moorepower

New front windscreen install and replacement of rear rubber while we were at it

Replacing headlights with NZ right hand drive headlights, brake drums and shoes, shocks, power steering setup, bushes, idler arm etc etc etc for Cert

Washworld mission to remove the 53 years of 1/2" thick dirt stuck to the underneath. Mission Failed. Nothing will remove that dirt

Project discussion //oldschool.co.nz/index.php?/topic/47720-moorepowers-61-impala/ I purchased the car from Tauranga in August 2013 from Trans American shipping. The car is straight out of Las Vegas. It has genuine patina and has been the daily driver of a big guy (drivers seat is worn) who liked football, betting and fast food ( I found hundreds of old receipts which he had lost down the back of the driver's seat) As anyone who has bought an American car would know, they don't really look after their cars in the same way we do. All in all the car was relatively stock when I bought it. I never intended on keeping it stock as it is not a rare car. If it was an original 409 bubbletop, that would be a different story. As purchased...

Yea I though about the water galleries not sealing properly. I put a thin bead of silicon around each one, then put the gasket down, then another thin layer of silicon on top, then the intake. I put a 1/4" bead across the front and back of the manifold and threw the rubber ones that came with the kit in the bin. I think they were Mr Gasket ones. Ill put a fuel pressure gauge on. I have heard the stock replacement ones can cause issues. I replaced the Fuel pump the day before beach hop last year, and it has been running rich since, but I put that down to the crappy stock 2 barrel which was on the car. Ill let you know how I get on.

It seems the temp gauge is sitting a 2/3 to 3/4 whereas it was always sitting on half before I had issues. Very rarely it made it to 2/3s if there was a long hill. The gauge didn't get to maximum deflection during our trip from Whangamata to Auckland, but I was cautious and put the heater on up the big hills. Recently I have changed the manifold and carb to Edelbrock performer and Edelbrock 500cfm. I changed the dizzy to HEI, put new 8mm leads and put new spark plugs in on Wednesday last week. The spark plugs were black with carbon on Saturday when I checked them out, but they were not oily. The timing defintely needs to be reset again but my timing light broke before we went away so I haven't got around to it. It is running a bit rich. I did an oil change at the start of Jan and have only done about 400kms since then. The oil was at 3/4 of the dipstick full line on Saturday when I checked it out, so yes it is using oil, but there are a number of oil leaks around the engine so it is hard to say if it is burning more oil than it used to.I think from memory I used the Penrite 25w- 70 classic car oil as well as the Morays oil stabilizer. I think a compression and leak down test is a good idea.

While we were away at beach hop my Chevy developed a bit of a problem. When the engine is re started after sitting for at least 5 minutes (even over night) white smoke comes from the exhaust while idling and during acceleration and will last for up to 5 minutes. Once running for 5 minutes or more the smoke disappears. I suspect my valve stem seals are gone. Can anyone confirm whether this would be the problem. Or if it could be something else?

I better cruise it to beach hop then. I shouldnt have an issue as long as I dont try to set a new land speed record. I have the intention of getting a 327 or 350 in the future, and put this carb and manifold on it. Dont need big horsepower in this car, just reliability.

Cletus, you could be right. Im not that clued up on these motors and these are the first mods I've done to it. There is a 3/8 hose which runs from the bottom of the carb to a brass tee, which has a 1/4" transmission vacuum and a 3/8" hose which runs to a fitting into top of the block behind the distributor. I only assumed it was a PCV. What difference would a draft tube make? Could this be causing excessive crank case pressure to blow the breather cap off the filler tube. Could the increase in air flow from a 2 barrel to 4 barrel cause more blow by if the rings are slightly worn? (Which they could be. Im unsure on the history of the motor as its a recent Nevada import)

Hi guys, I've got a '61 impala with an internally stock 283. Recently I replaced my stock 2 barrel and manifold with an Edelbrock performer manifold and 500CFM carb. The result is fantastic and the engine is much more responsive. One issue is when I took it for a blast down the motorway the breather cap on the oil fill tube came off. Luckily it ended up inside the engine bay. When I stopped I bent the two prongs out on it and put it back in its spot. On the way home, it came off again and this time I lost it for good. My understanding is that the air gets sucked through this tube, down through crankcase and is sucked up through the PCV valve and into the carb, with the fumes getting burnt in the combustion process. Im not sure if the viabration has sent it loose or if there is a build up in crank case pressure? How do I test the PCV valve is operating? BTW ive got stock script valve covers without any breathers on them. Has anyone had similar issues? Cheers Luke