Getting closer........

[Payton King]

Hard to believe the day has finally come.

Should be a nice week to drive

Shoot us a few more shots on the road

Congrats!

[Jim Nilsen]

Been driving around this morning checking it out some more. I have a noise in the back I can't figure out, it is a rattle where nothing can rattle. I figure it is coming from somewhere else and echoing from the spot it is sounding like it is coming from.

The alignment I put on it to get me down the road a bit is really pretty good, it goes straight and has good response. The power steering is working great, it has a good feel to it for feedback.

Talked to the tuner today and he is going to have a tune for me by the weekend that will hopefully get me up to 6000rpm and run on the bottom too. I am running in batch fire right now to keep it from going lean at anytime.

So many things to sort out that I don't know where to start.

It sounds like a racecar,handles like a racecar and looks like a stock Camaro with Corvette wheels to the unsuspecting.

Now I have to put the passenger seat in so someone can help me find that rattle.

[SamHatco]

Great car Jim! I know how you feel going around the block for the first time. Kinda scary and exciting both at the same time. I was thinking, ok what's going to fall off. Super job.

Sam

[bigshotsho93]

Sweet! congrats, glad to hear everything is working and you are finally able to enjoy all your hard work.

[Jim Nilsen]

It is going to be nice out today it looks like and I hope to play with the programming a bit. I may need new plugs already. The engine sounds like it is loading up with fuel and it sure can't do them any good.

Any help with programming right now is appreciated as I need to learn a lot more.

I will try to get videos up as soon as I can.

[Jim Nilsen]

Never Never Never buy a stock car engine without tearing it apart piece by piece even if it only cost $500 and has $3,500 worth of parts and labor.

Just pulled the valve cover after a horrible sounding miss started and when the daylight hit it there was a broken rocker stud and a rocker laying there.

This is a learning experience for me as I have never worked with an engine this radical and the parts being so close to the edge. It's as if the guy who built it was doing everything he could to get the most out of the wrong parts?

Got a new stud in and am taking a break to let the engine cool a bit to set the lifters again. I am going to change the oil too. It started back up no problem and got me back into the garage.

I am sourcing out some new rocker studs since they are only holding with 5 threads. what were they thinking?

I am so glad I have another engine !

Other than all of this everyone who sees the car loves it.

[Tucks69]

Glad to see you got your Camaro on the road. Hope to see 3 yellow 69's at RTTH6.

[Jim Nilsen]

It started out as a bad day with the rocker stub broken but the old heads I have donate one and by 4 pm I was back on the road. I was going to relash the valves to .030 from .020 to see if it would be better and it really was, with a better idle and the engine noise was a lot better. With the race cam I may go .035 since you can go all the way to .050 with a race engine and this is a race engine for sure.

The car really hooks up good in the corners, I don't have a rear bar and the rear just followed the front perfect and doesn't seem to sway at all. I have to get the alignment done and who knows I could have a bit more camber in the rear than normal.

Found one of the noise in the back for sure and the other I have a good clue as to what it is. Neither are anything major but they make noise. Clarence needs to show up on one and the other needs to be tightened is all.

It was a spectacular day with the weather and Indian summer showed up with fall color. I went for a cruise and stopped at a park for a few shots.

Here are the pics of the day !!

[dropit69]

WOW Jim awesome backdrop..i love the colors in that 4th pic...sure was a nice day today !!

[Ron S]

Very cool

[Motown 454]

Very nice pictures I agree with Dropit69
awesome back drop.

[Martin71RS]

nice Jim! I like the way how stock it looks (apart from the wheels nothing that gives away what is underneith!)

[Jim Nilsen]

nice Jim! I like the way how stock it looks (apart from the wheels nothing that gives away what is underneith!)

Thanks, that is what I was trying to do and it seems I pulled it off. The neighbor who came by yesterday asked me if it had a vette rear end because he swore he saw it when I went by. He has been into cars for years and knows his stuff and he noticed but was still unsure,lol. Once you get close up the details start to show depending how much you know and then your eyes and mind get a reality check that takes you into a whole other world. Even the engine is somewhat deceiving when you see it.

I am going to have fun answering questions forever. The deception is more than just a way of hiding it all and I wonder if the hardcore stock purist will get deceived for a few moments? So far noone has said I ruined a perfectly good car,lol.

I keep hoping it will stop raining before it starts snowing. I have about 35 miles on it now and want to get the whole racepac setup programmed along with the EFI before the end of the season. With all of the things popping up with the engine and having to pay attention to all of the other details I haven't had a chance to get it all done yet.

This car has so much tech inside that I will never use yet the simplest things are right there and have room for expanding as long as the mind can follow.

I have to make use of the rainy days to finish it up in the engine bay and the interior.

The fun has really just begun. Building is not the fun it used to be. The gatification is still there when it gets done but with the fact that it runs the way it is and I want to drive it makes the last details not seem so desireable at the now moment. I want to see 6000 rpm on the tach and feel it in my seat.

Talk to you later.

[Jim Nilsen]

Seeing the cars get weighed at RTTH5 and hearing the numbers that the cars weighed before they were scaled left me really wondering what the Cormaro would weigh ?

It seemed that the extra weight that adds up at the end of the build surprised everyone who weighed their car during the build process. 500 lb. seemed to be the magic sneek up number from the expectations. That being the norm and thinking I would come in at 2850 lb or so and hoping for less like everyone does I am not too disappointed at what the scales I have read. They probably aren't the most accurate but they give a good guide line and clue as to where the weight is.

Here are the numbers....

LF 820
total 1652
RF 832

LR 724
total 1484
RR 760

total overall weight 3136


This is almost exactly what an 85 Vette weighs. The car sits 1" higher right now than a normal Corvette at the suspension. I will drive it for awhile and see if it settles any more, it has gone down half of an inch so far. I don't really think it will go down much more but we will see.

If I had an LS engine instead of the all iron block and heads engine I have it would be closer to 50-50 front to rear. I have 1/2 of a tank of gas right now. I also have carpet , inner fenders which will be aluminum and not weigh much and the rear bar bewteen the roll cage,rear sway bar and the shoulder harness for the belts. At least close to 100 lb. more I would guess.

So all in all it is not a heavyweight but it is no lightweight either. The best thing going for me weight wise is that I only weigh 140 lb. and holding .

I am having trouble remembering the calculation for F/R % so if someone wants to do the math, go for it.

I am trying to decide what alignment specs to use? I have found the specs at Vette Brakes website and they are still kind of vague when it comes to F/R specs and what is the best variance for camber. I keep thinking I am close enough to 50-50 so equal amounts of camber front and rear would seem appropriate but maybe I need more up front? The rest of the specs are pretty straight forward for each class of driving.

I can hardly wait for the damn sun to come back out, I am not worried about the cold, the heat that radiates from the engine and exhaust really warms it up inside when it is idling and maybe it will still keep it up when driving in the cooler weather ? The car is air tight from what it seems and when I wash it for the first time we will see if we have leaks anywhere.

[John Wright]

1484/3136 = 47.3%
1652/3136 = 52.7%

Somebody check behind me math...been a long day

[Jim Nilsen]

1484/3136 = 47.3%
1652/3136 = 52.7%

Somebody check behind me math...been a long day

That's what I was thinking it was when I did the math and converted it but it sure didn't look right and plus I was hoping for more 50-50 and was a bit disappointed at the time. Now I feel ok with it and by the time I get the extra items in the car , especially the rear sway bar and the rollcage bar, it could come out to more 50-50 afteral it onlt takes 125 lb. more to make it that way and when I get in the car it will even help out the driver side being light in the rear.

Waiting for sunshine or at least dry roads to go play in the streets a bit more but I have plenty more to do before the car is done so it looks totaly complete.

[Jim Nilsen]

The sun came out today and it gave me a chance to sort some more things out and try to get some programming done on the racepak and other little things.

The car is sucking gas to about 5 mpg right now but it sounds real healthy and isn't going to burn up a valve anytime soon.

I didn't get a tune from the tuner yet so hopefully next week we boost the mpg up to at least 10mpg.

Back to more fun and then I am going to change out the rocker studs and put the .035 lash in and see if it helps or hurts.

YEEEEEHAAAAAA

[Jim Nilsen]

I am not sure how to post it yet and it may take awhile for it to show up at youtube, I just loaded it up and it is under the title

The CORMARO

If someone can link it up for it would be great. Thanks

[John Wright]

Jim is that the exact title...I copied and pasted what you typed but didn't get any hits of vids with your car

[Jim Nilsen]

Jim is that the exact title...I copied and pasted what you typed but didn't get any hits of vids with your car

Yes it is the right title, but when I changed it to what it is they had an info block that said it could take up to 6 hrs before it would be available. So we will have to keep trying till it comes up. should be no later then 5 or 6 pm I would think? I have looked at it 4 times from my login site there.

Thanks for the help.