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* Got the new GM sway bar bracket installed. Still waiting on reinforced sway bar bracket.
* Installing the modified used OEM upper and used OEM lower arms has caused the top of my tires to be about a 1/2" further away from the chassis on the driver side than on the passenger side. IIRC, there are 2 different upper control arm set part numbers spread across 4 suspension codes, and three different lower control arm set part numbers spread across the 4 suspension codes. It could be minor differences between the arm part numbers. Other than the visual difference, the minimum negative camber is now different side-to-side by a 1/2 degree. I haven't decided whether I'll chase this with aftermarket adjustable arms. I'd like to get the BBK installed next.
* The purchase of the BBK is on schedule; I'll be going with the smaller caliper of the two in this video to save a little weight between the caliper and thinner pads. The smaller one is still 6-pot, using a 355mm 2-piece rotor (372mm adds unnecessary mass for my needs), it uses a 18mm pad instead of a 25mm pad (in the larger caliper) and has a slightly different pad retention mechanism.
* I had some popping noises coming from the front left wheel well, looks like I didn't get all the upper bolts as tight as needed with hand tools a few months ago and they moved a bit. They're all tight now.
* I had some whirring noises coming only from the front right wheel well even when not using the brake pedal. The rotor had two different ring colors...the inside ring was darker, and the outside ring was lighter, and only on the outboard pads. Sliders were working fine and these are considered street compound pads. We scuffed up the outboard brake pad and will monitor.
* I previously noticed some rubbing on both of the front anti-swaybar arm. Not sure if it was from the old or new tires, so we wrapped some electrical tape around it and will monitor.
* Reinforced sway bar brackets are now available. The guy who makes them suggested in the past he'd be able to fabricate an upper panhard brace without an S curve in it and still give extra clearance for dual exhaust. So I keep bugging him about it and hoped to get a response with a pending order.
* The creaking in the rear still hasn't stopped from the new coilovers,
* Front end still seems to have some creaking that I can feel through the clutch pedal as I softly disengage the clutch and the front of the car lifts slightly as the car moves forward. Tough to reproduce.
* Some combination of factors is limiting me to -2* (can't get more positive) camber on one side, and limiting me to -1.5* (can't get more negative) camber on the other side.
So I ordered the following tonight, I'll probably get their 2309 (to re-use the t-bar on the bottom of my Penskes) or 2314 (more likely option... I'll need to remove the t-bar) in the future.
UMI 2335
UMI 2310CM
UMI 2060
UMI 2045
Also ordered fittings for my power steering AN6 hose conversion and a new cruise control lever for the planned steering column rebuild. Nothing wrong with the current brakes for their current purpose, so I pushed back the brakes. Plus, I want to make sure each step is sorted before installing something else so we can more easily isolate issues to specific changes.
Last edited by JimMueller; 05-12-2018 at 08:07 PM.
I'm using the suggested autox/HPDE settings on the street, I haven't tried the street settings yet. That said, comparing to the old setup with the default valving with autox rebound/compression settings (Koni DA's all around,650F coilovers, 35mm solid front bar, 300R weight jackers w 4" lowered RRC, 24mm rear solid bar):
* On flatter/longer speed bumps it's not as jarring, pretty easy to maintain 30-35MPH over them without the car acting like the General Lee
* On shorter/taller speed bumps it's not horrible... at the correct speed it absorbs it nicely, much better than the Koni setup & 35mm solid bar
* When only one front wheel goes over a speed bump in a parking lot, it absorbs it much better, much like I expect it to for track curbing, barely need to slow down for it, much better than the 35mm solid bar
* Pavement with patches and slightly rough surfaces - you notice the difference in texture but it's not horrible... I prefer to have that feel instead of it being numbed
* The balance is not yet where I want it, bit too much understeer for my taste, I like to aim the car a bit with the throttle. Rear bar is still at the softest setting, though.
* I can tell when I make a rapid transition that the front bar rate is softer
* I drove on cobblestone for the first time since last summer, and I was expecting my fillings to fall out, but I think it felt more compliant than the Koni DA setup
* Switching from the mostly bald NT05's to the new (manufacture date March 2018) Rival S's has been AMAZING. Even when new, the NT05's only felt sticky the first week or two and I still could easily spin tires in first gear. The BFG tires were tossing pebbles against my wheel well for at least two weeks and they are still holding 1st gear really well. Even in rain the BFGs have done well so far; of course, I've dealt with four bald 315 NT05's in the rain and been forced to pick whether I want to steer OR accelerate. Perhaps I'm desensitized to it.
* The Forgestar F14 wheels are...meh, not bad, but if I could go back in time I'd opt for the open lug cap edition Forgeline GA1R's
***** http://www.forgeline.com/products/one-piece-monoblock/ga1r-open-lug-cap.html?seo_category_name=one-piece-monoblock&seo_product_name=ga1r-open-lug-cap&pricing=1
***** racers price $1150/wheel
* I started to notice more resonance in the cabin about a week after we installed the modified front OEM arms to accept the heim end links.
* I noticed last night in the rain that my rear tires are locking up a bit before the fronts in slick conditions, haven't noticed it in the dry. That is with GLoc GS-1 front pads (similar to Carbotech Bobcats) in front; the problem wasn't there with the prior more aggressive GLoc R6 front autox pads. I can play with the brake proportioning valve if it becomes an issue before I install the BBK.
All that said, I'm just trying to keep the settings 'close' until everything is installed, to limit how many times I need to re-optimize everything. My tech voiced a concern about my rear end getting noisier and I wonder if I'll need to shuffle plans as a result. I was hoping to eventually get a lightweight 9" with all factory mount points so I can re-use everything I currently have, but I haven't started researching possible vendors.
Last edited by JimMueller; 05-13-2018 at 06:27 PM.
The Viking rod ends included with the UMI 2310CM had races that I could easily move between my finger tips, but those on the UMI 2060 were not movable. Also, the rod end spacers only weigh 10g, that has to be aluminum, right? I seem to recall reading that we didn't want dissimilar metals rubbing against each other to prevent galling, and the rod ends are steel. I'm leaning towards replacing the Vikings with FK Rod JMXT but I am wondering about the spacer compatibility.
I also realized that the high temp split loom I bought to cover the stainless steel braid was the wrong diameter so I ordered the correct size.
I mocked up the UMI parts I received recently. Some of the rod ends they sent were not tight, so I replaced them with FK JMX10Ts. It was a bit frustrating to get the A-arm rod ends into the 2335 brackets with them on the floor, much less messing with them for an actual alignment. I use SealsIt rod end seals to help keep out dust from the bearing wherever possible, but the second rod end on each arm really didn't want to go in with the seals installed so I left them completely out. Why can't our adjustable upper and lower a-arms use adjustable be double-adjustable using turnbuckles, or using the same mechanism used for rear LCA's or PHB's?
I'm not sure what the best way is to get them setup very close to stock to begin with. My notes indicate these might be lighter than the Global West upper A-arms, time will tell.
UMI 2335 upper mount & 2310CM upper A-arm, top
UMI 2335 upper mount & 2310 CM upper A-arm, bottom
The water pump started spewing coolant last Friday after I parked the car at work. So while it was at the shop I had them convert my power steering lines to AN6. Here was my parts list; I already had the TurnOne pump with their pulley and the power steering cooler kit.
Qty 1 x Blaine Fab Power Steering Cooler kit
Qty 2 x Aeroquip FCM1122 90* fitting
-----
Qty 1 x Steering rack return fitting, Turn One TUR5
Qty 1 x Steering rack pressure fitting, Turn One TUR6
Qty 2 x Aeroquip FCM1112 45* fitting
-----
Qty 1 x Pump reservoir return port fitting, Turn One TUR10
Qty 1 x FCM1103 straight fitting
-----
Qty 1 x Pump reservoir pressure fitting, Turn One TUR11 (specify make model for correct orifice size)
Qty 1 x Aeroquip FCM1122 90* fitting
-----
Qty 2 x Aeroquip FCC0606 hose
Qty 1 x High-temp split loom tubing, black, 20'
Qty 1 x Braided hose cutter, Summit
Qty 1 x Adjustable AN wrench
Qty 1 x Vice jaws pads
Qty 1 x Redline Power Stering fluid
Qty 1 x Ancor Marine Grade SS cushion clamps, PN 403902
And a video of the final layout. The hoses are wrapped in loom so that anything rubbing against the hoses won't fray. Yeah, I know, there's no bling... Driving home, the steering seems to take a bit more effort, and it's wailing a bit near lock. The fluid may not be completely bled yet, I'll give it a few days. https://www.dropbox.com/s/po560wqvnlezg5k/I...36081.3gp?dl=04
* We installed McMaster Carr shaft collars on the front sway bar to keep it centered. We found last time that the driver wheel would rub on the bar arm at full lock but the passenger wheel wouldn't rub on the bar arm at full lock. Simple measurements indicated the bar was shifted towards the driver side.
* The shop doesn't have a bump steer alignment kit (such as these: http://www.longacreracing.com/products.aspx?itemid=1710) since the race cars they primarily service don't require that adjustment. I'll have to decide on the value of investing in the gauge personally.
* UMI said the 2310CM's mimic the OEM upper arms with 5 threads showing on each rod end.
* At the prior visit two weeks ago, we noticed oil misting on the shock shafts collecting dust. A call to Penske advised that the seals intentionally weep a bit of oil to keep the shaft lubricated. Unless we see droplets or puddles, it's fine.
* My alternator has been getting weak under accessory load, so I bought a hybrid CS130D/AD130 220A unit from AlternatorMan. Supposedly shipped today, no tracking number yet.
* Didn't order new reinforced sway bar brackets yet, still nudging for a non-S shaped upper panhard brace that allows more exhaust clearance on the passenger side.
* Wondering what I should do on road trips for a flat tire scenario with 315/30/18 wheels and planned 14" rotor up front.
* There doesn't seem to be any weight loss for any version of the UMI front LCA's compared to OEM. I don't see a major reason at this time to install aftermarket front LCA's unless I can't get enough negative camber.
* Next shop visit I plan to install alternator; perhaps also replace rear shock mounts, and replace front upper shock mount (and perhaps convert Global West UCA with UMI UCA).
Last edited by JimMueller; 06-19-2018 at 08:32 PM.
On 6/19 I spoke with the old man at AlternatorMan and he said all the hybrid orders had shipped out that day and he was going to e-mail me the tracking number. Never received a tracking number, but received an order cancellation today. No explanation with the cancellation. I emailed them back and they said the correct rear housing for my application is out of stock and their policy is to cancel all backorders. I asked how I would know when everything would be in stock but no answer.
Edit: Response from AlternatorMan was basically that they had the cart before the horse and wasn't ready for the order. They need to find a way to get the CS130D cooling vane cover to mate with the AD230 rear cover. He estimates 2-3 weeks before they will have a solution. I'll try to nurse my current alternator along in the interim.
The steering is stiffer with the AN6 conversion, although TurnOne says it should not be stiffer than factory. They want me to measure the orifice size of the TUR11 to confirm that they didn't make a mistake and give me the wrong orifice size. We had to dismount the pump to install the TUR11, so if it's the wrong size I'm not interested in footing the cost of the labor to R&R it.
Last edited by JimMueller; 06-22-2018 at 02:19 PM.
* The power steering is still stiffer than factory, especially near idle RPM, and Turn One says it should not be. Not sure if I'll chase that.
* The guy who's been doing all my installations and maintenance left the shop a few days ago for a new opportunity, not sure what specifically it is but he's no longer near by. He still had my OEM front LCA's pending disassembly from 3 months ago and I'll be irritated if they're not recoverable in the state they were removed. I also may need to find a new local shop that has a GM specialist with years of experience, since this shop no longer has one.
* I'll need to buy a bump steer gauge kit (such as Longacre PN 79015) and probably the matching storage case (79019) to truly take advantage of the UMI bump steer kit.
* I spoke with AlternatorMan again last Friday and he said they were close to figuring out the solution to getting the CS130D plastic cooling cover to fit on the AD230 rear case. I'll try again in a week. I'm cutting it close, I've noticed the engine cranking over a little slower the past few days and the voltage getting a bit lower. I do have a spare AD244 and a spare CS130D, but it's been so long since I've taken them out I don't recall whether they need repair.
* Since I'm accustomed to daily driving the car on 800/375 springs with recommended track day shock settings, I'm looking into what changes will get me ultimate track day performance short of revalving the shocks.
* Paying off doctors and the hospital for emergency surgery last March is getting in the way, damnit. They billed insurance for 20X of what I paid for my Penske's.
* I guess I'll start advertising my old parts for sale, need to make a list.
I attempted to change my rear shock mounts from those provided by UE to UMI PN 2045 today. The reason for the change is that I still get creaking from the rear when slowly going around slow, short turns, like pulling into a parking space. We verified everything is tight and could not find any further rubbing, and the canister hose seems adequately secured. I also intermittently get a random slap/thwack sound during some types of motion, that I can only think could be the canister hose. I thought about mounting a remote camera in the area but wasn't sure where to aim it.
1) Upper mount: UE shock attachment has a Coleman bracket and a spacer to center the shock, plus vertical spacers between the chassis and the upper mount used to control the shock travel. Shock installed with UE mounts: http://s808.photobucket.com/user/evcass69/media/UETA/20180816_152506.jpg.html"][/url]
Closeup of the UE mount, using spacers that give about a 2.5" gap between the eyelet and the chassis: http://s808.photobucket.com/user/evcass69/media/UETA/20180816_154720.jpg.html"][/url]
Travel indicator about an inch above end of travel using the above spacers. Yes, a lot of oil mist, but both Penske and Jason say the seals naturally mist oil to keep the rod lubricated. No worries unless we see drips. http://s808.photobucket.com/user/evcass69/media/UETA/20180816_152231.jpg.html"][/url]
The UMI mounts are wider, using a 1 1/4" gap on the rod end mountings and I had nothing to take up the gap. UMI advertises the 2045 as being designed for use with 2.5" race shocks, there must be different spacers available to make them compatible with the Penske's? A message left for UMI support today hasn't yet been returned. This happens to be UMI lower mount with the Penske shock connected, but the same issue occurs on the top mount.
The UMI top mount would decrease the clearance between the upper shock eye to the chassis from 2.5" to ~1.25", which I'm concerned will cause the travel indicator to bottom out. I could add spacers but they would need to go between the chassis and the upper mount, reducing the thread engagement. Plus, that bolt that goes through the chassis is only 1" to begin with. The other issue I ran into with the bottom UMI mount is that it includes a 3/8" bolt that goes through a hole you drill in the OEM bracket. I didn't have space to drill the hole, perhaps if I had dropped the axle further it would work, but since I couldn't get the shock mounts to work immediately, I didn't take the time to remove the other shock to test it. I don't know, there's enough gotchas here that I don't know whether I want to continue to try to make the UMI 2045 kit work on the rear.
I expect to have the same issue with the UMI 2335 front upper shock mounts, I'm glad I messed with the easier rears first.
I had the new Braille B3121 and 140A CS130D alternator from AlternatorMan installed today. The shop modified the coolant recovery tank to accept the J hooks and the battery is tight. The cable eyelets were too large for the B3121 bolt terminals, so they improvised with flange bolts. While it was idling, the voltage gauge looked well over 13V, but when I drove it home, the voltage was showing as in the upper red of the low voltage range. Drove back, and the battery was showing about 12.8V engine off, around 13.8V engine running and while driving, even though the gauge was showing less than 13, closer to the red. They said that my exciter wire had two butt connectors on it, one of which they had to repair before reinstallation. They indicated that because the battery was charging correctly, it wouldn't leave me stranded because the gauge was just reading wrong. I'd still like the voltage gauge to be accurate, I'll have to trust them and take it back next weekend.
The old ACDelco battery was 2lbs lighter than published, so I only lost 10lbs with the battery swap. I couldn't find a battery lighter than 21lbs that I was comfortable with for daily driver usage without using a battery tender. It does seem to crank over just slightly slower right now.
i rebuild motorcycle shocks....and if my shock was leaking that much i would be tearing it apart for a new seal head.....my .02
i gave my modded turn 1 pump to my son for his car....i do not like the increased effort it takes....give me a Cadillac smooth pump anyday.....turn 1 rebuilt a pump for me with NO mods
I have my original TurnOne pump in storage, it was leaking a bit and instead of sending it back for repair I bought a whole new one from them. The wheels weren't hard to turn at slow speeds (even with the 315 Rivals) until I converted from OEM PS lines to AN6 lines & fittings.
The j-hooks pulled through the plastic on the passenger side, now trying a different mounting method with a custom metal bracket. My Spectra CU1486 radiator is leaking a bit, so I'm looking at a radiator solution to support a 416/427 in the future. I'm leaning towards this combo at this time.
What made you decide to go with that radiator vs the 1139007M or 1149007M?
I chose 1.00" tubing because they said I'd need seriously more airflow to take advantage of the 1.25" tubing, the 1.25" is heavier and also reduces clearances even further. I chose the 027M because it included the low coolant level fitting, had the extra fitting at the bottom (that I can use for a fast flush), and it was cheaper even with the extra fittings than the 007M's.
The radiator went in today. DeWitts would not warranty, and did not recommend except for strict race use (for which the radiator is not warranted either), the use of Water Wetter. Only because I didn't want to risk warranty problems, I switched to Peak green coolant; we ran tap water through the water pump inlet & outlets, as well as through the heater hose inlet/outlets, then blew each out with compressed air to try to get as much out as we could. It took about 1.5gal each of coolant and distilled water to top off the radiator. We used compressed air to remove all the leaves and debris in the area while we were in there. The 'oil connection' tube on the old radiator, and the small hose that connects to the top of the fill neck, each had some soft brown gunk in it, not sure of the source. On the way home, water temp gauge hovered around 185* (180* stat). New radiator is about 6lbs heavier than the old Spectre CU1486, plus the additional fluid weight (unknown).You'll see the revised battery bracket also.
A couple of minor issues:
1) The tube that goes to the passenger side of the condenser was too close to the radiator fill tube. We had to gently bend it to get the condenser to slide on the tabs on that side.
2) The radiator cap is more difficult to R&R, and the 'arrows' are no longer pointing in the 'correct' directions.
3) The low coolant sensor appeared to be incompatible with the radiator tube fitting.
4) We needed to shorten the upper radiator tubing a bit on the driver side to help with hose clearance near the water pump pulley. Switched to a hose clamp here only because the OEM-style clamp wouldn't fit over the new tubing and we didn't have any spares.
The OEM-style low coolant level tube has a thin plastic lip that the wire spring clips around:
The lip on the DeWitts tube is maybe 1/4" thick so the spring wouldn't attach:
DeWitts is closed on the weekend so we improvised with safety wire. pending discussion with DeWitts on alternatives. I'm not ecstatic about the solution only because if I need to have that repaired some place that doesn't have safety wire, it could be an inconvenience.
Last edited by JimMueller; 07-26-2019 at 04:38 PM.
Reason: typo
My bearings gave up the ghost, so I'm rebuilding the same block as a 418 stroker. I created a separate thread for questions on the build but I'll add photos here.
Waiting on delivery:
Lifters, Johnson, PN ST2126LSR
Beehive valve spring kit, PSI, PN PSI-1516ML
Titanium retainer kit, Brian Tooley, PN SR007-16
Seals, Brian Tooley, PN VS LS Hat kit
Locks, Brian Tooley, PN VL7*8MM-32
Shims, .015, bag of 16, Brian Tooley
Shims, .030, bag of 16, Brian Tooley
Oil pump, Katech, PN KAT-A2390
Still to buy:
Head gasket (L), FelPro, PN 1161 L041
Head gasket (R ), FelPro, PN 1161 R041
Camshaft
Pushrods, Manton, PN 502
Re-using:
Oil baffle, Improved Racing
L92 bare heads, unported, milling TBD (long lead time on heads I truly wanted)
ARH 1.75" headers (2-3 week lead time on ARH headers)
LS7 clutch with Fidanza flywheel (Clutch still looks great after 10+ years, so does the steel insert)
While the car is in the shop, we completely rebuilt the 10-bolt rear end with new Yukon axles, new Motive Pro gears, new Detroit TrueTrac. I seriously considered the 9" fabbed rear end, but my suspension is already designed around the rear OEM geometry, and altering mounting points changes angles etc. Didn't want to re-engineer that.
New Yukon axles:
Rearend rebuild setup below. The ARP ring gear bolts were incompatible with the ring gear, but the ring gear included larger grade 8 bolts anyway.
Wear on one of the old axles, passenger side IIRC; I'm the original owner and I don't recall ever replacing the axles before. If so, this is about 199K miles.
New ring & pinion and diff installed:
New axle installed:
On the lift
I thought about using some base paint to make this look nicer, but it's hard to see when the motors in the car:
Old dirty block disassembled:
Passenger side catalytic converter looking tired:
Driver side is better:
Mahle 4.080 pistons:
Rotating assembly layed out for mockup. Pistons are .0013" in the hole, going to deck the block to get them to zero.
K1 4" crank mocked up
Mahle piston mocked up:
Last edited by JimMueller; 03-23-2019 at 07:50 PM.
Cleaned the old pan baffle today and moved it to the new oil pan. Mocked up the crank scraper and there doesn't seem to be any clearance issues with the rotating assembly or the new oil pan. Not sure if the original pan would have had a problem, we didn't take the time to clean it.
04-20-2018, 08:32 PM
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