Greetings!
The flat space on the passenger inner fender panel is where the battery sat. If there's room with the V8 I may re-use that location because its convenient and and doesn't require a long cable run from the trunk or under the back seat. Sometimes the long cables used to bring current from a trunk-mounted battery to the front of the car have so much resistance, due to their length, that there isn't enough current to adequately start the car. Furthermore, since we're planning on using fuel injection, we need to have full power at start-up because the on-board computer will function poorly if the voltage is less than needed through the sensors.
I've got a few hours of work done on the '51 Chevy Business Coupe and I'm about ready to get my two husky sons to help me lift the front clip off the car and stow it while the suspension upgrade is under way. For those of you who are not car jargon specialists; the front clip refers to the two fenders and the grille that connects them. By unbolting the assembly from the frame, it can be lifted up and entirely removed in one (heavy) piece.
While working on loosening all the mounting bolts for the clip, it became apparent that it had never been apart. Undercoating all but obscured the bolts holding things together. Most panels under the car that aren't undercoated have surface rust, but it's far from being a "rust bucket". Since the car has been painted, and it looks pretty good, I'm trying to the work without scratching any painted surfaces. So far I'm doing okay, although I'd like to talk Gary, the car owner, into a fresh paint job after all the mechanical work is done. It would make it a total winner.
The first thing I removed were the huge ventilation ducts on either side of the old 6-banger engine. The larger unit on the passenger side entered the heater box and provided warm, "fresh air" for the occupants and the other duct merely allowed outside temperature air to enter. I'll be installing an air conditioning unit before the project is done so we won't need these any more, plus they'll undoubtedly be in the way of the Chevy 305 V8 that will be replacing the inline 6.
The flat space on the passenger inner fender panel is where the battery sat. If there's room with the V8 I may re-use that location because its convenient and and doesn't require a long cable run from the trunk or under the back seat. Sometimes the long cables used to bring current from a trunk-mounted battery to the front of the car have so much resistance, due to their length, that there isn't enough current to adequately start the car. Furthermore, since we're planning on using fuel injection, we need to have full power at start-up because the on-board computer will function poorly if the voltage is less than needed through the sensors.
After loosening the front sheet metal, I removed the front bumper and mounts. I've learned that with all the work being done between the frame rails, bumpers just get in the way. I've done it before with them in place and was constantly stepping over to have access. The El Camino was that way. In the end I removed it completely and immediately wished that I had done so at the beginning.
Since I was alone when the bumper was ready to come off, I laid on my back and used my hands to lower the driver's side, while I used my leg to gently lower the passenger side. With the last bolt out I lowered the assembly down onto my prone body, so as to avoid marring the chrome finish. As I did, I heard the noise of Skylar's truck pulling into the gravel driveway outside. The devil overcame me at that moment and I decided to remain on the floor with the (somewhat) heavy bumper assembly laying on top of me. The air hose and drop cord were draped across my legs and chest and I was certain that a quick glance would give the impression that things had unexpectedly fallen from the car and killed me. Anyone coming into the adjacent stairway would easily see me laying there through the window in the shop door. The kids lived upstairs and had to go by the window to get onto the stairway, so I waited for the outside door to open. I could hear Skylar & Annie opening the pickup doors on their new Nissan Titan and fussing with the two little baby boys that had gone to town with them.
While I waited I jiggled things around to keep blood flow to my extremities. I stuck my tongue out and let it hang over to one side to make me look really dead, but decided that it probably looked hokey and I reeled it back in. Another couple of minutes went by. I noted how effectively the cold concrete floor drained the heat from my body, even though I was laying on a small rug that used to be in the house. A commercial for a mattress company came on the radio with the voice of a fat British person with a heavy accent that I totally hate. I always dive for the remote when it comes on and switch stations. Its almost as bad as a Billy Joel song. I dive for the remote when Billy Joel songs come on too. Finally, after about 3 or 4 long minutes, I realized that they had all gone into the other house next to the shop instead of coming in and heading upstairs. I felt kind of silly (but well-rested) as I shucked all the hoses and wires and bumpers off of me and got back to work. Sorry, I don't have pictures.
More later,
Doug
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