1970 GTO Version 2.0

[Steve Chryssos]

Andrew,
This past weekend, I was telling the story about how, back in 2002, I dropped $1100 per wheel for a set of forged wheels thinking that NO ONE would dare spend that much or consider forged wheels. With that strategy, my car would be totally unique! Sho 'nuff... the month before my car is on the cover of Popular Hot Rodding -- May 2003 -- some BIG JERK has the exact same wheels on his GTO in the April 2003 issue! Thanks a bunch! (and so a lasting friendship was born)

Just think how many Forgelines have been sold since then. ..and for more money.

[David Sloan]

The benefits of being a bachelor and living alone include being able to have a bunch of car parts in the living room and not hearing "THE DISPOSAL IS CLOGGED!!!" LOL

Besides the engine swap I am doing some suspension mods. I already have some coilovers in the front. The springs in the front are 550 lb/inch. They were marginal with the big block. I think they will work very well with the L92, so for now I am not messing with them. In the rear I currently have some springs that I got way back in the day, from HO Racing.

Who remembers them? If you do, your old!!!

I wanted the ability to adjust the ride height in the rear and more importantly have the ability to properly set the corner weights once the car is done. There are all kinds of solutions to accomplish this, I chose a very nice product from Budzter:

https://www.budzter.com/index.html

Not cheap, but the quality is outstanding and it is a true bolt on. No hacking of the rear is required and its fully reversible. I like that. The spring is 9.5" tall, 175 lb/inch from the Coleman Racing catalog.



Andrew

Do you by chance remember the part number for these springs ? My search is not giving me anything with a pigtail
Thank you sir!

[andrewb70]

David,

I sure don't. Maybe give Coleman a call? I'm also sure that other circle track vendors may have something.

Andrew

[David Sloan]

David,

I sure don't. Maybe give Coleman a call? I'm also sure that other circle track vendors may have something.

Andrew

Thanks
I have been looking at a couple others (allstar , Coleman , speedway) guess i will give the a call !
I got the rest of the parts to build the screw jacks,
Thanks for your help!

[Interceptor5588]

Thanks Kevin!

Sometimes one has to wonder, "WHAT THE F**K WERE THESE PEOPLE THINKING?" GMPP did a very nice job coming out with a harness and ECU combo that was priced right, fits well, and is easy to hook up. Then you realize that the engineer who speced the gas pedal has never turned a wrench in his (or her) life. The pedal that they send with the harness kit is on the right:



It is HUGE and looks like it belongs on a dump truck. I can't imagine that it would fit into any car or streetrod etc...

Thanks for Jeff Schwartz, I got an alternative. The pedal on the left is from a 2007 Monte Carlo SS.



Nice and tidy, with an easy to mount flange. I was able to position it exactly where the old gas pedal was. I even used one of the original holes, drilled an extra hole, and was done.



So with some luck, I hope to drop the engine in this weekend.

Andrew

Does this pedal pin out the same as a Corvette pedal, or truck, or van? Whats the difference between this and a Corvette pedal?

[andrewb70]

Does this pedal pin out the same as a Corvette pedal, or truck, or van? Whats the difference between this and a Corvette pedal?

The GM harness and ECU kit case with the CTSV1 pedal and it pins out the same as Impala SS and the C6 Corvette pedal (maybe others, but I do not know for sure).

The difference between the Impala SS and the C6 pedal is in the way that it mounts.

Here is the Impala SS pedal:
https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo...443254&jsn=972

Here is the C6 pedal:
https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo...42776&jsn=1032

You can see how the mounts are similar but not identical. Both my buddy Tom and I used the Impala SS pedal and the attachment to the firewall works out such that you can use one of the existing holes on the firewall that was used to attach the original pedal. Then you simply add another hole and you're done.

Also, do not modify the Impala SS pedal in any way. I modified one when using it in my Cougar (I removed the actual pedal pad and installed the original Cougar pedal pad). By removing the pedal pad and the spring that is there, it really changed the pedal feel for the worse. I have since replaced the Cougar pedal with an unmodified Impala pedal and the driving experience is much better.

Hope this helps.

Andrew

[Interceptor5588]

So if I spec out a custom harness to use a Corvette pedal, the Impala SS pedal will plug in and go? Their pedal options are truck, Corvette, Express van, and G8.

Thanks again for the wealth of detailed info in your build threads. It's become a bit of a go-to for an LS GTO build.

[andrewb70]

So if I spec out a custom harness to use a Corvette pedal, the Impala SS pedal will plug in and go? Their pedal options are truck, Corvette, Express van, and G8.

Thanks again for the wealth of detailed info in your build threads. It's become a bit of a go-to for an LS GTO build.

Why aren't you going with something like the Holley Terminator X Max?

Andrew

[Interceptor5588]

First of all the $1500 price tag for one with trans control.

Secondly I've installed 2 Sniper setups brand new, both failed and left me on the side of the road. One had an injector stuck wide open, that washed off the cylinder walls in my 400 on 2 holes. The second one locked itself onto an AFR of 34:1 or something and would barely run and washed all the cylinder walls. Both were replaced under warranty, but at this point I have reduced faith in the aftermarket.

OEM stuff seems to be more tried and true, in my experience. However, it does take a lot of research to get the base combo right if you dont start with a complete takeout.

[andrewb70]

Fair enough. The TerminatorX Max does have both DBW and trans control. I've installed one and tuned a few without any issues. I like the ability to tune easily myself.

Andrew

[andrewb70]

My, how time goes by so quickly! The GTO is currently in storage, waiting for our move to Kansas City. While it was being taken to the storage location, it was becoming pretty clear that there were serious issues with the hydraulic clutch release. So with the knowledge that it will have to eventually be driven to KC, I decided to upgrade the hydraulic throw out bearing (TOB) to the really nice Tilton series 6000 bearing.








This specific version is designed to work with early design transmissions, such as a Muncie, Saginaw, TKO, and Richmonds. Since I am still using the Richmond 6 speed, this fits the bill.








I particularly like the way the height of the bearing is adjusted. Instead of stacking shims against face of the bearing retainer, there is a threaded collar that is turned in order to achieve the proper distance between the face of the bearing and the clutch spring fingers.





We did the work at my buddy Brian's shop (this is where the car is stored). Car buddies are the best people on the planet!





I didn't get a lot of "in process" pictures, but I am sure you guys know the drill. LOL

I bought a about $100 worth of fittings and hoses from Earl's in anticipation of the job, since I knew that the new bearing had AN-4 hoses and my old bearing used AN-3 hoses. As it trend out, the only part that was needed was a new adapter to go on the end of the hardline. It's a 3/8x24 double flare to AN-4 adapter. The hoses were just the right length and everything fit perfectly.





Here I am pretending to actually do some work. It sure is nice to have a lift available. I can't imagine doing this type of work again on my back.





I hope all of you are staying healthy in these crazy times!

Andrew

[Crazy Horse]

Subscribed!

[Motown 454]

did you drive it? How was it after not using it for a while, must have felt great.. Hope your doing Okay.

[andrewb70]

did you drive it? How was it after not using it for a while, must have felt great.. Hope your doing Okay.

I didn't drive it. Just inside the garage a little. The clutch release is perfect. I'll be driving it from Alabama to Kansas City later this month.

Andrew

[thumper877]

Let me know if u need a driver lol. Love a road trip

[andrewb70]

Let me know if u need a driver lol. Love a road trip

Got a buddy already arranged. But thank you for the offer!

Andrew

[STREETFIGHTER50]

Just finished reading the entire thread these last couple days. Love the entire GTO journey!

[andrewb70]

Just finished reading the entire thread these last couple days. Love the entire GTO journey!

Thank you! Who knows, now that I have a shop again, there may be another chapter.

Andrew

[ryeguy2006a]

How did the drive from 'bama to KC go?

[andrewb70]

How did the drive from 'bama to KC go?

It was uneventful. I have a few pictures from the trip that I should post.

Andrew