633 replies to this topic

[76lxhatch]

Added earth terminal for the fuel sender.

 

Of course I thought I was just going to swap out the sender and pickup assembly with the tank in the car - nope. I forgot there's a baffle plate in the tank that runs right through the location for the pickup, more adjustment needed. Had to do it the hard way.

 

Got the pickup and float arm tweaked to the necessary angle with the tank on a stand, and even managed to do a basic leak test by tipping it up.

 

According to the instructions, the Speedhut fuel gauge has a preset for the correct 40-250 ohm range. But I must have a mis-print because it behaves more like the 0-30 ohms shown in a different set of instructions I found online. So I had to manually calibrate empty and full positions but seems to work well now and certainly fixed the unreliable reading issue. The gauge does seem to have reasonable damping too, the needle doesn't swing up and down with rapid float movement.

 

Have had occasion to use the intermittent wiper control recently, works great but time for new wiper blades again as they don't last long in the sun. Decided to try something different to see if I can get more than 10 seconds out of them before they start shuddering over the windscreen. I've had a good run out of the flex blade setups, but they don't offer a fitting style that suits the arms. They still have a simple centre pivot though, just push the pin out and throw away the plastic adapters and it's pretty close. Made some stainless hardware to suit.

 

In addition to updating the blade holder this assembly has significantly less slop than the worn out originals which I'm hoping will help. They sound a little better running over the windscreen but it stopped raining so a proper test will have to wait.

[Bruiser]

Just put a set of those wipers on the Mrs’s car, not much choice between the crummy generic ones and anything claiming to be better
She wanted something “good”, she drives the freeway home late nights after work in fog and rain. So…
Pricey, so I grumbled but grabbed them to keep her happy
I still can’t believe how good they actually are, they work a treat

[Shiney005]

79 series Landcruiser ones would be too short I think, but the original Toyota blades last 7 or eight years, and that is while being out in the dust regularly. They look at me funny when I order OEM ones from Japan (they never have them in stock), but totally worth it.  

[76lxhatch]

79 series Landcruiser ones would be too short I think, but the original Toyota blades last 7 or eight years, and that is while being out in the dust regularly. They look at me funny when I order OEM ones from Japan (they never have them in stock), but totally worth it.  

Length was actually the clincher in picking these, I didn't think short ones would be available but you can get them down to 350mm (these are 380mm). You could literally fit two end-to-end in the box which is one-size-fits-all.

[76lxhatch]

Wipers do seem a lot better (so far).

 

Have been looking for a spare wheel on and off, it's a challenge finding something that will fit below the floor but still be a reasonable match in rolling diameter and clear the brakes. I haven't actually tried it on the car yet but pretty sure it will work, 15x5" with 165/80 tyre. Wheel is a bit ugly but hopefully it won't be seen much.

[yel327]

That will work. When I ran 14x8 and 14x7 on my hatchback I used to have a 14x5 HQ rim with something like a 175x60x14 tyre and it just fit neatly.

I would have tried a space saver though. Out of something like a V2 Monaro (5 x 120) or one of the BA-BF Fords (5 x 4.5"). It was going to be my starting point for the HK, mine is a 5" wheel car so the wheel stands upright in the quarter, those with the D70/14 tyres on 6" rims had the wheel laying over with more room but have extra brackets.

[76lxhatch]

Still using 5x4.75" stud pattern, didn't want to be modifying wheels or need special wheel nuts if I could help it. I had considered a 17" front runner but they are way too pricey and even then a suitable tyre size is quite difficult to find.

 

It has an even uglier (at least on a Torana!) smoothie cap which will never see the light of day. I should make a hold-down though, turns out the bracket on the floor is actually still there!

[yel327]

Yeah you might have to look harder in Australia for a 5 x 4.75" space saver if your current path doesn't work for some reason. A Corvette one would work, they are something like 155/80/17, you'd just have to find one off a car over here. I'll just grab a VE/VF or a BMW. The BMW space savers can be a mag wheel too. Here is a 155/90/17 BMW which is what I plan to use if it fits but wrong pattern for your application:

 

https://www.ebay.com...:Bk9SR6Cg9MCJZA

[76lxhatch]

Wheel fits fine front and rear, it actually has better brake clearance than any 15" wheel I've used. For obvious reasons tyre clearance is not an issue.

 

Much to my surprise the little bracket for the factory hold down is still present and intact on the boot floor so figure I may as well use it. Copied the original rod using one from an old battery retainer, and made a custom knob that seats in the wheel nut taper from some leftover cast aluminium.

[76lxhatch]

A few pages back I cleaned up the two-piece swivel thermostat housing and made it one-piece with some epoxy. It's not a bad unit but there's a design flaw with the recessed cap screw idea; the base material under them is too thin causing warping and leaking if you crank on them too much. They're also difficult to access. I should have welded it up and machined before painting it - I may still one day, definitely won't be throwing it away because this $70 part apparently now sells for $250!!

 

At any rate I had a genuine GM housing from a VN in good condition, these are better engineered with the bolt bosses being much thicker. Also cast a chunk of aluminium from some pieces of old piston and machined that up as a spacer to get the correct height. Made it the same shape as the earlier thermostat housing so I can use it if I ever change back, or want to drill the other port.

 

Fixed the colour and made up some shoulder bolts with slightly reduced size heads, fitted with a new top hose.

[claysummers]

Nice work


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[RallyRed]

Very neat.

[76lxhatch]

Been chasing the cause of excess oil in the intake, to the point of fouling plugs. Second-guessing my PCV setup, leakdown tests...

 

Turns out some manufacturers can even get basic paper gaskets wrong... I've installed a lot of inlet gaskets, heck this engine has seen many sets, and I've never seen this happen. Both sides are very similar, they have torn apart even right around the bolt holes and the bolts were all still torqued up! I'm guessing a combination of oil and heat with unsuitable material?

 

Good thing I didn't just order two more sets of the exact same brand just hours before finding this... doh!

[axistr]

I've seen this problem on more Holden V8's than any other V8. I would be checking the angle of the inlet manifold to cylinder heads inlet face angles. If the heads, inlet manifold or block have been decked and ground on a slightly different angle this will effect the even clamping force on the gaskets, and I have always found its been the valley side that's effected from the vacuum sucking the gasket in. Maybe Holden didn't get the angle 100 % correct from new and any small additional machining error amplified this problem. On a few occasions I have had to machine the inlet manifold to correct the angle then port match the inlet ports using new gaskets and bearing blue as a guide. This is the easiest and cheapest way to correct the problem.  Also your inlet manifold has had a few alterations and welding sessions recently so double check for distortion on the port faces with a straight edge first.  

 

And there is another theory, you F**ked up putting on the manifold because it looks very, very twisted. Genuine Holden gaskets used to come with small plastic plugs that were placed in the two end holes of the gaskets and heads either side to keep the gasket in correct alignment during fitment. You wouldn't be the first one to skew the gaskets out of alignment when fitting the inlet manifold. However I don't think its the faulty gaskets.       

[yel327]

I've seen this problem on more Holden V8's than any other V8. I would be checking the angle of the inlet manifold to cylinder heads inlet face angles. If the heads, inlet manifold or block have been decked and ground on a slightly different angle this will effect the even clamping force on the gaskets, and I have always found its been the valley side that's effected from the vacuum sucking the gasket in. Maybe Holden didn't get the angle 100 % correct from new and any small additional machining error amplified this problem. On a few occasions I have had to machine the inlet manifold to correct the angle then port match the inlet ports using new gaskets and bearing blue as a guide. This is the easiest and cheapest way to correct the problem.  Also your inlet manifold has had a few alterations and welding sessions recently so double check for distortion on the port faces with a straight edge first.  

 

And there is another theory, you F**ked up putting on the manifold because it looks very, very twisted. Genuine Holden gaskets used to come with small plastic plugs that were placed in the two end holes of the gaskets and heads either side to keep the gasket in correct alignment during fitment. You wouldn't be the first one to skew the gaskets out of alignment when fitting the inlet manifold. However I don't think its the faulty gaskets.       

 

The really early heads used to have alignment dowels on them too from memory? These kept the gaskets in place. I've never had that happen to me though, but I always used genuine gaskets. The last one I did was a VP 5.0L with a carby intake on it, I got some genuine gaskets for it.

[76lxhatch]

axistr that's interesting, I've installed a lot intake gaskets on different Holden V8s (including this one many times) and never seen it here before. I have been known to be a little rough but can guarantee this was straight when I put it on, if you look at the bolt holes you can see they were in place initially but have just torn the holes as it shifted. The gasket didn't stick to either face, my guess is the material might be OK when not in contact with oil but not suitable here. You can also see where the RTV around the water ports has made it stick and that hasn't shifted; both sides went up in the middle. Perhaps a coating of Hylomar might work but I'm going back to a known quantity with a different brand.

 

I've welded the rocker covers but deliberately avoided welding the manifold. The injector bosses are pressed and epoxied, fuel rail mounts are drilled and tapped. Unfortunately the locating dowels are long gone but aftermarket gaskets often don't cater for them.

 

Here's the other side, very similar. Gasket just didn't stick for the most part and has walked up. The main tear in the middle is where it must have had a little bit of grip from hanging over the bottom edge of the head.

 

On the plus side the home made rubber rocker cover gaskets with the little crush sleeves are working very well, bottom side is as dry as the top.

[yel327]

I'm struggling to understand how the gasket can move though if it has equal clamping force across it along the whole length? To me something isn't straight or aligned as per axistr's comments. I always used non-hardening Permatex on both sides of these too and Blue Silastic or similar on the ends like you've done.

[Bruiser]

And me
That’s one weird happening right there
Should be on Ripley believe it or not
The thing has crept upwards and outwards from the middle both sides a long ways
- And in opposite directions
If those manifold bolts are 3/8 that’s easily that amount of shift
What is pushing or pulling it that way?
Which vacuum are you referring to, axistr?
Manifold runner vacuum?
It couldn’t possibly be crankcase vac - or not

[axistr]

I spent a few years early in my trade moving around to different workshops due to being hungry for knowledge as a young bloke. Also got board quickly doing repetitive work. I worked in two separate engine reconditioning workshops and regularly got stuck on the surface grinder machining blocks, heads and the occasional exhaust or inlet manifold. So I seen this problem first hand on many occasions. It wasn't un common to knock 25-30 thou off both the heads and block. I was very fussy setting up engine parts in the surface grinder. However other mechanics that used these machines weren't so energetic and close enough was good enough. I would rip it into them if the seen them not setting the parts up square. The old blokes hates being questioned by any young blokes. One mechanic would at times machine heads 20 thou from square so the head would clean up quicker with less passes of the machine head. Ha Ha some engines had lots more compression than others. When I assembled any V8 engines I always put four spacers under the inlet manifold to block faces, finger tighten four inlet manifold bolts at the front and rear and check the gap was even on both sides and no more than 5 thou tapper in the angle between the manifold and heads. this check was something my perfectionist boss taught me during my apprentice. This procedure only took a couple of minutes but you would be surprised at how many were miles out due to poor machining practices or stressed components. For every SBC that needed the inlet angle machined and port matched we probably did three or four Holden V8 engines.

 

An old mechanic told me that fitting two gaskets under the manifold fixes the problem and that he had done this a few times. Didn't sound right to me, I tried it due to time restraints but it was a disaster getting the manifold to fit and only lasted a few weeks.   

 

Better quality gaskets might work and mask a problem, however I wouldn't be surprised if the contact faces are out.  Even If you have crankcase pressure build up at high RPM this shouldn't cause the gaskets to raise if the manifold and head faces are correct.       

[axistr]

And me
That’s one weird happening right there
Should be on Ripley believe it or not
The thing has crept upwards and outwards from the middle both sides a long ways
- And in opposite directions
If those manifold bolts are 3/8 that’s easily that amount of shift
What is pushing or pulling it that way?
Which vacuum are you referring to, axistr?
Manifold runner vacuum?
It couldn’t possibly be crankcase vac - or not

Inlet manifold port/runner vacuum can easily suck in gaskets if the clamp force is low in this area, more commonly seen between valley and manifold lower section. Off the throttle down a hill creates lots of vacuum pressure. Higher than average crankcase pressure on one side and vacuum on the other equals lots of pressure on the gasket. It's working like a brake booster.    

[Bruiser]

Inlet manifold port/runner vacuum can easily suck in gaskets if the clamp force is low in this area, more commonly seen between valley and manifold lower section. Off the throttle down a hill creates lots of vacuum pressure. Higher than average crankcase pressure on one side and vacuum on the other equals lots of pressure on the gasket. It's working like a brake booster.    

Cheers mate
Runner vacuum high, crankcase low and outside of manifold lower still
Why did they go they go in the direction that they did?

[axistr]

Cheers mate
Runner vacuum high, crankcase low and outside of manifold lower still
Why did they go they go in the direction that they did?

 

Lets say you down shift, 2,500 rpm on the tacko with zero throttle opening, your inlet port/ runner pressure would probably be around 30" hg (negative pressure) sucking on the gasket. On the other side of the gasket (crankcase side) lets say it has a static pressure, so no pressure build up or vacuum in this space. The actual reading would be 14.7 PSI give or take .2 of a PSI (atmospheric pressure). I don't know the exact force but it's possible the total pressure forcing/pushing the gasket in the upwards direction would exceed 40 PSI. If the inlet manifold to head clamping force on the gasket is lower in this centre area shown compared to the ends (warped manifold or incorrect angle) then this may cause the gasket to shift. If there is a positive crankcase pressure at any time during the rev range than this would amplify the situation. I'm not saying my theory is 100% correct in this situation (gasket failure), but I reckon it's  a definite maybe.         

[axistr]

Just adding weight to my theory, in the eighties that changed the inlet manifold gaskets due to the head heat riser ports position. If you fitted the incorrect gaskets this could have also contributed to the gasket failure, in both pressure and heat.

[76lxhatch]

If you think of the gasket as a bearing surface (it's now slick, failed to bond/stick to either head or manifold except in one or two small spots) then it had no option but to move around with heat expansion etc and the logical direction is up. Thought it was interesting to show.

 

The angles are fine, there's been no machining since the last dozen times I took it on and off without issue. The only thing that changed are the cheap gaskets.

[yel327]

Just adding weight to my theory, in the eighties that changed the inlet manifold gaskets due to the head heat riser ports position. If you fitted the incorrect gaskets this could have also contributed to the gasket failure, in both pressure and heat.

You can see that these gaskets are multifit, covers half of the red ADR27A U shaped exhaust crossover ports. So if that is a factor your theory could hold here.