69 Camaro Project - Dead Pool

[Rick D]

Originally Posted by Ron in SoCal

I feel better with my daily dose o' Cosmo

It's coming...

Ummmm ok I think!!

[glassman]

Originally Posted by waynieZ

I have nothing to say because people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.

Yeah they should.

[fleetus macmullitz]

Originally Posted by Ron in SoCal

I feel better with my daily dose o' Cosmo

...our 'crack' staff would be glad to refill that script anytime Ron.

[Ron in SoCal]

So it’s been a while and the car’s been kickin' my a$$, so here goes. I’ll try to keep this as short as possible.

I was having power steering issues and wasn’t totally sold on the 20:1 after my first AutoX. Really if the suspension was tuned it wouldn’t be as bad, plus it’s a great rack for the street and Kyle Tucker seems to do pretty well with it. On July 1st I ordered an AGR rack from Summit and had a 10 day delivery date that got pushed back 3x into late August so I cancelled.

Plan B was to install a DSE pump matched to the rack. Ugg, same issue persisted. Early August I found and ordered a different AGR PN which had the same specs and it showed up mid-month. After the install I was still getting the same on/off power assist. By this time, Matt Jones at AME and Prime Time (aka Ron Sutton) told me it probably was a pump or system issue and they were right. With Dick at BoS' help, we swapped back my original pump, changed a return line, remounted the PS cooler lower and removed the reducer valve and it seemed to do the trick! The steering felt like what others have described as a modern BMW. Light and crisp and I liked the feel a lot.

I also got a call from Steve Rupp inviting me out to Streets of Willow to the Super Chevy suspension Challenge so the prep was on…

Next up was a review of my front and rear roll centers with DSE and AME and a discussion with David Pozzi about his experience with the sub. I had some minor modifications made to the sub to get a little more clearance and got my second alignment to achieve a bit more caster. Combine that with the rack repair and light steering I was feeling pretty good. After unloading the car at home last Thursday night I noticed a couple small oil/fluid spots on the driveway and put the car away for the night. Next day I take the car to get new shoes installed and upon my return I have not a weep, not a leak but puddles! Not good when I’m 48 hours from hitting the track. With Rob pushing me via text every 10 minutes (kidding, but much appreciated), I spent the next 12 hours in the garage removing parts to be able to tighten –an / npt fittings and checking valve covers and my oil pan. I finally got far enough back and discovered that my rear cover and seal was leaking. The more I checked, the worse it got. Ugg again, game over. I called Steve and told him I did my best, but the car won this round.

[Panteracer]

Ron that really sucks
I sometimes think these cars
fight us because they like it
My bird is a pain all the time but it
makes me more determined. I could never
Do that when I was younger

Good luck and keep swinging at it

Panteracer

[Track Junky]

Man Ron.....

[Ron in SoCal]

Originally Posted by Panteracer

Ron that really sucks
I sometimes think these cars
fight us because they like it
My bird is a pain all the time but it
makes me more determined. I could never
Do that when I was younger

Good luck and keep swinging at it

Panteracer

Thank you Sir! You know better than most, try as hard as you may, sometimes it's just not in the cards.

[Ron in SoCal]

I kinda felt like I got punched in the stomach, but kept reminding myself that these are custom cars and it needs to get sorted until I run out of problems to fix. I also felt bad that Matt flew in from the east coast to join me at the track (thanks Matt!) and I also postponed a work trip and had to pick up the tab for new flights and a hotel night to make the track date.

Matt and I looked over the car and came to the same conclusion, the seal or cover is toast. I had found a GM service bulletin that described the problem and gave an indication of the fix, which thankfully is not pulling the motor!

Matt knew a pretty good shop near me called Addiction so I took it over there Monday morning and they did the fix in six freakin hours. Maybe Tuesday at Streets was a possibility?

On my way to get the car I’m about a block away from the shop and they call and ask if I have my trailer. Why?! I ask. Well, your pressure fitting blew off the rack. Nothing fazes me at this point…

The next morning Addiction drilled and tapped the rack and had it fixed in another hour. I picked up the car (really this time) and drove it home and noticed no leaks. Whew!

I have more work to do on the car before I can run it hard, but I’m taking that delayed flight tomorrow so it’ll have to wait till next week.

That’s my story and I’m sticking to it

[Al Moreno]

Dang Ron I'm mentally tired just reading all the hurdles you've been jumping. Hopefully you get a brake here and can start enjoying her.

[Spiffav8]

Glad to hear you're still positive and keeping at it. It's going to be sweeeet!