New Parts and Some Inspiration

Ready to move ahead on getting the engine auxiliary pieces installed. Picked up a fuel pressure regulator, a cool in-line pressure gauge. Then, sent away for a distributor, coil and wires, just to make sure the ignition is system is solid and stays that way.

New ignition and fuel parts
New ignition and fuel parts

Everything arrived pretty fast, but the distributor, sold by Amazon arrived looking like a previous return. The box had been opened and poorly repacked. Lots of loose parts in the box and the distributer cap had been damaged. Reluctantly, I sent it back. If I want to fix broken parts, I’ve already got plenty to do.

Rather than try mail order again, I stopped by Goodies, a local speed shop. They ordered me essentially the same part for the same price, minus the shipping. By Friday, I should have all the parts I need to get the engine back together.

In the meantime, the new carb was disassembled, the floats adjusted (they were just a tad out of spec) and reassembled. I’ve got a cold, so health permitting, I’ll get a jump start putting the wires together and the carb back on while waiting for the new distributer.

Inspiration to get out to the car has lately come from old episodes of Overhaulin’ on Netflix, especially this rework of a 65 Thunderbird into a roadster.

65 Thunderbird Roadster by Chip Foose
65 Thunderbird Roadster by Chip Foose

Mysteries Unraveled

Popped open the hood this morning, 14 year old son in tow, ready to pull the plugs and turn the motor over by hand–testing to see if there’s a bind or something else horribly wrong deep inside the engine.

Edelbrock Fountain
Edelbrock Fountain

Pulling the plugs, we noticed a pool of gasoline on the manifold. Had the aforementioned son crank the motor for a while (something he just loves doing) and discovered gasoline geysering out the vents on top of the carburetor.

This turned out to be very good news. Not only was the gas pooling on the outside of the engine, it was also pouring down the throat of the carb. When we turned over the motor by hand with the plugs out, two of the cylinders barfed up a couple ounce of gas on the power stroke.

The “sticking” I noticed in starting was almost certainly the starter trying to overcome a cylinder full of liquid gas, which just doesn’t compress well.

As for the fuel geyser, the solution is a fuel pressure regulator and a double check of the float levels in the carb–simple enough and there’s plenty of time before the new ignition parts arrive.

Timing Marks
Timing marks revealed!

Two other mysteries were put to rest: hand cranking the motor over to top dead center, we discovered the timing marks, long hidden under rust, with a bright light and some sandpaper. Also, we were able to determine that the transmission is lots older than the car (1962 or earlier), but the starter and flexplate (the big ring that the starter gears engage with) are from a 65 or later car. An odd, but workable combination.

Ignition!

I know I said I would tackle the ignition system before trying to fire the t-bird up, but with the fuel system all new, I couldn’t resist. And, in fact, the bird fired right up, ran for 30 seconds or so, then slowly sputtered out. More attempt to start it resulted in flooding and an odd moment or two when the engine ominously seemed to “stick.”

Distributor
The insides of the distributor should not be fuzzy.

 

Well, crap.

I popped of the distributor cap and–imagine my surprise–the pickups were encased in rust. The rotor and cap were not in much better condition. Under the rust, it looked like the pickups were held on by nuts (or maybe screws. Or maybe both). They turned fine, but didn’t come loose.

The distributor on the car is an MSD Billet. Pretty pricey when new, but now fit for the dust bin. And yes, a new Accel distributor, coil and wires are on the way as of tonight.

As for the strange “sticking” issue, I’m going to pull the plugs tomorrow and turn the engine over by hand to see if there’s a bind in there. Hopefully, it has more to do with a mis-matched starter and flexplate–lots cheaper to fix than pulling the engine apart (not that there’s not some appeal there, mind you.)

Fuel and Fun

The 90 degree fitting I ordered for the fuel pump outlet arrived on Tuesday, went on to the pump on Wednesday and went into the car, with the pump, shortly after. I cleaned up the coil, which was in the way and had to come out, then reinstalled it this afternoon.

Fuel Pump
A clean fuel pump installation.

Belts for the alternator and the power steering pump were tightened and everything hooked back up. Everything is ready to go, but there are a lot of variables in play: a completely new fuel system, new alternator and numerous smaller parts removed and reinstalled.

This all started, really, with a gimpy starter, so much of that system is relatively untested as well.

Lots of balls in the air and air in the fuel line. I cranked the engine a few times to see if I could get fuel up the the clear filter. Unfortunately, the battery was weak from the last starting attempts and didn’t crank the engine fast or long enough to bring fuel up to the carburetor.

Charge!
Charge!

I hooked up a trickle charger, gave the bird a bath and am wrapping things up to let the battery charge overnight. Today it was 70 degrees, but tomorrow should be a nice day for a drive, too.

Some New Parts

A slow weekend for the ‘Bird, but progress on the restoration. I installed a new oil pressure sender (which should get the oil pressure gauge moving again, leaving only the gas and amp gauges dead.) and put in a new alternator.

Oil Pressure Sender
Oil Pressure Sender. Will be nice to see the gauge working.

In addition, I installed new belts and did some prep work for the new fuel pump–including a slick chrome fuel line and new tubing to feed the carburetor. All in all, the new parts went in smoothly–perhaps suspiciously so.

The original line from the fuel pump to the carburetor was metal tubing bent specifically to run from the pump to the original Autolite fuel inlet. Coming out of the pump, that line make a sharp 90 degree bend–something I didn’t want to duplicate with a rubber hose, fearing it would kink or otherwise restrict the fuel flow.

Shiny New Alternator
Shiny new alternator. All the wires got new, clean terminals, too.

After some time online and even more time with the good folks at my local auto parts store, it looks like I found just the right fitting to make the bend and allow a straightaway installation for the fuel line.

The fitting should be in tomorrow. With that, I should have everything I need to fire her up once more.

New Mindset

I’ve come, reluctantly, to the conclusion that the ‘Bird falls solidly into the category of restoration project for the foreseeable future. For the past few months I’ve been playing catch-up, letting the car decide what I work on. That’s a valid strategy for a car that’s mostly working–just fix what’s broken, right?.

Fuel Pump
One dirty fuel pump. That's the filter in the background.

This Bird has just been sitting ignored too long; things are breaking faster than I can repair them, even with just occasional driving. From here on, I’ll be working through each individual system, making sure it’s sound, then moving on.

I can already check the shifter and starting system off the list–those have both been completely overhauled. Next on the list are the fuel system, ignition system and the suspension, front and rear. With those complete, the car should be safe and comfortable to drive and I can turn my attention to more aesthetic details, like the interior trim and carpet. (One positive note–the records from the original owner-just discovered–indicate that the transmission was replaced about 60,000 miles ago. It, like the engine itself, should be sound for some time.)

Coil and Oil Pressure Sender
Coil is likely still good. The oil pressure sender is likely dead.

I finally just replaced the old Edelbrock carburetor. Even after rebuilding the one that came with the car, it still performed poorly. It’s likely that there is still dirt and corrosion in some of the interior passages. I replaced it with an exact duplicate, an off the shelf item from Pep Boys, of all places. (They actually have a cool store not far away that specializes in speed parts. Lots of stuff there for people still driving big V-8’s!)

I installed it, no issues, then tried to start the car. Lots of starting fluid and about 30 starting attempts, but no go. Looking at the glass fuel filter, I could see that there was just nothing in the gas line leading up to the carb. Checking the fount of all Thunderbird knowledge, I discovered that the fuel pump ought to be delivering fuel even when the car is only being cranked over by the starter. Here is where I had my revelation–this car is too far gone to just fix what is broken.

I pulled the fuel pump off–it has a built in filter that probably hasn’t been changed in decades. While I was there, I pulled off the coil and the oil pressure sending unit. All were in the same place and all needing clean up or renewal.

Next, the ONO phase: fuel pump, oil pressure sender, this time.

What a Turn-Off

I picked up a new starter on Tuesday. Turns out, the starter I custom ordered was nothing like the one the came out of the car. The folks at Napa Auto Parts had the starter I needed

New Starter, Installed
New starter, installed.

in stock, however, and they also helped me gather together new cables, other bits and pieces and–yes–another solenoid.

The new starter went in this afternoon, no trouble at all. I followed the advice I got from the guys at the Vintage Thunderbird forum, rewiring the ground cables properly and installing the cable to the starter in a way that will allow me to strap it up properly. (Still need some clamps to finish that job.) I also took time to wash off some of the grease and dirt from the inner fender wells while the battery and cables were out.

New Cables, New Solenoid
New cables, new solenoid

With everything connected, the car started right up. I let it get warmed up, then took it for a quick spin, even though the interior is still in pieces. All went well, and I pulled into the driveway, put it in park and . . . turned off the key.

Yes! The engine stopped. Yet another evolution has been completed. Now to re-assemble the interior and move on to the next item.

The Starter

It’s always fun to jack up the car and crawl around underneath. You see all kinds of new things.

The lower bolt
This is the lower bolt. Easy to reach. Take it out last.

Say, those floor pans really have rotted away, haven’t they? And what’s this, power steering fluid? Wonder where that’s coming from. Hey, look–the transmission cooler lines have been tied up with zip ties back here. Well, more stuff to add to the list.

The starter came out pretty easily. I remember doing this job many times on a 71 Cougar I used to own. I had headers on that car and they were a pain to work around; the bolts on the t-bird were a lot easier to get to.

The only thing that slowed me down was removing the lower bolts first. The top bolt is much harder to get to and easier to remove if the lower bolts are still in. The last bolt to come out will bind as the starter begins to fall out, so make the last bolt the easiest one to reach. I had to put a lower bolt back in to get the top bolt out.

I made a photojournal of the removal process.

The rebuilt starter is due at the store Tuesday. Look for the follow up post (and hopefully a running car) that evening.

Somebody Stop Me!

So, I have a half hour free after work, and I’m thinking, perhaps I’ll take a look at that starting problem on the ‘bird. Open the hood, hop in, and crank it over. I can see that the choke didn’t close (the ongoing issue with cold starting), so I close it manually. Try again, and it starts right up!

Ignition Switch
Yep, I need a new one of these.

Well, that’s cool! I have no idea why the choke won’t close normally, but I’m leaning in favor of installing a manual choke, at least for the time being. Since it started so easily, and I’ve still got time to kill, I figure, let’s go get a manual choke cable and maybe even stop at the hardware store afterwards.

At the auto parts store, I turn the key off and hop out. But wait. The motor is still running. I look in my hand. Yep, still holding the key. But the motor is still running.

Get back in the car, put the key in. Turn on. Turn off. Turn on. Turn off. Motor is still running. I am perplexed and decide to drive home rather than shop while the car is running in the parking lot.

Ultimately, I pulled a primary lead off the coil to stop the car. Chances are, the ignition switch has failed. Plan: order a new one.

How We Roll

The evolution of a project. First, car dies at the post office, victim of a $20 part failure. Then, tow truck driver (thankfully) breaks the steering coupler, so I jump into the entire steering column / rag joint / shifter / turn signal project.

Cleaned up Car
Cleaned up after a long sit in the driveway.

That’s a lot of work, it turns out. We finished the under hood work this morning, hooked up the battery and (just for fun) tested the turn signal wiring. Incredibly, every signal with every possible permutation (brakes on, lights on, brakes and lights on . . .) worked, with the exception of the front left, which may have a burnt out bulb. Very satisfying, and a little shocking.

I spent not a little time cleaning and polishing the dashboard pieces before they went back into the car. There’s still a lot of clean up to do in the interior (especially the dash) but this was a good start.

With the dash in place, the steering wheel and horn ring went on. Without any further ceremony, I dumped most of my tools on the driveway, started her up and went for a test spin.

Driving in the correct gear(!), it turns out the transmission is behaving normally. With bearings and stuff all installed properly in the steering column, the steering is more precise and not as light to the touch as it was–a vast improvement. With the new shifter parts, the swing away mechanism also works as designed:

There was only one disappointment: the new turn signal assembly catches internally against the steering wheel–probably the self-canceling mechanism is slightly off. There’s no way to adjust it, so I may have to live with it.

Next up, a tune up (now that it’s safe to stand in front of the car while it’s running), and a transmission rebuild.