Yelcamino 2.0

[Yelcamino]

Last Thursday I loaded Yelcamino on the trailer and took it to Mike Norris Motorsports in Plainfield Indiana for a dyno tune.



Here she is all tied down and ready to go. I wasn't sure what to expect but I was looking forward to getting it tuned up!





I'm happy with the results to say the least! 454 hp and 412 ft/lb at the wheels for a stock LS3 with a cam and headers is pretty good in my book!

[sodak65]

That's great Herb! Looks and sounds fantastic, what are the specs on that comp cam? I went with the Mast ls3 SS cam and ecm, I'd love to hit those numbers but I'm down almost a point on compression. Thanks for the inspiration.

[Shacks67NR]

Herb, whats the specs on the suspension setup? LOVE the stance. Im in parts procurement stage of my 67 Temp Custom. It's going to be a street cruiser but daddy will take it out solo at times when needed without my girls.
I'll most likely never to AutoX. Just want the suspension to be there and the 'ol Pontiac to sit and handle right, like yours.

Thank you sir, Nick-

[Motown 454]

Nice Herb! That should be fun to drive.

[Yelcamino]

It’s been a while since I updated my thread so here goes…

I downsized the sound system (no subs and only one amp) and started to mock up the rear speakers and four-channel amp. Once the interior is done, I’ll install it to stay.



Thanks to help from my friend Josh, I was able to put together a custom splined front bar. It’s stiffer than the old bent bar and provides a lot more room for the wider front tires.



Speaking of tires, the Bridgestone RE11 tires are certainly sticky!



Not really performance oriented, but I added a bed cover the other day. I’m not a big fan of these things, but it does help keep the rain off the luggage.



Following the dyno tune, I’ve been trying to get some miles on the engine prior to my first event – Motor State Challenge 2016. Not having been on track in some time, I was pretty rusty to say the least. Thanks to the updated suspension and sticky tires, Yelcamino felt great on track! Officially I had the slowest lap times at Gingerman, but I’m sure with a more skilled driver, Yelcamino could put down respectable numbers.

[Ben@SpeedTech]

Two thumbs up!!

[Josh@Ridetech]

Looks really good Herb! I need to come over and check it out.

[Nicks67GTO]

Looking good Herb! I might add motorstate to my schedule next year. It's actually closer than Midwest musclecar.

[Yelcamino]

Two thumbs up!!

Thanks Ben!

Looks really good Herb! I need to come over and check it out.

Thanks Josh! Stop by any time!

Looking good Herb! I might add motorstate to my schedule next year. It's actually closer than Midwest musclecar.

Thanks Nick! Motor State is a great event! It's a low stress have a good time environment.

[Rod]

truck LOOKS awesome!!!

[Yelcamino]

truck LOOKS awesome!!!

Thanks Rodney!

[Josh@Ridetech]

When are we taking burnout pictures of the El Camino?

[Yelcamino]

When are we taking burnout pictures of the El Camino?

I already have a bunch of those!

[LeftHandThreads]

Wheres Mike Norris Motorsports at in Plainfield? I work/live near Plainfield and haven't ever noticed it.

[Yelcamino]

Wheres Mike Norris Motorsports at in Plainfield? I work/live near Plainfield and haven't ever noticed it.

Sorry for taking so long to respond, I've been pretty busy lately! Here's the link to Mike Norris's page with his contact info.

[Yelcamino]

Nothing new to report other than getting some seat time in the El. A couple of weeks ago I did a SCCA autocross and last weekend the LS Fest. Here are a couple of shots my wife got of me on course at the NCM...

[Yelcamino]

Herb, whats the specs on the suspension setup? LOVE the stance. Im in parts procurement stage of my 67 Temp Custom. It's going to be a street cruiser but daddy will take it out solo at times when needed without my girls.
I'll most likely never to AutoX. Just want the suspension to be there and the 'ol Pontiac to sit and handle right, like yours.

Thank you sir, Nick-

Nick,

Thanks for the compliments and I apologize for not responding sooner. The suspension consists of front uppers and lowers from Global West with ATS spindles, custom valved ridetech rebound adjustable shocks, a splined 1-1/4" front bar, and a pair of ridetech 750 lb/in coil springs. The rear has uppers and lowers from Global West, custom valved Ridetech rebound adjustable shocks, no rear bar, and 150 lb/in springs.

[Yelcamino]

Since last August I've been pretty busy with going to school full time, but in between classes I made time to replace the TKO600 with a T56 Magnum from Bowler.



Obviously I started with the removal of the TKO600.



Next I installed the LS7 flywheel and block protector. Since I wanted to check the bellhousing alignment and I couldn't get the dial indicator's base to sit securely on the flywheel bolts, I cut a 1/4” thick plate for it to attach to. Not only did the base sit flat and secure, it also made the center post stick further through the hole in the trans plate making it a little easier to attach the dial indicator.



Following that I installed the Quicktime bellhousing and the front plate from the T56. First I checked to make sure the bell was parallel to the block (it was)…



Then I checked concentricity and came up with a total runout of .007”.



Let me back up a bit. Prior to the Quicktime bellhousing, I had originally bought a stock aluminum bellhousing but ran into an issue with the starter not fitting. After doing a little research, it turns out this is common depending on which version of starter and bellhousing you use. At first I did a little grinding on the starter nose to make it fit.





Here you can see where the starter nose hit the aluminum bell (marked with copper color).



I could have ground on the bell to make room, but I acquired a $250 gift certificate to Bowler, so I exchanged the aluminum bell for the Quicktime thinking I wouldn’t have any fitment issues.



Turns out I had the same issue with the Quicktime, so out came the grinder!
In this pic, you see on the left before I clearanced the block protector and on the right after.



And here’s the bell before and after grinding…



With the bellhousing aligned, I installed the LS7 clutch assembly and reinstalled the bellhousing for the final time.



With that done, I installed the TO bearing, measured for the air gap, and adjusted it.



Before I put the T56 in, I installed the new Tilton clutch MC and mounting kit I got from Bowler. It’s model specific to the early A-bodies and it fit very good. Because I have a hydroboost, the MC needed to be mounted on its side so the fittings didn’t run into the hydroboost body. The mounting bracket from Bowler has mounting holes so the MC can be upright or on its side without ruining the geometry between it and the clutch pedal. On this version of the MC, there are two outlet ports to choose from, one on top and the other at the end of the MC body. I used the one at the end.





There’s also this little adapter the bolts to the clutch pedal so the linkage rod pushes into the MC at the correct angle. Overall, this is a nice kit and I’ll be sure to install one of these on the Chevelle when I get back to it.



The next big step was getting the T56 installed. Other than having to massage the passenger side of the trans tunnel and trimming two little casting tabs off the side of the trans body, it fit in my custom trans tunnel like a charm!





Because the T56 is longer than the TKO and the trans mount is further back, I had to relocate the crossmember, which also necessitated modifying the exhaust. To relocate the crossmember, I cut the original mounting tabs off the frame to make room for these new tabs I made.





In this final shot, you can see the new tabs on the frame and the modified exaust (the X needed to be moved back to the clear the crossmember in its new location).



I still have to connect the three trans sensors, build a small console, and get the interior finished. Once I get those things knocked out, I think I'll be ready for the 2017 season.

[Rod]

whoa!!! awesome progress!!

[andrewb70]

Nice progress! Are you using the 5th gen camaro starter?

Andrew