57 Chevy Wagon - Californa Dreamin'

[nsb29]

Don’t know what happened I don’t see my post at all but my 6l80e doesn’t have a dipstick it has an over flow tube. When I took it out the first time my shifts were sluggish so when I checked it again it was a 1/2 qt low. Twice now I have stepped on it at about 20mph and had what felt like it lost suction for about a second mid Second gear I’m going to add another half court and see if that solves the problem. I agree with mongo that trans would be a concern especially if you went on a long Road trip

[Vic1947]

Originally Posted by mongocanfly

I'd be looking for a new trans after what you've been thru...I just wouldnt trust it
I have a zr2 blazer..while riding in the woods, a stick flipped up and destroyed that big plug on the trans side..had to replace the harness in the trans...with it messed up ,it wouldnt go in 1st or 2nd gear

Originally Posted by nsb29

Don’t know what happened I don’t see my post at all but my 6l80e doesn’t have a dipstick it has an over flow tube. When I took it out the first time my shifts were sluggish so when I checked it again it was a 1/2 qt low. Twice now I have stepped on it at about 20mph and had what felt like it lost suction for about a second mid Second gear I’m going to add another half court and see if that solves the problem. I agree with mongo that trans would be a concern especially if you went on a long Road trip

My brother-in-law, Rick, is pushing me in the same direction. Says that case must have really been whacked some time in the past and they should replace it all (with apologies!). I sent an email to Ohio Speed detailing what was happening and will see what he suggests. Chuck was the middle man in the transmission deal so I don't know how much help he can be. He didn't respond to my last email after I repaired the cracked pressure port boss. Hope I haven't ticked him off and lost his support.

It's not like I can't get it fixed. There are several quality shops in our area. The problem is that there's a lot of wiring and plumbing packed like sardines around the trans. Taking out the trans would require a lot patience - and even more going back in to avoid pinching the harness. If there's any way to make it right I'd prefer that to starting over.

That said, one thing I learned the hard way as a field engineer for Schlumberger many years ago is that when a job started to go kaput, it just kept getting worse. If a tool failed downhole, getting a replacement via hotshot was rarely the solution. It might fix one thing but something else would crap out - and so it went. Some days it was just your turn to suffer. But a wise old engineer told me early on, "Son, I ain't never been on a job that didn't end." And he was right. We either fixed it all and finished up or we got ran off, but either way we got to go home.

[Low Elco]

Indeed. Looks gorgeous outside, Vic. Hope the rest sorts out soon.

[Vic1947]

Originally Posted by Low Elco

Indeed. Looks gorgeous outside, Vic. Hope the rest sorts out soon.

Thanks, Chip. I'm communicating with a FITech rep as we speak to see if I can get a base transmission calibration to input with the handheld. I spent part of today plumbing a -4AN line from the pressure port to the firewall to connect a line pressure gauge for road testing. Will post details when I have pictures.

[67C10Step]

So very nice. Love it.

[Russell Ashley]

That wagon is beautiful from top to bottom. I've followed the build all of the way through and you have done some impressive work. The transmission problems disappointed us all who have been on board, as we are all car people and have at one time or other had to re-do something that we didn't want to re-do. Because you have found two cracks already my thought is that you probably ought to go ahead and replace the case. I would be afraid that sooner or later fluid would find it's way under or through the JBWeld patches and start leaking again.

[Vic1947]

Originally Posted by 67C10Step

So very nice. Love it.

Thanks!

Originally Posted by Russell Ashley

That wagon is beautiful from top to bottom. I've followed the build all of the way through and you have done some impressive work. The transmission problems disappointed us all who have been on board, as we are all car people and have at one time or other had to re-do something that we didn't want to re-do. Because you have found two cracks already my thought is that you probably ought to go ahead and replace the case. I would be afraid that sooner or later fluid would find it's way under or through the JBWeld patches and start leaking again.

Thanks, Russell. I'm with you on the case deal. In fact, this weekend I did some research on replacement cases and it turns out there are two types that could be what I have. One is designed for a pump with an integral o-ring seal groove and the other has the groove in the case itself. I haven't been able to identify which version I have. Will need to do some deeper digging.

I'm also leaning toward replacing the converter. What they sent with the transmission is a 10" converter with a 3000-3200 rpm stall speed. Based on my experience, a converter like that is more suited to the drag strip than the street. Even though it's a lock up style, I think the clutch disc(s?) end up doing most of the work. The guys at HRE seem to think they can make it work. But if I have the trans out to fix the problems with the case, I'd feel better going with a larger, tighter converter. Keeping my fingers crossed that I hear from HRE this week to get started. Not knowing what's going on is killing me.

[Vic1947]

Car is on its way to Hot Rod Express for some adjustments and transmission service. Had to winch it onto the trailer as it was unable to drive up the ramps. Pretty disgusting, but I have faith they can sort it all out.

[Ol Blue K20]

I hope the trans issues get sorted out.

[Vic1947]

Originally Posted by Ol Blue K20

I hope the trans issues get sorted out.

Me too, Dale. Otherwise, my brother-in-law Rick's prediction that it will be a trailer queen may end up being true.

[Low Elco]

I wish you the best with it. They're pretty good dudes, hopefully they'll get it straightened out.

[Vic1947]

Originally Posted by Low Elco

I wish you the best with it. They're pretty good dudes, hopefully they'll get it straightened out.

Thanks, Chip. I got a call from Rick yesterday evening with an update. They discovered that the FITech program in the ECU had no values set for the trans. They input some basic parameters and got the line pressure where it should be and the transmission now seems to be working. They'll know more when they go for a test drive.

The throttle position sensor wasn't working, so they had to replace it. After doing that, they discovered the throttle cable was only opening to 78%. When they adjusted it, the ferrule on the end popped off, so they had to order a new cable which should be in today. They set the ride height to the specs in the RS chassis manual which will allow them to align the front end. Then it's off to Belton for tuning on the chassis dyno. I'm hoping I'll have a running, driving car in the not too distant future.

[mongocanfly]

Good deal

[Low Elco]

Whooo Whooo! Good news! Who's tuning in Belton?

[Ol Blue K20]

Some good news!!!

[Vic1947]

Originally Posted by mongocanfly

Good deal

Yes it is, Greg!

Originally Posted by Low Elco

Whooo Whooo! Good news! Who's tuning in Belton?

You bet, Chip. Tuner in Belton is Todd Knight. Drag races on weekends so he only works Mon-Thurs. Pretty good gig if you ask me.

Originally Posted by Ol Blue K20

Some good news!!!

Finally, Dale, I was beginning to get worried this whole deal was fixing to get even more expensive. They have it ready for front end alignment on Monday and tuning after that.

[Ol Blue K20]

Originally Posted by Vic1947

Yes it is, Greg!

You bet, Chip. Tuner in Belton is Todd Knight. Drag races on weekends so he only works Mon-Thurs. Pretty good gig if you ask me.

Finally, Dale, I was beginning to get worried this whole deal was fixing to get even more expensive. They have it ready for front end alignment on Monday and tuning after that.

Woo hoo!!! Sounds like you'll be driving it soon!

[Vic1947]

Originally Posted by Ol Blue K20

Woo hoo!!! Sounds like you'll be driving it soon!

Rainy weather has us in a holding pattern, Dale. Thought we might get a couple of days come this Monday and Tuesday, but the closer we get the crappier the forecast.

I went down to HRE today and spent the morning putting a radius on the edges of the holes feeding the idle air control. There was one hole with a big burr on it from the machining process that was tough to reach but I got it. From what I've read, smoothing those edges can reduce the whistle in the IAC significantly. The car was covered up and right in the middle of the shop, so I was reluctant to start it up and see if it made a difference.

There's a drilled hole that has me wondering though. Most aftermarket throttle bodies have a tube pressed into the TB that intersects the smaller hole located in front of the throttle blade. It would appear the tube is meant to be a vent for crankcase ventilation. However, mine is plugged with a pipe plug. Which means as air flows over the opening, it's like blowing across the top of a test tube. And we all know what kind of noise that makes. I went ahead and put a radius around the edge of that hole, but I'm thinking I may need to seal it off entirely.

I ended up with a few small places where the Dremel tool skated on me a little, but nothing serious. It's a bit nerve wracking, though.

[Ol Blue K20]

Let's hope it works. Those burrs surprise me, I would of figured they would be cleaned up before being sold.

[Vic1947]

Originally Posted by Ol Blue K20

Let's hope it works. Those burrs surprise me, I would of figured they would be cleaned up before being sold.

Me too, Dale. One of my best buds owned a precision machine shop and he always said you can tell the quality of a shop by the way they deburr their parts.

No luck so far getting the car to the tuner. Not entirely sure he wants to mess with it. We had a nice day yesterday, but he said one of his racing buddies needed some work done so he gave away my spot. Decided to go ahead and drive it home now that the trans problem is pretty much sorted. It handled and rode great on the drive home, but once I got into stop and go traffic, the temp gauge crept up above 200+. When I got home, I popped the hood with the engine still running only to find the fans weren't working. Pulled the relay module today and found a bad connection. But while I was at it, I rewired the relays for a conventional two relay setup. Now each relay operates a single fan at full speed rather than both at half or full speed like before. One less gizmo to fail somewhere down the road. The radius work I did on the IAC openings seemed to help a bit. I still need to tape over the unused vacuum port and see if that quiets it down even more.

HRE was unable to get the AC system to hold vacuum. They traced the problem to the seal around the compressor shaft. They ordered a new compressor from Vintage Air but I'll need to set it up in the mill to remove one of the mounting ears. It's in the way of the block that attaches to the fittings with the service ports. Glad I decided to do it myself as the labor is free.

They left the line pressure gauge taped to the windshield for the drive home. They want it on there when it eventually gets to the tuner. There's still a small amount of flutter in the pressure in 1,2 and 3 but it's a steady 200 psi in overdrive. They ended up putting an extra quart and a half in it to get the pressures to settle down. Prior to that the needle on the gauge was all over the map. Most of the trans settings in the program are defaults, so I'm hoping the guy doing the tuning can make it even better.

[nsb29]

When you have a complete build you always have some issues but you have had your share that’s for sure. I have a three relay set up on my fans with the AC on they both run on low and you hardly hear them I left it idling in the driveway with
ac on The other day to see if I can get the high-speed fans to come on, they were LOUD

[Vic1947]

Reduced fan noise was the reason I had the three relay setup to start with. I may have been a bit hasty to throw it under the bus, but at this point, anything I can do to simplify my life takes precedence. I did leave the third relay in the module box, so if the noise gets on my nerves, I can rearrange the wiring and be back to the original scheme.

[Ol Blue K20]

I'm glad we're getting the problems solved. Little bit at a time and it will get done!

[Vic1947]

I've arrived at a crossroads of sorts. This past week, I drove the car home, and while it was mostly fine, it was not entirely without issues. I comforted myself by believing the small problems would be solved by the tuner. To prepare for the session with the tuner, I attached my laptop to the FITech hand held controller to download the necessary program drivers for the ProCal software. Somehow in all of that, I overwrote the changes the guys at Hot Rod Express had made to the ECU calibration and now the car won't start. I used the hand held controller to reenter as many of the parameters as I could remember, but no luck. Engine just backfires when you crank it and refuses to start.

As the problems with the engine and transmission have multiplied, I've become disenchanted with the whole computer controlled / EFI thing. I've told more than one person I should have had my head examined for going this route after the issues I had with the GM Connect & Cruise package in my truck build. This is even worse because of the scarcity of people familiar with FITech around here. I get the feeling the drag racing guy down in Belton that's supposed to know how to tune these setups isn't all that interested in my deal.

Furthermore, I've come to the conclusion I'm too old to acquire and retain the knowledge needed to properly setup a system like what I have on the wagon right now. There are just too many landmines that lead to poor performance or outright failure. Like Dirty Harry famously said, "A man's gotta know his limitations." And more than anything, I hate having to rely on others for help.

So I'm thinking the time has come to throw in the towel on the FITech/4L70E. I think I can convert to MSD/Holley intake/FST carb/TH700R4 and peddle the parts I take off. With any luck, I might almost break even on the exchange and end up with a system I can work on without being at the mercy of others.

The EFI setup looks nice, but that's about the only thing it has going for it.

[mongocanfly]

Oh my...