1968 GTO Resto-Mod

[Tuske427]

Originally Posted by 1968 GTO Resto-Mod

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just about ready for another big push.
always moving forward.

thanks for checking in,
danny

You're going to love that Hydroboost system. I have it working on my car now and, wow, the brakes are really responsive with minimal pedal travel, and just the right amount of effort. Best responding brakes I think of any car I have ever driven.

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

Originally Posted by Cosmo mentis

Great build/thread Danny.

Originally Posted by WSSix

nice find, Danny. I personally vent windows from a nostalgia stand point. Glad to see you're keeping them.

Originally Posted by Tuske427

You're going to love that Hydroboost system. I have it working on my car now and, wow, the brakes are really responsive with minimal pedal travel, and just the right amount of effort. Best responding brakes I think of any car I have ever driven.

guys, thank you so much for your interest in my project!



this project is still moving forward although it's been quite some time since my last update.
i'm hoping to crank the engine by christmas.
i will post again soon with more details.
happy holidays to all!
danny

[Roger Poirier]

I look forward to this post every time it shows up...

Any idea when you will be ready for paint? That one will tie you up time and money wise, however it will all be worth it in the end.

Steady as she goes, keep up the good work!

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

Originally Posted by Roger Poirier

I look forward to this post every time it shows up...

Any idea when you will be ready for paint? That one will tie you up time and money wise, however it will all be worth it in the end.

Steady as she goes, keep up the good work!

roger! thanks for commenting!
...and i've been looking forward to bringing this thread up to date.



at this point it's looking like blocking, fitting, etc. are all on the agenda immediately following start-up. paint is the next big piece of the puzzle.
i would like to have the paint job completed by the end of march to leave myself at least a couple months to get the car road ready before summer rolls around.

the last few days i've been putting the finishing touches on engine wiring and making other preparations to start the engine.
i ran the oil pump priming tool for about 15 minutes at around 500 rpm last night, disabled the ignition coil, and cranked it over for the first time.
the starter motor pinion gear engages nicely with the ring gear and i didn't hear any strange sounds.



on friday i'll prime the fuel line and fire it up...
best wishes to all for a happy holiday season!
danny

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

yesterday afternoon i ran the oil pump priming tool again for about 10 minutes, primed the fuel line, and started the engine.
writing this now, about 24 hours later, my heartbeat still hasn't completely stabilized.
when i turned the key the carb sputtered and burped for about 3 seconds before combustion took off.
i didn't even have my foot on the pedal but it ran up to about 4000 rpm in the following 3 seconds.
at that point i knew something was wrong so i turned the key off.
10 seconds into the operation the key was in the 'off' position but the engine was still running at around 4000 rpm.
i panicked.
the sound was powerful unlike anything i have ever heard in my entire life.
i switched the key back and forth a couple times with no effect, then i jumped out of the driver's seat and caught myself staring at the melting paint on the exhaust ports for about 2 seconds before disabling the ignition system.
when the engine finally stopped the shop was filled with smoke and i was on the verge of a full blown heart attack.

i do not know what happened.
i do know i have a lot to learn.

thanks for having a look at my thread.
danny

[fbrown540]

The key not turning the engine off actually happening fairly frequently back in the day when these cars were fairly new. The cause is generally a feedback loop that keeps powering the ignition. You can test for this by simply unplugging the wire to the alternator. If the engine stops with the key off and by unplugging the alternator wire, you have a feedback loop.

If you have a feedback loop, You could leave the alternator unplugged while you trouble shoot the high idle rpm.

Some causes are:

- lack of a resistor in the GEN light line.
- not properly converting the wiring when swapping from an external to internal regulator. This seemed to happen to many of my friends back in the early 70's.
- improper conversion from a points type distributor to a electronic one. Again this happened to many of my friends.

It been so long that I don't remember what was done to fix the problem, but the fix was very minor in all cases.

I don't know if this applies to your engine, but many GM engines of the 60's had a thin metal plate between the carb gasket and the manifold. Leave the metal plate out and the engine won't idle. I had seen many of my friends leave the metal plate out and couldn't get their engine to run very well.

Maybe someone with more recent experience will chime in.

[PBarkley]

Subscribing to this thread...and seeing your recent engine-related post has me on high alert for the same reason with my car, haha.

Glad to see another build staying Pontiac powered!