Diesel is getting tire+wheel work.
LT235/85/16E SL309's are on the way.
Tires now are bald LT265/75/16E Starfire 510's with dryrotted valve stems and bubbled sidewalls.
Cleaned wheels to get ready. Degreaser did nothing, steamer did nothing. Tried barkeepers friend, that helped somewhat.
Pics;
[T]http://i.imgur.com/JtbXBPd.jpg[/t]
[t]http://i.imgur.com/WEfm09T.jpg[/t]
[QUOTE=Grenadiac;52556577]It looks like a time capsule. I say go for it if you're prepared to have to learn how to wrench on it.[/QUOTE]
if some idiot like me can leap headlong into a concourse jaguar, he can leap headlong into a third gen camaro :v:
I saw a Murano Cross Cabriolet yesterday. It was like seeing a unicorn....covered in it's own feces.
[QUOTE=Kel|oggs;52554664]I found a garage kept one with 63,000km on the meter. Its in show condition. Good price too
[t]https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/usedphotosna/63485994_934.jpg[/t]
[t]https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/usedphotosna/63485978_934.jpg[/t]
[editline]9th August 2017[/editline]
Didn't buy it yet, but going to check er out[/QUOTE]
I honestly love seeing things like this, total time capsuls. They're like a step into the past.
If you get it, BABY THE SHIT OUT OF IT. And also build the shit out of if so its a smokin fast sleeper
cleaned up my KA24 block
[img]http://i.imgur.com/DHSb6ap.jpg[/img]
[QUOTE=Valon Kyre;52557375]I honestly love seeing things like this, total time capsuls. They're like a step into the past.
[B]If you get it, BABY THE SHIT OUT OF IT. And also build the shit out of if so its a smokin fast sleeper[/B][/QUOTE]
these are two incompatible statements.
Overall, how reliable are well-kept cars from the 50s? Dailyable?
I got a pay raise and can make payments on a classic from a local dealer so I'm looking at this 55 Packard 400, but I dunno if you can count on a car this old for roadtrips and I may occasionally need to run out to Louisiana.
I already have a car from this century that's paid off so I figure if I'm making payments on a car it had better be something I really love.
I DD'd my Dart Sport from '74 for a couple years. It's... doable, in a word. It was fun to drive around and turn heads, wave to other classic dudes, all that. It certainly stands out.
However, there are a few things you're bound to run in to, I think. The MPGs were rough. On a small tank, 7mpg killed me. Lots of stopping to fill up. Might be a little better now, this was when gas was near 4/gal. If you don't have AC or a way to put it in, the summer months suck ass. It will probably break down eventually. Probably at the worst time for it to happen, too. All it takes is being late for work because of it once for it to become regrettable, and something you worry about every time you take it out or it starts funny while your in that shopping center you don't go to much and don't really know where you are, etc. Ask me how I know. :v: People talk about classics being more reliable or better and the like all the time, but well, cars have come a long way in 50 years. Most of it is demonstrably false.
If you really like the car, and really want to put up with it, it can be fun for a while. I wouldn't want to do it for any longer than I did though, honestly. Most classics are better reserved for a weekender or occasional ride to work and the like, in my opinion. I also definitely wouldn't want to be making payments on one, have it mess up, and be out a DD I need to buy parts for, wrench on.... all while making payments. Sounds like a headache.
Did someone say "DD an ancient block of cast iron"? Granted mine's a bit younger at 32 years of honorable service, but hey. It's carburetor driven, grew up on a diet of [del]deadly poison[/del] delicious lead, and looks at you funny if you say "electronics".
Anyway the first things you should invest into should be a fuel line filter (old gas tanks like to barf rust every now and then, and you DO NOT want that shit in your pistons. it happened and it sucked) and lead substitutes and other engine cleaners when you refill.
As for parts and maintenance. The good news, that you can do a lot by yourself with a wrench and a screwdriver, shit's simple as hell. The bad news, if something breaks for good, prepare the wallet and try not to cry. I've been lucky enough to find brand new spares for my R9 on the cheap, and sometimes bits from different brands but still compatible. If you don't care about keeping it 100% original, kitbash that bad girl and roll around like the biggest pimp in town. The pain is worth the pleasure IMO :v:.
Anyway you're from 'murica and you guys can swap engines like it's nothing, should it finally shit the bed for good you can just keep the glorious-looking frame and slap a brand new whatever in the bay.
You have nothing to fear. Ride into valhalla, shiny and chrome.
Finished my exhaust!
Broke my radiator....
Ups n downs I guess eh
Thanks. I would love to have one of these cars, but making payments is essentially the only way it'd be accessible to me, as I don't see myself having 15 grand in cash any time soon. Luckily I can keep my Eclipse as a runabout for when the Packard is out, I'll just have to pay insurance on both.
I might still take the plunge, but expecting it to be a reliable daily seems unrealistic, though there are lots of local events in town I go to regularly that it'd be fun to take to.
@jim didn't see your post. I was thinking about modernizing the fuel system completely for MPG reasons. It has a 50s four barrel carb which seems ridiculous for how gutless it's bound to be.
[img]http://i.imgur.com/yiiauaS.jpg[/img][img]http://i.imgur.com/ZHHc5yF.jpg[/img]
The car is super clean and super pretty. Not perfect, but it's 60 years old, so... Has a spotlight, which is one of my favorite things that died in the 50s haha
I don't know what the "scene" or knowledge base for Packards is, but if I remember right, they're pretty darn rare all things considered so finding good parts might be a little difficult/expensive. That's the part that would worry me, personally. I don't know what your finance situation is like, but I personally wouldn't feel too comfortable signing on for years of payments on top of the money I'm probably going to have to put in to the car just to keep it running right (or better, if you want to fiddle with the fuel system).
If I remember right you had an oldish Merc or something so you sort of know what owning an older vehicle can entail. It can be pretty easy to get burned out dealing with them, to the point where you don't want to drive it a ton anymore. That sucks for a payed off car, I can't imagine it's any better for one I'm making payments on. That, or life gets lifey and you run out of time to deal with them, which isn't any better for sure.
At the end of the day though, if it's what you want, there's not much out there to scratch the itch for a 50s land yacht that'd be any cheaper. I've always wanted one, but the $$$ you need to do them right puts me off. Me and my father had to talk each other out of two separate Imperials of the same year for similar reasons. :v:
My friend and I got a 71 Mercedes 220D from DPKiller but it's not really a straightline comparison because someone vandalized the car while trying to steal the radiator and intentionally ruined as much as they could in the engine bay. :(
I think Packards are pretty rare, yeah. It has had a recent motor swap but the motor is correct to the car, a rebuilt 374 V8. I'd expect some life out of it, but I'm not super well versed in this stuff. I have worked on 60s Mustangs and a couple different Dodges but nothing from the 50s and certainly not something like a Packard so I don't know how trusty these things are. I have heard that Packards are some of the best built cars of the era but people will say that about anything, I have also heard that about Pintos.
Looks like the auto transmission in these is not considered reliable and they are known to be difficult to work on. Tough call to make. It's probably better to steer clear of the Packard, leave it for a collector, and aim for something less niche.
My current project is a dune buggy with a 67 beetle motor. Lately ive had the oil system apart to try to fix some of the many oil leaks, but i got it together and running the other day to find out that the oil pressure light wont go out. Fuckin nazis.
[QUOTE=Grenadiac;52559227]My friend and I got a 71 Mercedes 220D from DPKiller but it's not really a straightline comparison because someone vandalized the car while trying to steal the radiator and intentionally ruined as much as they could in the engine bay. :(
[/QUOTE]
When are you going to get that thing on the road?
The only way that thing is getting on the road is pulled behind a truck. From what i remember, the injection pump is shot.
[QUOTE=Slithers;52559303]When are you going to get that thing on the road?[/QUOTE]
I don't think it's ever gonna roll again. It's in a real bad way. Mothballed for now, won't get any worse, but probably won't get any better either. We got it to crank but it isn't getting fuel and it still needs to be completely rewired, radiator is ruined, AC pump was destroyed... I fixed the air filter at least. :v:
Should probably just be parted out, as much as it kills me to say that.
Apparently if you run my local Sunpass tollbooth without your transponder, it snaps an Instagram pic of you?
[t]http://i.imgur.com/rQLbdg7.jpg[/t]
Got a small vid of the exhaust sound
[media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKx981DvvVQ[/media]
Engine still needs some sensors and adjusting before it can run normally.
Is that bumper off the green racecar?
[QUOTE=Grenadiac;52559316]I don't think it's ever gonna roll again. It's in a real bad way. Mothballed for now, won't get any worse, but probably won't get any better either. We got it to crank but it isn't getting fuel and it still needs to be completely rewired, radiator is ruined, AC pump was destroyed... I fixed the air filter at least. :v:
Should probably just be parted out, as much as it kills me to say that.[/QUOTE]
If you wanted to test the injection pump you could gravity feed it a nice thick mix of diesel and oil, if its just normal wear the thickness might get it to pump some. As for wiring, just run a toggle switch to the shutoff solenoid and youre good. At the very least might giv you a little closure.
[QUOTE=Grenadiac;52559152]Not perfect, but it's 60 years old, so... Has a spotlight, which is one of my favorite things that died in the 50s[/QUOTE]
It's settled then. You [I]must[/I] buy the car, endure the pains of maintenance, and ｂｌａｓｔ　ｍｏｔｈｅｒｆｕｃｋｅｒｓ　ｗｉｔｈ　ｙｏｕｒ　ｐｈｏｔｏｎｓ.
Fulfill the prophecy.
[QUOTE=Grenadiac;52559364]Is that bumper off the green racecar?[/QUOTE]
Yes, needed it for fitment of the exhaust. Will go back to the green one.
Also small chance I might be getting an S54, gonna check one out next few weeks.
[QUOTE=Birdman101;52559372]If you wanted to test the injection pump you could gravity feed it a nice thick mix of diesel and oil, if its just normal wear the thickness might get it to pump some. As for wiring, just run a toggle switch to the shutoff solenoid and youre good. At the very least might giv you a little closure.[/QUOTE]
You mean run a vacuum line from the vacuum pump to a switchover valve to the shutoff solenoid. The car was made in Sindelfingen in 1971 if I remember correctly. I bet the hand primer on the injection pump is busted too.
[QUOTE=Strontboer;52559400]Yes, needed it for fitment of the exhaust. Will go back to the green one.
Also small chance I might be getting an S54, gonna check one out next few weeks.[/QUOTE]
Going green (or some other color) around the lower part of the car (following the body lines) could look really cool. Have you thought about two-toning it like that at all, or do you want to stick to pure white?
[QUOTE=Slithers;52559465]You mean run a vacuum line from the vacuum pump to a switchover valve to the shutoff solenoid. The car was made in Sindelfingen in 1971 if I remember correctly. I bet the hand primer on the injection pump is busted too.[/QUOTE]
I dont know that engine specifically, I just assumed it had an electric solenoid
[QUOTE=Trekintosh;52557956]these are two incompatible statements.[/QUOTE]
Nope! Keep it nice, only take it out in nice days, dont drive like a tool, put good parts in it, build it up and do really nice work so it stays really nice and performs better.
Most built vehicles are old frankensteined together cars with glaring flaws of course, a time capsul is an opertunity to build from scratch and do it right, make it look complete. I know through the course of building things some nuts and bolts and odd pieces get forgetten or left out, but with a time capsul everything is there and nothing has been fucked with yet so you can start off by doing really good work.
[QUOTE=Valon Kyre;52559981]Nope! Keep it nice, only take it out in nice days, dont drive like a tool, put good parts in it, build it up and do really nice work so it stays really nice and performs better.
Most built vehicles are old frankensteined together cars with glaring flaws of course, a time capsul is an opertunity to build from scratch and do it right, make it look complete. I know through the course of building things some nuts and bolts and odd pieces get forgetten or left out, but with a time capsul everything is there and nothing has been fucked with yet so you can start off by doing really good work.[/QUOTE]
Yeah but then you gotta have enough to build it all. If you piece it together one at a time, then you'll just end up like most built vehicles, only behind schedule.
Are there any cons to removing side and back window tint without replacing it? It's all peeling and spotty and I have a means of removal but don't have tint at the moment
[QUOTE=Snickerdoodle;52560437]Are there any cons to removing side and back window tint without replacing it? It's all peeling and spotty and I have a means of removal but don't have tint at the moment[/QUOTE]
the interior will be hotter until the ac coils it down
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