Grzldvt

My neighbor has a 76, sitting in the driveway rotting. The seals are dryed up, as evidenced by the oil slick that ran down the driveway about 3 years ago, tires are cracked, fuel line is broken at rear frame, and who knows what else. :crazy: :eek:
I ahve finally convinced him to get it on the road, which may have been prompted by my wanting to buy it...
Is there a checklist somewhere or advice on getting this thing back on the road?
I know some of the obvious, change the oil, drain the gas, pull the distributor, and spin the oil pump, or is there a better way to get oil circulated again? What about the transmission, rear end, wheel bearings, etc. Plus we need to fix the fuel line that is broken at the rear as it goes over the bend in the frame. I understand this is a common problem.
Any advice?
Thanks

Stoge

BRAKES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I wouldn't go out joy riding around until I was completely sure that the brake system is in 100% working order. Lots of Sharks have been known to have brake problems, including mine.

Also check and double check wiring. After sitting for so long, rats, mice, etc may have gotten in and chewed up the wires. This could result in shorts, and may even cause a fire.

Other than that, get that oil circulating and then fire her up. You may need to begin circulating oil a couple of days before you turn the engine over. It also may be a good idea to squirt a little WD-40 in the spark plug holes to keep the rings from scoring up the cylinder walls. WD-40 will also help the engine fire up after you put the plugs back in.

I'm still in the process of bringing mine out of her 18 year hibernation... it takes patience, so make sure you bring plenty of it with you.

Grzldvt

Good one, that would have escaped me. I was concerned about the drivetrain. So we will drain ALL fluids and replace.

I have plenty of patience, just hope my neighbor does to.
Thanks

Top_Notch

Well, I started my '66 up after a 22 year hiatus. I emphasize 'started' because it is not yet drivable. Here is what I had to do, your results
may vary. Remember safety is no accident! You may not have to do
everything I did b/c a 22 year hiatus is a long time to wait and causes
lots of problems. 6 years is still pretty long though.

1) First thing I did was change the oil and filter.
2) Replaced all rubber gas lines. (dry rotted lines + gas = bad combo)
3) Replaced radiator, hoses, clamps, and T-Stat.
4) All new radiator fluid. (The radiator/engine were bone dry)
5) Rebuilt the carb (I filled it manually and it would not hold gas)
6) Remove all plugs, spray oil into each cylinder. Replace w/ new cheapie plugs and a new set of wires. Removed valve cover, new gaskets, poured oil on rockers to lubricate on startup.
7) Pull distributor and prime engine, verify oil pressure, replace distributor.
8) Fix points ignition (car cranked, would not fire)
9) Fuel pump rotted out...new fuel pump.
10) Clean gas tank, fresh gas.

When I went to start it I could not get gas to the (rebuilt) carb even though the fuel pump was new. I ended up using my MightyVac to vacuum pull gas through the lines to get things started. It fired right up but would backfire when a valve would hang up. I had some pretty good carb fires that day. Have some rags to smother the fire (if cranking the engine doesn't put it out) and a fire extinguisher and hose (turned on) at the ready. I had a friend help me but was too chicken poopie to stuff rags into the (burning) carb to douse the fire. Luckily, I'm quick on my feet.
My carb choke linkage was mucked up, which I now fixed, but havn't had time to try again. I will in the spring. If it runs, I'll let you know what you need to do next to make it drivable...but brakes are next on my list!


Surprisingly, for the few seconds I had it up and running it sounded pretty healthy (as any 11:1 open headered SBC 327 should) and didn't leak oil or drop a valve. I also checked valve lash as mine are solid, most likely yours are not.


PS. The best thing I did was to bypass my new fuel filter and just crank the engine w/no ignition and let raw gas collect into a coffee cup I had placed the gas line into. When it finally ran semi-clean I hooked it to the carb. Even though I had new gas and rubber lines, there was plenty of garbage that poured through there into my coffee cup. It would have definitely clogged up my carb/filter.



[Modified by Top_Notch, 12:24 PM 1/15/2002]

427V8

When starting a car that having problems starting use a remote starter, the kind that clips onto the starter and is basically a big switch. Doing it this way allows you to be there next to the engine so you can see the fires and other things. You can also move the throttle manually and adjust the timing without running all over the place...

Just don't forget to turn on the ignition before trying to start the engine!

Tom454

For what it's worth, I just tore down a 327 that sat for 2 years. A couple of the cylinders had a significant rust ring where the piston rings had been sitting. Since that car (posted above) probably was not prepped before it was shut down, I would guess you may have ring sealing problems. May not be a major problem, but be on the lookout for a lot of oil smoke and/or blow-bye. The WD40 suggestion is good, but will not prevent the rust from compromising the ring sealing.... when the rust (oxidized iron) wipes away, there will be pits in the cylinder wall where the metal used to be. This may not occur, depending on how much oil was in the bores when the engine was shut down, but it is possible. FYI

Tom

ZD75blue

carb fires eek... i dont like those...

One other thing that you can do with them is to press the gas pedal... sucks the fire down the tubes if you do it quick enough... dont ask how i know

flynhi

I would also disconnect the flex line below the gas tank and flush it out. You will probably have rust in the bottom of the tank.

redc3vette1

I BELIEVE ILL AGREE WITH EVERYONE ABOVE ME :cheers:

Grzldvt

Great advice :cheers: :cheers:
I have printed this off as a check list.
Thanks everyone this has been a tremendous help
Steve