Grease Monkey Garage

[FergusonTO35]

At the private shop I worked at, people would junk the car after about 3k. Most commonly they would just never come back and get it and we would do it when the lot got too full. At the dealer, they would get an estimate from us and then have an independent do the job.

 

[Steve]

At the private shop I worked at, people would junk the car after about 3k. Most commonly they would just never come back and get it and we would do it when the lot got too full. At the dealer, they would get an estimate from us and then have an independent do the job.

We are in an economy many of us haven't experienced before. The days of replacing stuff is over for now. You can't go out and buy a new car for 20k. A used car with 100k and 5 years old is only 20% less than a new one. So now you can't afford a new car, you can't afford a used car. Used cars have problems just like your car that needs 5k of repair. So it's usually a no brainier right now. Fix your car and you know what you have.

 

[Mastermind]

We are in an economy many of us haven't experienced before. The days of replacing stuff is over for now. You can't go out and buy a new car for 20k. A used car with 100k and 5 years old is only 20% less than a new one. So now you can't afford a new car, you can't afford a used car. Used cars have problems just like your car that needs 5k of repair. So it's usually a no brainier right now. Fix your car and you know what you have.

I buy my automobiles in poor condition for cheap....then fix em up.

 

[Steve]

I buy my automobiles in poor condition for cheap....then fix em up.

Me too. Bought this Nissan cube for $150 in April. Needed a work around the security system and had an out of state salvage title. Was more work to get a Missouri rebuilt title than it was to actually fix the car! Can't peel my wife off this car. She loves it!

 

[FergusonTO35]

We are in an economy many of us haven't experienced before. The days of replacing stuff is over for now. You can't go out and buy a new car for 20k. A used car with 100k and 5 years old is only 20% less than a new one. So now you can't afford a new car, you can't afford a used car. Used cars have problems just like your car that needs 5k of repair. So it's usually a no brainier right now. Fix your car and you know what you have.

My wife and probably everybody else thinks I am nuts for driving 90's rustbuckets. I know them backwards and forwards, and can usually anticipate what they need. It's actually a very uncommon event in my life to switch vehicles. Here are all the personal vehicles I've had in my life, a very short list for being 44 years old.

1987 Mustang
1989 Dodge Dakota
1998 Ford Ranger (still have it)
1996 Geo Prizm
2004 Dodge Dakota
1998 Mazda 626 (still have it)

The wife has the itch to get something different so I'll probably be getting her 2010 Accord here soon.

 

[nbbt]

I buy my automobiles in poor condition for cheap....then fix em up.

I've got 3 vehicles to get back on the road myself. 2 need body (72 Chevelle ground up and more/repower) and 99 Ram some sheet metal with a little lite mech, with the 3rd needing to replace the cone rear end ('04 GTO 130k miles) and add the fun parts (stepped 1-3/4 to 1-7/8 long tubes) siting in the garage and possibly a cam.
Not enuf time for dwellings and fun stuffs. There's always tomorrow.... hahaha

 

[Mastermind]

These Hooker exhaust manifolds are really nice. Why? Because fugh a header. LOL

 

[FergusonTO35]

Wow, didn't know they made such a thing.

 

[Mastermind]

Wow, didn't know they made such a thing.

They are fairly new for the SBC.

 

[FergusonTO35]

Free factory manuals for my 626, yeah!!

PMX626.info //US/Mazda 626 & MX-6/Work Shop Manuals/PDF/

 

[Mastermind]

These Hooker exhaust manifolds are really nice. Why? Because fugh a header. LOL

View attachment 382318

The driver's side alternator mount was a no go. The belt interferes with the power steer pump mount.

Picked up the Alan Grove 213R passenger side low profile mount. Works with a short water pump.....and the 283 heads.

Small Block Short Pump

Small Block Chevy Short Water Pump Mounting Brackets

www.alangrovecomponents.com

https://www.alangrovecomponents.com/images/Instructions/213R.pdf

 

[FergusonTO35]

My uncle had a Chevy II SS with 283 that ran in the 11's very consistently, a real overachiever!

 

[Mastermind]

My uncle had a Chevy II SS with 283 that ran in the 11's very consistently, a real overachiever!

This engine is a 350.....with heavily modified 283 heads. LOL

It has just under 10:1 compression, a pretty good flat tappet cam, roller tip rockers, and a few other goodies.

 

[FergusonTO35]

Since my sister bought the 626 with 14k miles in 2001 it has always had belt squeal. The dealership and other shops could never get it to stop completely. Turns out the listed belts are too long. Bought some about 5/8" shorter and they work great. With the original belts, you just couldn't get that extra bit of tension before running out of room to tension. Blind squirrel finds the nut sometimes!

 

[davidwyby]

This engine is a 350.....with heavily modified 283 heads. LOL

It has just under 10:1 compression, a pretty good flat tappet cam, roller tip rockers, and a few other goodies.

I need to put the engine back together for the lemans. Shame on me. I got addicted to saws n felling. poncho tree fiddy…mild hyd roller cam…9:1 IIRC. Big valves.

…just to sail it.

I wanna build a 440 for my ‘69 dodge short bed.

 

[FergusonTO35]

I wanna build a 440 for my ‘69 dodge short bed.

How 'bout a 413? I would think it to be way cheaper than a 440.

 

[Mastermind]

How 'bout a 413? I would think it to be way cheaper than a 440.

He should just put a SBC in it. LOL

 

[nbbt]

I wanna build a 440 for my ‘69 dodge short bed.

How 'bout a 413? I would think it to be way cheaper than a 440.

He should just put a SBC in it. LOL

The SBC would likely be most cost effective, but possibly so wrong in so many ways. Of course IMO.

 

[Mastermind]

The SBC would likely be most cost effective, but possibly so wrong in so many ways. Of course IMO.

I always thought people who swapped a generic SBC in a "whatever" were crazy. Till I gave up on a big block Ford I'd swapped into a fox body Mustang in favor of the Chevy powerplant. The big block took me at least a week of hard work to get in the car. I had to make the oil pan and the headers. It was fun to drive, but hard to keep cool. The car ran a best of 8.85 in the 1/8 mile with the big block. It got about 10 miles to the gallon too.

When I did the Chevy swap, I had the engine mounted, with out of the box Nova headers on it in one day. With a smaller cam, and less carb it ran high 7s in the 1/8 and got 18 miles per gallon.

 

[FergusonTO35]

SBC is the Glock of engines and Glock is SBC of handguns. They just work!