The Mach Five Lives!
For those of you that don't know, the short version of a very long & complicated story is...
The motor siezed back in July after just having the rear sub-frame rebuilt a few weeks prior. Got into a shitty deal with a good friend for the motor you see in it today. Anyway, some complications with the shop, the previous owner of the engine, and then recently some personal family issues, all led to one hell of a lot of down time. But yesterday I had a friend drop me off at the shop with a fist full of cash and, after a couple of hours of replacing hoses & adjusting timing...
I drove her home!
The bad, in order of concern to me:
- Unbelievable valve tap. Sounds like a type-writer is trapped in the top of my head.
- The rear end is still off. By as much as 1/4 of an inch or so, everything is pushed to the left. It's all adjustable back there now (MR 4-link), so I'm hoping there's enough room for a good alignment to take care of it.
- The diff is whining like me without enough sleep at any speeds approaching 60mph.
- The engine bay still has a lot of frayed wires, worn hoses, & loose brackets. I really just need to get in there for a solid weekend and replace & tuck shit. It needs to be cleaned up pretty badly (as you ca see).
- Power stearing pump leaks. I've got a new one (thanks Russ), just need the time to put it on.
- Breaks need to be bled. Bad.
- Rear quarter is still fucked. Always has been. I don't really care, but it's letting water in the trunk every time the car gets wet, which is starting to lead to rust. I've got a shop willing to fix it for me as long as I can produce a taillight.
Anyway, still has a long way to go, but at least she's back.
Here's some pics of her as she sits this morning:
