My '68 SF ragtop had been parked since 2018. I had some concerns about the oil pressure, beginning in May 2016, and spent so long trying to determine whether it was the sender (a hassle, but not a huge one) or the pump (huge hassle with a 318) that the gas got old. Last time I'd run it was in May 2018, when it stalled half-in and half-out of the carport. Since then, it's only been pushed (back when BGE had to dig a hole in the driveway to replace the gas meter, forward after they were done). Until two weeks ago. We were having an uncharacteristically pleasant June--I didn't have to turn on my AC until 6/25!--and I mentioned on FB one day that it would have been perfect for top-down cruising IF the ragtop was running. An old friend asked what was wrong with it. Saturday before Carlisle, he came over. We put a few gallons of fresh 93 in it, along with two bottles of dry-gas, hooked up a new battery and fired it up--long enough to burn off the gas we'd put down the carb. We determined there were no blockages in the fuel line from the tank to the pump and from the pump to the carb, so...new fuel pump. Ordered it from Napa, got it two days later. Friend came over and installed it while I was still working and now IT RUNS! Hardly any junk in the gas when we checked the flow from the tank. It surges a bit when cruising and it's stalled a couple of times, but it fires right back up. I'm gonna run some more fresh gas through it, plus another bottle of Heet, and maybe install a clear fuel filter so I can see if anything's being dissolved in the tank. Most of the fuel that was left in it from '16 seems to have evaporated--I tried pumping it out a few months ago and the hose came out dry, and my 29-year-old locking gas cap almost refused to unlock, so I left it capless until we added the fresh fuel. Took it to its first cruise night since 2017 last Saturday! Apart from the surging/stalling, other things I've noticed are that two of my side markers are now out and my dash lights aren't working. No signs of rodent invasion, but there were a fair number of spider webs to remove. And wow, I'd forgotten how low the driver's seat is from all the foam crumbling. But hey, it's running! Oh, and the oil pressure issue that led to me parking it? Still not clear. I put a gauge on it in '16. Right now, 45 psi at cold start/fast idle, 25ish at slow idle, very low under load, almost zero after being driven a while--but no scary noises, and no smoke. In fact, it used to smoke a little out the left tailpipe, but isn't doing that now. Weird. Photo from its first time out of the carport under its own power since 2018.
My oil pressure haz been low forever. I add Moly D wen I chanje the oil to keep it from siezing up. 100 drops duz the trik. I put in a hi volume pump last year wich helped. Eazy on a 440.
Update, 9/22/23: I've taken it to a few more cruises and roamed around town some since July. I'd forgotten how much fun it is to manually raise a C-body convertible top by myself--I'm just tall enough to be able to reach both sides of the frame. As long as my back and shoulders hold out, I'm good. I really should fix whatever let all the fluid out back in 1999, but that remains a "one of these days" thing, along with redoing the front seats so you can't see the carpet through them.
No more stalling. I put another 10 gallons of 93 in it after driving it a few times. Gonna have to start filling it again eventually, since the gauge still doesn't work (I used to just fill it every 150 miles or so). One of the dead marker lights has resumed working. Still no dash lights, which is annoying now that it's dark when the cruise nights end. Trunk light sometimes sticks in the OFF position.
It now smokes like crazy from the left side on fast idle after a cold start, but only a little at slow idle. Still no "hey, I have no oil pressure" noises. Shifts were harsh in July, but have smoothed out with more driving. Brakes were touchy at first, but have now settled back to what passes for normal with this car, i.e., pulling to the left--which makes me crazy, because literally the last thing I had worked on before the oil light started lingering in 2016 was the brakes!
I haven't taken it on any drives at sustained highway speeds yet, but I've taken some 20-mile local rides and it seems OK so far. 45-50ish on Ritchie Highway hasn't raised any alarms. Got some cowl shake above 40, but it's a C-body convertible, so I expect that. The tires seem to have rounded back out pretty well. They're nine years old, but since the car lives under a carport, they haven't gotten as much sun exposure as they might have. The '67 has the same tires, but a year older, and it sits at the curb. I'm keeping a close eye on those.
Being able to drive both my old cars at will is a nice feeling, and one I've only had for a small percentage of the time that I've owned them. The '67 had a hard-starting problem for years that I only resolved in late 2016--five months after the oil-pressure thing with the '68 started--and then it ended up being down from late 2019 to July 2021 with an ignition issue that was misdiagnosed as needing a carb rebuild. And I thought maybe having both of them running again would stop other cars from calling out of me, but no... "Hey, this '84 Laser has a five-speed! That'd be a fun gas-mileage toy for $4500!" "Hey, that Coronet R/T in Idaho has factory air and it's only $33k! You could make that happen!" But where would I put a fifth car?? "You know you want it! You're not gettin' any younger!..."
Joined: Mon Oct 10 2005, 06:00PM
Location: 5000 ft above sea level
Posts: 1521
No, they don't stop calling you. In fact I guess the more your current fleet runs bad the more you need different ones. So likely the opposite. I don't know, I always want more