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Test Drive
I took the car out for a test drive
last week and things went very well. I took Gary with me so he could
tell me what he thought because he knows what's right and what's not.
After driving about a mile or two, the car was warmed up and things were
looking good so I went down to a dead end street and turned around. It
was time to see how good the car ran so I put it in third gear and was
ready to go. The reason I used third gear was because I wanted to see how
the transmission shifted once I was into the throttle. I took my foot
off the brake and whacked the gas and the next thing I know, both tires
are spinning pretty good but once it shifted into second, it took a hard
turn to the left and I ended up in the other lane so I had to get out of
it. As you can see, it doesn't have any problems
spinning the tires. Those marks are over a hundred feet long and would
have been longer if it went straighter. I'm not sure why it went left so
hard but after leaving the area and coming back sometime later, I
noticed that one tire spun farther than the other. When I bought the chassis,
I ordered the rear end with a posi-unit but don't know exactly which
unit it is so I might need to pull it out and take a look at what I
have.
During the drive, the car stayed nice and cool, oil pressure was right where it should be
along with the rest of the vitals so I was very happy with my test drive
for the most part. I have a an idea that the crack in the firewall might have formed
during this part of the test drive, but I'm not sure. It's about time to
take the car completely apart for paint now but my wife said she wanted
to go for a ride too so I think I'll revisit this spot again....just for
her!!
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| 4/30/05
What I'm getting ready to do is take the car over
to the painters so he can match up all the body lines before all the
panels come off the car. The guy I'm going to have paint the car, Bart,
has been a friend of mine for years and we go way back. Bart and I went
to school together and happens to be
Paul's
younger brother (the guy who helped me with the carpet). Bart has been
painting for over 20 years and does very good work. He's easy to talk
with, very patient, and takes his time. Bart is also going to make sure the door-to-body
clearances are right so that meant taking out all the interior except
for one seat so I could drive it over there. It sure does look different now that all the upholstery is
out...now doesn't it? There's no reason to clean all that leather if I
don't have too so this is why I took it out. After
Bart is finished with matching up the panels, I'll be bringing the car
back home and then take it "completely" apart.... I'm talk'n
every nut and bolt will be coming off. The first thing to be painted
will be the chassis. Once that's finished, I can take the body over and
Bart can get started on that while I re-assemble the rolling chassis. A
rolling chassis is a frame that has all the suspension, rear-end,
brakes, motor and transmission, drive shaft, exhaust, but no wiring.
When the body goes back on, then the wiring can go back in and
everything else gets installed. It's a long process but it's the right
way to do it.
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