So… my son and I decided to try and get the heater working. First thing we were told to do was to replace the thermostat.
A simple enough thing that we (amateurs) could do for only $5.99.
Unfortunately, it didn’t work out that way.
One of the two bolts we had to take off to get to the thermostat SNAPPED.
We tried everything. Reverse screw sets. Drilling. Bolt loosening sprays.
Nothing worked.
In desperation, we called a friend who had a friend who was a mechanic. He came over and tried for an hour to drill the bolt out.
No luck.
“You know”, he said, "it’s easier to replace the intake manifold.
Oh. Okay. Let’s try that.
Now here’s the thing. For Christmas… I got (or really Esmerelda got) new Valve covers.
So we had fun putting those on the day after Christmas… and I guess we got comfortable working on her enough to try the thermostat.
Now we’re in over our heads.
Fortunately we got the intake manifold in the next day and my buddy and his friend went to work (with my son and I watching and learning).
We had to scrape off the old gasket and clean out the antifreeze
Ready for the new gasket
New gasket in
We had to remove the distributor to get the new manifold in
The bolts were then TOO short (2 inch) and we needed 2 1/4 inch bolts. But the auto store didn’t have any. Nor did Home Depot.
So we bought 2 1/2 inch bolts and added washers for now.
Then… since we were putting in a new intake… we added a 4 barrel carburetor
By now, it was 11pm and we were finding that the boxes did NOT include many things like couplers and throttle return springs.
So now she sits waiting for the last bits to come in.
I’m hoping by the end of the day we’ll have her up and running again.
I’m told she’ll have a few more horsepower when it’s all done too.
Our $5.99 project suddenly became a $599 project overnight… ack.
And at the end of the day… my buddy looks at the old thermostat and says “This looks like it works just fine”
Sigh
