ddiddle

Mine came with air shocks and they deal with the sag, but as others have pointed out in other places, the better way to go is with elco springs. The shock mounts were not designed to carry the weight of the car. The spring mounts are. That said, mine does not ride hard at all. Granted, they're not "full" of air...only about 25 pounds. It gives me the right stance without a hard ride. When I was a kid, I had air shocks on my Nova pumped up to something like 70 pounds. I wanted a stupidly serious rake. It rode like it had no springs at all. Back then I thought that was kewl.

Hey Scott, I'm going to try out the "sponsor" language on my wife. If I live through it, I'll let you all know how it goes...

Well, I finally got the bugs washed off of it from the trip last weekend...much better. Cleaned it all up and covered it, hopefully not for the last time of the season. I also discovered I have a ball joint that needs replaced. I think that's what the clinking noise and jarring sensation was that I/we were trying to figure out a couple months back.

In any research I did on this topic, I was never able to find someone with one of those on their car as new. The assembly manual does not show one for 1970 either.

Since it's been sunny and 80 these days and clear at night - quite unusual for KY for this time of year, I decided to take the Monte on a 220 mile round trip I had to make as a board member of a little Christian school. It was expensive , but fun, and with no unwanted drama. This was the first night it's been ungaraged for at least 6 years. However, it got lots of attention. People kept coming up and talking about it at the motel - I didn't get to bed until well after 11:00. Got lots of thumbs up on the freeway too...it handles 80 (at 2900 rpm ) very well. Here we are parked at Paul's Motel - Jackson, KY. Here's a random shot - just showing off the paint job (that I didn't do.) It was pretty dusty, but still... BTW, that tractor is another project.

I posted this in the e-bay section, but it probably ought to go here. This guy, Murph, is selling refurbished clocks on ebay, but he will repair our own factory pieces for $50.00 including return shipping. I wrote to him...his response is below. I also got his permission to post this. Seems like a good deal to me. Imagine...a clock that actually works! "I will service your clock. It needs to be in good shape to start no major rust or water damage. I will perform the same services as described in the auction. Not only will I repair the movement but will strip and repaint hands if needed. Remove any surface rust on the case and reseal it to prevent any future corrosion. Buff and polish the lens to remove any lines or scratches. If the clock has any chrome I will buff and polish that as well. I charge $50 dollars and that includes return shipping. Please expect about a 2 week turn around. Here is my information feel free to send it anytime just let me know when it is on its way so I can watch for it. E-mail me back if you have any questions. Michael Murphy 3200 Hazelwood Ave Downingtown, PA 19335 610-380-8385 I would accept check, money order, or even paypal."

Is that all there is to it Steve? Dang, I'll go ahead and order the 425 HP sticker then. That's about 100 horsepower for $2.50.

Really Dennis? You've messed up our happy consensus. Does anyone have an all original 402 car that they can reference?

Thanks guys...400 Turbo Jet. Got it.

What you describe was happening on my truck and it was the wire boots - hard from the heat and were cracked. It idled fine, but once warm, try to get on it and it kept breaking down/hesitating.

Well, I found a blue Hot Wheels '70 model at Wal Mart. That's about it.

Hello All, Can someone tell me whether the number on the air cleaner of 402 cars was "396" or did they actually make a "402" sticker for the LS3? I know, well, at least I think, that in 1970, they were still the cross flags sticker. They went with the bigger one in 1971. Is this right? Thanks!

Ordered some parts today - a new ball joint, a repro wiring gutter for the firewall, and some repro straps to get rid of the zip ties.

Washed it and waxed the bumpers - getting it ready for a show our church is sponsoring on the 24th.

Nice work there. Are you on a lift, or on jack stands? Or cement blocks? I just ask because, dang, that's even more impressive if you accomplished all that lying on your back.

Oh, I don't know...it tastes OK to me...

The only thing I could find that seemed strange was on the passenger side, the arm (in the pic, the arm in the upper left corner) that contacts the auto adjusting mechanism was looser (more loose?) than the one on the driver side. On the driver side, it was very tight back against the adjusting gear, but on the passenger side, you could pull it out very easily. It was so loose that the spring that keeps the tension on the shoe (that little spring in the upper left corner of the pic) was not compressed or under any tension, but just kind of sitting there at an angle. Is there some kind of spring from the back that holds that arm against the adjuster that I can't see? And even so, would that cause such a "violent" sensation?

Well, I checked out all the bushings and they all look good, fairly new, surprisingly. Next step, take the drum off and see about binding brake shoes or something.

Great, guys...thanks! I'll take a look at those bushings either tonight or on Monday and we'll see what we can see. The front suspension was rebuilt, but I doubt anything was done to the rear. Darren, I've never seen any fluid anywhere around the wheel/tire/ground, so I'm hopeful there, but if the bushings look good, I'll be pulling the drum. I'll let you know what I find.

So I took my seven year old out for a doughnut after work today...never mind that it was 98 degrees here and as we were sitting in traffic, the monte temp gauge was touching 215. Yikes. Anyway it passed that test...no steam, leaks or drips. It was after we got home that things got strange. Backing up the driveway into the garage, there was a muted clunk that came from the rear of the car and a feeling like a shove to one side...like I'd tried to roll up on a curb but then fell off. I stopped, sat for a second, gave it a little throttle in reverse again and it did it a second time...and a third, then it seemed OK. The sound and the feeling like a shove sideways happened at the same time. Any ideas? Could it be the brake shoes adjusting? Is that how they work on this car? I've never had the drums off.

Mike!

You won those? Wow. Impressive. Congratulations!

Well, I finally got it started today. Strangely, it took a while. My first thought was that the Monte was jealous of the Park Avenue since I'd polished the PA's wheels today in full view of the Monte. In the end, however, I'd just flooded it. No emotional distress. No counselor needed.

Convertible conversion?