Pinto Car Club of America

Here are some pics of my wagon project.  I bought it about a year and a half ago from a towing auction.  It ran and drove but the brakes were almost non existant which made for an interesting drive home.  The body is decent.  About the only rust I noticed off the bat was in the hatch.  The car had the rear slats at one time but they were removed and the holes were never filled.  Here are some pictures when I brought it home.

A couple more of when I bought it.

I rebuilt the entire brake system shortly after I brought it home.  Other than collecting parts for it I have not done much to it lately.  Today I decided to install some of the part I have aquired over the last year.  I installed the door panels and arm rests.  They are not perfect but are in much better condition than the original ones were.

While doing the brakes I noticed that the passenger side floor board had some holes in it.  I have not found the source of the leak but I decided to pull the carpet and see how bad the floor really is. The replacement carpet was glued on top of the original carpet.  Aparently the drivers side window was broken at one time.

Now the ugly.....  It looks like it will need a full pass side floor pan.  The drivers side is solid.  It just has a puncture wound from something.  I can see the scrape marks from below.  Here is the rear and front of the pass side floor board.

Here is the drivers side.  A little time with a wire wheel and some primer should clean things up nicely.

Here is a picture of the seat without the cheesy seat cover.  I also include a picture of my parts car that will donate its floor board and the engine;D  I hope to get some more time with the car tomorrow.

I like the color!

BTW, did I ever thell you that my Grandpa was the Allis Chalmers dealer in Moorhead, Iowa? ;D

Yours also looks like a ringer for the CW on the cover of the '77 edition of Petersen's Complete Book of Pinto.

Thanks, Orange is my favorite color.  The car is very similar to the one on the cover, it is just missing the aluminum slots, which I have.  I have one left to polish and then I will install them.  They already have tires so it should be quick and easy.  Maybe I will throw them on tonight.

I installed my slots today and washed it real quick.  It looks shiny ;D because it is still wet.

I pulled the motor from my parts car a couple weekends ago.  Here are a couple pictures of what it looked like when it came out. 

I found a bunch of receipts behind the glove box of my parts car when I removed the dash.  It is looking like this engine had 86K on it when the timing belt jumped a tooth.  My parts car spent the first 14 years of its life as a campus security car for a local Hi-tech company here in Beaverton.  From the receipts it looks like the car had about 26K in the mid 90's.

Here are a couple pictures after stripping it and washing it down with 4 cans of Gunk.

Last night I pulled the oil pan and replaced the rear main seal as well as the oil pan gasket.  Today I installed a new timing belt and put all the sheetmetal back on the engine.  I then did a final cleaning and painted it.  Here are a couple pics of the finished product.  The engine out of the wagon will donate the rest of the parts as the exhaust manifold off this motor had a crack.  Sometime in the next couple weeks I will kick Tigger outside and pull the wagon into the garage for the motor and transmission swap.

BTW, this is Tigger

I put the wagon in the garage over the weekend.  I started pulling off stuff off tonight.  The alternator and power steering pump was being held on by three bolts.  All were very loose and came out by hand, not good.  In addition to the loose bolts, I found some broken wires.  This is the reason why the temperature gauge does not work and who know what else.  I also think I found part of the source of my water leak.  The seam sealer is missing on the pinch seam along the firewall.  I had a similar problem on my 67 Mustang between the cowl and kickpanel.  I will pick up some seam sealer tomorrow and take care of it.

More pics

I pretty much finished the engine last night.  There is not much else to put on.  I am using all the factory clips and fasteners that I can find.  I will use my 79 wagon to route the vacuum lines when the time comes.  Tonight I was going to start pulling the transmission but I am short two jackstands.  My 67 Mustang is currently using my other pair.  I will need to pick up another pair.  I ended up pulling some things like the exhaust and shifter but it was a little tight for me.  I also fixed the parking brake.  The car was missing the adjusting rod and cable bracket when I bought it.  I have had the parts for a year now but never got around to installing it.  Once I was done with that, I started fooling with the floorboard rust.  I ended up cutting out the rear section.  It went fairly quick.  The longest part was the spot welds around the leaf spring bracket.  Here are a couple pictures of the engine.

Another picture of the engine and what is left of the engine that is still in the car.  I have not decided if I will paint the engine compartment or not.  I can't seem to find a bright orange in rattle can :(  It may end up being black ::)  I have not decided yet.

Here is a picture of the hole and the panel I cut out.

Here is the doner panel.  It will have to be trimmed as it is a little bigger than the piece I cut out.

Tigger,
      Your doing good and you a working with a very nice speciman of a Crusing wagon.
Disclaimer......I am not just saying that cause I am a wagon owner.
ThunderPinto and I are looking forward with riding with you one day as we are with all the Pintos on this sight.

                                                                                         High_Horse
                                                                                           #226

Thanks High_Horse I hope it turns out like I want it.

I had some time today so I pulled the motor and transmission.  I also cleaned up the engine compartment as best I could before the rain started.  I am not sure what I am going to do with the engine compartment.  I have not found a shade of orange in rattle can that I like.  I also seam sealed the seam where the cowl and firewall meet.  Hopefully this solves my water leak problem.  I have some wiring to fix.  The idiot lights and temp gauge did not work.  After pulling the motor I found out why.  I hope to have some more time to work on it over this weekend.  Here are some pictures.

Here are a couple more pictures of the engine compartment.

Here are a couple pictures of the 79 Bobcat that I picked up a couple weeks ago.  I wanted to buy this car a couple years ago but the gentleman that owned it did not want to part with it.  It is a 2.3L 4spd car, deluxe interior, ralley wheels, factory tach and gauges.  He had wrecked it pretty good and had it towed to his sisters house.  It was there that I found it.  I ended up selling him the fender and some misc parts to get it legal but he never did anything with it.  He passed away earlier this year and I bought it from his estate.  The straightest panel is the fender I hung on it.  All the rest have dents.  The radiator core support is all bent as well.  I had to beat it out with a sledge hammer to get the radiator back in it without the fan hitting it.  I will eventually part it out but for now it will help me fix the wiring as all the idiot lights and gauges are working.

A couple more pictures

You get a lot more done than I do, great progress. 

If the sealant on the cowl to fire wall seam does not fix the leak, check the stand pipe inside the cowl that feeds fresh air to the heater box (about 8" diameter).  Leaves collect around the pipe keeping the area moist and Ford's painting in there was not the best.  On about half the Pinto's I had, this area rusted through allowing water to puddle on the passenger floor.  Of course I live in Florida where it rains every day in the summer.

Thanks, my wife has been getting after me for the past year to get working on it or get rid of it.  I dinked around off and on but finally got working on it this fall.  I hope to get the motor and transmission swap done and running before Christmas.  I want to get my Mustang back in the garage as soon as possible.  I would like to get the floor board done as well but I think that will be a while still since my other Mustang on the other side is in the middle of a disc brake conversion.  I don't want to be welding with it in the garage.

There were a bunch of pine needles in the cowl when I bought it.  I promtly pulled the hood hinges and the inner fender liners and cleaned them all out.  I ran a ton of water down there and did not see any leaks.  However the leak has got worse since I got it.  Last winter the water started to puddle where as the year before the carpets were hardly wet.  THere was just a lot of moisture inside the car.  I will see when I get the car back outside.

very nice 78 cruiser wagon :hypno:

Thanks, it was not as nice as I originally thought.  I was a little blindsided by the floor board.  I am not disapointed, as the price was very fair since all the cruising wagon stuff is present and in great shape;D  I think once I am done it will be a decent car.  I will be positing an update soon, I just need some time to clean a few things up. 

Hey tigger, you might want to check the gasket and sealing surface around the windshield.  My old 78 sedan had that problem, though decidedly less so than yours, as mine didn't rust through.  My gasket had cracked right above the heater core (oh the time I spent troubleshooting THAT for nothing) allowing water to get in anytime the car got wet.  I took it to one of those DIY car washes and had a buddy spray the car while I sat inside.  Found it in less than ten minutes.

Bring quarters!

Another way to go would solve your engine bay goo too.  Get yourself a power sprayer.  Then you can try to find your leak, and degrease the engine bay, all from the comfort of your own driveway.  Just a thought.  Very nice work by the way.  I have always liked the leaned back look of those 77-78 cars.

Thanks for the tip, I will keep that in mind when I start hunting down the leak or leaks.

Hi Tigger,

I concur about the windshield weatherstrip. It leaked in such a way that it appeared as though it was the heater core, so knowing the top quality of the Ford heater cores, I bypassed the heater core and, low and behold, I STILL HAD THE LEAK!! After practically drowing my car, I found the leak in the lower passenger side windshield weatherstrip. Once I sealed it up, no more problems! I have a new weatherstrip that will get installed eventually.

I had some time to work on the car today.  I painted the engine compartment over Thanksgiving weekend.  The color is a little off.  I had a hard time finding a decent shade of orange.  Last weekend, I put the majority of the engine compartment together.  Today, I fixed the wiring harnesses that was broken as well as the wiring for the voltage regulator.  Here are some pictures of the engine compartment ready for the engine.  It is not perfect by any means.  I left the firewall alone as well as the upper half of the driver side as the original paint was not too bad.

Here is one more picture of the engine compartment without the engine.  It was still early when I finished so I decided to drop the motor in.  I ran into a snag with the stupid pilot bearing.  Since the cruising wagon is an automatic and my parts car was a 4spd, the pilot bearing had to come out.  It took me three hours to get the stupid thing out.  The hook on my slide hammer was too big to fit thru the hole.  I packed it full of grease but that did not work.  I ended up chiseling the thing out.  What a pain in the  :showback:  Once it was out, I installed the dust shield and flex plate.  Here is a picture with the motor in the car.  Hopefully I will have time on Monday to work on the car. 

Hey Tigger,
Looks GREAT!
The pilot bearings are a PAIN!!!!

R U going to clean up the hood latch?
That would finish the job!!!
From Pintony

Hey Tigger!

Looking good! I just hope mine ends up looking as good when I get to that point!

Thanks guys... Tonight I worked on the car some.  I replaced the lower rubber fuel lines.  I also swapped out the transmission wiring harness for a better one.  THen I installed the transmission (C3).  Man that sucker is heavy.  All the bellhousing bolts are in.  The ground cable is connected as well as the transmission dip stick and starter wire holder.  I ended the evening with replacing the rubber line for the vaccuum module thing with the correct metal line which I still had from the parts car this transmission came from.  However I do not really remember how it goes since it has been 5 years since I parted the car that particular car out.  I think I have it correct on the transmission but I am having problems getting it to look right up top.  I think I will post something in the general help section.  I have the cross member in but it is just holding it in for the time being.  Hopefully tomorrow, if it isn't too cold, I will work on it some more.  I would like to get the transmission finished, speedo, shifter, tranny lines, torque converter, driveline, etc

Looking good Tigger! Glad someone is making headway on their project. It's hard to get motivated when it's raining or cold or snowing outside! Well, come to think about it, I did do some work on my CW... got the title transfered! Does that count?  :D

Now if I could get the ol lady to buy me a shop, I could get some of these cars out of the yard...

I worked on the car some more this afternoon.  I pulled the transmission back to make sure I had the torque converter in all the way.  For some reason it would not spin so I could not line up the torque converter to the flywheel.  Once it was back in everything lined up properly.  Pretty much, everything is in now, starter, driveline, exhaust.  I installed the battery and turned the motor over but it was pretty weak so I did not crank it much.  All that is left is the hood, radiator, and vacuum lines.  I also need to change the tranny filter and pan gasket before I start it.  No new pictures today as everything pretty much looks the same.

  Tigger, how cold is it in Portland, man it's cold up here in Wa. You must have a good woodstove in your shop to work on you project in this kind of weather.
  She is lookin great

Thanks Farmboy, it was in the 20's yesterday.  I had my propane heater going for a couple hours in the morning before I started in the garage.  It was nice and toasty when I started.

Tonight, I changed the transmission filter.  This transmission looks to be in great shape.  There was no band residue in the pan.  It was pretty darn clean inside.  I also installed the radiator but I broke one of the clamps.  I will have to get one in the morning.  I plan on going to get my dad's 79 wagon tomorrow.  I need to swap the carb out.  While I am at it, I will use the car to connect the vacuum lines.  I will post some pics tomorrow.

I went and picked up my 79 wagon today from my mom's house.  I brought it home and swapped the carb out.  After dinking around with that car I moved to the crusing wagon.  I pretty much finished the engine today.  I ran all the vacuum lines, using the 79 as a guide.  It is as close to factory as I can get it.  I had to dig into my parts pile to get all the correct tee's and 90 degree elbows.  I found all but one.  All I need is to add some coolant .  I tried to start the car but the battery was weak and did not last long.  I poured some gas down the carb and the engine caught but did not run right.  I know the timing is off as the distributor is loose so I will have to play with it once it starts.  The car did not have much gas left in it when I pulled the motor.  I will get some fresh gas tomorrow and try again.  Here are a couple of pictures.  The only things left to install are the hood and the caution fan thing that I can't find.  It was missing when I bought the car but I have one for it.  I can't find it at the moment ???The air cleaner is on but it is dirty.  I will eventually clean it and the lid.

Tigger, 2 more days and it will be a month since you pulled the motor... excellet work/job. 

It runs!!!!!  I had it running for a couple minutes, I had to shut it down when the garage filled up with smoke from the paint heating up.  As soon as I did, everyone was going what's that smell ::)  I wish I could be out :fastcar: it but there are a few things more I want to do since it is still up in the air.  For one I need to replace the turn signal housing I broke.  Slowly but surely it is getting done ;D

Thanks Cookieboy, but it has been almost two months ;D 

Aaaaa... I see, mistook Nov for Dec...

my mistake but in my defence it was almost 1:30 am when I left that post, my nights seem to be getting later and later...

Still Excellent Work and Good Job  ;D

Thanks Cookieboy

I spent the better part of the afternoon cleaning up the garage and picking up tools.  I am far from done but it is better.  The clutter that was in front of the car is gone now.  My bench is some what better as well.  After dinner I installed the turn signal housing I broke.  I had to change the socket again as well because the wiring was all messed up too.  I put a NOS socket on but it still had problems with the ground wire ???  I think I got it fixed now.  After I finished that, I cleaned up the aircleaner.  I polished it up a bit but it could use more.  For now, I am considering the engine done.  Here is a picture of the engine with the aircleaner on as well as one before I started. 

Since the car is still up in the air, I think my next project will be to lower the front.  If I don't do it now, I don't think I will.  I lowered my 79 and really like the look.  I am thinking of lossening the lower control arm from the frame and dropping the spring that way.  I don't want to mess with the ball joints.  Here is what my 79 looks like compared to the cruising wagon.

if you do lower your car. nice job on it. the two ways to go are. either a drop spindle or a coil over shock conversion. this way you dont have to play with ball joints or lower mounting points on the I arm

Last night I worked on the shifter light as it was not working.  I had to replace the wiring harness to get it to work.  While I was at it, I cleaned up the shfter from all the goop and dirt that accumilated thru the years.  I had a little more time so I started to restore the shifter bezel.  I repainted the trim and cleaned up the lens.  Tonight I replaced the seal.  I bought a repro seal from a 65 Mustang and modified it to fit.  Not bad for $3.00.  Here is a picture of the finished bezel. 

Wow!!!!   Looks like new....hope mine looks that good.

                                                                                                   High_Horse

Thanks High_Horse, it looks better than it really is but it is much nicer than before.  I have not had much time this past week to fool with the car as my dad is in town for a visit.  I have been spending most of my free time with him.  For some reason the battery on Tigger was dead this week so while it was charging today, I decided to fool with the wagon some.  I decided to get the reverse lights working.  I pulled the tail lights and one of the sockets just crumbled.  I spliced in a good used one and changed the bulbs and now they are both working.  While I was at it, I swapped out the marker light bulbs that were burned.  I also swapped the tail lights and bezels for some nice used ones.  These are not pitted and have perfect paint.  However the front turn signal is still giving me problems.  I think I will have to switch out the socket as this NOS one has a bad ground wire :(  I found the caution fan cover today  ;D

Tonight, I changed out the parking light socket with another NOS unit that I had.  The light and turn signal work properly.  Now all my exterior lights work ;D  I hope to get some more time with the car this weekend.

I lied, the license plate bulb was missing.  A new bulb and it is working.  Now all my exterior lights work.  I started lowering the car this afternoon.  I have the passenger side done and back together.  I am half way done with the drivers side.  I noticed that the rack is leaking out of the boots on both sides.  That is a major bummer as I just sold my spare power steering rack last week  :'(  Has anyone rebuilt or resealed them?  I think I will start another post on the rack.

This afternoon I put the drivers side suspension back together.  I installed new shocks and dropped the car on the ground.  It looks much better lowered.  I installed the hood and grille.  I topped off the radiator and started the car.  I let it warm up and set the timing.  The motor runs real nice, a heck of a lot better than the other engine.  It purrs like a kitten ;D  Once warm I topped off the transmission and moved the car back and forward under its own power.  The transmission seems to work.  The rack is still leaking though, not sure what I am going to do with it.  I don't really want to replace it.  I have a factory manual that I will skim to see what it will take to replace the seals.  I think I only need to seal the tierods.  Here is a picture of the car on the ground.

I pulled the car out today and took it for a drive around the block.  Everything seems to be ok however the steering rack is leaking pretty good now :(  I left the car out all afternoon since it is raining today and found a small puddle inside.  I could not see where it was coming from, I will have to remove the glove box liner and move the car out to see if I can find it.  I cleaned the garage floor while the car was out.  Hopefully the only leak I find is from the power steering.

Tigger,
    Why do't you just replace the entire rack. They are probably still under 100 bucks. I replaced mine about 6 years ago, got it from O reillys with lifetime warrenty. They honor that warrenty too...believe me. It was 65 with tax then.

                                                                                                                                                                                       High_Horse

I looked online some but did not find one under $100.  I did see one on Ebay but it was the Ford rack and I have the TRW one.  Not sure if it will interchange easy?  I looked thru the factory manual and it take some special tools to R&R the seals.  I will call around locally and price one out.

Not much new to report.  I noticed today I had a couple coolant leaks and one oil leak.  Amazingly the rack did not leave a puddle?  I tightened the hose clamps so I think I am good with the coolant leaks.  Not sure where the oil leak is coming from yet.  I was having trouble with the clutch on my 79 earlier this week so I decided to put 79 in the garage and move the crusing wagon out in the rain.  I pulled the glove box insert but I am not sure if that is going to help.  I may have to pull the heater box too ???  We should have some good rain this week so I the plan this week is to track the water leak down.  Here is a picture of the crusing wagon on the street.  I like how it sits but there is some weight in back now.  I think once everything is put back and cleaned out, it will sit higher.  I may need to block the rear to keep it somewhat level.

Sounds to me like your cowl area is leaking.  I hope its not as there's no easy way to fix that, as I'm sure you know.

I'll never understand why ford didn't use some kind of rust-proofing in their cowls.  Mustangs, maverics, and pintos all suffer from this and its a major PITA to fix.

-Harry

Quote from: bigh4th on February 26, 2007, 07:16:34 AM
Sounds to me like your cowl area is leaking.  I hope its not as there's no easy way to fix that, as I'm sure you know.

I'll never understand why ford didn't use some kind of rust-proofing in their cowls.  Mustangs, maverics, and pintos all suffer from this and its a major PITA to fix.

-Harry

All my Pintos and early Mustangs that I did paint work to, or had paint issues near the cowl, had galvanized cowls.

Bill

I am sticking by my windshield gasket guess.

I got home for work tonight kind of late.  I just went out and took a look in the car.  There is hardly anything on the passenger side floor board, maybe a trickle.  Infact it is hard to tell because I think it is frozen.  However the drivers side is different story, there was more water there than I expected.  There is a trail of water coming from the pinch weld under the fender, near the windshield.  I am not sure if that is the only one or not yet.  The same thing that I found on my 67 Mustang.  Looks like I will be pulling the fender in the near future if I cannot get to it from below.

Well, the last couple months I have not done much to the crusing wagon.  I have been working on my jet boat mainly rebuilding the pump.  I trimmed the rear floor board and tack welded it in a couple months ago but that has been about it till lately.  Last weekend I ran into a snag on the boat so I decided to weld in the rear panel.  It is not best weld job but it will do.  I think I will overlap the front section instead of doing butt welds as I think it will be easier for me to weld. 

One of the things that has been keeping me from getting the car smogged was the exhaust.  The wagon had the original exhaust on it when I bought it. Ford muffler and all.  It was all rotted out so, yesterday I swapped out the cat back for another used one I had from a past parts car.  The used one was in decent shape so I decided to use it instead of spending the $200-$300 for a new exhaust system.  The car is so quite now, and does not pop when you let off the gas ;D 

Today, I pulled out the patch floor pan and drilled out all the spot welds from the old bracing and frame rail.  It was not too bad of a job.  I think it took me a couple hours to get everything off.  Then I cut out all the rust from the front floor of the crusing wagon.  The next job is to trim the patch.  Not sure if I will have time tomorrow, this may be a next weekend project.  Here are some pics.....

Once I get the front floor welded in and everything sealed and painted, the plan is to go get the car smogged and licensed.  At that point, I will start to drive it  ;D

I have had the floor trimmed for some time now but have not had a chance to weld it till today.  I did not get far as I ran out of shielding gas for my welder ???  Since I was SOL on that, I decided to clean out the cargo area a little and straighten up some of the parts that I had in the back.  I vacuumed up the carpet. Someone replaced the carpet at some point as it is in real good shape.  The cargo mat cleaned up quite well also.  I had to sew the vinyl back on along one half of it.  The only thing that is in bad shape is the piece of carpet that goes behind the seat back.  It is disintegrated.  I will have to find one somewhere.

Once I was done with the carpet, I started to clean the cargo area and spare tire well.  The cargo panels are in fair shape but once I am done with the floors I plan on removing them and painting them so that are all one color.

I then replaced the dry hatch seal with a nice used one I had put away.  Then came the cleaning of the spare tire.  It looks to be the original one ;D  I also got a jack and lug wrench for it since they were both missing.  The fiber board spare tire cover was in pretty bad shape so it was tossed in the garbage.  I came across this plastic spare tire cover from an early wagon a few years ago that I decided to install to keep the cargo area flat. 

Here is what it looks like put together.  I am hoping to get some more time on the car this week.  Hopefully I can get the floors done this week. 

Hey Tigger, what kind of Wagon is that Spare Tire cover out of?

turbowagonman

I got this one out of a 73 Pinto Wagon a couple years back. 

Today I finished welding the front floor pan.  I ground down all the welds and seam sealed both panels.   I still have to clean up the bottom and undercoat them.  I did not feel like doing it today so I removed the passenger side fender and seam sealed the cowl.  I got it back on and quit for the day.  I will paint the floor tomorrow.  Here are some pics. 

Hey Tigger,
Looks like you R doing it right!
Will be a NICE ride when U R finished.
What R your plans for paint? Interior color???
From Pintony
Here is part of what I did today

Thanks Tony, I am trying to do it right  ;D  For now, I plan on leaving the car orange on orange and black.  The interior is not too bad of shape.  I replaced the trashed door panels and armrests.  I have a mint dash pad for it.  I just need to do something with the front seats and paint the cargo panels and the interior should look pretty sharp.   

Your door sills came out nice.  I have yet to dig thru my collection to find a nice set for the CW.  The original ones were corroded so in the garbage they went. 

Years ago I bought some NOS door sills for my 67 Mustang because my original ones were all dull.  Instead of using them, I buffed out my original ones and to my amazement they came out almost perfect.  To this day the NOS ones are put away and worth 3X what I paid for them.  I only wish I would have bought more Ford trim and stashed it away as the prices for some of that stuff have gone thru the roof.

Hey Tigger,
Keep UP the GREAT work and keep sending the photos of your progress.
Your Mustang story is Y I am reluctant to sell my NOS Pinto parts now...
I have a BIG investment in these parts and I'd like to se a return on my investment.
I sell used Pinto parts cheep.. I just do not have the time to send them out much.
From Pintony

I hear ya Tony.  I think there are a few of us that would pay dearly for the parts we need.   There are a few items that I have been looking for for years now and I am almost to the point that I would pay just get them.  For me, I would want the NOS Mustang parts to have in case something happens to my car.  In your case I imagine you have spares of certain things that you will not sell for the very same reason.  I bought all NOS trim when I restored my Mustang in the early 90's.  At the time, it was not much more than repro stuff.  Now some items are 10X to what the repro stuff is.  NOS rocker panel moldings are $750 a pair, I paid around $150.  It's crazy.....  I really need to get my car appraised.  If anything were to happen to it, there is no way the insurance will give me money to fix the car using NOS parts :(

Anyway, back to the wagon....  I got the passeger side floor board painted and most of the underside welds cleaned up before the rain started.  I wanted to get some seam sealer on the outside welds but it just got too wet.  It looks like the rain will be here for most of the week so it will be a good time to find some leaks!  I didn't take any pictures today.

Since we had a good rain this evening, I took a peak in the wagon and noticed a small puddle.  Now that the floor board is not all nasty I can lay on it and peek under the dash.  It looks like the passenger side wiper post is causing the puddle.  l can see where it is dripping from.  The weather lady said we should be getting some good rains on Tuesday so I will keep a watch on the car and see if any more pop up. 

Saw these on Ebay.  What do you guys think? 

look just like a set I bought and then gave away... hard and unconfortable, I didn't like the way I sat in the seat but did get used to it after awhile. No seat release for people to get in the back seat... had a manual seat adjustment that you could turn to move the seat back forward but you had to turn, turn and turn the manual adjustment and was still a tight fit to get in the rear. The shoulder pads that stick out.... get in the way when looking over the shoulder. And finally they were Large... looked to big in the pinto.

I took the time and effort to make custom mounts for a pair of Saturn seats. I installed them both as low as I could get the right side one, because the floor has the bulge for the cat. converter. Had them installed, level, perfectly even, with the same seat height as the stock ones; they LOOKED great and everything went smooth UNTIL I sat in the car (head hitting the roof). The Pinto seats are thick and soft where the Saturn seats are thin and firm. If it were not for that bulge, they might have worked.

I plan to get a pair of my stock hi-backs re-covered. It cost us less than $200. per seat in labor to have Connie's re-done, and the place said it would be about that inluding black vinyl to have mine done because they are much simpler.

Bill

Quote from: TIGGER on September 17, 2007, 02:58:27 AM
Saw these on Ebay.  What do you guys think? 

Hey Tigger,
If the side bulge will clear the door I say... Y-NOT try them????
From Pintony
P.S I hope U find the leak and can get it sealed...

I spent some time working on the car today.  I sealed the passenger side wiper arm.  I also seam sealed the underside welds and seams.  I also undercoated the passenger side floor board once the seam sealer dried.  Here are some pics of the painted floor board as well as the drivers side floor board.  I had to weld a small patch where the punctures were as I was not able to weld them up without blowing holes thru the floor.  I seam sealed the patch as well as some other areas.  I still have to wire wheel some areas before I paint it.  While I was waiting for the seam sealer to dry, I decided to install my lowering blocks.  I finished one side but did not finish the other side.  Not sure if I will have time to finish the other....

Hey Tigger,
Those look like the old Racer Walsh lowering blocks???\
Again nice work!!!!!
From Pintony

Thanks Pintony.  Yes, they are old Racer Walsh blocks.  I feel they are the best blocks for the Pinto.  I am not a big fan of using the the rubber isolators and normal lowering blocks.

I finally got some time to work on the car today.  I finished my lowering block install.  I wire wheeled the drivers side floor board and painted it.  I also seam sealed the underside of the patch I welded on the drivers side.  Tomorrow I will under coat the area and drop the car down on the ground.  Here are some pics....

Here are a couple more pics....

Today I had some more time to work on the car.  I started by undercoating the patch in the underside of the drivers floor board.  I then decided to fix my wipers.  My intermittent wipers were not working properly. Luckily it was only the box that needed to be changed.  Since I had half the dash apart already, I decided now was the time to swap out the dash pad for my mint one.  That took about an hour.  I got most of the dash back together with exception to the instrument cluter.  The idiot lights (brake, oil, seat belt ) have not worked since I bought the car.  I tried to debug them a little today.  All the bulbs are new.  I cleaned all the contacts on back of the cluster.  That did not help.  I also swapped the cluster out for another one that I have no history on.  That one acted the same.  I have a known good one in my Bobcat but I think it will net the same results.  For fun, I changed out the switch on the parking brake to see if that would help the brake light.  It did not change anything either  ???  This looks like it will not be an easy fix.  Has anyone had problems with their idiot lights not working?

Here are some pics...

I also installed what was left of the underlayment I had.  The front was in bad shape so I had to chuck it.  I will have to figure something out for that.

Quote from: TIGGER on October 07, 2007, 11:06:44 PM
I also installed what was left of the underlayment I had.  The front was in bad shape so I had to chuck it.  I will have to figure something out for that.

One word:
Dynamat
;D
--Doug

I used it when I restored my 67 Mustang.  It is good stuff but expensive  ;D

I had a little time to work on the car over the weekend.  I did a little cleaning here and there.  I reinstalled the drivers seat and put on new wipers.  I fooled with the idiot lights some more and gave up for the time being and reinstalled the rest of the dash.  I moved the car outside in the rain.  So far so good, no water inside ;D  We should get some good rain this week so I will be checking it constantly.  It will sure be nice to reinstall the interior.....

We have had some pretty good rain this week.  So far, no water on the passenger side of the car.  There is a leak on the drivers side though.  I cant tell where it is coming from as the seat is in my way.

Just curious, how hard is it to remove the entire dash as an assembly?  It is just the screws under the windshield and the bolts around the kick panels and console?  Then unplug the wiring?

I guess I spoke too soon.  I went out to take a look inside the car today and I had water on the pass side floor.  It looks like it is coming from the wiper arm assembly again but from a different place.  Instead of the base being wet, the arm that ties the two wipers together had water drops on it. 

On a side note, my idiot lights started working yesterday.  The oil, seatbelt and parking brake lights work.  Even the buzzer for the seatbelt works however the seat belt light stays on all the time now.  The key buzzer stopped working though.  Not sure what is up with that?

I've got a question for you Tigger. The large vacuum valve on the outside of your air cleaner....

The vacuum ports broke off of my old one and I finally found a worthy replacement at the pick-and-pull. However I do not recall where everything reconnects. Is there any way you can take a couple pictures or inform me of how this goes on your engine?

I assume you are talking about this part?  If so I will get you some more pictures....

Here is another picture that I had on my computer.

Yes, that is the valve. So does the inner most port on it go to the bi-metal sensor in the air cleaner and the outer most go back to the carb base?

You are correct, the loose vaccuum line attaches to the bottom of the air cleaner.  The other line, however looks like it spans across the valve cover.  I think it may go to the exhaust breather thing.  I will verify when I get home tonight.

The exhaust breather thing? are you talking about the Thermactor valve that connects to the air pump? It has two connections on it and looks like a small spray paint can?

Yes, the thermactor valve that connects to the air pump.  Here are some pictures from my dad's 79 wagon.  It is unmolsted so this is what I copied when I put the engine in my crusing wagon.  There is a Y that bridges splits off to the intake nipple.  The other end connects to the thermactor valve.  Let me know if you need anything else.

How about that bulky "white" valve that you have on your project wagon? It is hanging off the air cleaner on the driver's side.

Are you referring to this one?  If so, then pictures I posted are for it.

Okay. So I saved all of your posted engine photos and did my best to map out where all of the vacuum hoses and valves connect. Please correct me if I have confused some.

So the thermactor's top line goes to the red valve, and the bottom one goes to the bi-metal sensor under the air cleaner.

The red valve also goes to the intake nipple, the distributor's vacuum advance, the other port on the bi-metal sensor and to one of the ports on the white valve.

The white valve's other port goes to the valve on the base of the carb.

The other port on the base of the carb goes to the fender wall.



The only thing that I cannot figure out from the pictures is where the choke valve's port goes.

I figured that one of the ports on your green air cleaner valve goes to the fender wall and the base of the carb, but where does the second port go to?

Dave, I will post some more pics tomorrow night clarifying some things.  I will add notes to them so there is no confusion to you or anyone else that needs the information.  I will have the car in the garage tomorrow night, making it easier for me to take as many pictures as you guys need or want. 

Awesome. Thank you so much for your help. I've been trying to verify my stuff is connected correctly since I rebuilt the engine but something has always told me that something wasn't right.

Dave, I started a new topic.  I figured it would be a better place for the info instead of being burried in this post.  i hope they answer your questions.  If not let me know.

So it has been some time since I have really worked on this car.  I have been starting it every couple weeks and take it around the block every once in a while.  A couple weeks ago I moved it in the driveway when I brought home my boat.  Last week, I washed it and buffed the paint out.  It looks much better now.  Tonight I started looking for the water leaks again.  As near as I can tell, the last leak I have is coming from the pass side wiper post.  I sealed the mounting flange a while ago.  That helped stop most of the leak but it looks like the post is leaking now.  Are these fixable? Has someone ever repaired one? The one on my parts car has a stripped post so swapping the whole assembly is probably not a good idea as only one wiper will work. 

There was another post that I chimed in on that I thought asked the same question.  It was not clear to me if the reponses were referring to the mounting flange itself or the pivot post itself.   

This is the last thing I need to do before I can re-install the interior.

Pintony, I have been trying too but I have not had much time to tinker this summer.  My family has taken most of my time lately.

I hosed the dust off her today and snapped a pic.  The paint is not perfect but it does have a decent shine to it now.

looks real nice tigger keep it up.

Beauty, great work!

Chris

She sure is purty!

Got another question for ya.....

Where is your key buzzer located?

It is attached to the back side of the fuse box.

I spent most of the weekend detailing the 79 wagon for the calender so I did not find the time to swap out the wiper assembly Fred sent me before the rain started.  I went to my storage area to re-arrange some stuff so I decide to take some pictures of the seats I won off Ebay earlier this year.  They are a little faded and a little dirty but they are in much better shape than the ones that came with the car.  I can't wait to get the interior back in this thing!

those are alot better then my beaters =)

Glad you did not get out-bid! I still want the buttons LOL.

(that was back in the day where you could see who you were bidding against)


Bill

Bill, I will see if the button's on the original front seats to the car are any good.  If so you can have them. 

Yesterday was a nice day so I decided to fool with the wiper assembly.  It looks like I got it fixed now.  I parked the car in the front lawn and ran a sprinker over it for a couple hours and had no water leaks from under the dash.  I had one small one from my pass door seal that I will have to fix.  I will run the sprinkler and hose on it again today to make sure I got them all.  If all goes well, the interior will go back into the car this week ;D

 No need to run the sprinker on it today as it has been raining most of the afternoon ???  I just checked on it and there is no water from under the dash 8)  The pass door is leaking though, coming from under the door panel into the rocker channed.  It is a good thing the door sills are out or the carpet would be getting soaked now.  When I put the door panels back on, I siliconed some thick plastic in place of the deteriorated original tar paper stuff.  I do not understand why it is leaking.  I guess I will have to pull the panel off and run the water to see where it is coming from.

Today started out pretty crappy as our Pit died early this morning :( As near as we can tell, she must have had a heart attack or siezure or something as she was fine earlier when she was playing with the wiener.  She was a very good dog and will be missed dearly by all of my family.  Needless to say my family and I were all a little messed up this morning so we canceled our plans and did our own thing today.  I went out and played with the crusing wagon.  I picked up some carpet underlayment on my way home yesterday to put under the carpet as the burlap stuff was removed from the replacement carpet by one of the previous owners.  I got the underlayment down and the carpet put back.  I got the new seats installed as well as the shifter bezel and ebrake cover.  By that time I finished it was about dark so I checked the shifter to see if it sill lit up.  It did but there were a few dash lights out  ??? It took me about a half an hour to replace the bulbs.  Now they all work again.  Here are a few pics.  I will get some with the seats installed tomorrow.  After all that is done, the next order of business will be to finish painting the rear cargo panels.  I started that project last fall and never finished it. 

Sorry to hear that tigger. my buddies dog passed away last weekend, She too was fine all day was out playing and Just suddenly was Sick and throwing up. I'm sure like cleo shes in good hands where ever she might be

Thanks 75bobcatv6

Here is a pic of where I left off last night.  I want to work on it today but the boss made other plans so the car will have to wait till this evening.

We got home late tonight so I did not have much time before it got dark.  I got the kick panels in and I got the heater motor working again.  Tomorrow I plan on working on the cargo panels and rear seat.. 

Tigger,
So sorry to hear of your family's loss.  Our dog, Jake, is nearly 12 years old and even though he looks healthy as a horse, I know with every passing day we're inching closer and closer toward the end. 
Looks like you're coming right along with that project... keep up the good work!
Dwayne :smile:

Today,. I painted the cargo panels.  The drivers side turned out good but the pass side came out ok.  I was not too happy with it.  They are in bad shape but look better painted.  I put the back seat in.  All I have left to install are the door sills but I have to make some of those cardboard pieces that go over the rocker channel.  After that I will have to fix the radio and the horn and the car will be done (I hope)

Did you use any kind of specialty paint to stick to the plastic?

No, I used regular Krylon.  It was quite transparent and needed a lot of coats to cover the faded plastic.  I am not too happy with the way it covered as I feel I have a lot of paint on them.

So this weekend I got the AM radio working again as well as hooking up the heater cables and fan.  Lots of crap came out of the vents when I turned on the fan.  I had to vaccuum the whole car again >:(  I got insurance on the car today so if all goes well, I will go smog it on my way to work.  I went and put some fresh gas in it this evening.  The car seems like it needs an alignment but that will have to wait till next month.

Today I took the car and got it smogged.  It passed ;D  I then went to the DMV and renewed the plates.  I noticed today the speedo is way off, like 15-20MPH.  I do not remember it being off when I drove the car home.  I did not change the rear end or the speedo cable.  All I did was swap out the C3's and the 13" modular wheel to 13" slots. I guess I will have to do some homework and see what tooth gear I have in it now.

All in all, the car drove good today for its official maden voyage.

Update, I drove the car for about a week and a half and had to park it at my Mom's house due to other projects (not car releated) that I needed my truck for.  It has sat there for a little over a month till today.  I was happy to find the interior nice and dry inside 8)  We have had quite a bit of rain in the last two weeks and I was beginning to wonder if the interior was still water tight or if I was going to have a soggy carpet.  Anyway, it is looking like I will need a new heater core as there is not much heat coming from the vents.  It is a good thing that it is plugged as it will get me to clean out all the leaves from the inside of the heater box.  I am getting tired of having crap blow out all the time, making a mess inside.   I hope to get back to this car soon......

Quote from: TIGGER on September 01, 2008, 10:49:45 PM
No, I used regular Krylon.  It was quite transparent and needed a lot of coats to cover the faded plastic.  I am not too happy with the way it covered as I feel I have a lot of paint on them.

They look good, but I understand your feeling about the plastic condition. Mine (wagon) rear plastic panels are pretty nasty - dry and crumbling - I am actually considering covering them in vinyl that matches the vinyl used on the doors. I realize it's non-original, but I think it would look pretty good.

Thos crumbling plastic panels are a real problem,. and I doubt they would EVER be remanufactured!!

Chris

Update, I have been driving the car almost every day for the past 2 months.  I have got quite a few comments on it.  I flushed the heater core and got a little more heat out of it but I still think it is going to require a replacement.  Either that or it will be the water pump.  Today I changed the speedo gear to a different one to get the speedo a little closer to being correct.  I also installed some mint door seals I saved from a few years back.  I hope this keeps some of the wind out on the freeway.  The last major thing needed is an alignment.  I plan on making an appointment this coming week.

That's great to hear Gerhard. I tell ya, it's success stories like this that make me want to work on my car again. If it weren't for the friggin cold & snow I would be able to.  >:(

Glad to hear, Tigger. My progress has been slow - but sure - I don't imagine I will be on the road realistically until 2010, though that would be a nice 50th birthday present.

Happy trails!!

Chris

Thanks Guys.  I tell you it has taken me quite a lot of time and some money to get this car to this point.  At one point I thought I bit off more than I could chew.  I thought the same with my 67 Mustang years ago but I stuck with it and am glad I did.  You just need to get over the hump and then things usually tend to fall into place.  I am not done with the CW as there still are some things I need to take care of but at least it is driveable and the wife is off my case about it sitting around.  Now I need to focus on the blue Pinto in my avitar.  That is the car that the car I originally wanted to fix up before the Crusing Wagon came into my life.

On a side note, I took the car to the swapmeet this morning.  The speedo gear made a difference but I cannot tell how far it is off now.  I wish I had a GPS unit that I could check against.  I will have to figure something out.  Also, the new used door seals did the trick.  The door frames no longer rattle on rough roads and the wind does not whistle on the Highway. It is much nicer to drive now.  The next thing on the list is the alignment and and then the heater core.

Gerhard I need to check my Rachero since it reads way low. I have my wife follow me down the road, we use 2 way radio or mobile phones. Hey anybody got gears.  Fred   :)

I hate water leaks >:(  I thought I was done with them but aparently I sprung a leak on the drivers side somewhere.  The underlayment has been damp.  I have been checking the carpets regularly since I have been driving the car and the drivers side is getting wetter.  The car sat for a few weeks at my mom's house thru some heavy down pours and was dry as a bone inside.  I am wondering if the car leaks when driving in the rain.  When I bought the car, I removed the plastic fender liners in order to clean out all the pine needles from the cowl.  I installed the pass side before I started driving the car but never got around to installing the drivers.  I removed the fender today to re-seam seal the pinch welds underneath.  It looked so so but I wanted to be sure the pinch welds were sealed up tight to prevent any leaks.  I suggest everyone doing that while they have the fenders off.  When I put the fender back, I installed the plastic fenderliner.  The inside is dry now.  I will keep my eye on it to see if it is still leaking.  While I had the car in the garage I decided to remove the heater box to clean the inside and to swap out the heater core.  There were a lot of pine needles inside the heater box.  It will be nice to know that there will be no more pine needles coming out of the vents when the fan is blowing.  I removed the seat to make it easier to work under the dash.  Before I put the seat back in I installed the door sill. Before with the seat installed, there was not enough carpet to cover properly.  The person that installed this aftermarket carpet originally didn't get everything to fit properly before he started trimming the excess. 

TIGGER, for the water leak, I would double check the "seal" (looks like the end of a small toilet plunger) were the steering shaft exits through the floor. I have had instances where this pops out after I have worked under the dash and I haven't pushed it into place well enough.

Thanks Dave, I will check that tomorrow.  The horn on the car has never worked since I have owned it.  This morning I pulled the horn off and tested it.  I was no good.  While I was at my mom's I pulled the horn off my parts car.  It works so now the crusing wagon has a working horn ;D  The last thing on this car that does not work is the rear window defogger.  I think it is due to the contact being detached from the window.  This is a common thing with these cars as age seems to weaken the bond.  My 79 has the same issue.  I have an NOS piece of glass for that car as the window that is currently in it has a lot of broken traces. 

Has anyone had any luck bonding the contact back on the glass?  I tried some stuff we use at work for repairing traces on boards but it did not work well.   

hmm anyone know where i could get that Steering grommet? mine is missing.... Tigger the car looks great and am glad you have it back on the road.

75BobcatV6, I have some spares if you need one.

Hey Tigger!

I'm glad to hear you've been driving your Pinto! Projects take time and I guess we all have setbacks from time to time. I just drove, and didn't work on my car for 3 years, and then started changing things, and haven't stopped yet. My horn doesn't work. It's the button in that aftermarket wheel, or the mounting kit, or something. It worked when I got the car. If I replace the fuse and hold the horn button in my hand, it works. Put the button in the wheel and the fuse blows. Wrap the horn button in electrical tape, fuse holds. Turn a corner, fuse blows. That's the only thing that doesn't work on my car, and I'm hoping going back to an original steering wheel will help. Also, the aftermarket wheel blocks the gauges, cuz it's smaller than the factory. Good luck with all your projects, and keep the wife happy!

Chuck

Unfortunately my horn quit working again >:(  I have a third spare that I will try.

Could the wiring for the horn be bad?

I think it is ok.  I restored the center a few years back so I know that is good.  I took a meter to wire and it seems to get power when the button is pushed.  I did not have to play with it tonight but I hope to get some time tomorrow.

I swapped the horn again and it is working again.  Hopefully this one lasts as this is my last spare.

I got my horn working too, but it sounds 'muffled', so I guess I will need a new horn assembly too. I went back to the factory wheel, I modified the one I won off e-bay. I added wood trim and separate black crest with silver 'wings' from a Bobcat.

(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3548/3297930192_2c4c1849cb_m.jpg)  (http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3649/3297930270_8b09ba1c30_m.jpg)

Chuck

LOL, that wheel looks familar ;D  Nice job on the center.  It looks tons better.  You may try and take the horn off and clean the ground and contact.  Sometimes there is crud inside as well.  This may clean up your muffled sound.  When I was testing my last horn spare it sounded muffled however after I shaked out the crud from inside it now sounds normal.  It is off a 79-80, which is a little different, but it works so I am happy.

78 Ford Pinto Factory Crusing Wagon (Beaverton/Aloha)

http://portland.craigslist.org/wsc/pts/1264227189.html (http://portland.craigslist.org/wsc/pts/1264227189.html)

This Craigslist sale is this car, right?  So, what did you buy that this has to go? 

Just curious, it could easily be none of my business.   ;D

Mike

Yep it is for sale.  I bought an 86 Saleen in grey.  The car is one of 26 for that year.

Can't say I blame you there. You can find many cruising wagons but not a rare find like the 86 Saleen you got.

I would keep the CW if I could but the wife said if I want the Saleen, I have to get rid of something...

Good choice!  Got any pics?

Mike

The car had been sitting for the last 10 years.  It needs some TLC but nothing I can't handle.  The majority of the Saleen stuff is present and in good shape.  The 4th matching grey wheel came with the car but was damaged.  I have since had it repaired and had the tire swapped this afternoon so the black wheel on the drivers front is no longer on the car.  Other than the decals, the only things missing is the correct 86 rear wing and 3rd brake light.  I have found both but neither will be cheap to purchase.

Really nice.  Selling off your CW to keep that had to have been an easy decision.

Mike

I would have transplanted the 'Stang engine into the porthole Pinto.  :P
;D

Quote from: dholvrsn on July 12, 2009, 12:55:44 PM
I would have transplanted the 'Stang engine into the porthole Pinto.  :P
;D

same here =)

 ???

Take the V-8 out of an $8-10,000 car and transplant it into a $3000 car.  End up with a $3000 V-8 car and $1500 hulk.

Not on my watch!   ;D

Mike

Quote from: Mike Modified on July 12, 2009, 01:32:05 PM
???

Take the V-8 out of an $8-10,000 car and transplant it into a $3000 car.  End up with a $3000 V-8 car and $1500 hulk.

Not on my watch!   ;D

Mike

Gotta agree with you there Mike. I know it's a Pinto but destroy a rare car for a Pinto, Nope.. that would be wrong, especially being one of 26 made that year. Who knows how many are left.

I was restoring the CW back to original, down to the AM radio.  IMO both cars are worth more original than modified, especially the Saleen.   

imo those Mustangs werent worth anything. but thats my opinion. I hated the way the made mustangs look from the the Mustang II till now.

 ;D The only person who needs to like a car is the one who owns it.   ;)  I'm not overly fond of the early Fox-bodies 'stangs, but the Saleens are an entirely different cup of tea. (http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee171/4-BarrelMike/Miscellaneous%20stuff/rotfl.gif)  It's certainly much more desirable than the mundane Mustang. 

Mike

Definitely.

For the most part, I like them all.  I have a 67 Coupe, 96 GT, and now this Saleen.  My wife sold her 00 GT a couple months ago.  Some day I will have a 65 or 66 fastback. 

Back in 86 there was a Saleen like mine that lived in my neighborhood.  I don't know for sure yet but it may even be the same car.  Anyway, ever since then I have wanted a fox body Saleen.  It is just ironic that it is the same year and color I fell in love with.

It shows how much styling matters, huh? I liked the fox mustangs from 83 to 93-the taillights on the 79-82 were cool, but I didn't like the angular "egg-crate" front. Looked better after they rounded it off. I don't care for 94-04 'Stangs. The newer ones are way cool. Mustang II's are an acquired taste, I guess. I like them more for their family relation to the Pinto than for their own merit.

That saleen is pretty cool! Nice to see a rare car in good hands.

I had a 83 3.3L Mustang GL :-\, an 85 2.3 :D, and an 87 2.3 :(. I just thought of them as really nice Pinto's (look, a tach and gauges!)

Chuck :afro:

Quote from: discolives78 on July 16, 2009, 10:07:19 PM
I just thought of them as really nice Pinto's (look, a tach and gauges!)

Have to agree.  I like my little black 1987 'Pinto'.  I especially like driving for 3 weeks on one tank of gas.  :lol:  Oh, and with the 235/60R15s on it, I like being able to out corner the little Honda crapfests that are around here.  :evil:  Nothing like taking a 35mph corner @ 70!  :2fast4u:

Well the car is off the market as the engine started knocking this week.  I am not sure what happened.  It ran fine on the way to work on Wednesday and then on my way home the motor started knocking when I started it.  It went away under accelleration and then would come back at an idle.  I am not sure what the problem is yet but I think I am just going to swap motors again :(

I got the engine almost ready to pull.  I have one more bellhousing bolt to remove and it is ready to come out.  It went pretty quick, about 3 hours.  I hopefully will have time after work tomorrow to play with it again.  I am thinking the flex plate was making the noise as the converter bolts were loose.  One had backed quite a ways out, not good.  I hope that was it and there was no damage to the tranny.

I got the motor out last weekend.  I pulled the pan to make sure everything was ok.  While I was there, I replaced the rear main seal again.  Aparently I put one half in backwards the last time I had it out.  Rookie mistake on my part.  I got it in right this time.  I also pulled the head and replaced the headgasket as it too was leaking oil.  That is one thing I did not do last time I had the engine out.  I finished putting all the acessories on Friday night and got the engine in last night.  I did not have time to work on it today but I should have it running by the end of the week.

Hey TIGGER, curious as I am working on my wiper post leaks, what did you use to replace the "gasket material" for your posts? I don't know what the original stuff is or what to use as a suitable replacement.

Hey dave1987:

I'm about to finish restoring my '77 Cruising Wagon and when I got
to the wiper posts I used some of the extra Dynamat sound deadening
material to make perfect copies of the original gasket material.  It works
great and keeps any leaks from occurring around the posts.

77pintocw

Quote from: dave1987 on November 08, 2010, 01:54:46 AM
Hey TIGGER, curious as I am working on my wiper post leaks, what did you use to replace the "gasket material" for your posts? I don't know what the original stuff is or what to use as a suitable replacement.

Dave, I used 3M Flexible strip caulk (31050).  I made a couple loops with the stuff around the flange as well as around the screws just to be safe.  It is about $20 for 20 yards.  It is great stuff, I use it for all sorts of things.

I sold the car today :'(   It is going to a good home in Phoenix though.  The new owners are real nice people and will be finishing what I started.  Stay tuned for part 2 as they will become members here.

Sorry to hear you sold the car! :( At least you can still monitor progress of the car via internet since they are becoming members! Or are they not planning to continue the work log?

Not sure if they will continue this one or start a new one. 
I am sad to see it go as I have owned it for 8 years.  But I hardly drove it this year and have not done much to it restoration wise since I put it on the road three years ago.  So in that respect I am ok with it going to a new home.

got to love the bright orange!!!