When we last left our intrepid enthusiast, his fingers were bruised and bleeding from installing all the trim pieces to the car. With that finally completed, I could focus my attention to the power steering lines. I needed a few different fittings before I could make the hoses.
The -10 line is a tiny bit kinked but since the hose is larger than stock, I'm not very concerned. You can also see the high pressure hose (blue) and the fittings used. I elected to use aeroquip for the high pressure but Earl's everywhere else.
If you remember, I was going to use the transmission crossmember rails to support the cooler. I used some english hardware I had laying around because I couldnt find the original t-studs. Wouldn't you know that I found them this afternoon so I'll go back and replace them.
Here you can see the bracket I made to attach the cooler. I have started to mock up all the hoses so I know where I can clamp them down. I also installed a raceskids plate.
Here you can see the brackets in much closer detail. I ended up using 18ga steel and riveted it to the cooler after cutting off the original brackets. The cooler is tucked away above the frame rails and should be well protected. You can also see the p-clamps holding the lines. There was a stud originally used for the rubber sound deadening that made a nice spot for the first clamp point. After this was a trial and retrial of finding the best way to route the lines.
Here you can see a bracket I fabricated to hold the reservoir. This is really my first time fabricating with metal so my skills are nowhere where I want them but it's improving. I really need a brake and shear for sheet metal although the edge of the workbench makes a decent bend radius when coaxed with a hammer.
In these pictures the new brackets have been painted and reinstalled. All the lines are tightened and the reservoir filled with fluid. No leaks, just sloppiness on my part missing the filler hole. It cleaned up nicely.
Since I was in a fabricating mood, I decided to make a bracket for the overflow tank. Up until now, it's been sitting there loose. My wife found an aluminum door kick guard to use so I thought I would give it a try.
Here you can see the initial mockup and the transfer to cardboard showing where the holes needed to be drilled and where the bend lines occur. I added a little bend relief to help as well. In a perfect world, I would draw this up in CATIA with sheetmetal for aero and print out the flat pattern but this should work as well.
Transfer the pattern to the metal.
and then drill the holes with the drill press.
Ready to cut. I elected to use a jig saw. It worked well with the steel so it should be like butter with the aluminum.
A few bends and then I mocked it up. The aluminum was softer than I wanted so I will probably find a thicker gage and remake it. For now, it's adequate and holds the canister.
And here it is installed. As i said, a sheet metal brake would be much better in the fabricating and keep the metal more straight.
I double checked everything under the car to make sure it's was completed. After my check, I decided it was time...
To throw it on the ground.
I've got a little over three inches from the ground to the skid plate. It's lower than last time it was on the ground and I'm really starting to like it. At first I was going to raise the rear a bit but the stance has really grown on me.
Looking like a car again.
Now that it was on the ground, I could finally back the car out and move it over one stall. It's been blocking my attic access all this time. I hooked up the battery, fired the car up easily and did a quick check for leaks. With none seen, I sat in the car, slid it into reverse, lowered the parking brake and gave it some revs.
um, yeah, daddy like.
daddy like alot.
I had to take the opportunity to give it a drive and a shake down so i took it out. The good news was that there was no check engine light. The bad was that the anti lock light came on so I need to trouble shoot the sensors. The brakes drag a bit too, but I haven't adjusted the pedal to allow the booster to fully release. It's next on my agenda.
Most important, no leaks. No power steering, no coolant and no diff fluid. I think I finally got them all. So I returned her to her new home within the garage.
Nighty night.
It's nice to be enthused about a project again. Yeah, there still is a lot of crap to do but now, I'm a bit more motivated. Having no traction in 2 gears can put quite the smile on your face. ;)
Leave a comment: