Pete's Camaro

pjs65 · Post by **pjs65** » Mon Apr 09, 2012 7:04 pm

Managed to finally put a clear coat on the underside of the Prefect . I had to wait till the house was empty before doing that , even though iam doing it in the garage i do get complaints about the smell and i dont know how some of you guys manage to get away with spraying in your bathrooms etc . I can get back onto the old Ford once the chevy is done and it will be handy to get some bits put back on it and free some space up in the garage . The 5speed is now bolted up in the Camaro and went in without to much hassle , took about 4 hours to get on but being on my own i didnt think that was to bad . Lifted it up from underneath using blocks and a sissor jack , a bit of a squeeze in places because the bellhousing kept wedging against the bulkhead but eventually went on . The rather large clutch

The trans tunnel got in the way when i jacked the rear of the box up to get it level, so i trimmed it a bit with tin snips

The prop needs to be shortened by about 75mm as this box is longer than the old auto so i will do that next week a work . The only real problem i have is how to work the clutch , chevy use a mechanical setup with linkages and a z bar which is a bit old tech and i want to use hydraulic but the clutch arm needs to be pushed from the front . These means that the slave cylinder is put between the engine block and the exhaust which isnt ideal .The other option is to use a pull type cylinder and sit it next to the gearbox and away from the hot engine and exhausts but the only one i have seen so for is from the US , so iam going to have to think about this . Pete:Chevy_anim:

pjs65 · Post by **pjs65** » Sat Apr 14, 2012 9:25 pm

Today i took the prop into work to cut a few inch,s out of it and to fit the new front input shaft which is actually a Ford 31 spline and a lot bigger than the old GM one . The prop was fairly straight forward to do as the end had a 20mm shoulder on it , so having cut the end of it was just a matter of putting the end in a lathe and removing the old weld I could then push the old yolk back in and weld it up . It really helps having the use of lathes , bandsaws , welders and presses , sort of perks of the job really . Luckily i managed to cut the prop the right lenght and thats now been fitted. This is the size difference between the input shafts.

pjs65 · Post by **pjs65** » Sun Apr 29, 2012 9:11 pm

I gave up on trying to fit an hydraulic clutch setup as there is just too much stuff in the way and i couldnt be arsed to workout how to squeeze it all in . So i bought an old style mechanical setup because i knew it would fit and work , its just a z bar with a rod one end connected to the clutch pedal and an adustable rod on the other end to the clutch fork . Having connected it all up i pushed down on the clutch pedal and it would only go down half way , a quick look underneath revealed that the fork was hitting the bulkhead:banghead: so out came the tin snips and hammer

With a bit more of the floor gone i can work the clutch now, so i made up some panels and welded the holes in the floor up

I have also replaced the old rad with a new aluminium one , the old one was actually out of a Chrysler and was big and heavy and i have saved about 10 pounds in weight plus the hose fittings were different to the Chevy ones . It wasnt a direct fit and i had to weld some mounting flanges to the rad

I dont do much ali welding but i dont think i did to bad a job so i might have a go at a new front spoiler . Anyway thats for later but at the moment iam looking to get finished for next weekend just in time for it to stop raining and the sun coming out

because it will being a bank holiday . Pete:Chevy_anim:

Ian200sx · Post by **Ian200sx** » Mon Apr 30, 2012 7:45 pm

Looks like good progress, the ali welding looks good. Maybe you'd be able to give me some tips some time?

Daniel · Post by **Daniel** » Mon Apr 30, 2012 8:33 pm

Good updates Pete, plenty of things coming together.

pjs65 · Post by **pjs65** » Mon Apr 30, 2012 9:47 pm

Thanks guys , its very close to being ready for the road which is great because i have had enough of grubing about underneath the car . On the ali welding its best when it is clean , usually i get to do old engine brackets and crappy stuff covered in paint and it takes several goes to burn it off . I find it easier to do than stainless as that always looks shite and no matter how i try i just cannot get it to look decent . Pete:Chevy_anim:

Tk · Post by Tk » Tue May 01, 2012 5:30 am

Looking good pete, it is very satisfying welding alloy
I used to be an aluminium tig welder for a few years some time ago
Bet you can't wait to try the new box

mikeb · Post by **mikeb** » Tue May 01, 2012 7:16 am

Nice work pete bet you carn,t wait to give it a blast,

When it stops raining

pjs65 · Post by **pjs65** » Sun May 13, 2012 9:42 pm

After sitting on axle stands for 6 months i have put the Camaro back on its wheels and its now up and running . The first gear is really tall at 2.87 and the axle is 3.08 so at 5000 rpm its doing 40mph and i was a bit worried it might be too tall , but its ok even though the clutch needs a bit of slipping its not too bad and i havent stalled it yet . I dont like short first gears and prefer them a bit taller specially on a big v8 . The lightweight flywheel isnt a problem either and bearing in mind it should have a 5.7 instead of the 5.0 , when i do get to put the proper motor in with the better low end power it will take off like a rocket . Compared to the autobox its a bit more of a hand full sort of like driving a MK1 Transit with a v8 only with worse brakes , they really are shit and need looking at . A few minor things need sorting but it all seems to work ok and the box needs some miles on it to get run in and i think the easiest way is to do a track day as the roads are the best place to row some gears .
made up a gear lever as iam a short arse and have to sit close to the pedals , so this one is easy to reach plus i get to spray something with a can .

heres my Nardi wheel which is the nuts , i managed to get the chevy center cap to fit .

Pete:Chevy_anim:

pjs65 · Post by **pjs65** » Sun May 20, 2012 8:00 pm

Changed the front roll bar drop links to polybush items as the old rubber ones were knackered and would squash up a lot before the roll bar took any load .

Bled the brakes again and got a firmer pedal , the brake pipe from the front to the rear is for some reason 1/4 instead of 3/16 so can hold alot more fluid or in my case air . I bought a litre of dot 4 and bled the brakes to death , still not great but better . Took the chevy for a blast up the A11 in an attempt to get used to the 5 speed and i am starting to warm to it , i was begining to think why the hell did i swap the auto but i just need to get used to it and iam glad i did the swap. Its a handful and i must get into the habit of changing the gears before the corners as the steering heavy and really needs two hands . I also gave both the Camaro and the Impreza a wash and polish as i must have been bored or something , thought i,d take a picture because to wash one is rare to do two is unheard of . Pete