Recent content by Retired auto tech

I read the 440 source article and although it has a lot of good information there was no mention of cam bore or bearings. I have a 1969 383, 1978, 1974 and 1967 440 engines but am unable to check them out at this time but will definitely be measuring them when I do tear them down. The 67 will...

Ok, I just pulled out my 1967 FSM and looked at the cam bearing journal specs and guess what? They are all a different size! Camshaft Bearing Journals: #1- 1.998 to 1.999 #2- 1.982 to 1.983 #3- 1.967 to 1.968 #4- 1.951 to 1.952 #5- 1.748 to 1.749 Camshaft Bearings Diameter ( after reaming )...

Water/alcohol injection was used in WWII fighters to allow extra boost and add an extra 300-400 hp when needed to outrun or outclimb the enemy pursuer and not blow the cylinders off of those big 2000hp+ engines. As it evaporated in the incomeing air stream it had a substantial cooling effect...

Going by experience I would say that the majority of electrical problems (no crank, not charging, premature burnt points, ignition coils, ballast resistors, lights or fan speed increasing or decreasing with engine rpm, fried alternator or starter, burnt fuseable links, burnt ammeters, melted...

The reason we regrind a crankshaft is to reestablish the correct clearance between the bearings and the crank, typically.0025" to .003". This clearnce is responsible for both the correct oil pressure in the system and the rolling hydrostatic wedge that is what actually keeps the parts from...

The lowering of combustion temperature was needed to reduce the production of Nox. The secondary effect was that it also reduced the tendency to ping under load. Some engines neede it others didn't. I had a customer that brought in his car for a tune up and he complained about it pinging when...

The hood on my 67 Newport uses the round metal rollers on the torsion bars and both are totally shot so I am on the hunt as well. It's to bad no one makes a repo. However my trunk uses the square sliders. It seems you got whatever was in the parts bin on assembly day.

As an auto-electric tune-up shop in the 70s and 80s we made it a practice to replace plugs with what came in the vehicle from the factory. We adjusted heat range and tip depending on what the plug color, fouling and useage of the vehicle. However this required us to keep a very large inventory...

The ride height setting of the torsion bars has nothing to do with how cool it looks but everything to do with car being safe to drive. The factory ride height is the first step to be done in a wheel alighnment. If incorrect none of the other adjustments work properly. As mentioned above ride...

Not mentioned here but are all the steering components good and within wear specs? Just thought I'd ask. As I see it there are two things that no one has mentioned. First, as per Chrysler instructions you must always adjust vehicle height to spec before doing any other adjustments. This...

Just a note on small v/s big. Back about 25 years ago I had a 1997 Ford Explorer with a 302 FI and averaged 600 km on a tank of fuel. That was driving from Edmonton to Kelowna going though the Rocky Mountains. One of the guys I worked with had the same 97 but with the 4.0 l V-6. He could...

Yea it was a great find. About the only options it did not come with was am/fm radio, Speaker reverb module, Cornering lights, bucket seats, and console shift. The fender tag even has two catagories for Unknown Options (w3) and (d7) which must cover for the power antenna, auto pilot and...

The best all around rear gearing is the 3.23, especially if you intend to tow with it. Anything less you will be struggling to get up and go and using way to much thottle opening just to cruise with a reduction in fuel economy by a lot. The purpose of any gear ratio is to multiply torque. The...

Just a quick note, how clean are the battery posts and clamps? Corrosion or black oxide creates resistance that makes it harder to charge the battery and to overcome this the regulator will increase the voltage to compensate. If bad enough the voltage increases with rpm increase, and I've seen...

Please flush the brake system completely with new DOT 3 fluid. The old fluid will have lost all its anti rust and anti corrosion components plus be heavily contaminated with water. The ethers in brake fluid will absorb water right through the rubber hoses and seals over time ( the term is...