Five Years (+10) and counting

[Ford Blue blood]

Just OUTSTANDING Gary!

[gasman826]

More tweaking.  Moving the O2 sensor further down the exhaust to a cooler location.  Adjusting rear brake hoses due to 3" tailpipe interference.  Replacing the 12 year old, 52 miles, leaking rear shocks with QA1s.  Replumbing fuel system to add a check valve...EFI systems require pressurized system.

[djfordmanjack]

loving the period MI license plate ! The color couldn't be more spot on for your car ! VERY nice !

[gasman826]

I had that plate restored about 10 years ago.  The guy did a really nice job.  The two letters signify the county of the plates origin.  I looked at a lot of plates to find one from my county.

The QA1s are installed and initially dialed in.  The fuel check valve is in and the engine seems to like it.  The O2 sensor is moved and rewired.  Could be the engine likes that too.  Time for another test ride!

[gasman826]

I just got home from trailering the Custom to a tuning/dyno shop two hours away in the Detroit/Metro area.  Fingers are crossed that I get it back.  I even left the trailer.

[CobraJoe]

[hiball3985]

Good luck with that and I hope all goes well. I couldn't do that even if it was next door.
Will be interesting to see the Dyno results..

[gasman826]

Thanks.  Fingers crossed and insurance premiums paid.

[gasman826]

Just brought the Custom home from six months at the tuner shop in Waterford (Detroit suburb).  The dyno sheets are in!!  784 ft-lb torque from 3400-4600 RPMs and 677 HP at 5200 RPMs on pump gas.

781 FT-LB torque at 4400 RPMs and 692 HP at 5300 RPMs on E85!

[CobraJoe]

Nice numbers, and on pump gas too boot!   

[RICH MUISE]

and purty too! let's see, 5 years in an upholstery shop, 6 months in a tuner shop, man you're a patient sob! lol. Very impressive Gary. Is it done?

[Lgcustom]

Even if it's not done, it's REALLY nice looking! I've seen the work you put in to it and it's very impressive!

[gasman826]

The wife and I were talking about how excited she is to see it back and so nearly finished.  I'm struggling to find enthusiasm.  I've had this car for more than 20 years.  The frame-off is well over 12 years old.  The stays at other shops has been almost 6 years.  Patience...I just put it out of my mind like I didn't own it anymore so it wouldn't bother me.  The project is done and I would rather move on to the next one.  It is like a puzzle...it is addictive while putting it together but when it is completed, put it back in the box and pass it on to someone else.  I would not be surprised that within the year the Custom will be sold.

[lalessi1]

Boy do I understand completely...my enjoyment has always been in the journey and not the destination. Your workmanship, depth of involvement in the technical details is inspiring. I doubt if I will ever sell my car because there is always a "problem" to be solved creating another project around the corner. I always seem to leave a small thing undone in ANY project almost as a signature??? BTW I notice in another post you went back to a mechanical fan on this car, did I make that up?

[gasman826]

Thanks.  This car has always had a mechanical fan.  One of the major issues with the 460 swap is how little radiator and fan space.  The last engine cooling was marginal with a fixed blade fan and a '75 Lincoln desert radiator.  In traffic, I had to shut the AC down to keep the engine from over heating.  For this engine, I again reworked the custom core support for the biggest, universal Griffin radiator.  The new radiator was moved forward another 1-1/2" and made room for the Lincoln's 19-1/2" clutch fan.  The 557CI idles for long periods at the thermostat temperature.  Even on the hard dyno pulls, no heating concerns.  This is the same fan setup I'm using for the 427 side oiler and cammer.