The car had an alarm and stereo system installed by the previous owner. It was not a pro job. The speaker wire used as power was the first clue. Fortunately, the main harness was not butchered in this process.
I used a SawZall to cut the exhaust away from the motor and removed the wiring and plugs and pulled the motor. I should have labeled each plug as I pulled each apart. That would have saved me some time later. I used a wiring diagram to trace the circuits so it was not a big deal.
Once the motor was out, I started to disassemble it to check for any obvious problems. I pulled the intake and accessories off. The valve covers and oil pan quickly followed. I knew that the stock 5.0 pan would not clear the steering rack so that was discarded. I used a stock 65 front sump pan and pickup.
With the covers and pan off, I could see that the 6 years that the GT had sat, had not done much to the innards of the engine. No sludge or rust. The coolant had turned to ooze though. I am putting a new water pump on just in case. With the spark plugs removed and some oil squirted in each cylinder, the crank moved smoothly.
This motor is just a place saver. I am going to use this car as a daily driver and in my spare time, I will build either a 331 stroker or maybe a 410 stroker. I am leaning toward the 331 since the shorter block will make it an easy swap. Anyway, this is for a future blog.
The wiring harnesses were pulled out and unwrapped. They were in good shape without any detectable breaks. I plan to put the computer in the glove box. The only thing I put in there is the registration and insurance cards, so this seems to be a no brainer. Also, I am putting the stock AM radio back in the dash since I have moved up to iPods. I will run a patch cord up to the console from an amp in the trunk. This will plug directly into the ipod. I never listen to the radio so why not go stealth?
More coming....
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