Pete's 67 ElCo

[Not-a-number 2,734]

Need a ute to carry moulds for the engine project. So I got a 67 El Camino.

Picked it up in Tucson and drove it back to CA without too much stress.

Has the original 327 with camel hump heads and a modern (/80s) 700r4 trans.

Ton of things to sort to make it a daily. Like it doesnt run very well! Timing feels off or vac advance isnt working. Carb seems way too big.

It looks good from a distance but dont let the fool you!

 

 

[Not-a-number 2,734]

First job was to set up the TV arm correctly. Learning new things but it looks like the 700r4 really needs the cable set correctly or you can burn the trans out within miles  Its not just a kick down cable.

The arm was completely wrong but luckily not in a bad way. Needs a 1in leverage and was set to about 2in so it was driving the line pressure up really quickly.

 

 

 

 

 

[Not-a-number 2,734]

Started goin over the engine.

Compression testing @ about 155-165 but cylinder 4 is at 145psi. So I gotta keep checking that and see if it is actually bad.

Ignition was way off too. I had 35deg mechanical advance (excluding vac). So even with low static timing I was in the mid 40s which cant be good.

So I got a new electronic dizzy and high power coil. Now running 16deg static and 38deg mechanical with 14deg vac.

Works way better. It wasnt without its issues though. I didnt know the harness ran an internal ballast. So the coil was only getting 4volts and breaking up at higher revs. Then after I fixed that out the ignition key couldnt handle the higher current coil and started playing up after a while.

Put a relay in and fixed that.

 

 

 

[Not-a-number 2,734]

Adjusted rockers. Still a bit tappity sounding so not sure whats going on there. Maybe a stuck lifter.

It had a dead spot at tip in and surging at cruise. Im certain the timing is good now so went over the carb. It was all gunked up, wire brush in the float bowl and a bent metering rod. Gave it a full rebuild and its now great.

Have a new dash and engine harness to put in to clean things up. The fuse block looks ridiculous. Theres a lot of surface rust/corrosion under the dash but only from pedal height up which is weird. The rest of the car is great so I dont know if things just get humid under a dash? 

[Not-a-number 2,734]

Put discs on as it had scary braking.

Same old story, get in to install the discs etc and find the ball joints are gone. I get new ball joints and when I get to the 2nd side I find the upright is flogged out (scary).

So I do all ball joints and uprights. Then when installing the new booster find that the proportioning valve is in a completely different place with different sized fittings. So replace all the brake lines!