Where I've been

[Steve/sewell]

John,GREAT CAR one of a handful of the last full frame Muscle cars Detroit ever built.

If it has been sitting for nine years change every fluid in the car. It is going to need new tires because they are probably more then likely flat spotted. Before you run out and spend 1500.00 or more on a new paint job take a look at this...... http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/how-articles/25304-secret-removing-oxidation-restoring-show-car-finish-antique-single-stage-paints.html These restorers work trust me. Thousands of parts are available on eBay for your car. Real important!!!! your car is now an antique and antique and collector cars are not subject to the strict emissions that our everyday drivers are in our state. http://www.nj.gov/mvc/Inspections/VehiclesExempt.htm It is perfectly legal to........REMOVE THE CATALYTIC CONVERTOR they are notorious for power robbing as they age and SIT.... so go ahead and ( Put in Straight pipes to the mufflers ) and you will see much better fuel mileage plus a throaty beautiful sound the 350 L98 motor will make when allowed to. The factory horsepower rating for your car was 225 hp @ 4400 and 330ftlb @ 2800. With an engine that is now properly aspirated you will ad about 30 points of horsepower gain with no Catalytic convertors. You have a good tranny in your car the 700R4 and it is critical that you address this area of the drive train. Take it to a professional shop and have them go over the entire system and replace every part you can filters screens ect. One of my better friends has two of these a 1987 red just like yours and a black 1986. Ill ask him where you can shop for parts as he has been a member of the Camaro club for the last 28 years. I know he buys quite a bit at the Mancungie Pa auto show every year.

My son and I have been working on my ( still the owner ) 1987 Monte Carlo SS (but now his ) he drives it. He ran a 12.98 at 111 MPH 1/4 mile at Atco last week. Before we worked on the motor he had previously run a 14.28 96 MPH run . We removed the catalytic convertor and improved his quarter mile time by over a second. The next mod is turbo mufflers real headers an Edelbrock intake and a new Holly carb will also go in. They are a lot of fun to work on good luck and let me know how you are making progress.

 

[JohnN]

It's a great feeling to get that thing running. Once I get it registered (as historic, it will be nice to not have to get it inspected.) the catalytic convertor will be gone for sure. Before I do that, I am going to rebuild the brakes since they are nothing but rust. They are kind of important, so I think they could use some attention.

 

[Steve/sewell]

Yes hot rods need brakes []........Brake fluid is very caustic. 4 discs on that year yes?

 

[JohnN]

Yep, 4 disks. Right now they are all full of rust. I have to decide if I want to try cutting the rotors or just get new ones. The car also feels like it might be misfiring, so I will have to look into that. I will have to start with new plugs, change the oil, all that stuff. Definitely needs new tires, because they have some bad dry rot.

 

[Steve/sewell]

John,
Rotors for your car shouldn't be to costly,also remember when your bleeding the break lines start with the one furthest away passenger side rear first,then the driver side rear and then the front two. The 3:73:1 gears in the 8.5 inch rear in the Buick Grand National will fit your car as a direct bolt in. It is a little stouter then the 7.5 rear and the 3.27 gears in yours. Change all of your front end bushings to urethane. This will make for a dramatic improvement in your ride over the rubber based factory type.

Vibration when traveling over 60 MPH was a common problem on the F-bodys. Here are some solutions to check for.

Balance tires (out of balance, missing balance weight) Very likely easy fix
Bent rim (try rotating tires to see if vibration characteristic changes) unless you have hit something not likely
Broken belt in tire (inspect tire well) very likely in old tires
Replace U-Joints (both sides of drive shaft) easy inexpensive solve
Balance drive shaft Professional repair
Out of phase drive shaft Professional repair
Rear Yoke (Slip Yoke) Professional repair
Rear Transmission Mount (suggested replacement: polyurethane) Easy fix
Remove the bracket between the catalytic converter and the transmission mount WONT NEED THIS BRACKET ANYMORE!![8D]
Flex plate flatness (bent flex plate transmits vibration to output shaft of transmission) NOT likely unless the car was raced often
Torque Converter defective doubtful
Angle of rear end to transmission (pinion angle, correct with upper control arms) This is critical!! Professional repair but easy for a transmission shop.
Transmission tail shaft output bushing You can do this but you will need help (Second Person)
Cross member bolts loose Not likely but an easy check and fix
Rear axle pinion bearings Very Likely You sould be able to do this repair your self
Rear outer axle bearings Same as above.

 

[JohnN]

So far it hasn't been above about 10 mph. I've just been driving up and down the driveway. Once I replace the brakes and get it out on the road I should have a better idea of what it needs. It's nice that I am in the auto program in my high school, so I have access to some nice tools. There's a wheel balancer like this one: http://www.hunter.com/balancer/smartweight/index.cfm an alignment rack, and a whole bunch of other stuff. Can't wait to get this on the road.

 

[Steve/sewell]

Scroll down to Post 43709 Shutting off the EGR system This is another power robber not needed anymore. You will also be able to achieve better gas mileage once the chip set is reprogrammed http://www.iroc-zpost.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/43702/EGR_TEMP_DIAGNOSTIC_BYPASS.html

These guys on the IROC Forum are the junkies of the Irocs like the people on here are for bottles!!

 

[JohnN]

That post just reminded me of something else I have to do... cut the belt to the air pump. I believe that uses up to 10 hp. And since I don't care about emissions... no need for it!

 

[Steve/sewell]

Here you go John once your car is sea worthy.[]These small changes will let you fetch the groceries more quickly.

1. A good high performance tune up $200 (MSD wires, plugs and cap, MSD 6A ignition box)
2. TPIS Airfoil in the Throttle body and remove the "bumps" in TPI plenum.
3. Cut the bottom of the air boxs out.
4. 160 thermostat and hypertech fan switch http://www.summitracing.com/parts/HYP-4026 (these cars run hot, cool them down and you will get some good good horsepower gains.
5. Adjustable Fuel Pressure Regulator set at 50 PSI http://www.jegs.com/i/Holley/510/512...0002/-1?CT=999
6. An Ed Wright Fast Chip,($159) http://www.fastchip.com/ I have great results with his chips even on stock applications.
7. A good cat back exhaust ($200) and exhaust headers if you can afford them ($300 to $400)
8. Shift kit in the trans
9. Regear to 3.73 (good for a solid .5 in the quarter mile)
10. Not cheap but the Holley Stealthram intake or TPIS mini ram intake (both good for a solid 40 hp on a 350 TPI and both bolt on to a 87 really easy.

 

[JohnN]

Well just an update on this. Still sitting in the yard on cinder blocks with no wheels. Current problem: money and weather. It needs 4 new rotors, 4 new tires, new front pads (already got new rear pads), and I forget if there is anything else. So the money is a small problem, but the fact that it is winter is the main problem. Come spring I'll get this thing back on the road. But I have another project now, too. Finding an oil leak on my uncle's son-in-law's 1987 Ford Ranger. I'll make a separate post about that tomorrow.