]Frank is going to make an L bracket off the front bumper bolt and the frame for the tow hook. This will give the vertical face needed to screw the tow bolt through. The L bracket will fill up the inside of the frame opening:

If you had Chevy power you would not need a tow hook, hahaha. Just bustin your chops.

Dan

71OLDS

12-11-2017, 08:19 AM

If you had Chevy power you would not need a tow hook, hahaha. Just bustin your chops.Dan

Haha - funny guy!!

As I mentioned before this car will always be Olds powered as long as it belongs to me! Wish I could say the tow hook wouldn't be needed (regardless of why) but I know that's not the case. If the car is not having upgrades or fixes done, I put about 5k miles a year on it. That will include hard core street driving and 1/8th mile, 1/4 mile, and autocross track days. Bottom line is stuff is going to break and then it will get fixed. So far this motor has NOT been the weak link and now with the Magnum 6 speed (rated at 700 ft lbs at the wheels), hoping it's the last trans I will ever buy for this car. So for now no idea what the next thing to go will be but we'll see. I'm picking up the car on Saturday. If it snows in Beltsville MD like it did this weekend, the car will have to be trailered back to Virginia Beach and the new tow hook will get it's first test. Hoping that's not the case but nothing surprises me any more!!

-Joe

71OLDS

12-11-2017, 05:22 PM

had to put about 7" extensions on the 2004 Nissan 350Z female belt connectors for the shoulder harness belts. This was required to get them to stick up far enough above the Strato bucket seats:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/3M14zpA-1.jpg

The racing harness belts are all set now as you can see in this pic but you can also see the connectors for the shoulder harness belts sticking up just above the base of the strato seats.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/YPwHj6m-1.jpg

71OLDS

12-13-2017, 02:36 PM

With pick up only 3 days away of course some issues have come up. Frank got in about 50 miles of test driving yesterday in MD and most went well but there were two different leaks. The power steering pump and from the top of the new trans somewhere. Reservoir was cracked so ordered a new pump. Will be there tomorrow. Trans was fun. Had to either drop the trans or cut an an access panel in the top of the new trans tunnel. Went with the latter thinking it would make life easier for future issues. Trans leak is now fixed and cleaned up the access panel so it looks nice. Got almost another 50 miles in today with no leaks from the trans.

Lots of progress on the tow hooks. Ordered 2 of these and they will be removable:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/2RdhNLl-1.jpg

Here's what Franks designed:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/bWCJExJ-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/AJYmgRH-1.jpg

Will have one on each side. Will keep disconnected and in the glove box to be connected/used - only when pulling onto a flat bed. Again reason for this is so the front spoiler will NOT have to be removed every time the car needs to be put on a flat bed.

71OLDS

12-29-2017, 02:58 PM

Update: So the drive home from Beltsville, MD to Virginia Beach was successful Saturday before last. Not without some issues but made it all the way to my garage without having to be towed. Really happy with the big projects - new 6 speed is incredible, cornering & handling with AFX spindles, new steering box, and chassis brace is night and day difference. Love the new shoulder harness belts too. The issues I had were fuel/carb related. We switched from the Holley 770 street avenger back to my Holley 830 so several things were changed with the throttle linkage and springs. The issue was "granny driving" from a dead stop to slowly moving forward. What I found out later was the throttle spring was hitting on a bracket and "sticking" plus the motor seems to not like/not run well below about 1800 RPM. The first 50 miles or so from Frank's shop with the holiday traffic was brutal. Literally bumper to bumper for most of it. It took me an hour to go 10 miles at one point. Trying to feather the clutch with a sticking throttle spring for that 60 minute time period moving a few feet at a time was not fun. Eventually a gave up and pulled off at an Appleby's to charge my phone and rest my left calf. After about an hour I was back on the road and on the highway the 6 speed was amazing. One REALLY unusual issue for me was the engine running too cold. One of the many upgrades was the oil cooler to prevent the oil from getting too hot (230 degress +) with the filled block which made the fuel pump get hot and would cause vapor lock. This was the opposite problem because the oil temp wouldn't even get to 160 degrees and the carb was "leaned out" which will be great for summer driving but in the cold weather the motor is not liking the cold temps and lean carb especially at the lower RPMs (below 1800). Of course with the 6 speed I could easily drive around 1800 RPM but to get the oil temps up I purposely drove in one gear lower to stay in the 2500 to 3000 RPM range. This finally got the oil temp up to around 175-180 and you could feel the car drive better.

So once I got home the temps were better and over the next few days I got out for some test runs in 50 degree weather. Since I got the required 500 miles now on the new trans, I was able to get on it. Did a few 5k shifts and burnout for starters. I had fixed the throttle spring issue by bending the bracket a little and making sure the throttle spring was not snagging on the bracket. I also put some "softer" springs on to help with the granny driving from stop light to stop light. Really noticed a nice improvement. I tried out the 2 step for the first time. Very cool to push the clutch in put the gas pedal to the floor and have the RPMs sit right at 3500 for my launch. First time gave a ton of tire spin but the 2nd time had a pretty good launch with tires warmed up. Zero front end lift though which is probably because of the new 600 springs (upgraded from 500) and the additional weight on the front end from the new front spoiler and chassis brace. Will need to address this later. Lots of things to get dialed in. Then I tried the cruise control line lock. Very cool - press the stock cruise control button on the dash to "on" did a huge burn out and clicked to off to roll out of the burn out.

Then the bad part. Did another launch from a stop light using the 2 step - shifted 1-2, then 2-3 at around 5500. All felt great. Went to next stop light - pulled out slowly and turned the corner and the car shut off. Had to pull over to the curb and the car would not start. Tried everything but had to call AAA to tow me back to my garage. Only positive was we got to try the new tow hook. Here's a pic of the "temp" tow hook for the ride home:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/4Z28hWL-1.jpg

Well...learned a lesson about the angle of the tow hook. Since the wench on AAA flatbeds is in the center, it pulls the car forward at a 45 degree angle. The tow hook is installed perpendicular to the frame but wench pulls it onto the flat bed at a 45 degree angle. So the last foot or so onto the flat bed I see my fiberglass bumper on the passenger side (only tow hook I had installed for the drive home) pull forward about 4". Nothing I can do about it at this point. I talk to the AAA driver on the way to my house and he says all AAA flat beds have wenches in the middle so the tow hooks really need to be angled "in" about 45 degrees. OK will have to make that change at some point.

The other issue not mentioned above is I had noticed the nipple on top of the fuel regulator was "spitting" a little while I was going on these test drives. I talked to Frank about it and he confirmed I should replace the diaphragm on top of the regulator to be safe. Did that hoping that might be the fuel issue but the car is now acting like it lost prime on the fuel pump. Won't start. Pouring gas in the carb and all the usual fixes don't work. Frank had put a check valve just in front of the fuel tank to prevent this but I think the combo of the car being lifted going onto the flatbed, not being started for a week (traveled for Christmas) and the cold weather and that fuel pump needs to be "reprimed" with all the crazy methods that have worked previously (jacking up the rear, blowing air into the fuel line etc).

Bottom line is I'm over all the fuel issues. My problems are the manual fuel pump losing prime, cold start ups, idle all over the map at start up it's one RPM, warmed up it changes, first fan comes on it changes again, 2nd fan same, had solenoid added for AC but have to press button, press gas pedal, then solenoid kicks in to raise RPMs. Bottom line I'm ready to move on from all these issues and hopefully decrease the gas smell on me and in my garage by upgrading to the Go EFI 8 from FiTech:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/crJ7xIV-1.jpg

Will probably be February at the earliest or maybe even March before I can make the swap but ready to move forward and hoping many of my reoccurring issues will be resolved. I know this one rated at 1200 hp is overkill for now but wanted to have room for growth for the next 500ci + motor (with new Olds Rocket Racing block) and would like to keep the option open for nitrous too. That's probably a year or two away but hoping I can get this motor dialed in an every RPM and get the most out of it. Then use the same set up for the new motor.

71OLDS

12-29-2017, 05:02 PM

Here's a pic of the "442" shifter handle with the new magnum 6 speed underneath:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/8xh19x6-1.jpg

...and some of the shoulder belts. Will be in the custom enclosed box in the rear armrest area eventually but you can see the location/setup and functionality here:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/oFCziY1-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/le5wSzR-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/12/h6LCTrB-1.jpg

badolds

01-01-2018, 05:45 AM

I hope the EFI is the answer to your fuel issues. I would love to help you tune your carburetor to make the car run better. There is always something else needed on these hot rods. If you decide to stay with the carb I would ditch the manual pump and go with an electric pump. When you get it started again get it warmed up and look at the carb to see if it is leaking out of a bowl vent, squirter or booster at idle. Holleys are notorious for trash getting between the needle and seat and leaking causing a rich condition at lower rpms. Put the pedal to the floor and try to start it like that. I don't use ether on my engines but you can use a spray type lubricant as starting fluid as long as the can says "extremely flammable". Just flammable wont get it done, I use CRC brand silicone spray but you probably have something in your garage that will work. Put a good amount in each venture before cranking the engine but don't spray while cranking. Keep a towel handy in case it backfires you can smother it out. It might fire up and run fine or you may have a couple fouled plugs that will pick up when the engine warms up.

Dan

71OLDS

01-01-2018, 03:48 PM

Thanks Dan. Appreciate the offer and suggestions. I'm fairly certain its the manual pump that has lost prime again. Unfortunately no amount of gas or starter fluid will work on its own when this happens. Have to jack the rear up and get the gas back to the front of the car and maybe even blow air back up to the front in the fuel line. The carb has been tuned/setup for hot weather conditions which was the problem when it originally dropped it off. I won't bore you with all the details but now that I have researched the Go EFI 8 by FiTech, it just screams as the solution to so many of my issues. Cold weather or warm weather, no more idle issues/changes when AC is used or fan 1/fan 2 comes on. Will also add the external pump in the tank. I really like being able to tune and set up everything with the little hand held so the car can be dialed in perfectly at every RPM for every condition. To me it's a no brainer that I should have done a while ago. Plus it can be used and re-dialed in for my next motor. I will find a way to get it started before the FiTech is added so I can do some more testing on the suspension. I think the 600 springs may be too stiff and I may go back to the 500s but need more testing to confirm. Want to adjust the QA1 shocks at a lower setting and see how the car launches and corners. The cornering/steering is sooo much better with the Lee 800 steering box, AFX spindles, and chassis brace but there is zero lift on the front end at launch which is not good. Also granny driving in parking lots and doing things like u turns to both sides feels like a new car. The b-body spindles and my old AGR steering box were just not good. Anyway just the usual issues that have to be worked out and dialed in when there are this many changes. Looking forward to getting all this stuff taken care of and then getting to the local 1/8 mile tracks and also doing some auto cross, rear wheel dyno testing etc.

-Joe

71OLDS

01-29-2018, 03:16 PM

Finally a new update - ordered the Go EFI 8 today. Still deciding on which fuel system to go with. The good news is my builder Frank has now done 3 of these. All non-Olds but glad he's got the experience now installing and getting them dialed in. Here's pics of some the 2 most recent ones he did:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/01/LgPG9yd-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/01/FpLrwtG-1.jpg

Mine will be the first for him with 2 fans and the AC. Will be tagging on a few minor projects while he's doing this upgrade but hoping this process will only take a few weeks once he has my car. We'll see how it goes.

badolds

01-30-2018, 04:46 AM

I hope it is the answer you are looking for. I am dealing with an EFI propane mower at work right now and its kicking my arse. I have to order $300 worth of special tools to continue now that I have tried all of the shade tree mechanic stuff lol.

Dan

71OLDS

01-30-2018, 08:54 AM

Thanks Dan. Me too. Hoping it resolves part or all of these issues:

1. difficulty with cold starts or starts when the car has not been started for several days
2. vapor lock
3. non steady/consistent idle
4. idle speed change caused by fan 1, fan 2, and AC
5. running poorly below 2000 RPM
6. losing prime on manual fuel pump when car sits without being started for too long or is towed
7. bad gas smell in garage and on me after driving
8. lazy throttle response
9. fuel/air not dialed in at all RPMs/loss in power

Went with Aeromotive Phantom Stealth 340 fuel system and wiring kit and Aeromotive 13305 regulator

Will update which of the above gets improved on. Hoping for all or at least most of them.

-Joe

71OLDS

02-10-2018, 12:43 PM

got started on the Go EFI 8 install today:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/oqlldQY-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/MM6smYz-1.jpg

71OLDS

02-10-2018, 01:17 PM

Wow! So happy. The custom aircleaner Frank made to fit over the Holley carb (and use my stock breather) fits perfectly over the Go EFI 8!! Zero mods required. Go figure.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/ZurBA0Y-1.jpg

wfo guy

02-10-2018, 01:25 PM

I know that everyone is selling the 340lph pumps these days for these kits but unless you need that much capacity, you will be bypassing and circulating fuel alot. This causes aeration of the fuel that causes problems. The closer the pump is to the hp. capacity of the engine, the better this will be. All the problems you listed should be cured by efi. Following the directions makes for a simple install on these. The most common problem is due to poor grounding. :)

71OLDS

02-10-2018, 01:42 PM

thanks for the info - will update on everything good or bad. As mentioned this will be the 4th Go EFI system installed by my builder so he's getting pretty experienced with this particular kit. Of course each car he's installed it on had totally different setups/motors and totally different issues. He told me to go with the 340 pump so just following his instructions. Hopefully everything will get dialed in and most or even all of my issues will be resolved. We'll see.

71OLDS

02-11-2018, 03:39 PM

Aeromotive Phantom Stealth 340 pump installed and tank is ready to go back in:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/M9hAw4r-1.jpg

71OLDS

02-12-2018, 04:06 PM

Tank is back in and everything is buttoned up and got her fired up for the first time with the Go EFI 8 system. Only a few tweaks made so far. Ready for a test drive but front end is apart now to put my old 500 springs back in.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/Nvbl6X2-1.jpg

71OLDS

02-16-2018, 10:03 AM

Several new updates: First I had noticed the receiver/dryer tube was loose and rattling. Turns out the dryer on the condenser was broken. The flare that gets tightened up in the dryer broke off:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/JcGWw5E-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/gaHOFtL-1.jpg
Because this is made to the condenser I was worried we would need to order a new condenser. To make matters worse I have that "custom" condenser for the 134 conversion that is almost $300.
Thankfully Frank came up with a nice work-around. The dryer will be clamped to the vertical support so it won't vibrate off again:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/4uTc9C0-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/9a6mHx6-1.jpg

71OLDS

02-16-2018, 10:19 AM

The next update is back to the tow hook discussed in previous posts. As a reminder this is required to get the car pulled up on a flatbed w/o having to remove the new custom glass front spoiler. Originally per the previous posts we were going with 2 hooks coming off each frame rail and sticking out of the glass front bumper via one of the bumper bolt holes. But Frank only got the passenger side installed last time and I had a chance to try it out - unfortunately - twice - first when I had the fuel issue and the car stalled and would not start and second when I towed it back to Frank's for all these new updates. Both times as the car was being pulled onto the flat bed the glass front bumper was pulled forward as the wench pulled the car from the center. The bottom line is if the tow hooks are at an angle it causes that front bumper to push forward. So....the new plan was to put one hook dead center in the middle. The problem is the front license plate is there. Frank came up with a brilliant new design plan - "V" off the frame rails to have one tow hook in the center and purchase a "flip down" license plate unit for the front just like we use in the rear for gas fill ups. So when the car is towed you flip the plate down, screw in the hook and it's all ready to go. Here's a pic of the v off the frame rails:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/xywBqUN-1.jpg

There other HUGE benefit of this design is for safety. Since my entire front end is glass and I street drive this car a lot, I was very worried about a front end collision. Now I have a steel brace off the frame rails behind all that glass which may not be a solid as a huge steel bumper but at least it provides something solid up in the front should a front end collision happen.

71OLDS

02-16-2018, 04:23 PM

Tow hook is done. Really happy with how it came out and the new fold down front plate:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/veisvtd-1.jpg
with tow hook:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/fcEqUiL-1.jpg
w/o tow hook:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/02/pRoWVe5-1.jpg

of course all the holes and fiberglass will be cleaned up and made perfect when I get all the paint and body work done.

71OLDS

02-19-2018, 02:28 PM

Getting close to being ready for pick up. Got about 60 miles on a test drive yesterday - still trying to dial in the EFI system. It colds starts OK right now but Frank says after doing 5 of these in the last few months the cold start is the most temperamental. Apparently because cold starts are before the system goes into closed loop it doesn't "learn" like it does the rest of the times once the motor is running. So the cold start is purely relying on the tune. Frank is trying to get that dialed in. The throttle response is excellent and driving with the fans coming on and off and with and without the AC is a huge difference. We are still having the "running too cold" issue from several months ago when I drove the car home from Frank's with the old carb. Trying to adjust the fans and timing to heat the motor up a little more. Drove at different RPMs for five mile clips to try to help the computer fill in its fuel tables. Getting there slowly but surely but will take some time to get all this dialed in.

71OLDS

02-19-2018, 03:09 PM

A few more updates on the EFI - heard a spark knock in 6th gear going up a hill so cut total timing back 2*. Driving at lower RPMs is night and day difference. I was having issues in 6th gear on the hwy where the car didn't run well in the low 2000s and really bad at around 1800 - now it's like glass all the way down to 1800 - can even go as low as 50 mph in 6th (which is about 1500 RPM w/my 305/45/18 tires). Also cruising in a parking lot in first on the old setup was not fun. Car would buck back and forth if it wasn't above 2000. So I would have to keep the RPMs up above 2000 or feather the clutch. Now it's nice a smooth as it should be even at 1700 - 1800.

wfo guy

02-19-2018, 04:11 PM

Good to hear. :)

71OLDS

02-25-2018, 03:56 PM

Drove the car home from Frank's yesterday. This is now a totally different car. The GO EFI 8 system accomplished everything I hoped for and more. The only issue I had during the 4 hour drive home was with the wipers. It rained about 1/2 the trip home and the wipers got stuck in the on position twice. I had to pull the fuse, push the wipers back down under the back of the hood manually, then put the fuse back in. Besides that - total perfection. Looking at my list:

1. difficulty with cold starts or starts when the car has not been started for several days - UPDATE - Starts up instantly everytime
2. vapor lock - UPDATE - so far no issues - drove the car hard for about 90 min in near 80 degree temps here in Virginia Beach and the oil temp got up to about 210 then the oil cooler must have kicked in because it dropped back to about 190. Was doing hard core 5500 shifts over and over and over again. The car ran just as strong after 90 min of this as it did when it was just warmed up.
3. non steady/consistent idle - UPDATE - idle remains constant with one fan on, 2 fans on, and or the AC on.
4. idle speed change caused by fan 1, fan 2, and AC UPDATE - Just answered above
5. running poorly below 2000 RPM - UPDATE - this improvement was off the charts. Runs amazing in all gears down to about 1500. It is sooooo smooth and crisp now in every gear.
6. losing prime on manual fuel pump when car sits without being started for too long or is towed - UPDATE - no more manual pump - the aeromotive elec pump is in the tank and I can't ever hear it running.
7. bad gas smell in garage and on me after driving - UPDATE - well not 100% on this one - wifey said I still smell like gas and the garage still smells like gas but...she said it's much less than it used to be. I guess I can live with that. This one was more about her than me to be honest. I love the smell of gas!!
8. lazy throttle response - UPDATE - off the charts instant throttle response!!
9. fuel/air not dialed in at all RPMs/loss in power - UPDATE - got it dialed in at all RPMs. I'm sure its probably NOT but man the butt dyno feels like it picked up 50 hp!! The difference is so dramatic.

So there you go. I'm completely blown away with the difference - granny driving is so enjoyable crispy and smooth now even at low RPMs. WOT is amazing and feels like it gained power. To not have to worry about start up, or idle, or vapor lock, or any of those issues again makes it worth every penny!!

Here are some videos I took - my apologies for the quality - shaky, blurry, I put the cell phone down twice to open and close the hood, etc etc.. Anyway gives a good overview of the entire car including roll bar, new front spoiler, shoulder belts, the new fold down front license plate for the tow hook, daytime running lights (note about 1/2 way in I push the light button off but the front parking lights only stay on), the trunk button that allows the new trunk setup to slowly open the trunk, the new EFI hand held for making adjustments, a start up - although the car had been driven a few hours earlier so not a cold start up but it would start exactly the same:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slaGOuODRIk

I duct taped my cellphone to the front windshield and knocked out a few 5500 shifts. This video just does it no justice. The sound and feel in the car is amazing but unfortunately my cell phone cam can't pick that up. You can hear the guy say something to me at the light. I did a 3500 RPM launch with the 2 step but the cold tires just spun. You can hear them on the video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qR7lZ85hOLE

wfo guy

02-25-2018, 04:49 PM

Congratulations.

badolds

02-26-2018, 03:28 AM

Congrats Joe, got the beast running good for spring. Have fun.

Dan

71OLDS

02-26-2018, 03:52 PM

Thanks WFO and Dan - looking forward to getting lots of hard street miles in over the spring and summer and hopefully some dyno/track time too. Will continue to update details here.

-Joe

71OLDS

03-03-2018, 11:04 AM

Been doing lots of tweaking and testing and doing as much driving as possible. Rain, cold weather, and wind have made it challenging. One bit of bad news is the blower motor died on me. Figures - things were going so well. Hopefully I won't need heat, defrost, or AC for a few weeks. Want to keep the car on the road and enjoy it for at least a few weeks before I worry about getting a new blower motor installed.

As mentioned earlier I've been trying make some adjustments for all the tire spin. With all this new crispy throttle response the tire spin is out of control. My 305 45 18 drag radials easily break loose in the first 3 gears and even in 4th one time so far. Off the line in first is ridiculous of course. So I made a few adjustments:

1. lowered the PSI in my drag radials from 30 to 22
2. lowered the settings on my single adjustable QA1s from level 4 to level 1 (the softest setting)
3. lowered my 2 step on the MSD box from 3500 RPM to 3200 RPM for launching

The drive with adjustments 1 and 2 had some interesting results:

With the drag radials that low the ride is definitely more bouncy and at times I can feel kind of a wobble in the steering wheel but it's very slight. Good on the hwy too and after going over a few dips in the road it's not bottoming out or anything but it does bounce the car a few times more than normal on those dips - can live with all of this but it definitely is a more pleasurable ride with the tires at 30 psi. The question is - will it lessen the tire spin at the lower psi?

I was really surprised with the driving with the shocks on level 1. I had driven like this before with my previous front end set up and steering box (used to be b-body spindles, AGR steering box, and no chassis brace) and the car was dangerous in corners if I had any speed at all. With the new AFX spindles, chassis brace, and Lee 800 steering box not only is it safe to take corners, but it actually corners pretty well even at speed. I did get on it hard in 2nd while I was switch lanes to the left and the front end lifted pretty high and I had to come off it. But I'm thinking all those upgrades to help the car corner in autocross better may also help it be safer to drive when I have it set for front end lift/straight line performance. That's a pleasant surprise I was not expecting. I'm going to test different settings on this for hard cornering. Wondering if I can go with a level 2 and still get decent front end lift for launch but still be able to corner hard?? We'll see.

For the 3rd adjustment, the 3200 launch decreases the tire spin drastically. Unfortunately I've only been able to get out when the temp was in the low 40s and there's going to be more spin with the drag radials when it's that cold but I could tell it was much better than launching at that 3500 RPM even in the cold. Will keep testing that out.

Last I started playing with the Go EFI 8. Frank put my warm idle at 1000 RPM. That's the idle the system keeps the motor at once it hits 170 degrees. This RPM keeps everything running great with no fear of the car stalling in any condition, hot, cold, right after I get on it, with AC on, with fan 1 or fan 2 on etc etc. but....I can't hear the lope of my cam. I like the way the car idles at 850 RPM. Sounds like a muscle car should. Every RPM you go above 850 smooths that idle out and that amazing lope sound. So...I started trying to find the sweet spot for as low as I could go without the car stalling. Previously I would have to open the hood, remove the breather springs, take the breather off, take the aircleaner off, then adjust the idle screw on my carb, put everything back on, close my hood. Then of course with the carb what dialed it in perfectly in my driveway completely changed if the car was hot, cold, right after I get on it, with AC on, with fan 1 or fan 2 on etc etc. but now....all I do is press 4 buttons on the hand held device and drop it down in 10 RPM increments to whatever I want. The hood remains closed. That is just so amazing to me. Anyway - dropped it from 1000 to 950 - no issues. Starting to sound better. Then dropped it to 900. Went on a cruise and it's now go that lope I like. Went through McD's drive through - took about 10 min with the idle at 900 - was loving it. Got my food at the end pulled forward to put my drinks in the drink holder and it shut off. Started right back up but maybe 900 is a little too low. Bumped it up to 910 and will try that for a while.

71OLDS

03-03-2018, 12:39 PM

Here's all it takes but bump the warm idle from 900 to 910:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_nwhiALYbk

Just drove for about an hour never stalled out on me and have a little of my lopey idle back. But...once the new blower motor is installed I will have to test running heat and AC then sitting at a stop light.

Also used my 0-60 feature on my GPS speedo for the first time - showed 4.59 on my first ever attempt with lots of tire spin. Not sure how accurate that is but need to try to get it under 4 seconds. Will be fun to try. With my 4.10 rear and 2.66 first gear and 1.78 second gear I hit 60 mph at about 5200 in 2nd. I notice most of the new American muscle super cars with manual transmissions are geared to hit 0-60 in first gear which supposedly drops a few tenths since you don't have to shift. Then most of those same cars cross the traps in 3rd for the quarter mile for one less shift there too. But that's a topic for another post and sadly I think manual transmissions are going bye bye because the new 8 or 10 speed automatics are simply faster then any manual trans can be no matter who is driving.

71OLDS

03-03-2018, 02:25 PM

Got another 0-60 run in - still too much tire spin 4.53 this time. Going to try lowering the 2 step from 3200 to 3000:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/2keVY7J-1.jpg

wfo guy

03-03-2018, 05:21 PM

Kool! Glad you're enjoying the process. :)

71OLDS

03-06-2018, 01:47 PM

Kool! Glad you're enjoying the process. :)

Thanks - great to finally be driving the car and getting all this stuff dialed in. Been working on my launch a lot. Trying different settings and launch techniques. Getting a little better but still have a long way to go. I really want to stick with my Nitto drag radials since they are better in corners and safer in the rain then other options (MT, M&H, Hoosier etc) but man it's tough to get off the line clean. I'm looking to run one tire at all times for daily driving and when I go to the track. I know I will give up some 60 ft/ET vs going with some of other drag radials or even slicks but I'm going to try to stick with that plan. I think this 0-60 on my GPS is keeping me honest and will translate to my 60 ft times at the track. I know the track will be different but if I can improve on my 0-60 times on the street I bet that will make it easier to dial in my 60 ft times at the track. Best so far on the 0-60 was with the 2 step at 3000 RPM letting the clutch out medium to fast (no slipping) - then not giving any additional gas for about the first 10 feet until the car hooks, then rolling or easing into the gas from there just enough to not break the tires loose. My shift light on the tach comes on at 5500 so by the time I push the clutch in and shift it's probably 5700 - 5800. That seems to be about right for the feel and pull in the power band. I've gone to 6000 before but probably start to drop off in power after 5700 - 5800.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/wPPFqHo-1.jpg

Got me a 4.47 but that's a LONG way from a 3.9. Will keep trying. May try dropping my rear down bars into the lower holes on my UMI relocation brackets just to see if that helps. I've read mixed results on that. My bars are parallel to the ground right now. Next hole down would have them pointing down slightly and the hole below that would have them pointing way down.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/581QLbi-1.jpg

These are like the old south side machine lift bars. Supposedly it hits the tires harder. No idea if that would be a good thing or not with the manual trans and my Nitto DRs but might as well try it out. I also heard the lower you go or the more down angled the bars are the worse the cornering is. Will have to check that out too.

Also my rear UMI sway bar has 3 holes for adjustment too. It's in the middle hole right now which according to their website is for autocross.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/h4kNnCi-1.jpg

May try the hole one back which they say is better for drag racing/launching. At least I still have lots of options to try and play with!!

jetmech442

03-07-2018, 07:23 AM

Wow, just went through the entire thread, awseome project, great car! thanks for posting and all the cool pics. slow day at work so I have a question and some comments that may help. First, dropping a hole on the lower bars will increase your Anti-Squat which will increase traction(but only while the suspension is accelerating). Using the lower arms to do this will also generate "roll steer" where the rear end can either turn slightly the direction of the corner or away from it. When I was running my olds BB in the car, I had the edelbrock antisquat arms on the top of the axle. Paired with my 555R's it would grip and rip with minimal heat in the tires. The rear of the body would raise up about 2 inches during launch-it was great! then I got into protouring, suspension design, etc... and once I dropped the rear a little, antisquat awas through the roof. Just touching the pedal would kick the body up and on launch it would hit so hard the tires would seem to bounce.

Last year I designed and installed a 3 link that can adjust antisquat in ~30 degree incremements from 40% to 170% I'm currently at 100% (the body doesn't raise or lower on launch). Traction is great getting on throttle out of corners but launch is still not there(this is probably more the fault of my NT05's either being not hot enough or pressures too high).

Okay don't want this post to be too long, so my question: which nitto DR's are you running? I see you have 305/45's -and I don't hear you complaining about rubbing. I'm running 295/45/18's, I have them spaced about 3/8'' away from the frame and body but sidewall flex seems to let them contact on hard corners. Maybe the 71's have more room? I dunno. Anyway, great project man,good luck with all the tuning.
150014

71OLDS

03-07-2018, 07:35 PM

thanks for the info and your car looks great - Always like to see another Olds on here. I'm running the 555r nittos on 18x10s and have zero rubbing of any kind now even getting sideways into corners. But....had to roll the fender well lips and put some "flat spots" with a BF Hammer on the inner wheel wells and 3" tail pipes to make it all work. I have some pics of the flattening process in some of the earlier posts. I do believe the 70 -72 wheel wells are a little wider than the 68 - 69 so the 305s may be pushing it for you.

I'm going to try the lower holes on the rear suspension and see how it goes both for launching and hard corners. I put the front shocks back on level 4 setting today (back up from zero) and went back out and did some hard cornering and S curves. Don't think I want to compromise to give that up just for my launching. I can safely drive on level zero as I mentioned earlier but I can't get crazy with it like I just did on level 4 setting. There is a huge difference. I will probably just keep them at 3 or 4 for the street and accept that off the line I will be a little slower.

It really sucks to figure out what thing I want to compromise on. Corners, launching, daily driving comforts, getting caught in the rain?? I know I could throw the other Nitto drag radials on there or even better the MT 305 45 18 drag radials but I drive this car on long trips and rain is going to happen. The 555rs are better than non drag radials but can't compare to some of the other options for launching. But I can corner as hard as i want in them and have driven in horrific rain for hours on some of my long trips with no issues so will probably just stick with them.

71OLDS

03-09-2018, 10:07 PM

Special thanks to Tommy Parry for the nice online write up on my car: https://www.hotrodhotline.com/71-oldsmobile-442-convertible#.WqN0uPnwbIW

71OLDS

03-14-2018, 07:26 PM

Got my new large size (2.25") shift ball from Speed Dawg today. I had the same one on my old 5 speed but with the different pattern obviously. This time I asked Speed Dawg to flush mount and red loctite the 3/8 24 thread adapter that fits my 67-69 442 shifter handle to prevent it from rattling at high RPMs. This one is made by HURST. Looks so much better in my opinion then the much smaller American Powertrain shift ball that came with my 6 speed:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/p4nzdkb-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/dKRXABi-1.jpg

71OLDS

03-15-2018, 01:14 PM

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/OWwRmXZ-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/dt7sup9-1.jpg

71OLDS

03-18-2018, 12:55 PM

Been working on my 0-60s and finally have a method that got it down to 4.28. This is with my front shocks on #4 setting (vs. the lowest setting on previous best results) so I can still corner hard on the streets and no change in the rear relocation brackets hole or rear sway bar yet. Started to use my line lock (hooked up to the stock cruise control button) to heat the Nitto drag radials up first. Have slowly increased my 2 step all the way up to 4500 RPM. I've been researching several manual tranny guys launching at this higher RPM with LESS tire spin than lower RPMs. You have to slip the clutch slightly and will still have a little tire spin (which is safer on the rear and the trans) but when you launch that high the car is moving forward faster and already in the power band. Still have to wait for the tires to hook before you can add any throttle and ease into it but there seems to be less tire spin and no bog at all once you roll into the gas pedal at this higher RPM.
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/qTqzTuQ-1.jpg
I gotta be honest I was nervous as hell to try launching at 4000 first then worked my way up to 4500. No clutch smell or any issues with the car. Of course it probably helps that I have the McLeod twin disk and the magnum 6 speed that can survive in the Hellcat. I had the exact same results over and over again regardless of whether I launched at 3000 all the way up to 4000. Very consistent 4.5 0 to 60 times. As soon as I went to 4500 to start me in the power band for my motor it dropped to the 4.29 twice and this 4.28 I just did today is my best so far. Will keep trying to get down to 3.9. Maybe if I put the front shocks back to the lowest setting and or play with the other options for the rear location brackets and sway bar I can get a little closer. We'll see what happens.

71OLDS

03-21-2018, 08:08 PM

Blast from the past - my Dad found these old pics he took in 2003 at the 75/80 Dragway in Monrovia, MD. Check out how amazing the car looks with all that lime green on it!
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/ANd6gAB-1.jpg?1
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/28WQSNl-1.jpg?1
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/7CLHLFz-1.jpg?1
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/ZtN7XBQ-1.jpg?1

So at this time the car was about 4200 lbs (car alone) with the bone stock low compression 71 455 but it did have the headers I have now (Hooker SC 1/7/8) and 2.5" exhaust and my old Richmond 5 speed. I was rocking 15" all chrome SSIs and had 275/60/15 BFG drag radials on the back with painted on RWL. The motor was probably 300ish hp with 450 ish ft/lbs of tq but at that heavy weight and low hp the performance was not too great. Keeping it real here's one of the time slips from that day:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/03/6T9uqBc-1.jpg?1

15.3 at 90 mph with a 2.2 60 ft - this was when I knew it was time to increase the power and put the car on a diet!! It was slow but looked good. Now it's much faster but looks like ass with all that unfinished, unpainted fiberglass. Oh well - need to get back to a track around me here in Virginia Beach this spring/summer then start that paint and body process to make it pretty again.

71OLDS

05-24-2018, 03:28 PM

No updates for a while - just been enjoying the car. Lots of miles put on it. 2 trips to DC and back from Virginia Beach and one trip to Charlotte, NC and back. Almost 4,100 miles on the car since the 6 speed went in! Did a nice clean 0 to 60 mph pass today and got a new personal best:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/05/VGJ9VAL-1.jpg

So close to my goal of 3.9!!

badolds

05-25-2018, 03:09 AM

Having fun while my sled is in the paint shop, I hope you feel okay about that LOL. I have been golfing like no other.

Dan

71OLDS

05-25-2018, 06:38 AM

Hi Dan,

Sounds like fun to me. Will be driving my car back to Frank for a few more upgrades/fixes in a few weeks and will be spending lots more time golfing myself. Then trying to enjoy the car as much as possible for the rest of summer and fall. After that the plan is to send it off to paint jail for the winter so unless something changes I'll be in your same boat in a few months.

-Joe

71OLDS

06-14-2018, 04:52 PM

Dropped the 442 back off at Frank's this weekend for what I hope to be the final round of upgrades and fixes for the year. Then hoping to get to the local 1/8th mile track and maybe one autocross event before the winter, then it's off to paint and body. I put 4500+ miles on the car since the new trans went in so lots of time and miles to figure out the issues I want fixed or upgraded. Here's a list:

1. Upgrading from my current QA1 hybrid single adjustable coilovers on the front to a true coil over viking double adjustable setup with 550 rated springs.
2. Rear coil over conversion is TBD. Not sure how it will fit with the huge 3" tail pipes. My current 2" drop springs are rated at 240 which is way too stiff for the rest of my setup. Hoping I can go to the rear coil overs and be able to easily adjust the ride height like the front, switch to a 150 rated spring and also upgrade to the double adjustable Vikings.
3. Assuming 1 & 2 go well I want to lower the car a little more. Currently if you measure from the top of the rim to the chrome trim ring the fronts are at about 2.5" and the rears are at about 2". Would like to dial it in at about 1.5" all the way around. Just don't think I can go any lower because of clearance issues.
4. Related to the clearance issue going to covert to a low profile exhaust clamp at the end of the header and maybe go to a oval X pipe setup. Hoping these 2 changes will buy me some extra clearance from exhaust pipe to frame and body as well as to the ground for going over speed bumps.
5. I think my Olds trumpets stick out too far so going to have them both adjusted in about an inch.
6. Upgrading from my current powermaster 150 amp alternator (90 at idle) to a powerbstrd 220 amp alternator (110 at idle) - with my electric fuel pump, electric fans, battery in the trunk, stereo with subs etc the volts still go a little low sometimes.
7. My new steering box needs some new stops put in to it stop it from hitting the sway bar on lock to lock turns.
8. Having AC issues - it's not holding freon and may need to be flushed out.
9. Several new trans clutch issues - it's hard to get the car in 1st and reverse when it's cold (throwout bearing?), the clutch pedal has slowly worked it's way closer to the floor board and definitely needs to be adjusted.
10. Add a thermostat to the oil cooler (185 degrees) so the car doesn't run too cool on the highway when the temps are cold or even cool.
Plus a few electrical and custom projects as always.

Will add pics and details as we progress along.

ProTouring442

06-15-2018, 03:23 AM

71OLDS

06-15-2018, 01:01 PM

Yeah 2003 was the last time I was there. I think it closed then reopened then closed again a few years back but not 100% on that. Hoping to get to one of the 1/8 mile tracks close to me here in Virginia Beach maybe in August. We'll see how that goes.

71OLDS

07-31-2018, 11:48 AM

I spent about 2 hours on the phone yesterday with Mark Savitske at SC&C author of "How to make Your Muscle Car Handle".

http://scandc.com

The knowledge and experience he has working with 68-72 GM A Body's is pretty crazy. I got my AFX spindles and a few other suspension parts from him. I was really surprised by some of the things he told me. It definitely contradicts what I thought and sadly goes against the look that I love on my car (being nice and low on the stance). Most of the time I talk to Mark about 20% of what he says goes over my head so it's safer to get the real info directly from him but I'll try to generalize at a high level.

First he talked about the roll center on 68-72 GM A Bodies and how it is very high and as you lower the rear of a GM A-body, the rear roll center goes up. Then he brought up the part that concerned me the most. He said lowering the rear more than 1” could cause issues and suggested the perfect lowering amount for 68-72 GM A body is 2” front and 1” rear assuming you're using the stock frame. This will prevent the rear roll center from going up = worse handling. Meaning if you lower a stock frame GM A body more than 2” front and 1” rear the car will actually handle WORSE. I always thought the lower you could get the car to the ground the better it would handle. Apparently this could be true if you got an aftermarket frame with a different roll center but is not the case for those of us running stock frames.

I specifically asked about tire height and if a shorter or taller tire would change the roll center and he said no. He did say one thing that was consistent with my current setup (and probably the only thing that's consistent) related to the tire size. He said going with a taller tire setup like mine would help the tires tuck more (than a shorter tire) giving it at least the appearance that it was lower. I know on my car if I had shorter tires and only went with 2" drop in the front and 1" drop in the rear there would be a gap between the top of the tire and the wheel well - that would be my worst nightmare! Currently I'm at about a 2.5" drop in the front (.8 AFX Spindle and about 1.75 coilovers) and I'm running way too stiff 2" drop springs (CPP 240 rating) in the rear. Sadly I was hoping to go to 2.5" all the way around so the wheel well sat right at the top of my rim and was going to doing this by adding the rear coilovers to drop that last 1/2" in the rear. That's the look I love. Mark asks me - "do you care about look or performance/handling?" He said where my car is now is hurting me and if I go lower it will be worse. He said my roll center has been raised because I'm too low and my car is going to handle worse because of it. I said so you're telling me if I raise the front a 1/2" and the rear 1" my car should handle and corner better and he said absolutely. I'm going to give it a try. I probably won't have my car back on the road until Sept/Oct but will update my results/changes here good or bad as always.

Really going to miss the lowered look but if it handles better I'll take performance over looks any day. I'm also going with coil springs only (not coil overs) and double adjustable shocks. Long story for why on the coil springs but it's mostly because of my driving style and habits: 5000 street miles/year and pounding the car really hard on a regular basis (hard corners and WOT blasts even on the street) plus autocross events & 1/8th mile and 1/4 mile runs. Mark suggested something like 550/135 14" springs and then adjust with the dbl adjustable shocks for street/corners/track etc. He was very specific about choosing a shock that allows higher rebound settings. Apparently some dbl adjustable brands max out at 450 = OK for drag race but not good for street or autocross/cornering. He said since I have all the geometry issues resolved with my AFX spindles, and the other suspension parts (tubular uppers/lowers, Lee 800 box, front/rear sway bars, chassis brace etc) that if I work with the natural roll center of the car I can get amazing handling with the modest spring rates and high end shocks. If I lower the car too much and raise the roll center then I would have to "band aid" the issues I have created with stiff springs and/or really wide wheels tires etc. We'll see how the changes work out.

badolds

08-01-2018, 04:02 AM

He is a plethora of information. I felt guilty taking up his time but he seems to genuinely enjoy what he does. I try to purchase anything I can from SC&C.

71OLDS

08-01-2018, 06:20 AM

Agreed. After these changes are done almost my entire suspension will be stuff I bought from him or stuff he said I should buy. So far everything he suggested has done exactly what he told me it would. Hoping these latest changes/suggestions will be the same.

-Joe

71OLDS

08-01-2018, 04:06 PM

Got the new parts ordered today including:

SPC Springs:
Front 1.2" drop 14 1/8 inch 550 rated
Rear: 1" drop 14 1/4 inch 135 rated

Varishock dbl adjustable Quickset2 shocks front and rear. 16 settings for both compression and rebound with a rebound that maxes out at around 700 (vs a QA1 or Viking that maxes at 450) Again this is a non-issue for drag racing but that extra rebound is huge for a nicer street ride and autocross

SPC lower control arms with progressive rate jounce bumpers and a 1" drop and 1" of shims to allow the front springs to be adjusted up or down to dial in the ride height right where it needs to be.

beater65

08-02-2018, 06:30 AM

71OLDS

08-02-2018, 07:12 AM

Had same situation last yr with my wagon.

I had car hammered 4" drop in front 3" in rear, car looked killer. But handled like crap and chewed tires.

I have always been more about aesthetics altitude=attitude theory vs function. I also talked to Mark and did lots of research and realized if I wanted to actually autocross my car, id need to listen to the experience and knowledge of these guys and lift car as much as it pained me to do. Car handles killer now that I applied what I was told. And I still wish I could have both. But car being competent makes the higher altitude tolerable lol

I'm with you. Hoping to get the car back in time to get some autocross in before the winter hits. I'm 100% in with Mark's suggestions now. Basically my entire suspension will be what he suggested. Will update here on my results once I get the chance to autocross, also same goes for 1/8 mile, 1/4 mile, and street driving.

-Joe

71OLDS

08-02-2018, 02:48 PM

Pretty cool add for my new lower control arms. What exactly is a progressive rate jounce bumper? Found this article that describes it pretty well:

http://www.hrsprings.com/technical/micro-cellular-jounce-bumper

Translation - instead of a hard rubber bouncy bump stop (which doesn't help the ride in anyway) like these red ones on the Global West Arms:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/08/yavA7T5-1.jpg

........all new cars are now made with this "memory foam" like material"

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/08/GWVomOE-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/08/8RTm9oM-1.jpg

Crazy that this little change supposedly can make the car ride much smoother. Mark says the dbl adjustable shocks will actually be better at a slightly lower compression setting with the progressive rate jounce bumper instead of a standard rubber bumps stop.

Also the SPC arms should be 2 or 3 lbs lighter than my current Global West Coil over only arms. - I'll take any weight loss I can get especially in the front end. Will make sure we weigh both of them to compare.

71OLDS

09-07-2018, 05:59 AM

New lower control arms and springs are on but unfortunately still no Varishock dbl adjustables yet. They are made to order and taking a while.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/09/SDGzbsK-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/09/EqziCEv-1.jpg

wfo guy

09-07-2018, 04:03 PM

Nice parts. :)

71OLDS

09-11-2018, 12:45 PM

Ordered these new hood hinges from www.eddiemotorsports.com (http://www.eddiemotorsports.com) that were just made available for 69-72 Olds Cutlass & 442s for both steel and fiberglass hoods. Went with the "300" shocks for my repro glass hood. They allow you to swap out the shocks higher or lower at no charge but they suggested the 300 one should be perfect. Will update here if I have to change to another one. Frank my builder had seen these hinges on a Chevy he worked on and said they were amazing and the hood opens really smooth and easy. My hood is all over the map with the glass fenders and hood so hoping these hinges will make it smoother and nicer. Will provide an update once installed. I went with the matte black finish:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/09/UVdddCs-1.jpg

71OLDS

09-11-2018, 01:15 PM

The roller lifters have been swapped out because the ones in there previously made this loud ticking noise that sounded like an exhaust leak or something. You can hear it if you listen to the videos I posted earlier when I open the hood. Hoping the new ones eliminated that noise. There was also a small/slow oil leak in the front part of the Torker intake that drove me crazy. Hoping both issues are resolved now. The motor is back together and painted a fresh coat of Olds blue:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/09/mxWincp-1.jpg

badolds

09-11-2018, 03:04 PM

Looks good Joe, hopefully no leak and no ticking.

Mr Nick

09-15-2018, 05:28 AM

You could save some weight by swapping to a modern A/C compressor, unless you're going for a factory look.

71OLDS

09-16-2018, 01:23 PM

Thanks Dan.

Nick - I'm running the Aluminum A6 Pro6ten compressor that is 21 lbs lighter than stock (per my bathroom scale). To give it that stock look - it was painted flat black and I bought the red sticker for $5 to go on there too. Hard to tell it's not stock w/o looking pretty close.

-Joe

Mr Nick

09-17-2018, 04:36 PM

71OLDS

09-18-2018, 05:32 PM

Then you did a good job, because I wouldn't have known!

mission accomplished!! :)

71OLDS

09-22-2018, 11:33 AM

Got some more pics - dbl adjust front shocks finally arrived. They are installed but not without some issues as you can see by the friendly gesture :)

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/09/z1FfSaD-1.jpg

On this one - note the new end links with the blue on the ends. These swivel to prevent any sway bar binding as you can see by the angles at the top and bottom - pretty cool part:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/09/A6NmPYL-1.jpg

this shows the chassis brace pretty well:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/09/YTRpbOX-1.jpg

This is the new thermostat setup for the oil cooler - see my earlier posts from a while back for why I needed this. Short version is the oil cooler cools the engine too much on the hwy on long trips especially in the cooler months oil temps and water temps end up going below 160 degrees - this thermostat shuts the oil cooler off when it goes below 180*

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/09/H4ByruH-1.jpg

Radiator, Fans, alternator etc back on:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/09/TBXkwUN-1.jpg

this is my new Power bstrd 220 Amp Alternator btw - also mentioned in earlier posts - upgraded from the Powermaster 150 amp alternator (90 at idle) to a powerbstrd 220 amp alternator (110 at idle) - hoping this keeps the volts higher at idle with the AC on, fans on, electric pump fuel pump for EFI, wipers on, and subs maxed out - it was borderline when most of these were on at the same time previously.

71OLDS

10-30-2018, 07:39 AM

A few new updates. Clutch/flywheel was sent back to McLeod to be all checked out and resurfaced. I had 5k hard miles on it with the 6 speed and it was time. It's all back on and ready to go
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/10/2u1zDJc-1.jpg
The new front springs, arms, and dbl adjustable Varishocks are on. We started with just the 2 spacers in the bottom of the control arms and the car just sat too low.
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/10/TZdoDlV-1.jpg
Of course I love the way that looks but the rear is going to be higher with the changes there so they have to be the same front to back. The new rear springs and dbl adjustable Varishocks are on too. In this pic the rear is jacked way up since the trans was still out and the car hasn't been driven. The combo of the front too low and the rear up has a nice stink bug look:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/10/Xzkr5Qt-1.jpg
Ordered the aluminum spring seats that mount on the top of the front springs to raise the front up and it's sitting much better now:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/10/kj0qU6E-1.jpg
Hoping once the trans is in and the car is driven the rear will settle about 1.5" and it should be about right. We'll see. Also note you can see the new hood hinges in these pics. Will update how they are once the hood is back on.

71OLDS

10-30-2018, 07:41 AM

Since I'm running a much lighter spring in the rear now per Mark at SC&C's suggestion, I went back to the old school air bags inside the springs. Will use to adjust for straight launches at the track as well as for rear seat passengers or heavy loads in the trunk on road trips etc.
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/10/Cgje7h4-1.jpg
Frank ran the air lines up into the trunk for the air bags so I don't have to crawl under the car to adjust them. Most of the time will be running with nothing in them (or maybe 1 or 2 psi) but it's nice to have another adjustable feature when needed.

Still trying to dial in the steering box/sway bar/turning radius with the Lee 800 steering box. We were going to send the steering box back to Lee to have one size up stops added but I was told the next size up could limit the turning radius lock to lock more than I wanted and there's no way to go "in-between" stop sizes. The problem with that is I may not even be able to do a u-turn on the street and if the turning radius is that limited it would be really bad for autocross. Frank tried to work his magic on the front sway bar by shortening in by 1/2".
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/10/zHFcTrq-1.jpg
It fits without hitting the frame and it appears it's not hitting at full lock but need to get the car on the ground and do some hard corners to see if it hits still. If you scroll up a few pics you can see the huge rub mark on the sway bar that was happening at full lock.

71OLDS

11-07-2018, 11:27 AM

One of the issues that needed to be fixed this round is what we thought was a bent clutch pedal arm. As mentioned I've got about 5k miles with the new 6 speed and hyd clutch setup from American Powertrain. I pound through the gears with 6000 RPM shifts almost every time I drive the car. It turns out the alterations made to make the hyd clutch setup compatible weakned the entire housing unit to where some of the parts were bending or out of alignment. Here are some pics:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/11/sH3T9VB-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/11/zjnoXg2-1.jpg
So Frank is going to have to reinforce the entire housing to make it able to withstand my abuse and then get everything straightened out and back where it should be.

Hopefully once this is done we can get the car on the road for some test drives to see where we are with the ride height and steering at max lock out.

71OLDS

11-09-2018, 01:59 PM

Frank got everything done on the housing and pedal arms:

Had to clearance the bracket more:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/11/eLCAjD5-1.jpg

here's my reinforced pedal arm vs a stock one:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/11/ZvfIta0-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/11/pgZgXTg-1.jpg

all ready to go back in and take all my abuse now!! :)
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/11/AiOFaga-1.jpg

71OLDS

12-21-2018, 12:23 PM

Finally a few new updates - Front end alignment got done and the car was driven to and from the shop. Weather has been nasty so no chance for more test driving. The AC is now fully charged and holding the R134. Happy to report the sway bar/steering box lock to lock issue appears to be resolved. Now at full lock on both sides there's about 3/4" clearance. Hoping this is enough to also prevent it from hitting when I'm doing hardcore cornering during autocross. Guess we will find out. I would think it would NOT deflect enough to hit with 3/4" clearance:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/12/RyZz9Dw-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/12/gVqGPNv-1.jpg

- - - Updated - - -

Still playing reindeer games (season appropriate I guess) trying to dial in the ride height with the new setup. During the short drive to the alignment shop the front settled about 1.5" and the rear only dropped about 1/2" Was hoping for the reverse. Need the front higher now and rear lower. Ordered the 1" aluminum spacer to go on top of the front springs to swap out the current 1/2" spacer and will be adding one more shim below the spring. It's a hassle to get this dialed in but really hoping the ride vs. the old QA1 coil over setup is worth it.
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/12/cZKyPTz-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2018/12/ilcmQmo-1.jpg

andrewb70

12-21-2018, 12:37 PM

71OLDS

12-21-2018, 01:32 PM

Joe,

I am so confused...the tires say BFG...but the tread pattern says "Nitto."

The springs will continue to settle some, but not too much. Remember that the alignment will change if ride height changes.

Andrew

Hi Andrew, you are correct. I sanded down the Nitto sidewalls and glued on the raised white letters for the old school look with the Olds SSI wheels. Running the 555s front and drag radials rear. I love the RWL look with SSIs and it gives it a little bit of a sleeper look on the street. People either HATE the look or love it. To each his own I guess.

Here's a thread on it: https://www.pro-touring.com/threads/129064-Anyone-running-tire-stickers

Understood on the alignment and ride height - it's a never ending process to get everything dialed in!!

-Joe

- - - Updated - - -

71OLDS

12-21-2018, 01:36 PM

Then new Eddiemotorsports hood hinges apparently can't get enough "grip" where they attach to my glass fenders. Frank is going to customize a metal backing plate that will be out of site inside the fender. Hopefully this will make them rock solid and good to go. Will update when he's done.

Big Dawg

12-21-2018, 04:19 PM

When will you be finally painting her?

71OLDS

12-21-2018, 06:36 PM

When will you be finally painting her?

It's time. After I get it back and make sure all the upgrades are good, it's off to paint jail. No more upgrades or enhancements until the paint is done. 3 part plan:

1. First I have a place that will instill my NOS passenger side quarter, new door skins, and do all the major metal body work.
2. Then I have a totally different place that specializes in fiberglass - he will be doing the glass decklid, fenders, hood, front bumper, & front spoiler. All the gaps will be made perfect, foam inserts will be installed in the fenders to make them more rigid and "150 mph proof", and the front bumper & spoiler will be all cleaned up. All parts will be done so they are perfect and fully removable.
3. Then the car will go back to the original guy who did the metal work to prime and block the entire car and finally paint it back to the original Lime Green paint code 43. Will be going with the bigger W-30 white stripes down the sides that were on the car when I bought it but not correct for a standard (non-W-30 442). I just like the way those stripes look better and think they really offset the lime green well. Then will add the large white stripes on the ram air hood scoops to stock spec and the pin stripes on the decklid.

Then will need a new convertible top & all my interior upgrades. It never ends!!

-Joe

badolds

12-23-2018, 05:26 AM

YOU GO JOE!!

My advice is to do all of your upgrades and make sure they are what you hoped for before you paint it.

71OLDS

12-23-2018, 01:33 PM

Hey Dan. Yep will definitely take a few weeks to check everything out. The 200 mile drive back from Frank's shop will be a good start. Just need some decent weather. Hoping to get the car in and started on the body work before the winter ends but we'll see how things go.

-Joe

71OLDS

01-02-2019, 07:59 AM

OK with the taller 1" aluminum spacer on top of the front spring and a 3rd spacer under the front spring, the ride height seems to be equal front to back. Still have to see if it settles more when it gets driven.
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/01/OVdyo2U-1.jpg

Frank made the custom support plates behind the glass fenders for the new hood hinges:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/01/5LVPJia-1.jpg

it's better now but still a bit overpowering for the fenders. I had ordered the "300" shocks for mine. Wondering if a softer shock will solve the problem?? Will reach out to Eddiemotorsports.

-Joe

71OLDS

01-03-2019, 04:39 PM

Called Eddiemotorsports about their hood hinges. I spoke with Jeff Howe. Explained my situation with the fiberglass fenders and he said he's never heard of anyone installing them on glass fenders. I said so they are made for glass hoods but shouldn't be used in combination with glass fenders? He said maybe you're the first person we've ever heard this from. I asked what about going with softer shocks and told him I ordered mine with the "300" shocks. He said anything softer won't hold the hood up. So I said if we can't get them to work can I send them back for a refund and he said partial only since you mounted them and only if you purchased them 60 days ago or less. Of course I got them in September so too late for that. I said do you have any suggestions here and he said to remove the shocks completely and use a prop stick to hold your hood up. Really? Not too impressed with the customer service if I'm being honest but since most aren't using glass fenders I will probably be in the minority for having an issue.

So...now that I can't get a refund and already have the support plates for the brackets, time to go even more custom to MAKE them work. Frank is going to try to install long metal plates again on the inside down the length of the fenders with fiberglass molded over the top of them. I told him even if it's ugly I could have the fiberglass guy "clean it up" when I get to that part of the body work done but also it will be out of site so I'm not too worried about it. Since I was going to have foam inserts added for more support anyway this process may cut down on what's needed for that.

ProTouring442

01-05-2019, 10:55 AM

71OLDS

01-05-2019, 09:49 PM

My issue with Eddie Motorsports was with their customer service and lack of giving a shi@ with this issue. I totally understand I may be the first person to try to install their hood hinges on glass fenders but if they don't work with fiberglass fenders then they should mention that on their site or offer at least a partial refund (even outside of 60 days) especially if this was the first time this had ever come up. Telling me to use a prop stick is just being an a$$hole in my opinion. Keep in mind stock hood hinges work fine with my glass fenders so it's something about the design or function of their hinges that causes glass fenders to buckle. Anyway you're entitled to your opinion on it. Maybe be you would feel differently if it was your $650 and you heard what this guy had to say.

As far as the metal brace goes that's exactly the plan.

-Joe

71OLDS

01-29-2019, 08:30 AM

A few updates -

On the new hood hinges Frank found a place close to his shop in MD that sells hundreds of different kinds of shocks in all shapes and sizes. He's going to try swapping out some different ones and see if we can find one that allows the hood to close and stay up with no issues. Right now if you take the shocks off the hood functions perfectly. Frank thinks a longer shock but with the same rating might solve the issue without having to put steel braces in the glass fenders. Hoping it works. We'll see how it goes.

Turning lock to lock seems to be perfect now. On a test drive with hard cornering and doing tight circles in a parking lot - no issues with rubbing on the sway bar. That's huge for my future autocross plans where I will be really cornering all out. U turns are working great too for street driving and simple parking is trouble free with no tire squeaking. All of the negatives I used to have with the B-body spindles and my old steering box seem to be resolved now.

Unfortunately the front springs have settled more. Now the front is slightly lower than the back once again. The back is where it should be with the GM A body roll center on a stock frame (see previous detail on that) so have to go up more on the front. We already had 3 steel spacers under the front springs which I didn't like because they weigh 1 lb each. Now we need to add a 4th. That's 4 lbs added to each side! Since Frank is a metal worker by trade I asked if he could create a metal spacer with a lighter weight metal that is the same shape and height as these 4 pieces stacked on top of each other to hopefully drop about 3 lbs on each side. Before he does that we want to get more miles on the car to make sure it doesn't settle even more. Want to make sure the ride height front and rear matches and stays that way and the least amount of weight is added.

3rd brake light added to rear spoiler - to help prevent getting rear ended with my 5000 miles of street driving a year, I wanted to have a brake light added to the wing. I'm copying a Pontiac Firebird I saw with this done on. The wing is skinny so it will take some custom fiberglass work to get it right. Frank is going to wire it up for me but it will be custom installed when all the fiberglass work is done on the car hopefully later this year. Because it's installed on the "under side" it's not really obvious until the brake light comes on- which I like. Here are some pics of what I'm going to copy:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/01/gSInGqs-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/01/VFAP4Us-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/01/t5VMzoi-1.jpg

-Joe

badolds

05-31-2019, 03:04 AM

Where have you been Joe?

71OLDS

05-31-2019, 09:00 PM

Hi Dan,

I put my 442 on the back burner to work on my son's 70 Cutlass Supreme. He got married about a month ago and is getting ready to get reassigned/promoted in the Army so the clock is ticking to get projects done. It's not a pro-touring build so I don't post here. I've posted details on the car for the last few years here: https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums/small-blocks-3/rebuild-stock-350-motor-finally-started-90453/. The car was actually with my Dad since 2016 since my son didn't have a garage where he was stationed but he should have a new place with a garage later this year. He used it in his wedding as you can see in a short video on that thread. Hoping to be back to working on the 442 again later this summer.

-Joe

71OLDS

07-29-2019, 03:23 PM

It's been a while since I had an update. Lots of progress on my son's 70 Cutlass Supreme over the last few months but finally work has started back on the 71 442. First I had some changes/mods to the roll bar. Needed to have some new "hooks" welded in for the door bars (will show pics later on that) but while we were at it I was never happy with the placement of the rear down bars. They were not splayed out as far as they could be at the bottom. This caused issues with the rear seat and reduced space for the rear seat passengers. Now the bars are as far out as possible - literally against the wheel well. The top of the down bar was pushed outboard the same amount to keep the same angle. Here are some pics:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/07/u7L19hL-1.jpg?1
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/07/fqbegqw-1.jpg
It looks the same as it did before (which is exactly what I wanted) but now you can see this passenger side down bar at the bottom is against the wheel well:

Previously it was about 2" further inboard (on both sides) which created the issues I explained above.

71OLDS

08-21-2019, 12:55 PM

A few new updates. First not sure why the roll bar pic I posted above keeps disappearing. Will try to paste here again:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/07/u7L19hL-1.jpg?1

Made the decision to move on from the Eddie Motorsports hood hinges. Could not get them to work on my 442 because of the glass fenders and the lighter aftermarket ram air hood (vs original or some of the heavier repros). Frank is going to try them on another car with steel fenders and a factory original hood. We'll see if they work. I'm back to old school originals.

Next is the spacers for the front end. As mentioned previously to dial in my ride height with the new springs and control arms we've been using spacers to get it just right. The problem is we were up to 4 spacers at about a lb each. So Frank designed a lightweight spacer to go in the place of the 4 to save about 3.5 lbs on both sides:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/08/8LnbK3D-1.jpg

I had purchased a fully reconditioned Heater/AC unit for my son's 70 Cutlass but it turned out it was not needed. Since the one on my 442 was showing it's age , the new one was installed. As mentioned in the posts for the Cutlass it's so nice. Looks brand new and every position on every lever "clicks" into it's spot. My old one wouldn't slide all the way to the "Cold" location and I never knew if that prevented the AC from being as cold as it could. Also I will keep the other one and can have the same company rebuild it for either car if needed down the road:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/08/uTfsPhd-1.jpg

71OLDS

09-12-2019, 08:40 AM

Got some more updates and pics to provide. Car is finally dialed in with the new ride height using the custom spacers on the front.
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/09/cqsBqlT-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/09/UwvrKiO-1.jpg

It's not sitting nice and low anymore (my preference for the lower look) but according to Mark at SCandC, this is the correct ride height for a stock GM A body frame for the best handling because of the roll center (See all the details from several posts ago). I am happy the front and rear look to be similar heights (top of rim to wheel well). Looking forward to testing the car out for results on this change as well as the new Varishock dbl adjustable shocks, progressive rate jounce bumpers, "correct" set up front and rear with spring/shock combo (vs coil overs front and wrong springs rear) and front sway bar mods so steering can go lock to lock without rubbing. Want to see how the car feels/drives/handles during regular street driving as well as hard corners and eventually autocross.

Also I love having the GO EFI 8 handheld for adjustments and to view the #s for AFR, IAG, Volts, temp etc but I always hated the big black arm that held it in place. It's now installed in the ash tray. Really happy with how it turned out. Can close the ash tray door and can't tell it's even there, drive with the ash tray open to view, and it's attached by velcro so you can still pull it out and make adjustments.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/09/rytpWgc-1.jpg

71OLDS

10-08-2019, 05:01 PM

I finally came across a company that makes the "Olds SSI looking" wheel exactly like the ones I have now. The problem was NEW GEN who made my current 18s is out of business and I didn't like the look of most of the companies that make the "Magnum" wheels or they didn't make them in the sizes I wanted.....until now. Schott wheels recently came out with their Magnum wheel and it checks ALL my boxes and the quality and look matches my NEW GENs. Here's the link:

https://www.schottwheels.com/wheel/magnum-exl-hi-luster-polish-%7C-matte-black-accents/12918-2296/

and a few pics of their wheel:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/10/tn0MJGw-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/10/YAEwewr-1.jpg

Also I think my custom Olds rocket caps will bolt right on:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/10/VStARq9-1.jpg?1

71OLDS

10-10-2019, 09:17 AM

Had another learning session last night with Mark Savitske at SC&C mostly on things NOT to do. See my earlier posts about my previous learning sessions from him. As a reminder he has spent decades working with 68-72 GM A-body cars and making them handle better for street, track etc. I'm fully drinking the cool aide now and have most of his parts/suggestions on my 442. He also wrote the book “How to Make Your Muscle Car Handle”. Anyway my plan was to upgrade wheels and tires to a combo of taller wheels and tires. Was leaning towards 20x11s in the rear on 305/35/20 Nitto 555rs and either 20s or 19s in the front in a 10" wide or maybe even 11" wheel (if it could be made to fit) with a higher end high performance front tire. I was really liking the "square" setup look with 305s front and rear for example. I've seen a few cars done like this and the new muscle cars like the Hellcat and GT350 Mustangs are running similar sizes.

After talking with him it turns out this would be counter productive with the other parts I've already added that currently work really with the roll center of the factory GM A body frame. Mark confirmed ideally the rear tire should be at or around 27.5" tall and the front should be at or around 26.7" tall. Since I'm currently at 28.78/27 I'm too tall now and didn't realize I could make things worse by going taller. Also Mark explained with my setup the wider front wheel/tire combo could actually make things worse and cause issues with turning radius and other things that were working really well as I have them now. He explained going with a 305 front and rear square set up could work but I would need to make other changes to accommodate (tear out stock inner fender, add wide body flares, because it makes the wheel turning radius even wider - have to alter several things - there's a long list here ). Additionally going that wide could cause issues for street driving including simple things like making a U turn, parking etc, plus could cause trammeling on the highway where the front wheels track left and right on imperfections on the road. And then there's the additional weight. Bottom line he suggested staying with an 8" wide wheel front or a max of 9" and suggested only a 245 45 18 front tire - better to stretch it on a 9" wheel vs the 255 45 18 I'm running now on an 8" wheel. He said he's had several clients win and/or do very well running only a 245/45/18 tire at autocross events and even put down faster times than those with much wider setup for the reasons explained above especially when there are 180 degree turns in the autocross event. For the rear he said an 18x10 with something like a 285/45/18 is all you need. I've currently got a 305/45/18 drag radial on an 18x10 which I explained had lots of room all around due to clearancing in the wheel well, rolling the outer lip, and flat spots put on the 3" tail pipes. He said that was great but told me he bets if I put it though an autocross event it would hit. We'll see but apparently my current tires are not ideal at 28.78" in the rear. Nitto 555r does make a 305/40/18 drag radial that is only 27.7" tall and he said that would be great for height but would need to be on an 11" wide wheel (10" would not be ideal) and if it didn't hit (again TBD) would be excellent for autocross at about 40 psi. He confirmed he's had several customers running Nitto 555rs successfully in autocross however he did forewarn that many autocross events require treadwear rating of the tire to be 200 or above to have your times "count" if you're trying to place. You can still do the event for fun and get a time but it won't count as far as placing. The Nitto 555rs are 100 TW rating.

So in summary my plan is to swap out my front Nitto 555 255/45/18s for some 245/45/18s and might even upgrade to a 9" wheel at some point. I found the Mich Pilot 4S tire would actually be 4.8" lbs lighter than the Nittos. That alone would be a huge improvement to drop almost 5 lbs of unsprung weight on both sides. Then for the rear I may upgrade to a 18x11 rim and drop down to 305/40/18 555rs. If they rub during autocross I can use them for street and drag race only and then buy a set of 285/45/18 tires to go on my current 18x10s. These could also be used if the 100 TW rating of the Nittos becomes an issue for certain autocross events.

71OLDS

11-21-2019, 05:27 PM

Making a few "back to stock appearing" changes to the 442. First this is an older pic of my original interior:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/11/IsvOwWB-1.jpg
..nothing screams 70s like an 8 track player but I don't want to listen to a 1971 8 track player. Like most I have a high end stereo with amp, subs, bluetooth etc but I really like the stock look. So I'm going back to the original 8 track player and will also install the original am radio in the dash. The 8 track player weighs a ton so going to have Frank cut it in half and put a hinge on the front. Then the aftermarket stereo will be installed (hidden) behind the fold down part. I'm stealing this idea from some pics I found:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/11/BfeWVvB-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/11/cm5kojR-1.jpg
Here's my old 8 track player coming back together and cut in half to remove all the unwanted weight:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/11/ozRTbc3-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/11/IHiOvW4-1.jpg
The 8 track player didn't work so we are not butchering a working product here.

71OLDS

11-21-2019, 05:36 PM

I should mention the real reason for this change was the update to put the FiTech hand held hidden in the ash tray as mentioned/shown in a previous post:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/09/rytpWgc-1.jpg
Also several of the gauges I had below the dash were "shown" on the hand held so they were redundant. We swapped out the Volts gauge for oil pressure beside the speedo and I'm left with all the gauge read outs I want/need but a more stock look. Here are current pics:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/11/r2gBI2y-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/11/TZji1t6-1.jpg

71OLDS

11-26-2019, 11:25 AM

of course nothing ever goes as planned. 8 track is looking sweet but on the mock up of my current stereo going behind it, it's the Magnum 6 speed that is the show stopper. Of course the tunnel around the 6 speed is several inches taller then the stock tunnel that was around the M20 and then the Richmond 5 speed.....so the stereo can only go "back" about 4 or 5 inches before it hits the tunnel. My current Sony stereo is about 7" in depth. Did some research and they actually make shorter depth stereo's that are called "mechless" which just means they don't have CD functionality meaning they don't have to be as long for the CD to go in. Also apparently marine stereos are shorter too. Checking those out or may go glove box with my current stereo - we'll see.
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/11/nCGTbD7-1.jpg

71OLDS

11-29-2019, 10:13 AM

Update on the stereo - decided to go with this one:
https://www.classiccarstereos.com/1970-1972-oldsmobile-cutlass-radio-with-bluetooth-usa-740.html?rrec=true

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/11/PmrTN2S-1.jpg

It's obviously not 100% stock appearing but it fits in the stock holes and still gives the old school look that will go well with the 8 track. It has 5 channel RCA pre-outs, an external mic for hands free talking, and a USB port for charging my phone. I'm able to use my 5 x 500 amp for all 5 speakers including the 12" sub (and can adjust sub up or down) so hoping end result will have zero drop off if sound or functionality from my current aftermarket radio. Will update if that's the case once its in.

wfo guy

11-29-2019, 12:38 PM

I have the cd-less version in my 51 F1. It's bluetooth, etc. Now that we have flashdrives and bluetooth, the only time I use a cd is in my house. :)

71OLDS

11-29-2019, 09:40 PM

I'm with you on that. Haven't used a CD for years. I won't miss that at all.

deejai35

12-04-2019, 07:04 PM

I haven’t been on here in a while, so I am catching up on your progress. Mark Savitske is a genius. I spent some time learning from him before finishing my suspension setup. Thanks for sharing your wheels & tires learnings. I currently have an 18x8 square setup but there is so much wheel well in these cars!

71OLDS

12-06-2019, 08:33 PM

Obviously I'm with you about Mark. So far everything he suggested/recommended has been spot on. You could definitely upgrade to 18x10s in the rear with our huge wheel wells but of course the 18x8s won't hurt you. I finally pulled the trigger on all new rubber. Will show some pics when everything is mounted.

71OLDS

12-10-2019, 06:37 PM

New rubber is on - as a reminder from above it's 18x8 fronts with 245/45/18 Michelin Pilot 4S and 18x10 rear with Nitto 555r drag radials 305/40/18. Biggest difference is the rear tires are 1" shorter then former (305/45/18s) and of course no raised white letters glued on yet:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/12/shlTLwr-1.jpg
The top of the front rim looks slightly closer to the trim ring to me now then the rear so may put a 1/2" spacer under the front springs but want to put some miles on the car first to make sure the height front to rear stays the same.

The process for trying to put back the factory original stereo holes has begun. Dash had to come out and I bought the 68/69 Olds radio bezel so the depth of the holes match and then bought the factory original woodgrain with the metal backing on it to use as a template to make sure everything goes back in the right spot:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/12/8bomN3q-1.jpg

-Joe

andrewb70

12-10-2019, 06:38 PM

Looks great!

71OLDS

12-11-2019, 07:21 AM

Thanks Andrew!

andrewb70

12-11-2019, 07:27 AM

Thanks Andrew!

How tall is the 305/40? About 27.5"?

71OLDS

12-11-2019, 04:52 PM

How tall is the 305/40? About 27.5"?

the 305/40/18s are 27.72" the 305/45/18s I replaced were 28.78"

71OLDS

01-03-2020, 07:46 AM

Getting the stock radio holes back turned into a huge project. Dash had to come out. Props to the wood grain from Jeff at H&H with the metal backing:

http://www.hhclassicauto.com/

Really high end product. Makes it much harder to cut and glue to the dash but the finished product is so much nicer. Here are some pics:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/01/zOFOKyD-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/01/PcxTIju-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/01/e7H5eEy-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/01/Yv8vjwS-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/01/wRsPcZg-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/01/RWWrkZA-1.jpg

71OLDS

01-03-2020, 07:50 AM

Here's some pics with everything back together. Still need to line up the glove box perfectly and do some glue clean up and detailing but really happy with the end result and getting things much closer to factory appearing. Will update if there's any drop off in sound or functionality with this stereo but hoping that's not the case. Really love the old school factory original 8 track player without all the added weight. Also remember I have the FiTech hand held unit with all my #s hidden in the ash tray. May go back to the factory black rubber mats eventually too.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/01/umptnGF-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/01/1gyh96L-1.jpg

Here's a "before" pic for reference with the aftermarket stereo, different wood grains, and gauges below the dash in the "8 track like" housing. I still have all the details from those gauges on the FiTech hand held unit in the ash tray.
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2017/11/HKMRuH0-1.jpg

71OLDS

04-25-2020, 03:53 PM

Been a while since my last update - been chasing a vibration only in 6th gear (with 4.10 rear) for a while and of course everything slowed to a screeching halt with this new normal we are all in. Will be ordering a new driveshaft soon but really excited to see how far we can go with a new rim and tire combo I've been wanting to do for a while. Just ordered one front and rear tire only to test fit and hopefully start all the mods required using the back space tool and no rim. Going really wide for autocross and hoping we can find a way to make these fit w/o having to go with “flares” but we'll see how it goes. Front is a 305/30/19 Hankook RS4 and rear is a 345/30/19 Michelin Pilot SS. The Hankook’s would be my autocross tire (combined w/a 335/30/19 Nitto NTO5 in the rear for all 200TW autocross setup) and the Michelin's would be my street tire (combined with a high end but street/rain friendly 305/30/19 Mich Pilot 4S) in the front. I went with the widest tire option for both for the mods to be "built" around. There are multiple Chevelles running 315/30/18s on 18x11s (same width as my 305 will be since the Hankook’s run wide) and other 68-72 GM A bodies running 345/30/19s so I know it can be done, but we'll see how bad it's going to be. To be clear right now I don't have wheel tubs in the rear but my current 305/40/18s fit with a little room to the outside. Will probably start to see if we can somehow gain at least another ½” to the inside via mods to the inner wheel wells and 3” tail pipes. Really don’t want to have to notch the frame or anything crazy like that. I’m afraid we may still need to “bulge” the quarters out a little to make it work. Fronts will be crazy too. May have to have a custom sway bar made for the front (for full lock to lock turn in) and definitely will have to mod all the inner wheel well area, take the fender wells out and mod them, and do fiberglass mods on the inside of my glass fenders. Wheels will be 19x11 fronts and 19x12 rears and guessing the BS will be around 5.75 to 6 for the front and 6.5 to 6.75 rear. The wheels will be Schott Magnums and will look exactly like the wheels I have now (except being 19s and wider) which resemble the classic Olds SSIs/Magnum 500s etc. So let the journey begin on my dream wheel and tire setup. Hopefully it's not an epic fail. I'll be posting pics and hopefully mods along the way.

71OLDS

04-27-2020, 04:37 PM

Ordered my new driveshaft today. When running a 6 speed with double overdrive and 4.10 gears, everything has to be absolutely perfect to prevent any vibration when you put it in 6th gear on the highway (at 70 mph+). The drive train angles are NOT the same as a 4 speed or 5 speed and the driveshaft must be balanced to 10,000 RPM. For reference a standard driveshaft is balanced to 3,000 RPM but that balance is meaningless in 6th gear with a numerically high rear end. I had never heard of this 10,000 RPM “high speed” driveshaft balance but I’ve never had a 6 speed either. For anyone else considering the upgrade just throwing it out there. Hoping for some glassy smooth highway cruising soon – we’ll see what happens.

Some more updates on the rim & tire upgrades – I’ve gathered some more research from others that are already successfully running a similar setup (with a 68-72 GM A bodies) so I thought I’d share some info and pics that will hopefully help with my car and maybe others that try to do this too. First the plan for the rear is a mini-tub. I’m really hoping not to have touch the outside body panels at all and for the 345’s in the rear, I don’t think there is any other way to do that. The BS may be even more than I originally thought (as much as 7” or even 7.25”). Will most likely have to move the 3” tail pipes. Hoping the frame won’t have to be notched but we’ll see.
This GTO is running 345/305s - Thanks to Tom (968ls1 on this site) for the details/info he provided - here is his car for reference:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/hJooGvZ-1.jpg

For the fronts I’ve now found 4 or 5 guys successfully running either 315s on 11s (on a 18” wheel) or 305s on 11s (in a 19” wheel). It’s the same mods/setup for all of them:

1. 6” BS

2. Find a sway bar that allows full turn in (not all of them do).

3. The rear of the fenders at the bottom have to be cut back and blended to gain tire clearance.

4. Then the Inner fenders have to reshaped to fit those fender mods.

5. For some using button head (flat head) bolts for extra clearance at the top of the wheel well works, other have to trim/mod even more here (beyond just flat head bolts).

Bottom line is lots of mods. Here’s some pics I found of Chevelles with 315s on the front. Look at the size of the tire and then you’ll understand why it takes sooooo much work to make it fit. Also shown in one pic below is the work on the inner fenders but it’s kind of hard to see exactly what was done.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/OxA5NFJ-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/rZY5dxY-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/yNOq9hQ-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/He7imdU-1.jpg?1
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/PbtJ65g-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/PlnU9qX-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/wCh2G5e-1.jpg

One other issue I’m concerned about for my setup is my Lee 800 steering box with built in stops. I’m afraid I may need to pull the steering box and send it off to have those stops removed or changed for more turn in with a 6” BS and these massive meats so I can still do a U-turn at a typical intersection when street driving.

For reference - here's some more really nice pics of these bad ass cars:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/BbG9rdX-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/9l4yntn-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/Ygx3nwC-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/07cDUmN-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/7as6M8B-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/X7HQ28c-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/SNi2JmL-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/UT2Rq1T-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/N1epCR8-1.jpg

-Joe

71OLDS

04-30-2020, 01:16 PM

tires arrived today. Going to start the mock up soon. Also ordered a different sway bar that will hopefully provide more clearance for full turn in.

-Joe

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/04/1D8OO2v-1.jpg?1

71OLDS

05-04-2020, 03:56 PM

Mock up started:

345 30 19 - pretty much fills every inch of the wheel well as expected:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/9JrfHca-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/1tGCoCe-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/O7iZCcs-1.jpg
305 30 19 - same thing on the fronts:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/QoJT9Sm-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/UT16pIi-1.jpg

71OLDS

05-10-2020, 02:56 PM

A few updates. For starters I made the decision to not move forward with the 345/30/19s rears. The bottom line is it can be done but not without a full frame notch something like this:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/zOqkeTJ-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/cIwoWHD-1.jpg

These are pics of a Buick I found online I believe running 335s in the rear. If you are going to go this route it would be ideal to do it with the frame separated like the frame in these pics. Also for me my down bars for the roll bar are almost against the wheel wells meaning to move the wheel wells in, the down bars would have to be relocated inward too. That was the end of going this route for me:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2019/07/u7L19hL-1.jpg?1

Still hoping for 325s or 315s in the rear but we'll see how that goes next.

71OLDS

05-10-2020, 03:08 PM

Lots of challenges on the front too.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/CPJNMC0-1.jpg

Tires hit the already modified Hotchkis sway bar at full turn in:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/LbJmfCD-1.jpg

We tried using the Helwig bar and it was the same result. 6" BS seems to be the best location on everything but the sway bar turn in.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/b9Qzl6S-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/ysLWMwB-1.jpg

5.75" BS was a no go. It clears the sway bar at full turn in but would need fender flares to make it work to the outside:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/ShnGRBZ-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/05/29PFxR0-1.jpg

So considering a few other options. I may try to swap this tire for another tire brand that is still a 305/30/19 but is .3" skinnier like the Michelin Pilot 4S. Hard to believe .3" would matter with only .15" on each side but that's how close we are. The other option is switching to a splined sway bar but I think we will try the slightly thinner tire at the 6" BS first and then recheck everything. Not giving up on the fronts yet.

-Joe

71OLDS

05-29-2020, 07:43 AM

The "next attempt" tires arrived and Tire Rack gave a full credit and even paid for shipping to send back the others. So cool that they do that! As long as they are never mounted and don't have any scratches or issues they will ship them back and provide a full credit.

So this time as mentioned we are trying to find a way to get a 325/30/19 on the rear using the Mich Pilot 4S tire. This will be with wheel well and lip mods only (not touching the frame). BS will have to be perfect. Need to confirm exactly what that BS will be so I can finally order the new wheels.

On the front it's still a 305/30/19 but also trying the Mich Pilot 4S tire since it's .3" skinnier than the Hankook. I think we are going to still try for a 6" BS with the Hellwig bar. If it still hits on turn in I'll order a splined front bar - probably the one from ABC.

If these both work they will end up being mounted on 19x11.5 rear and 19x11 front wheels.

Updates and details to come.

-Joe

andrewb70

05-29-2020, 11:17 AM

Those are impressively huge tires!

71OLDS

05-29-2020, 02:32 PM

I agree Andrew. I hope we can find a way to make them work with zero rubbing or issues. It's not going to be easy. My builder Frank has a method he uses with the wheel well for the rear where the entire wheel well is pushed inside the frame slightly so the top inside of the tire doesn't rub on the wheel well. This is done without notching the frame. I didn't understand at first but because the the top of the wheel well gets smaller at the top because of the curve, if you can get that on the other side of the frame, you can get a little more tire in there. We are only talking 1/2" but that's really all we're hoping to get to the inside. Then completely smooth out the outside edge so there's no lip at all to gain maybe another 1/2" to the outside. That 1" total is what we need. I'm currently running the 305/40/18 Nitto drag radial back there which is 12.13" wide and this will be 13". I also think the 3" tail pipes will need to be rerouted. I bet even if we can get it all to work, once I do some hard corners there will be some other areas that will rub that will have to be modded down the road too. Really hoping we don't have to get into pulling the wheel well out slightly but if it can be done without being that noticeable it's not out of the question. I just don't want to go with actual flares or anything obvious and can't notch the frame to the inside because of the down bars on the roll bar and my conv top. Or maybe I should say I don't want to go there because of those 2 issues.

The front is going to be challenging as well with I'm sure lots of mods to the fender and inner wheel well and maybe switching to that splined sway bar as i mentioned previously. My front fenders are fiberglass so if some of the inside has to be "cut away" a little I'm OK with that as long as it doesn't show from the outside. I still have to have all the fiberglass clean up work done on the entire car.

Going to try everything we can and I'll document it all in case it helps anyone else. We can always drop down one more size for each tire but hoping we don't have to! Bottom line is I'm trying to get all this done in case it causes or creates "body work" issues before I get the car painted or wrapped.

-Joe

71OLDS

06-24-2020, 04:14 PM

A few new updates:

Great news on my new 3 1/2 " Chromoly high speed balanced driveshaft. I've had a vibration in 6th gear only (with the 4.10 rear end) that started around 75mph since the Magnum trans was installed. As detailed in previous posts the driveline angles were changed by raising the rear of the trans slightly (as suggested by American Powertrain). That combined with the (9,000 RPM) high speed balanced driveshaft and all vibrations are now gone. To be clear the first driveshaft used that came with the trans balanced perfectly for a "standard" balance but completely failed during a high speed balance. For someone running a 6 speed with a numerically lower rear end this may not be an issue but for those running anything near a 4.10 like mine, you may want to consider this high speed balance if you have vibration issues. The new driveline angles helped but the vibration was still there. Took the car to Mexico for a quick test and it was glassy smooth up to 100 mph. Very happy with the results.

In my continued effort to get the car more autocross friendly, I decided to upgrade the rear suspension parts to allow articulation. As recommended by Mark at SC&C I ordered the following:

Currie Johnny joint kit for A body housing – installs in the “ears” then the upper arms attach to it.
Currectrac Rear upper control arms
Currectrac Billet Rear lower control arms

All 3 of the above come with the sealed Johnny joints and allow up to 30 degrees of articulation. The sealed joints last longer and supposedly don't eventually start to squeak/make noise like some of the other brands available.

What's nice about these parts is the articulation prevents the rear end binding my current setup has which will obviously greatly improve cornering but will also help with street driving and launching for drag racing. Looking forward to some testing on the car once these are installed. Since everything has already been upgraded on the front suspension, I really needed to improve on the rear to prevent the rear suspension from being the weak link.

-Joe

71OLDS

06-29-2020, 01:26 PM

some pics of the new rear suspension parts:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/06/ovU9AQ7-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/06/UEz5vhI-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/06/qEpul8a-1.jpg

71OLDS

08-03-2020, 06:07 PM

Finally have some updates on trying to fit the 325/30/19s on the rear. First the tire itself is actually about a 1/4" wider (13.25") then what it will be mounted on the 11.5" wheel (13"). Test fit pics below show 6" BS first then 6.5" BS. Note as you might expect the 6" BS has clearance from the frame to the inside but is pushed all the way to the outside against the wheel well lip and the 6.5" BS is against the frame to the inside but has a little clearance to the outside. I'm afraid the 6" BS will require at least 1" flares to the outside which concerns me on how radical it will change the look. I don't mind "stretching" the quarter panel wheel wells out about 1/2" if needed but I'm afraid it will take more than that. So that puts us back to notching the frame to go to 6.5" BS or more. The issue here as mentioned previously is lack of space with the roll bar down bars and the convertible top well. Originally we thought if we could only get 1/2" or 3/4" it would not be worth all the trouble but that actually may be all we need to solve the issue. If there's enough room to notch the frame that little amount and move the inner wheel well in and not have to mess with the roll down bar, that may be the way we go. That would allow us to do a BS of 6.5" or maybe even 6.625" or 6.75". It all depends on how much room is there. I think a 6.75" BS MIGHT give enough room to not even have to stretch the wheel wells to the outside. Before any decision is made we need to see what has to happen with the front 305/30/19 as far as "flares". Since my fenders are fiberglass the would be no stretching just custom glass work. If nothing on the "outside" of the glass front fenders had to be modded to provide more room, that will make me really lean towards notching the frame even for only 1/2".

6" BS pics:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/08/IhMtQcH-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/08/2Bh2fKi-1.jpg

6.5" BS pics:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/08/z6g9rMI-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2020/08/1IKzV3H-1.jpg

STREETFIGHTER50

08-26-2020, 11:38 AM

Awesome ride! Can’t wait til you finish it all up and painted. You and Frank make a great team building the vert!

STREETFIGHTER50

08-26-2020, 11:40 AM

Had another learning session last night with Mark Savitske at SC&C mostly on things NOT to do. See my earlier posts about my previous learning sessions from him. As a reminder he has spent decades working with 68-72 GM A-body cars and making them handle better for street, track etc. I'm fully drinking the cool aide now and have most of his parts/suggestions on my 442. He also wrote the book “How to Make Your Muscle Car Handle”. Anyway my plan was to upgrade wheels and tires to a combo of taller wheels and tires. Was leaning towards 20x11s in the rear on 305/35/20 Nitto 555rs and either 20s or 19s in the front in a 10" wide or maybe even 11" wheel (if it could be made to fit) with a higher end high performance front tire. I was really liking the "square" setup look with 305s front and rear for example. I've seen a few cars done like this and the new muscle cars like the Hellcat and GT350 Mustangs are running similar sizes.

After talking with him it turns out this would be counter productive with the other parts I've already added that currently work really with the roll center of the factory GM A body frame. Mark confirmed ideally the rear tire should be at or around 27.5" tall and the front should be at or around 26.7" tall. Since I'm currently at 28.78/27 I'm too tall now and didn't realize I could make things worse by going taller. Also Mark explained with my setup the wider front wheel/tire combo could actually make things worse and cause issues with turning radius and other things that were working really well as I have them now. He explained going with a 305 front and rear square set up could work but I would need to make other changes to accommodate (tear out stock inner fender, add wide body flares, because it makes the wheel turning radius even wider - have to alter several things - there's a long list here ). Additionally going that wide could cause issues for street driving including simple things like making a U turn, parking etc, plus could cause trammeling on the highway where the front wheels track left and right on imperfections on the road. And then there's the additional weight. Bottom line he suggested staying with an 8" wide wheel front or a max of 9" and suggested only a 245 45 18 (tel:245 45 18) front tire - better to stretch it on a 9" wheel vs the 255 45 18 (tel:255 45 18) I'm running now on an 8" wheel. He said he's had several clients win and/or do very well running only a 245/45/18 tire at autocross events and even put down faster times than those with much wider setup for the reasons explained above especially when there are 180 degree turns in the autocross event. For the rear he said an 18x10 with something like a 285/45/18 is all you need. I've currently got a 305/45/18 drag radial on an 18x10 which I explained had lots of room all around due to clearancing in the wheel well, rolling the outer lip, and flat spots put on the 3" tail pipes. He said that was great but told me he bets if I put it though an autocross event it would hit. We'll see but apparently my current tires are not ideal at 28.78" in the rear. Nitto 555r does make a 305/40/18 drag radial that is only 27.7" tall and he said that would be great for height but would need to be on an 11" wide wheel (10" would not be ideal) and if it didn't hit (again TBD) would be excellent for autocross at about 40 psi. He confirmed he's had several customers running Nitto 555rs successfully in autocross however he did forewarn that many autocross events require treadwear rating of the tire to be 200 or above to have your times "count" if you're trying to place. You can still do the event for fun and get a time but it won't count as far as placing. The Nitto 555rs are 100 TW rating.

So in summary my plan is to swap out my front Nitto 555 255/45 (tel:555 255/45)/18s for some 245/45/18s and might even upgrade to a 9" wheel at some point. I found the Mich Pilot 4S tire would actually be 4.8" lbs lighter than the Nittos. That alone would be a huge improvement to drop almost 5 lbs of unsprung weight on both sides. Then for the rear I may upgrade to a 18x11 rim and drop down to 305/40/18 555rs. If they rub during autocross I can use them for street and drag race only and then buy a set of 285/45/18 tires to go on my current 18x10s. These could also be used if the 100 TW rating of the Nittos becomes an issue for certain autocross events.

Thanks for this post too! Learning a lot here :)

71OLDS

02-16-2021, 05:33 PM

It’s been a while since I’ve had any updates. The combo of COVID and health issues of those who work on the car and their family members has completely stopped any progress. I’ve decided to forgo the plans for the 325/305 rim and tire setup because I’ve just been too long without the car now. The work required to notch the frame for the 325s in the rear is a huge project that is going to take lots of time and money to complete. Thankfully Tire Rack has agreed to take both tires back that were purchased for measurements only with a 10% restocking fee.

The new plan is to stay with 305s in the rear and go with 265/275s front. This will require zero mods in the rear and hopefully only minor in the front (sway bar mods for turn in required lock to lock w/a 6” BS).

I have ordered a new set of 18x11 wheels for the rear from Schott that will replace the 18x10s I have now. These look almost identical to my current Olds SSI style/Magnum 500 NewGen wheels. I’ll be keeping the 305/40/18 drag radials for street and drag race. The 10” wide wheels were on the low end of what’s needed for those tires so I think the 11s will fill them up better and make a bigger foot print. With the 6 speed and the big block Olds, it’s just not much fun street driving w/o drag radials. The 18x10s will then be moved to the front and will have 265/40/18 Mich Pilot 4S tires mounted on them. So I will run the 305/40/18 drag radials with the 245/45/18s for drag racing and swap out to the 265/40/18s on the front for street and mild auto-cross.

When I finally start to autocross at my local club (Tidewater Sports Car Club) if a 200 TW tire is required or becomes necessary, I will most likely get a separate set of the same wheels in 19x11 and 18x10 and mount some 305/30/19s and 275/35/18 BFG Rival S 1.5s. I think these will be fine for at least a year as a novice. My first 5 events require an instructor which I’m sure will be really helpful for me. I have a few other projects to get done on the car but hoping to have it back around the May/June time frame. Will provide pics and updates here as always on the new projects.

STREETFIGHTER50

02-16-2021, 09:09 PM

Sucks to hear fk’n Covid affecting everything! Well 265 front 305 rear is still plenty fat I’d say! It’s still gonna look nice and handle :)

71OLDS

02-17-2021, 09:39 AM

Sucks to hear fk’n Covid affecting everything! Well 265 front 305 rear is still plenty fat I’d say! It’s still gonna look nice and handle :)

Thanks - that's what I'm hoping. Can always do the frame notch down the road and upgrade to 325s or 335s in the rear but for now just want to get the car back this summer and drive it.

71OLDS

02-25-2021, 03:37 PM

I'm working on a new plan for the 442 for some air vents actually mounted inside the repro hood ram air scoops. I eventually want to put a front splitter on the car to be combined with the front spoiler that's already on it. I want to have all the current fiberglass parts (decklid, hood, fenders, front bumper, front spoiler) cleaned up with the proper gaps and just a better, tighter fit. I also need to have some foam inserts put on the inside of the fenders to stiffen them up for high speeds. I have a guy local to me in Virginia Beach so it's possible to get all that done this year. Once that's all done I will mock up a front slitter to be made that will hopefully work with all those cleaned up glass parts and be removable. With a front splitter installed I'll be worsening the situation of air being trapped under the hood with no where to go. Thus the need for the hood air vents which will really come into play at higher speeds. You can see examples of these hood vents on many higher end autocross cars like this Camaro and this Chevelle:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/uQBySIG-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/zklDibv-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/8mddxW7-1.jpg

The problem was trying to find a location to install them with the repro glass ram air hood. I'm hoping they can be installed in a similar location to the fake chrome vents/louvers on the non ram air 71 -72 442 hoods like this:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/JyiFGhW-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/Oewusjw-1.jpg
You can see from the under side where the studs stick out where this lines up:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/iF0G4bc-1.jpg
Also for my ram air hood I've have a factory appearing screen covering this area like this:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/p30SmxS-1.jpg
but if the screen was cut down to be just over the breather section it would open this area up. Here's a pic I found showing that with a doodle of the location for vents:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/C5N7Y1M-1.jpg
Here's an even uglier doodle of the location of the vents from the top side:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/x2I8aM6-1.jpg
I found a set of vents by a company called Verus that are 5" wide and 8" long on the longer corner that I think might work:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/71mp3mW-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/aKRk5u9-1.png
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/70PnDxs-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/gPNWwiU-1.jpg
Lots more to figure out including a way to prevent water issues if I get caught in the rain or when I wash the car. Also my car runs too cool in the winter with the oil cooler when I'm on the highway in 6th gear. I'm guessing with these open vents that may worsen that situation. So I'm trying to figure a way to be able to block them off when needed. I'll provide updates and pics as always on this one assuming we actually move forward with it. It's something I've been trying to figure out how to do for a few years now.

-Joe

STREETFIGHTER50

02-25-2021, 11:42 PM

I like the style vents on the red Camaro and white car (2nd to last pic), but would be better looking mounted more towards the rear part of the hood IMO. Probably more functional too

71OLDS

02-26-2021, 10:02 AM

This is the only location that is possible for me with my current hood:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/x2I8aM6-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/02/C5N7Y1M-1.jpg

jetmech442

03-04-2021, 02:24 PM

Hey Joe,
Fellow Olds guy here, love the build. I'm caught up on the last couple pages of your build, but need to spend more time on the earlier stuff to fully remember everything. I had two suggestions that you may know, but might help others if they see this.

Adding vents to the hood first off looks awesome IMO and to ensure flow goes the right way(out of the hood) they need a positive pressure differential between the inner and outer hood at speed. Magnehelic gauges are about 40 bucks(and a water manometer is even cheaper ) and the tubes are placed on either side of the hood where you want to put the vents. We tried doing this on one of our long haul semi's and found that we actually needed to duct the underhood area to a remote location more towards the front in order to get a dP worth the effort.
The miata boi's are big into this and there's some good threads out there, some of them even ran CFD to optimize placement.

The second idea I had was that you could have those vents 3D printed out of ASA, Nylon or polycarbonate. That route would allow you to custom mold them into the hood. Just a suggestion though. I'm usually all about ideas that delay projects and add complexity. :)
Keep up the good work man.

STREETFIGHTER50

03-04-2021, 06:22 PM

Funny I just got delivery of my steel 2” cowl hood with vents for my Foxbody :)
I bought it from CJPonyParts. I thought it was made by Dynacorn, but the box says MuscleCarGT.
https://www.cjponyparts.com/cowl-hood-2-with-louvers-1987-1993/p/HD114/

STREETFIGHTER50

03-04-2021, 10:34 PM

Check out their website. Looks like they do pretty much all Muscle Car sheet metal. Stock and upgraded stuff.
https://musclecargt.com/

71OLDS

03-15-2021, 05:11 PM

Thinking about a little different plan for the hood vents. Got the idea from the factory original 69 Shelby GT500. I actually think the convertible has a similar look to my 442:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/03/N0koWYe-1.jpg
black roll bar and white interior just like mine. Anyway back to the hood. Even has hood pins that look like same as the Olds ram air hoods:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/03/QjwQ1MB-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/03/ZJHnfMt-1.jpg
they have the front air scoops that the air comes in but then rear scoops that lets the air out in almost the exact location I'm planning for on my ram air hood. The mouth drops down in the actual scoop:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/03/bc9Ltis-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/03/EUybaNJ-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/03/WAM7svS-1.jpg
you can see the screen and location well from the underside:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/03/hHykK6F-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/03/6IDFNLV-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/03/z2vOKu6-1.jpg
Trying to finalize exactly how I want this done but I like this option/idea better then the flat vents on top. Still need to get the stock screen off and check spacing/room available to confirm everything. Frank confirmed he could fab the scoops out of metal into the fiberglass hood. Will update again if there's any progress/final decisions here.

-Joe

jetmech442

03-15-2021, 06:31 PM

That's a real cool look. I'd love to see how you integrate into the olds sheetmetal(fiberglass whatevs).

71OLDS

03-17-2021, 09:55 AM

That's a real cool look. I'd love to see how you integrate into the olds sheetmetal(fiberglass whatevs).

Thanks - hoping we can find a way to do it and have it function properly and still look nice in the ram air hood.

Randomly just saw pics of the 2021 Shelby Super Snake today. Note the ram air hood with the drop vents in the rear of the scoops. Same concept:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/03/VHYEyjy-1.jpg

71OLDS

06-21-2021, 04:29 PM

new 18x11s Schott wheels (Olds SSIs) are finally here. Still need to get the Olds rocket stickers for the new caps. My current 305/40/18 drag radials will be mounted on these. Will post more pics once tires and wheels are mounted. Can now put the 18x10s that used to be on the rear, on the front with the 265/40/18 tires too.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/06/WcRB51v-1.jpg

71OLDS

07-06-2021, 08:30 AM

New rear 18x11 wheels now have the new caps with the rocket stickers and 305/40/18 drag radials mounted on them. Happy to report it looks like the 6.375"BS I chose for the wheels was correct and they are perfectly centered in the wheel wells with no rubbing or issues so far. Will have to do some aggressive driving and cornering to confirm that 100%. The section width is now 12.13" vs the 11.73" section width on the 6" BS 18x10s. Those 6"BS 18x10s are now in the front with 265/40/18s Michelin Pilot 4S tires mounted on them and I'm happy to report they fit perfect with no rubbing lock to lock. Again will have to see how they do on dips and going in and out of driveways and during aggressive cornering. Some pics below. Also note the lock to lock pics are with the non-modified Hellwig bar. May try another modified Hotchkis bar with 1" removed from the center to see if there's even more clearance lock to lock to try a 305 or even a 315 (front and rear) for auto-crossing.
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/07/eLN94V6-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/07/IlK3paR-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/07/2p33m6s-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/07/lxmhvif-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/07/CDIL5CE-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2021/06/hwW0rfP-1.jpg?1