The All About My Monte Carlo SS Thread

[daveismissing]

clean!

[motorhead]

This poor car has been sitting outside for almost 3 years?! Might explain some of the surface rust forming. FML.

Well that all changed this weekend.  I rolled the black car out of the garage (with half the steering gear missing) and put it up on jack stands, and washed 5 years of grime off of it - time to donate some parts.  I pressure washed under the hood and as much of the undercarriage (amazingly clean under that oily goop) as I could get at, and the bird poop off the body.  I'll chip away at this when I want a mental break from the wagon.

I figure I can stick some wheels on it and slam it for initial feel good giggles.  Then I have to decide to fix up the SBC in the black car or drop in a 4.8L LS and a turbo.

[motorhead]

Did a little more work on the grey car today... like removing the locking wire hubcaps - with an air hammer.  Stupid design.

Also found a vacant mouse nest in the DS front framerail.  Eww...

And I started lubing up all the nuts and bolts needed to remove the unnecessary parts; and make way for some performance and service parts.

[motorhead]

There is going to be one constant with the refresh of my MCSS: Massive diet.

This car being a pretty low optioned ride - about the only things I can find are power windows (a must for me), rear defroster (Canadian car), and power trunk release (don't care if it stays or goes).

I am wiling to dump everything possible to get this car down a lot.  The only things that I feel obligated to retain are seats for the wife and kids, the power windows, and the heater box.

All the glass can be replaced with lexan, pin on hood and trunk is fine, fiberglass front clip is okay, Swiss cheesing the bumper supports, aluminum bumper brackets, manual steering box, manual brakes, composite dash, aluminum exhaust, and so on.

So if you have a good source, or know if a good reference please post it up.  I wonder if sub-3000lbs is possible?

700lbs in savings: http://www.darkside.ca/node/59

[motorhead]

Optic Armor:

http://www.opticarmorwindows.com/applications-drop-in-black-outs-details.asp?short_descript ion=G-BODY%20malibu/caprice/el-camino/Regal/Cutlass%C2%A01978%20to%201988&manufacturer=Chevrolet

 http://www.opticarmorwindows.com/applications-oversized-windows-detail.asp?model=Monte%20Carlo%201978%20to%201988&manufacturer=Chevrolet

Not happy with most of the glass on my cars, so this is a good option - for a price.

[Just a Six?]

Your a bundle of energy, keep the pics coming!   

[motorhead]

Trying to get as many parts off the black car as possible before the snow comes (or it becomes too cold to function without wearing my issued arctic kit).  I just have to pull the intercoolers off, then it is just a matter of the front drive accessories, trans cross member, DS - then the engine should pop out; and of course the rearend.

Most of the parts are going in the trunk of the grey car for storage.  However, having another engine and transmission laying around is going to suck.

Right now I am trying to decide if it needs a simple N/A 355 (need new headers) or a boosted 355 (as built).  Either way it looks like like it is going to be fuel injected using MicroSquirt.  I have a set 80pph injectors, 450lph Walbro, E85 ready -10AN braided line, etc etc etc sitting here.

My brother is trying to convince me to set the car up to run a Ford EDIS 8 ignition system (uses a 36-1 crank trigger) - and lose the factory distributor.

or sell it all and start over with a boosted 4.8L LS.

[TexasT]

This month hot rod had an article with and s10 , twin turbos and an lsx. I didn't read it but they were goofing with the stock bottom end by the bold excerpts.

[nocooler]

5.3 with a LSA blower and a man pedal

[good2win22]

Trying to get as many parts off the black car as possible before the snow comes (or it becomes too cold to function without wearing my issued arctic kit)

I am so thankful to not live in the cold any more.  It still gets cold down here but not that "witches tit in a brass bra" cold and it usually doesn't stay that way for long

[motorhead]

It is going to be a whopping 9*C and sunny tomorrow - hopefully it dries up enough for me to crawl under the car.

[motorhead]

Dry? Yes. Windy? Oh hell yes!  It caused fluids, drain pans, towels used to soak up fluids, my foam mats, and tools to blow away.  FML.

Anyway I managed to disconnect everything needed to pull the engine and trans together without having to remove the hood - as I was on my own for this one.  The rearend is also ready to drop out - the sun went down and so did the temperature, and I ran inside like a little bitch to get warmed up.

A couple of other interesting things are the size of the massive 4.2L (I6) TrailBlazer aluminum driveshaft (15152336 / 15833881) next to the stock GN/442 unit; the damn thing weighs nothing by comparison - 51ish" CL to CL.  And the period correct (c.1999) dual-hump transmission crossmember - flimsy as shit after being heated and smashed into submission - which will have to be reinforced before installation in the new chassis.

[good2win22]

Cold and windy?  Braver and more determined man than me

[motorhead]

Meh.  I just do what is necessary... which usually involves me suffering in some way.

[motorhead]

The transfer of parts continues.  Pulled the 8.5" today, cleaned and degreased it and the engine/trans, then painted the diff, and then set them all aside for a moment of boredom. I also wrestled the KYB shocks and the MCSS steering box back out of the Lemans donor car (originally stolen out of the MCSS a few years ago).