Details 128...

To bring you up to date since my last post, nothing major has taken place.

Weekend before last, I helped a buddy with his car, so nothing got done on the Tomato.

Last weekend, I added teflon tape to the radiator drain cock to aid in sealing...

shot some paint on the core support petcock clearance relief...

finished fabricating a filler piece for the core support transmission cooler lines clearance cutout...

and then spent some time using my borescope to try and determine if the passenger side footwell dimple could be used as a wireway for the siren/police radio wiring. Couldn't be 100% sure, so I'll just wait until the car is apart in the body shop and then I can get a really clear look.

This weekend, I got everything put back together up front.

Next weekend I need to finish routing the trans cooler lines and get them connected then refill the radiator, check the power steering and transmission fluids and the ole girl can be lit off again after a few weeks being dormant. If all stays dry, then perhaps I'll set her down on the ground for the first time!!

Stay tuned and wish me luck!!

ZEBRA 3 OUT

Details 127...

A little bit of metalwork this weekend. Added the clearance radius for the drain petcock wings...

and trimmed the core support for clearance around the transmission cooler hoses..

I'll have to leave welding it in to the body shop because the welder won't reach from where it's setting. Next weekend, I'll reinstall everything.

Stay tuned....

ZEBRA 3 OUT

Details 126

Last weekend, I made a bit more progress... got the mounting bosses welded onto the Flowmasters this week at work...

so I hung then just to verify they work OK...

then sandblasted them so I could drop them off for powder coating once I determine how I want to do them.

Blasted the grill/header brace and shot it with a couple coats of chassis black...

and then pressurized the cooling system looking for the leaks. Only visible sign was a bit of seepage around the radiator drain petcock. Got a spacer to extend it out a bit farther beyond the core support flange and I think I'm going to replace the thermostat gasket and the mounting hardware with slightly shorter bolts to resolve that issue as well.

This weekend, I drained the radiator so I could see what the issue was with the drain petcock wings hitting the core support flange. Since I couldn't open the drain all the way due to the interference, it was a long and agonizing process that seemed to take forever!

Once the level got below the upper radiator hose level, I pulled off the upper hose and thermostat housing to replace the gasket. Evidently the gasket that came with the thermostat (or the one they sold me with the thermostat?) was a junk paper gasket that was totally mush when I pulled the housing off the intake manifold. I coated the Fel-Pro gasket with gasket sealer and stuck it onto the hose outlet housing awaiting re-installation. Also checked the thread depth on the housing mounts into the intake manifold and they're plenty deep enough for the stock hardware, so the issue was entirely that gasket.

When the radiator had finally stopped draining, I removed the lower radiator hose, transmission lines and fan shroud then removed the upper hold downs and pulled the radiator and drained the residual coolant into the catch pan.

Comparing the replacement radiator with the OEM radiator, I found that the drain hole was 1/2" lower in the new one accounting for the interference. I trimmed away a portion of the rubber lower insulator to clear the petcock wings and also plan on taking a die grinder and adding a slight relief to the core support flange for that extra little bit of clearance.

Once these two issues are resolved, I (hopefully) will have no further coolant leaks!! ... and by the way, that Evans Waterless Coolant is the oilest stuff ever. I thought regular coolant was bad, but this stuff is almost impossible to wipe up, but once my leaks are resolved, I should never have to deal with it again!