Jsdirt

Went a few towns over with my zero turn in the truck today to mow my parent's lawn, and to get my brother's lawn mower running that sat outside under a tarp for 3 years. Started one pull with fresh gas. Of course we drained tank and carb prior to putting it there. Lighting was shooting out of the plug boot -guess it was a little dry rotted, lol. Had a kill switch issue after it ran a while too, which shut it down instantly. After I pulled the top off and fixed it, my brother was holding the plug by the boot as I pulled it over to check for spark. He fell over on his ass after getting shocked, LOL. Has spark now! Then I got shocked putting dielectric grease on the boot while it was running. Figured the grease would insulate better than that. That thing is a menace! Had 9 lbs. in the airbags with the 700+ lb. mower in back. Was perfect. On the subject of mileage, mine SUCKS lately. Might have an issue rearing it's head. Fuel trims have been on the rich side - 12% - probably just under the light threshold. Hand calculated mileage yesterday was 13.6. Normally gets 15 to 16. Should be fun trying to figure that one out.

I find everything with the GM badge on it a PITA these days ...

Yeah these 134a systems are hyper-sensitive to charge amounts. Just a few ounces over or under make dramatic vent temp changes. R12 systems could be overcharged by half a pound with no change at all. Sounds like you've got it dialed now. Can't ask for better than that in 90° ambient.

From the sound of things (from reading all over the net), I think I may have to get familiar with the inner workings of the AFM system at some point in the future. At that time, I'll either convert it to a conventional lifter/cam, or just throw a long block in there. Hopefully that's many, many years down the road. I'm getting better at the OBD-II crap. Still don't like it. Understanding it or not, it's stil expensive. Going to cost me close to $2,500 just for a damn tool to peek inside the magic box. Back in the day, that could've bought an entire car ... and a damn good one at that! Or, could've brought the car into the 12's. I'm a cheap bastard - that will never change. It's a tough pill to swallow, but these first OBD-II systems are 20 years old now, and are showing up here regularly. I'm learning, but I don't have to like it.

I've never owned a forced induction vehicle, aside from a '79 Mercury Capri 2.3 Turbo, but that doesn't count. I'd imagine that supercharger makes getting to the distributor a pain in the ass, and also complicates and carb or intake work. I like the way the LS makes power, but I like familiarity. Not sure what I'd do for my next hot rod. I'd rather the simplicity of the 350 than having to learn all the new parts of the LS. I just recently discovered they put the oil pump in the timing cover, like the 4-cylinders - I had no idea, and I've been driving the thing for 9 years now. Strange driving something that I don't know inside and out. Guess I'd better get a book on this thing, or watch some Youtube teardowns.

I went thru that with the '00 Jimmy engine I carbed and installed in our '89 S10 Blazer. Got about 20k out of the cat before it plugged solid. Wife barely made it up the hill here, lol. Once I hogged it out, the thing gained 2 mpg and ran better than ever. Was having ignition issues right from the get-go, thanks to a chinese eBay HEI distributor. Surprised the cat lasted as long as it did! Even the old cats were built better then. I'd bet a modern cat wouldn't last 2k miles being carb fed with an ignition misfire. Was nice being able to unbolt the thing. Everything today is welded.

Gotta love how they play the numbers. Crime rate is low, because LEOs aren't allowed to do their jobs. Just like the employment numbers. Those who were on unemployment for 99 weeks and just gave up looking aren't counted.

Back in the early 90's I had an S15 pickup with an air horn on the roof. Lanyard and all in the cab. I had alot of fun with that!! LOL! Saw many people's eyes wide open with the fear of God in them, as they pulled out in front of me, and I yanked that lanyard down and hung on it. It would scare the ever living sh** out of people. Got their attention in a hurry though! People got right back into their lanes NOW with just a quick toot.

Sounds like every single day I hit the roads around MA. Been that way since I was a kid. Seems to have spread around the country like a cancer ...

People today. Probably a treehugger that didn't like your "earth killing" pickup.

Not a bad deal there! Would love to have one now. I liked my '72, since it had front disc already. I had alot of modern suspension upgrades, like KYB shocks and polygraphite bushings all over - that thing rode and handled better than anything I've been in since, aside from the '10 Camaro my buddy owns. I never minded drums too much. When adjusted and lubed correctly, they worked pretty damn good.

Ahh, 10-4 - I sort of figured that, unless you owned an oil company or something. You're only as old as you feel. Some days I'm 106 .... I had A/C in my '72 El Camino, but it was put in by the previous owner a couple decades prior - an aftermarket AMA (Arizona Mobile Air) unit. Had an indestructible Sanden compressor, and a thermal TXV ... so could run BBQ propane in it for just about free, and it would literally freeze you out. I ran Freeze 12 back when that was big ('99-'00) - worked pretty damn good for a 134a based refrigerant, but I had a good sized, modern parallel-flow condenser in there. Would blow in the 50's in 107° heat - 30's and below on propane. Would freeze the evaporator solid if I forgot to turn the t-stat on the unit up. Gotta have A/C in Phoenix. I managed to live a year there without it, so getting that system back up and running was just friggin awesome.

Sounds like you've just got a different perspective of money than I do. To me, $10k is a PILE of money for a vehicle ... so when I paid 3x that for my truck, well, now you all know why I was so pissed off when it broke (more than once, I might add). You paid 29K in '74 ?? Did I read that right? Houses were selling for that back then!!

Depends on the year. New gen Camaros are all deep into the 5 figure range - same with newer Mustangs. Hardly affordable to the average working stiff. Gotta get into the 90's, and well used, before they become reasonably priced. Neighbor just scored a '92 Mustang with a stroked 5.0. Thing rips. Forgot what he paid, but was well under $5k. 90's ones of both brands are a dime a dozen, as are most of the 80's ones ... but people are getting stupid with 80's pricing now. On a somewhat related note, just saw 2 S10 Blazers on eBay ... for $15 LARGE, LOLOLOL! I spit my beer out on that one. They'd have to pay me to take that thing. Had my fill of those junks. I paid $500 for my El Camino ... and then I sold it like an idiot. Biggest regret of my life. That thing was capable of mid 14's, but I could never launch it without melting one or both tires. I was content with that. Not enough HP to break expensive stuff, but just enough to keep me entertained.

You've got that right! The supercharger for my buddy's Camaro cost what I would've paid for 14 cars back in the day. No sh**!

I know it's not my problem. My truck is 9 years old!

That's par for the course. People keep buying them, so I don't know whether to rip on GM for building crap, or the people who don't mind forking over $50-large for a half-assed vehicle ... I learn from my mistakes!

How does an airbox lid get damaged on a brand new vehicle?

Yeah that name sounds familiar - might be it. Thing sure is fun! http://vid297.photobucket.com/albums/mm215/jjs05polaris/IMG_0804_zpsdvzbosvp.mp4

I'd still take a V8 any day of the week. Nothing beats the sound & torque. My buddy shot this yesterday with a camera mounted to his rear bumper. That supercharged Camaro is a barrel of fun: <embed width="600" height="361" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullscreen="true" allowNetworking="all" wmode="transparent" src="http://static.photobucket.com/player.swf" flashvars="file=http%3A%2F%2Fvid297.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fmm215%2Fjjs05polaris%2FIMG_0804_zpsdvzbosvp.mp4&title="> Stupid computers .... lets try that again ..... http://vid297.photobucket.com/albums/mm215/jjs05polaris/IMG_0804_zpsdvzbosvp.mp4

My buddy was telling me the ragtop Camaros are built super strong to add structural rigidity with the missing hard top. Lots of extra bracing the hard tops don't have. That's a good thing if your putting out big HP numbers, and mash that pedal to the boards regularly. Can't believe how quiet it is in the cab with the top down. He put some diffuser of some sort on the back (don't have pics of it) that streamlines the airflow. No wind and zero noise (except for his exhaust, lol - 700HP at the rear wheels is LOUD). It's like you have a giant glass top. Pretty wild.

I miss the days when hail would shatter on contact with body panels ...

Be glad you have a concrete floor! I have to do those types of jobs outside - rain, snow, -14°, or 100° with a 90° dew point. Dirt floor in the barn makes using anything with small wheels impossible. Getting too old for that crap. Been planning on pouring a pad and throwing up a quonset-hut tent, then installing a lift inside. Maybe sometime before I die of old age ...

I saw a '14 or '15 half ton Silverado broken down on the side of the road while out on the motorcycle. Was in a bad spot on a narrow 2-lane road. Poor guy.

They sure are purty when they're new! When mine grenades, I might throw a Level 2 Raptor in from PATC down in LA. Spendy, but will last well over 100k, so long as you don't do reverse-drops with it ... https://transmissioncenter.net/shop/transmission-4l60e-level-2-700-e-raptor-junior/