chazman

iTrader: (4)

Thanks oldtimer, that really takes me back. I can remember that all I wanted in 1982, was to have the Crossfire certified with a 4 speed.

chazman

iTrader: (4)

Isn't it something how all of those little fiddley problems can aggravate you enough to make you want to: 1) drive your car into the lake, 2) shoot it in the windshield or 3) sell it to the first guy that comes along.

However spending thousands on cosmetic or mechanical upgrades are not aggravating at all. Weird.

Jason E

1) My RS nickled and dimed me to death. The final straw was taking it WOT on the main highway near my house, for the first time EVER. My tach had the common 90-92 tach issue, therefore it read 1500 RPM too high at a true 3500. I never passed 5k on the tach because I never knew what the real reading was! I did the resistor mod on this board, threw the cluster back in, and went for my first run. "Wow, it isn't so bad after all!" I said after seeing my shift light for the first time in 5 years of ownership!!! "Hey, wait...what's that?" I see white smoke BILLOWING out the back, and smell coolant I limp it back home, pop the hood, and find my engine covered in coolant. The heater core divereter valve blew, and spewed coolant EVERYWHERE. I shut the hood, said "F it" to myself, came inside and put the ad on TGO right then. I'd had enough. In 5 years of ownership, the car was on the road for maybe 3 of them, as I had it apart so much to restore it. Once I shipped it to FL, the new owners love it, but even they've had issues with it. It didn't like the heat originally...every time it got really hot it flat out died, and wouldn't restart for hours. After much troubleshooting, he found a cooked ignition module. Then he had to replace the pinion seal, and the distributor was getting worn out. They love it (it was for the wife), and I'm thrilled it found a good home. I was done with it.

2) At least with upgrades, you can SEE and FEEL the money being spent, and its rewarding. The most fun thing I've ever done with a car was watch my 86 go from an ugly duckling to a swan. It was worth every penny spent. I even made a small profit when I sold it.

The RS was a money-sucking PITA that I should've had about $9k in...ended up with $14k in it, and sold it for $7,750 Oh well...I learned something at least. And now the new owners have a great car, and reaped the benefit of my hair pulling.

86WS6

iTrader: (1)

We seem to be fightng the rot factor on the Thirdgens more then breakdowns or mechanical issues. Rubber parts and seals rotting from old age and stuff. The only mechanical repairs I have had to do on the 86 since 2005 is an altenator, and an oil pressure sending unit. Lots of maintenance though. Everything else is more or less cosmetic. I guess that is how it works when these cars are only driven a couple hundred miles yearly, and are stored and transported in an air conditioned trailer... Of course I am so OCD, that everything has to be perfect, or I am stressing over it until it is.

Our daily drivers are an 07 Crown Vic, and an 08 Crown Vic. I run the 07 hard and constant, but that is what I bought it for. Old people go for comfort, and these are just about the only late model full size RWD full framed cars one could buy.

Still working on the 91 RS. Betty is putting up a fuss because I already own four cars, an SUV and an F-350 Crewcab dually. Add the two boats, and Betty thinks that I have plenty of toys already.

That ZZ4 engine does looks like a good choice for the RS.

Charles

82tarecaro

iTrader: (4)

I saw that you were trying to acquire the parts to make your cowl hood functional. I was just curious how you were going to make the electrical connection for it. Is the wire there for it in the harness already?

86WS6

iTrader: (1)

At first I thought about making an exception and making that one mod to the car. Very few people would question that it was not OE. Only the diehard thirdgen fans would know. Since than, I have decided not to make any mods at all, as once it starts it sort of like a snow ball rolling down hill.

As for the wiring, I have not looked to see if there is a provison or not. I just bought a factory service manual for the 82 Firebird. Just for kicks, I will look at it and try to determine if there were provisions or not. Since only the 82 Crossfire cars had that option, it may not.

Charles

82tarecaro

iTrader: (4)

Charles - I know the later L69 cars had a functional hood scoop. I am not sure about the 1982 LG4 cars.
Probably better to leave her alone like you said.

86WS6

iTrader: (1)

Almost positive that the LG4 cars did not have a functional cowl induction option available until 1983. On the 82 Cross Fire cars it was part of the package. The 82 hood with the dummy cowl induction has all of the holes for mounting the cowl inducation parts, however since it was not a factory option, my car could not have come with it. As much as a functioning cowl induction impresses folks at shows, since it is not a factory item for the 82, it probably should remain a decoration as it was from the factory. On the underside the hood insulation covers everything. Everything is flat and one can't tell that there is a scoop from under the hood. The little black 305 with its flat air filter and single cold air tube looks pretty tame sitting there, but that it just how it is. One thing I have noticed is that the previous owner was using premium E-10 in the car. With an 8.6 compression ratio, 87 octane is a better choice for this engine. I filled the car with fresh 87 octane 100% gas, and the car seems to like it a lot better. The car runs smoother, and actually seems to have more pep to it, or maybe I am just getting used to it, and it seems faster... Either way, I am starting to like the car for what it is, which is a good thing. The Camaro RS is still a possibility. Betty assumes that I want it for a parts car, and is not as resistant to the idea of buying it if that is what it is for. I have not said anything one way or the other, so she does not know that I have plans for a street rod. Is it a lie of omission to let her think that the RS will be a parts source, than have a change of heart and build it? Maybe I ought to tell her that it would make a good base for a street rod, however I have not made up my mind what I will do with it. Leave it at that and see what sort of reaction she has? Seriously, Betty does not care what I do with the cars, she just has one rule. Everything has to fit inside of the garage. She wants nothing sitting outside in the yard.
Charles

kymmee

The stock 82 LG4 does not have the functional cowl. It has a standard flat air cleaner with the flex hose and hard plastic intake mounted on the driver side. The cowl hood intake has the black honeycomb screen or the solid plastic one. (At least the MSE does). The MSE engine is stock LG4 without the git kit added. We have that still in all the orig packaging and that has the 14" chrome air cleaner.

Glad you decided to keep her stock. I think "down the road" you wont regret it.

BumpaD82

MOD IT ! But make them reversible mods

~DaVe

86WS6

iTrader: (1)

We drove the car out into the Deep Creek picnic area in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park for a picnic by the creek. The car gets all sorts of attention from people, as it is obviously in perfect condition cosmetically. People actually approach me and ask questions about it. It sounds like quite a trip, however round trip was 10 miles. I stayed on the back roads, 40 MPH, so we would not push those OE Goodyears very hard.

The car reminds me of an elderly person, slow and creaky. Everything works, however everything is stoved up, moves slowly, and makes funny noises. Especially the power windows, power locks and such. Everything fits like new, so it is not a wear issue. The car has not seen much use, but has also not seen much maintanance either. The driveline is all working correctly.

My first projects for the car will include replacing all of the the fuel hoses, fuel filter, heater hoses, radiator hoses, and belts. Then onto the doors, to lube and adjust the window regulators, window channels, lock mechanisms, hinges, and such. I also plan to service the front wheel bearings, diff, and replace the brake hoses. I am going to replace the OE tires, but have no idea what brand and style of tire to use. It would be nice to use a replacment Goodyear, however the GT's available have no resemblemance to the OE tires, and I am not a huge fan of Goodyear. I am thinking about the General Altimax, since it is a decent performer, has an agressive tread pattern, and is an inexpensive tire to purchase. No point to spend a fortune on tires for a car that will be driven between 150 and 500 miles a year. I am open to suggestions though?

82tarecaro

iTrader: (4)

Kelsey tire makes the exact replacement tires. A bit pricey though.

82tarecaro

iTrader: (4)

http://www.kelseytire.com/pages/preformancetires3.html

KrisW

iTrader: (5)

BFG Radial T/A

They are priced well, last a long time, and always look correct on 80's cars. Of course I like the period correct white letters out, but you can always turn them in if you want black walls.

86WS6

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for the link. It's cool that Kelsey is making them. Even though they are correct for this car, they are out of my price range.

BF Goodrich tires do look good on our cars, and that is the tire that I ran on my 83 for many years. We also put sets of them several other vehicles, and they did not hold up very well.

When I upgraded the 83 to Michelin's the car drove like a new vehicle, however I hate to spend the money for a Michelin on a car that rolls 150 to 500 miles each year.

Jason E

That is a key problem here. Would I spend $1,400 on a set of "new" Gatorbacks for my IROC, when it goes 1k a year? Probably not. I spent 1/3 that roughly on my BFGs that are on it. Hard to justify. As long as its an American-made tire, that's what matters to me most.

For $200 each? Sure. $350? No way...

82tarecaro

iTrader: (4)

I bought BF Goodrich Radial TAs for my Turbocast rims. I am happy with them. They are period correct and look good on early third gens.

KrisW

iTrader: (5)

I've never had the BFG's not do well for me, but I only run specific sizes and types. On 15" wheels I run the radial T/As and I have gotten well over 40k miles out of the last set of 235/60-15. That's the only 15 I have run.

I run the sport comp 2 on my 88 in 245/50ZR16 and they are just flat awesome, but I think your car is only 14 or 15 right?

The 14s on my other car run BFG Touring T/A black sidewall and they get killer mileage and life too.

Atilla the Fun

When a car is awesome to drive, and looks right, then I'm a purist. In this case, I'm in favor of all the invisible mods: porting, cam, torque converter if automatic, axle ratio, polygraphite suspension bushings, and everything else that can be hidden. I'd remove and save the original exhaust, then do L69 / B2L exhaust manifolds, Mac y-pipe, Magnaflow cat, and some decent cat-back. Shouldn't be too challenging to hide any desired to the springs and sway bars. Still, save the originals. Likewise shocks & struts. And if the dash pad is cherry, do everything possible to keep it from cracking!

86WS6

iTrader: (1)

Dash pad looks perfect, as do the PMD seats. The only problems with the interior is that at one point the original owner stored the car in a garage with a window. The sunlight faded the tops of the plastic panels in the hatch area, an the tops of the rear arm rests. The car has the OE roll up blind in the back, so it protected the carpet and storage well door. The plastic is solid and smooth to the touch, just some of the color is gone. the seat fabric looks like no one has ever sat on it, and is not faded. The marroon color is a tough one to match, as they apparently only made it for the one year. I am thinking that a professional quality vinyl/fabric dye may be the best choice? As for mods, I think that the car will remain stock. The gear ratio is a 3:23, so it is not a bad combo for the limited amount of power this thing generates. If I were to do any mods, it would be a WS6 style nine bolt with a 3:27 gear like my 86 has, than a 700R4 trans with an 83 shift plate. The ZZ4 crate engine would fit nicely in place of the 305, however it seems like a bad idea to even start modding this car, as once it starts where does one stop. I still believe that a high mileage rust free car will be my best bet for a street rod...