Avenga

Started work on the fuel system.

I am keeping the original fuel tank and the fuel pump and filter are sitting between the old tank and the side of the car.

Then there is a surge tank behind the original tank, there will be a lift pump on the other side of the original tank which will fill this tank.

Then the surge tank will go off to the main pump.

Finished off the transmission tunnel

Stripped the car down ready for panel and paint on Monday

Engine bay and transmission tunnel from below.

Rear end fully stripped

Finished stripping the body loom. Removed about half of the wires. Still need to make a new fuse box and a few connectors for where the engine loom and dash needs to connect. 

Traced and labelled all of the wires on the old loom.

Big box of wires that I cut off the old loom

This is the old wiring diagram. Everything with a cross through it has been removed.

Brought an alternator only pulley tensioner from http://www.thecartunecompany.co.nz/ I am not running AC, Power Steering or the hydraulic cooling fan, only running the alternator.

Created the inlet for the air filter

Looking down in to the air filter

The air filter comes out the hole for the old heater and sucks air in through the vent up by the window.

Created a box around the air filter.

Created the mount for the ECU.

Tack welded all the seams in the engine bay

Also tack welded and gusseted the suspension strut mounts

New custom drive shaft and hoop.

Finished off the transmission tunnel.

While I was taking out the demister duct I saw this cool sticker. It looks like it is the ID tag for an order of 50 left hand demister ducts. This one must have been at the top of a stack of them.

Designed an Avenger Hydra logo and 3D printed a couple of different sizes and colours

Tested them on the tailgate of the wagon.

Not quite happy with the H so modified it a bit.

Still not happy so gave it another tweak but I may go back to the drawing board. If any one know a font with a cool looking H then let me know

Pulled out a collection of old badges sitting around to see if any of them suit the car.

Ended up quite liking this pentastar on the front of the air cleaner.

Here is a view from further back

Also tried the Chrysler badge on the other rocker cover. Looks pretty cool. I might design and print something more in the same font as the other side. I will probably leave the Quad Cam V8 on the other rocker cover so it might look nice if they both match.

Ordered the air cleaner. It is freaking massive. K&N RD-1450. 7 in (178 mm) Diameter, 6 in (152 mm) Height, 4 in (102 mm) Flange

It is actually going to sit inside the cabin. Where the heater used to be. 

Started work on the air cleaner

It is going to seal on the bonnet, so the top will be open so you can see the trumpets when I open the bonnet and then the actual air cleaner will be in the firewall at the back of the engine bay. Still need to design the front plate, Not sure if I am just going to just use plain ali or do a logo or something else cool

Also test fitted some wheels to see what kind of offset I will need. It is actually a lot less they I thought. I and going to use 15X7 wheels with around a -25 or -30 offset. I think I am still going to have to go steel wheels because I can't find any alloy rims at that offset. If anyone know of any alloys with that much negative offset then let me know.

Next up I finished off my dash. I had to recreate this little lip around the bottom of the cluster.

So I drew it in CAD

And then printed it out

Fits perfectly when installed

It just closes up this little gap at the back of the dash.

Tested the fit of the bonnet, and it closes!!!! I won't need to do a power bugle or anything. Stoked that we could squeeze the big V8 and trumpets under the bonnet. It is going to be such a sleeper.

It is pretty tight under the bonnet so I am probably going to go for some slightly smaller trumpets and maybe drop the crossmember and engine down an inch

Added even more strengthening, this time on the panhard rod mount

And made a gusset for the other side.

Ran the rear brake lines. The flex hose connects up to the standard mounting location so I can use the existing brake lines from there.

And the other side. You can also see the new upper arms and strengthened lower arms installed

Finished the lower arms. We did some more strengthening by adding a gusset over the top of the lower arm.

Painted the Diff

Finished all the mounting brackets

And the other side

Some more progress on the exhaust. Did more of the Y pipe.

Started designing my new dashboard.

I designed it all in Fusion 360

Then printed it out on one of my 3D printers

Did a little test fit. Fits perfectly.

I had to print it in 2 parts because it was too large of my 3D printer so I made a little joining plate on the back on the dash. Also those little square bit up the top fit in to where the indicator and other lights used to be so I can screw it in from the back.

Installed the carbon fibre wrap. I will see how it looks in the car, might swap it out for just a matte black wrap.

Installed it back in to the old housing

Cut a whole in the back for all my data and power cables, you can also up the top see my where I screw the front panel on, the old dash was held in by screws on the back of all of the gauges that went in to the old PCB.

Tested it with the surround in place, there is still one more part that I need to design for it, which just goes around the side of the surround, where you can see a bit of light coming through

Started work on the exhaust. I am running dual pipe down to just after the gearbox, then single pipe out the back.

Had to modify the factory exhaust headers on the drivers side so it goes around the steering column. 

One runner sits on the left of the steering column and the other is to the right of the steering column

The passenger side is easier.

Still got some room between the exhaust and the body.

Mounted the diff

Fits in there quite nicely

Just have it tacked in at the moment.

Also made up the new upper arms to replace the old broken arms. You can see the old one at the front, and the new ones at the back.

There was about 150 cars.

Here are some photos.

We all parked up outside the old Admin building, which is now the headquarters of MMC NZ. There was another big field of car but I got there early so I could park in front of the admin building itself

There was this nice Avenger GLS Auto

And Miles with his Tiger

After that we went in the admin building for a presentation about Todd motors history by Mike Todd and Neil O'Callaghan (Service manager for Todd motors who has worked there for 45 years and retired at the Heritage day)

I have always wanted to see inside the Admin building because it has the funkiest 70's style roof. Each of these panels are 2.5x2.5m fibreglass panels made specially for the Admin building.

They had a whole table full of old service manuals

I loved the 50's cartoons on them.

After that we cruised up to the Southward car museum. Followed a Charger for a bit

At the meet up outside the museum I talked to the owner of this sweet single owner Valiant wagon. He ordered it custom from Todd Motors with a 318 V8 way back in 1973.

And also Mike Todd had his genuine E49 Charger there *Drool*

They put on a nice lunch there and then we got to look around the museum

After the museum everyone went their separate ways but as my hotel was literally right next door to the old factory I figured I would drive up to the factory itself and have a look around.

It is truly massive, at the time it was NZ's biggest factory. Now it is used as a distribution centre for tons of places like Big Save furniture, and is also home to a few freight companies, and a NZ post depot. But the one that I was interested in was the Placemakers because I saw they had a drive-through, it was just for timber but I drove inside the actual factory and got some photos of where my car was built 43 years ago. Pretty damn awesome bringing my car back to where it was built, a homecoming of sorts.

And then took a photo outside. You can see how long the factory is.

   
Then a rainy start to the drive back up to Auckland the next day

Some more photos of the clutch and brake setup.

Little clutch reservoir mounted on the firewall

Brake master cylinder next to it. We will be running a remote brake booster under the dash

The final mounting location

Started on the hydraulic clutch pedal and master cylinder. The reservoir will be mounted in the engine bay, next to the brake master fluid so I can keep an eye on the fluid level easily.