1968 GTO Resto-Mod

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

this is the muncie 4 speed transmission from my mother's black goat.
it was rebuilt by Young's Gear and Drivelines of Fairbanks.
the shifter is in south carolina right now being refurbished by Hurst.
this is really just mock up stage: i haven't yet installed the flywheel, clutch or pressure plate.
the hydraulic throw out bearing and clutch master cylinder upgrade kit from Mcleod Racing should be here this week.
always moving forward...
thanks for your interest!
danny

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

the doug thorley headers extend about 1.5" below the oil pan.
i do not intend to hug the ground too close with this car.
the lowering springs i installed in the front suspension came with a pair of SPC spacers for each side which can be placed under the spring seat to adjust the height of the front suspension.
they are not installed at this time, but they're on-hand if i need to bring the ride up a little bit in the front.
the alignment of the header collector outlets with the transmission crossmember looks promising.
thanks for checking in on my progress!
please feel free to share a comment if you have one!
thanks,
danny

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

it's time for another big step!

Mcleod:
hydraulic release bearing and clutch master cylinder upgrade kit

Butler:
MSD pro billet ignition kit

RobbMC:
1/2" fuel pickup and sending unit
pontiac mechanical fuel pump w/ 1/4" vapor return option
pontiac gen II mini starter

Hydratech:
hydraulic brake assist unit
cpp master cylinder

Ron Davis:
dual electric fan radiator
master grounding kit

Flowmaster:
2.5" american thunder exhaust
40 series mufflers

thanks so much for your interest in this project!
danny

[mild2wild]

Originally Posted by 1968 GTO Resto-Mod

it's time for another big step!

Mcleod:
hydraulic release bearing and clutch master cylinder upgrade kit

Butler:
MSD pro billet ignition kit

RobbMC:
1/2" fuel pickup and sending unit
pontiac mechanical fuel pump w/ 1/4" vapor return option
pontiac gen II mini starter

Hydratech:
hydraulic brake assist unit
cpp master cylinder

Ron Davis:
dual electric fan radiator
master grounding kit

Flowmaster:
2.5" american thunder exhaust
40 series mufflers

thanks so much for your interest in this project!
danny

Awesome project with great updates. Don't know what your engine build entailed, but if you running HP near 450+, I'd also look into running RobbMc's mechanical fuel pump as well. I use his products on all my Buick GS builds. Great products.

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

so glad to finally get my hands on these...
i'm almost finished assembling the rear suspension!

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

these look like good quality parts.
i'm not sure at this point that it will fit my application, but when i asked about the return policy i was told "if it doesn't fit just send it back."

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

this is the original driveshaft with fresh u-joints and a replacement slip yoke for the muncie.





thanks for checking in!
danny

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

Originally Posted by mild2wild

Awesome project with great updates. Don't know what your engine build entailed, but if you running HP near 450+, I'd also look into running RobbMc's mechanical fuel pump as well. I use his products on all my Buick GS builds. Great products.

the engine rebuilding was done by Rick and Randy at Port & Sons Machine Shop, the most experienced and reputable engine builders in interior alaska.
after they had the motor apart they told me they had never seen a pontiac engine this old in such good shape.
other than boring the cylinders out 0.030" over, it was rebuilt to stock pontiac specifications.
the 1968 pontiac owner's manual shows that this motor as originally designed and manufactured would produce 265 hp.
some of the upgrades i have planned may help produce additional power, but to be straightforward, i don't really have any high powered plans for the car at this point.
however, in the interest of preserving the potential for future upgrades i did purchase the 550 hp rated mechanical fuel pump from RobbMC.
i can tell from just talking to those guys on the phone that i'm fortunate to be doing business with them.
thanks for sharing your thoughts!
danny

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

this looks like a very high quality unit with the added bonus that the solenoid is adjustable through 360 degrees on the housing, so i can put it wherever i want.
these guys also get big props for supplying a very good set of installation instructions.

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

went back through the driveline and got it all put together for good, starting with the pilot bearing...



this is mcleod's neutrally balanced steel flywheel.
the ring gear has 168 teeth.
it weighs about 30 pounds.
i ordered the mounting bolts to go along with it but they're 7/16" and my crank is machined for 1/2" fine threads.
thankfully, the holes in the flywheel were large enough to accept the 1/2" grade 8 bolts i bought at the hardware store.
i used a star washer under each bolt, applied a good amount of blue thread locker, and torqued them down to 85 ft/lbs using the conventional criss-cross pattern for a six-bolt flywheel.
after bolting it up i cleaned the friction surface thoroughly with dupont low temperature surface cleaner.



this is mcleod's 'street pro' clutch and pressure plate kit.
my bellhousing measures 6.25" so this setup should work fine with the bolt on hydraulic throw out bearing.



in order to use this hydraulic throw out bearing with the muncie, the diameter of the slider nut on the input shaft needed to be reduced from 2.00" to 1.80"
it was pretty easy to do that with my table mounted grinding wheel.



got the driveshaft cleaned up with the pneumatic wire brush.
i really like the way this polished steel looks with a little clear coat on top of it.



this flowmaster exhaust kit has been very easy to work with.
the mandrel bent stainless tubing appears to be very good quality and it all looks like it's going to fit my application pretty well.



it's really exciting to see this all coming together!



thanks for having a look at my work!
danny