VR Senator with LSx454

[sands vsParticipant vs commodore View build HERE Member since: March 1, 2015 Posts: 619]

Back to smashing tires….

 

 

Will the new trans be painted orange too?

 

 

 

[VRSenator065Participant Adelaide SAVR Senator LSx454 1960 Kombi (project) 1921 Nash Hot Rod (future project) View build HERE Member since: February 17, 2015 Posts: 5 777]

You know what funny you should say that, I did consider it, but I think I am going to pass at this stage.  I got the last one painted properly by Frank, he has now moved his workshop to Moonta though which is a couple of hours away so there’s not really time.  I also thought given its a brand spanking Reid case it looks quite nice new and raw if you know what I mean.  I do think the pan looks a bit plain for my liking so I might keep an eye out for a nice polished ally one.  I am also happy the collectors etc are being ceramic coated, as I had modified the pacemaker ones a bit after coating them and so they were looking a little shabby.  I reckon it should come up looking pretty sweet again under there, which satisfies the OCD in me

[VRSenator065Participant Adelaide SAVR Senator LSx454 1960 Kombi (project) 1921 Nash Hot Rod (future project) View build HERE Member since: February 17, 2015 Posts: 5 777]

Well just got a message, the tail shaft is done and back, headers picked up in the morning

[VRSenator065Participant Adelaide SAVR Senator LSx454 1960 Kombi (project) 1921 Nash Hot Rod (future project) View build HERE Member since: February 17, 2015 Posts: 5 777]

Man just got back onto SC for giggles, my old build thread is bloody close to clocking 300,000 views.  Still blows me away, not bad for a back yard Commie build lol.

[sands vsParticipant vs commodore View build HERE Member since: March 1, 2015 Posts: 619]

Well its the best built vr/vs ever build in my eyes and the detail and custom work is top notch and its all legal. Most people are not mad enough to spent this sort of time and money on a old commodore. I know the obsession I have a vs money pit lol

[VRSenator065Participant Adelaide SAVR Senator LSx454 1960 Kombi (project) 1921 Nash Hot Rod (future project) View build HERE Member since: February 17, 2015 Posts: 5 777]

sands vs wrote:

Most people are not mad enough to spent this sort of time and money on a old commodore.

Yep, never a truer word spoken.  Lost count of the number of people who would say “why waste your money on a bloody Commodore”  But like I have said, I love Camaros, Monaros, Corvettes etc, but really what could I have done to one of them that hasn’t been done already?  In a weird ass sort of way the fact I have done it to a Commodore is what makes it different.  And it being fully legal I think sets it apart from even a lot of those old school cars.  I will be able to rock up to any car show even if the cops are there and feel “safe”.  And I just love driving it, looking at it, starting it, showing it to people, even just talking about it.  I really don’t know why, that’s why we are car guys I guess, its an irrational passion.

[VRSenator065Participant Adelaide SAVR Senator LSx454 1960 Kombi (project) 1921 Nash Hot Rod (future project) View build HERE Member since: February 17, 2015 Posts: 5 777]

Bugger, little set back, ceramic coating (actually the post polishing) wasn’t finished until this afternoon, so will be picked up Monday.  Hopefully still on track for finish by Friday then off to tuner.  Fingers crossed.

[SLO 05LParticipant Casino Nsw07 nissan patrol wagon 3.0l cr View build HERE Member since: March 17, 2015 Posts: 38]

Sorry to hear about what’s going on mate, good to get updates on the weapon though, hope things look up for u and the family

[VRSenator065Participant Adelaide SAVR Senator LSx454 1960 Kombi (project) 1921 Nash Hot Rod (future project) View build HERE Member since: February 17, 2015 Posts: 5 777]

Thanks mate, all good though, life goes on.  We are hoping to have the glide in and running in the next few days, that will cheer me up

[sands vsParticipant vs commodore View build HERE Member since: March 1, 2015 Posts: 619]

Any progress with the glide?

 

 

Whats going to happen with the original gearbox out of this now?

[VRSenator065Participant Adelaide SAVR Senator LSx454 1960 Kombi (project) 1921 Nash Hot Rod (future project) View build HERE Member since: February 17, 2015 Posts: 5 777]

Funny you should say that, literally dropped by at lunch time to have look.  Looking great and now very close.  Headers are ceramic coated and in.  They are not done up tight yet as they want to adjust the pro ratchet cable before the collectors go on so they can get to it easier.

Drop box is in, it’s a beautiful piece of kit, although the console isn’t in so I can’t 100% verify yet the lever lines up with the original slot but looks like it will.  We decided to get some ARP bolts to hold the flex plate to the crank, I didn’t before and since its all open and easy to get too thought we may as well.

Tailshaft is done and ready to go in.  Grant is going to modify the exhaust to marry up with the headers, I thought about trucking it home and doing but really there isn’t any point, I am confident he will be neat, everything else has been.

Original gearbox & converter will be for sale, same with the Pacemaker headers, just got to get around at some stage to working out what I want for them and advertise them somewhere.

So all things being equal we should be hitting the starter tomorrow, then its off for a final tune, and fingers crossed, time to flog it for a bit and have some fun.  Heres a couple of pics of the drop box fitment, very neat bit of kit.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 2 months ago by  VRSenator065.

[sands vsParticipant vs commodore View build HERE Member since: March 1, 2015 Posts: 619]

Looking really good. So why does the final tune need to be altered is it to suit new gearbox/headers or because it doesn’t have to be a strict now?

 

Can you put it in D now or is it fully manualised?

• This reply was modified 9 years, 2 months ago by  sands vs.

[VRSenator065Participant Adelaide SAVR Senator LSx454 1960 Kombi (project) 1921 Nash Hot Rod (future project) View build HERE Member since: February 17, 2015 Posts: 5 777]

Hi mate, final tune is because we never got it on the rollers after swapping to the ID750 injectors after emissions.  We did emissions with the LS1 stock ones as their performance was known at light throttle/demand, and I was able to score a set for free quickly to use.  But they don’t flow enough to support the full HP as it stands now or where I want to be.  So the current tune was enough to get it to run.  Now we want to concentrate on drive ability, as well as some power runs now it has the glide.  We are then going to most likely drop it on the little dyno and see how its looking emissions wise as well, but that will depend on how much time we have available, the longer its on the dyno the more it costs and the less i am driving it, which tbh right now I just want to do!!

No its full manual, the pro ratchet is sort of like a sequential shifter, given there is only 2 gears of course!  And of course it also has the little magic red button….

[cava454Moderator 93 VR BT1 View build HERE Member since: February 20, 2015 Posts: 2 390]

So Monday next week we have little red button vids?

[VRSenator065Participant Adelaide SAVR Senator LSx454 1960 Kombi (project) 1921 Nash Hot Rod (future project) View build HERE Member since: February 17, 2015 Posts: 5 777]

cava454 wrote:

So Monday next week we have little red button vids?

hopefully……

[VRSenator065Participant Adelaide SAVR Senator LSx454 1960 Kombi (project) 1921 Nash Hot Rod (future project) View build HERE Member since: February 17, 2015 Posts: 5 777]

Well as much as I trust the boys at Norwood’s (and I do) I have to say I bloody hate having other people work on my car.  So looks like we (they) have got the exhaust almost sorted.  The headers collectors come out a fair bit narrower than the old pacemakers. So to keep it neat I decided to cut back the angled section, that then gave me a bit more straight to work with after it exits the cats, there was a reason for that…

So that allowed us to make up an extension piece so one day (in an OCD moment) I might make up a longer and much better 4 into 1 transition collector.  So rather than then having to cut up the exhaust (again) I will be able to just take out the extension and make the new header one piece incorporating it, if that makes sense.  I also want the cats bolt in so I can swap them out if i ever need too.

It does make it look like there is an excess of joins but I can live with that as they will never come apart until I do the new collector.  So just waiting to hear when I can come around and fire it up.  To say I am hanging for that is an understatement….

[cava454Moderator 93 VR BT1 View build HERE Member since: February 20, 2015 Posts: 2 390]

Makes it easy to drop pipes for when you race it also. Get a little dumps made so u can unbolt that short section and bang them in.

[VRSenator065Participant Adelaide SAVR Senator LSx454 1960 Kombi (project) 1921 Nash Hot Rod (future project) View build HERE Member since: February 17, 2015 Posts: 5 777]

cava454 wrote:

Makes it easy to drop pipes for when you race it also. Get a little dumps made so u can unbolt that short section and bang them in.

Yep that’s what I had in mind as well, tried to sort of future proof it, I hate redoing things that if you had put a little thought in could have been avoided.

[cava454Moderator 93 VR BT1 View build HERE Member since: February 20, 2015 Posts: 2 390]

That’s my specialty. If it ain’t done twice it ain’t right LOL

[VRSenator065Participant Adelaide SAVR Senator LSx454 1960 Kombi (project) 1921 Nash Hot Rod (future project) View build HERE Member since: February 17, 2015 Posts: 5 777]

Well, its taking longer than planned, surprise surprise.  How the hell did I ever think it would be drive it in, swap the box, drive it out….

Its the little things that get you.  So on the CAE headers for some reason they are made with the O2 sensors facing the outside of the car.  Trouble is it means somehow getting the cabling over the pipes to them, that’s near on impossible as the pipes are close to the underfloor (to keep them as high as I can) so we are just going to put blanks in them, but weld in new O2 sensor bungs facing in towards the centre of the car.  The braided fittings that took the lines for the trans cooler are in a slightly different place on the glide, so it means different angle fittings.  There’s a bunch of other little things that I want to get right also.  Like pretty much this whole build, if I just wanted to drop it in and go it would be on the street by now, but I really am trying to maintain the standard I have used so far.  All things being equal tomorrow should be fire in the hole time.  And yes Cava that brings me closer to frying some tires…

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