Thought I would create a post to start capturing my project. As noted before, I was able to recently obtain this original owner/family car from California. It’s ironic this car was bought new in Sunnyvale, CA…same town we lived in as I was stationed there during the 90s…had a 68 XR-7 4-spd car at the time.
My overall intent is to keep the car fairly stock or stock looking, but make a few changes to improve appearance, drivability tweaks, replace/rehab worn items, and boost the power somewhat. I would love to pull motor and stroke it to 445 with aluminum heads, but paint it to maintain a stock appearance, but doubt that will happen anytime soon unless the motor decides to take a dump. Before placing car in storage, I noticed the previous owner made a few mods in its 2008 engine rebuild to include 428CJ exhaust headers, Holley 2 barrel (list 7508-1) Autolite replacement, and S code air cleaner.
For now, here are this years planned projects:
Legendary LW69 wheels…appear to have been used on 69-70 GT350 / GT500s.
Rear leafs…going with the ESPO competition springs. They are supposed to be slightly lower than stock, but ordered them with 1” lift. I hope that provides a level, or a very slight rear high rake.
Blue Thunder 427MR intake and Holley 4 barrel carb. I have purchased the intake, but holding off install until I see how existing 2 barrel setup performs.
Front coils. Waiting to see how rear leafs fit first and whether I install aluminum intake. I want a slightly firmer coil, but maintain the right stance.
Troubleshoot A/C. Previous owner stated it didn’t function, and prior receipts indicated leakage in system. Hope it’s simply leaks in hoses or engine bay fittings. If not, may be tempted to update system with modern style compressor. I have never worked on a/c systems, so a bit to learn.
Export brace. Should be easy if shock towers are not twisted.
Tach and “ammeter to voltmeter” conversion. Pull out the gauge cluster and send the tach / ammeter out for conversion, and swap in LED bulbs and electronic voltage regulator
Purchased the Legendary LW69 wheels…similar to those used on the 69-70 GT350/GT500’s. I decided to go with the 17x7 and 17x8 wheels (more tire options) in the machined/charcoal finish, with installation in April/ May.
Gauge cluster out…ammeter and tach shipped out for conversion. Lenses are in decent shape, will only replace the blue diffusers as they are cloudy.
After pulling the cluster apart, noticed some of the cork/gasket material is falling apart. Will have to check on replacement material from the auto parts store, unless someone has a better suggestion.
Thanks Don. Looks like I may go with your suggestion as it’s a bit more subdued than the red walking cat version I have on my wish list, but still look sharp
Glad I was patient and held out for a west coast car…makes working on it so much nicer.
First big upgrade completed. Had to change my wheel choice due to backorder issues, but installed the following:
Legendary LW10 (GT7) 17-7 and 17-8
General GMAX AS-05 225/45-17 & 245/45-17
Black Mercury Man center caps from WCCC
So far, I look the look of these rims against the Saxony color. My only regret is not buying the 225/50 instead…it could be a little taller. I did have an issue with the center caps even after buying the correct adapter kit…none of the included machine screw were the correct size. I had to go out and find M4 x 0.70 mm Thread, 12mm long screws…which couldn’t be found in the needed qty from Lowes / Home Depot…just ordered a box from McMaster-Carr and stainless lock washers.
I will have a better feel once I replace the leaf springs and the overall stance. For now, I think the rear may be at the right height, but the front could drop a bit.
Finished up the export brace install today. After a bit of prying and pushing with a punch, I was finally able to line up the cowl holes and use new WCCC bolts vs the general bolts/nuts that were installed. I don’t know if helped at all, but I let the car sit over night on jack stands. Installed all bolts in by hand to make sure I didn’t cross thread. I will check the torque on all bolts after I have had a chance to drive the car a bit.
The export brace is very rigid in contrast to the two flimsy original pieces. The export brace came with fairly sharp edges, so I hit all of edges with a grinder, primed, and then painted with the Eastwood Extreme Chassis semi gloss black.
Epoxied the plastic screw holes with fiberglass that hold the gauge cluster together…most were cracked on the side
Installed the converted tach and voltmeter from Rocketman
Installed a cleaned/repaired speedometer / odometer…local shop fixed the odometer and cleaned entire unit
Installed a small power distro unit from eBay (12VoltConnection)…nice compact unit (3 switched power, 1 constant power, 3 relays). Used it to power the tach, ammeter, choke, supply 12 volts to the new Pertronix coil, and a spare circuit in case I upgrade the radio. GEP Universal Pre-wired Waterproof Mini Fuse Relay Panel Box Holder 80 AMP 12V | eBay
Fixed a couple of previous owner wiring hacks…looks like it was limited to the radio as he probably had an aftermarket in it at one time
Replaced all exterior and interior lights with LEDs from WCCC and NPT…except for the headlights
Installed a new OE like “engine to firewall” ground cable and bolts from WCCC
It was a pain getting the gauge cluster back into the dash…not a lot of room to get your hands in there to reconnect the wiring harness. I may have to pull it back apart slight to check on the left turn signal light…I verified all lights worked before bolting it in, but may have knocked it out of the hole when reinstalling.
I like the LED dashlights as they are much brighter.
