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What did you do to your Monte Carlo today?


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The way i look, at it is atleast im not doing 1/4 panels and floorpans. This is not really alot compared to others im sure we have all seen.

1/4 panels are not bad if you pay someone to do it. LOL.
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Had a few issues I wanted to look at today.  

 

Have a modest but irritating oil leak out the bottom so needed to inspect oil pan & vacinity and snug any bolts that show oil on bolt head.

Lubricate Chassis

Check Rear End Grease

Install second Hood Lamp

Simple Green and wash undercarriage

Add more sealer to intake manifold bolt where oil is seeping from.

 

No to bad right?  Well, my 1st bad omen was jacking up car.  Front up in air and when positioning jack stand on one side under frame, it got caught up and couldn't dislodge it.  

Only the one jack stand under her and I went to lift jack a little higher and jack slipped!  Care fell on front side without jack stand and I was just lucky nothing was damaged and other jack stand held!

Once I got up the nerve to do it again, everything went well.

Installed a second under Hood Lamp.  Got my holes drilled and when tightening nuts, the wire loom detached right at the Bulb assembly!  GREAT!  Poorly crimped wire on a new part!  Spent additional

time disassembling the body of the lamp and then open up the crimps, insert the wire back into the housing and crimp wire until secure, and reassemble lamp body.  I haven't actually secured the hot end of the wire as yet to hot lead.  Got to late and really needed a soak.  All was accomplished and headed for the garage to put her to bed.  Opened garage door, drove car inside inching it up and when I stepped on the brakes,

pedal went to the floor.  Car hit some boxes of stuff up in front against back wall, one being some liquid laundry soap I store in garage.  Soap bottle cracked open spilling liquid soap over floor.  

That probably saved front end from any minor damage.  It was at that point I just had had enough problems in one day, so got out, walked outside, closed garage door, jumped in truck and went home,

drew a bath and spent the next couple of hours there.

Tomorrow I will look to see what went wrong.  It is really going to smell nice in there tomorrow with all that liquid soap on floor.  Will clean that up once I found problem with brakes.

I really shouldn't complain considering if it would have occurred on the way home!

 

Anyway, that was my day today! 

Tomorrow, a new Day & a new attitude (I hope)..................... 

I have a pic guys of the 2nd under hood light attached, so yes, it did happen........

 

Doug

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Doug,

In a case like this you have to look at the bright side.  When you stop to think about all the really bad things that could have happened, when your bad things did happen I think you could say maybe it was not such a horrible day after all.  When she fell off the jack/jack stand there are so many ways it could have damaged her and when the brakes failed..... well, I don't even want to go there but since she had a soft landing and all that was lost was some liquid soap bottles rather than the Monte then again, It was a better day than it could have been.....  Does that make sense?

rob

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I understand Perfectly Rob and honestly, that is how I eventually rationalized it.  When the brakes failed, the 1st thing I thought was "Glad here & not there" and yes,

even the jack stand I know I dodged a bullet vs. what could have happened to the car.

Frankly, I just needed to :cry: . 

Thank you for your thoughts Rob. Your comments even made me feel better............... :coffee2:  "I said better", not Great............... :rofl: 

 

Doug   

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You know what the most valuable lesson we can teach, share and encourage... SAFETY. I am glad all was ok. Now as for last nights fit of inspiration...

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Got her washed and waxed and all ready for the car show tomorrow. See if I can take home some hardware this year.

 

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45 years ago today, I drove my new 1971 Monte Carlo home, from Bill Fox Chevrolet in Rochester, Michigan.

I was very excited, happy and yet a bit mad because there were two dents in the roof and one on the ft edge of the hood just above the grill.

Drove it with my Mom, Dad, Sister, nephew and younger brother to Parma, Ohio to visit my older brother. Driving South still in Michigan, on I-75, my dad asked how fast I was driving, I replied 80, he didn't say anything. Several miles later, I was pulled over and got a ticket for speeding.

Got to Parma, being 17 and not knowing where to go (the Garman wasn't working I guess) My older brother got behind the wheel and showed us the area. It started to rain so he turned on the wipers. After only one pass, the drivers blade came off, flying out into traffic. He shut off the wipers, stopped the car, found and installed the blade. Sure was a great trip! I am so very happy I never sold my Monte. Today was cold and raining so I didn't even start it up. (Didn't want the wiper to fly off!)

Good times!

Bruce

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Beautiful day for a car show. Sad to report no top 15 for the Monte but I got many compliments. Plus we had lots of interest in "The Love For Laurie" benefit so as far as that goes it was a success!

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Well I got to get my butt in gear as the 72 was suppose to show up at Carlisle next year. So today was work on the front alignment and finish up the last few wiring jobs in the car. 13221523_1176074332427538_47885994258053 thinking of doing something with space between the tubs. Trying to make sure the gaps for the hood is good 13254369_1176087822426189_6002787719666713221080_1176087825759522_75541595267416

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worked on the new brakes lines on the monte today or at least the rolling frame. Also worked on the 72 el camino today and thought this was cool when I pulled down the drivers side visor and am glad no one tore it off back in the day like most did,

Darren.

 

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Sanding on the factory non vinyl top of the 72 13240022_1179923965375908_86329104962432  Rear window all sanded smooth ready for primer and trim clips 13245435_1179923935375911_2336511720056413230071_1179923928709245_37367028156704 Front window got some love as it had a few bad places 13240044_1179923958709242_66364594340575 Next on the list is figure out whats wrong with the trunk lid 13240585_1179925112042460_37692421527286 sticks up on both sides in the same place.

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Went to a car show last Saturday the 14th and got a top 5 trophy. there were about 60 cars there and today we went to a show with about 70 cars and got a top 25.

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Yesterday. Worked on cleaning up the interior. Pulled the vinyl top out of the box and placed it on the car. Can't wait. Today,I repainted the fender wells satin black.

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Lookin Good Tony... Ya can't beat the look of the front end of a BLUE 70 Monte.  The 5 year badge looks great on your car.

rob

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ahhhhh it burns my eyes from the reflection in the bumper...ahhh too shiney....just kiddin :rofl:

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Today I completed my my chores (I think)!

Plan was to get the car where I could lift her up to inspect my flexible brake line replacement work & finish installing my auxiliary under hood lamp.

Once there, I realized I had put the brake line on 180 degrees off.  So loosened lower caliper nut, spun lower brake line 180 degrees and reconnected.

Brake bleeding was a snap so that's fixed.  Nice, things are moving along smoothly. :yay:    

Decided I should double check passenger side brake line for any rubbing on flexible hose and that was all good but, there was wetness on the lower caliper bolt that secures brake line

to caliper.  Cleaned up all round it and now will keep checking to see if it returns.  :no

Got under the hood and made a connection from auxiliary under hood lamp to hot lead.  All wired in and nothing happens!  I'm like no way, it was checked out before I even put it in.

The lamps are fused in line so pulled the sockets apart and guess what!  The fuse on that passenger side (NOS) auxiliary lamp is blown and of course is broken as well, Some fun getting the pieces out without destroying the sockets.

Battery was not hooked up and assembly was completely attached before I hooked battery back up.  Anyway, replaced the fuse and still would not light but fuse remained good.

While playing with the wires, the lamp would flicker on and off as if it were winking at you.  Now keep in mind, this item was NOS, never been installed but yet does not properly function.

Here I am thinking that these particular projects are causing way more grief than they should.  Anyway, there seems to be a short in the wiring of the lamp and can find a sweet spot for

it to light the lamp.  That discovery was determined once I discovered the reason the lamp wouldn't light initially was, the angle I have that lamp mounted is to low and lamp is only on

verge of lighting up when hood is full open, thus the flickering.  So, now that that's remedied I can relax.

Not So Fast!

I notice a small puddle of anti-freeze laying in a lower Intake Manifold pocket at a engine front location.  Now trying to keep anti-freeze in the old girl seems impossible!  Can't tell you how many times

I have revisited this same issue believing it was finally cured.  The thermostat housing was the biggest issue and after replacing a few gaskets and then finally sat a piece of sandpaper on a metal table

flat surface sanding housing contact surface to clean up pitting and also for flatness and that seems to be holding for now.  So now the leak looks to have moved to the heater hose going into the intake manifold.  I removed the hose and had a little difficulty getting the fitting out of the manifold because I hard plumbed the fuel delivery system and sits right over top this fitting.  With some jostling I got it out, brother offered me a much better replacement

that I used in it's place.  Once threads sealed, replaced fitting and reinstalled the hose.  I start the car and watch for any leaks and notice fuel dripping out of connector fittings in the hard line.

Okay, here we go again!  I'm starting to feel like the little dutch boy trying to plug all the dam(n) leaks!

First off I discover one of those fittings to be finger tight (oops) my bad!  I promptly remedy that but the leak is persisting & not at that location.  So I move further down the line where

the leak is showing and even though tight, I gave the fittings another torque and that cured that!

 

Now it's getting late and need to get car put away.  So without further incident, drove car to garage and put her to bed.  Next few days look pretty iffy, so will have to wait for a real road test.

Just to recap how prolonged these leak problems are, on our way to Nevada a few years ago, my water pump sprung a leak.  It blew a piece of the gasket that is between water pump

and the block and water poured through there.  Really a bizarre incident but that is how these leaks seem to appear out of the clear blue sky.

I do hope I am finally getting them addressed.  

 

Okay, much longer than I intended but wanted to share my frustrations other than with the tools that were near enough to throw :rofl:

Got home, soaked for awhile and now just :coffee2: .  A perfect end to the day....................

 

Oh yeah, pic of both lamps burning included.  

 

 

Doug  

 

 

 

 

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