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FYI: I'm getting one assertive billy-goat station wagon!!
elagache:
Dear WeatherCat fans of a certain rascally wagon,
Biquette has been out of the news because there was one last component needed to allow her to at least get on her larger tires - a new axle. It turns out to be a long story, but I was persuaded to go with a Ford 9" crate axle. That would seem to be an impossible choice but a company called Currie Enterprises has adapted the Ford axle for 1964-72 GM applications:
https://www.currieenterprises.com/64-72-a-body-crate-rearends
One downside to the Currie product is that you'd better not be in a hurry to get one. It takes about 3 months to have one fabricated. So Biquette and I have had to bide our time this Autumn. However, eventually one such axle found it way to Orinda Classic Car:
As you can see, these axles come with your choice of brakes so Biquette has become the first car in the family with 4-wheel disc brakes.
It wasn't too much of a problem to install the axle as can be seen here:
The new axle fit nicely with all the previous suspension upgrades. However, those brakes . . . . . .
Nice and shiny all right. Alas, they required more fluid than the existing master brake cylinder could deliver. So a larger master brake cylinder and a different design of proportioning valve was required. Also, there was a problem getting transmission gears to match the speedometer to the new tires and rear end ratio. However, eventually this was all straightened out. Yesterday, Biquette was finally able to come home on her beautiful new Diamond-back white wall tires. For comparison, here is a photo taken a few weeks back with her 14" wheels and old tires:
There was a beautiful sunshine, but you can see now "ordinary" those old tires were. Alas yesterday was a cloudy day, but here is the comparison photo:
You can see how much larger the new tires are. The white-walls are also larger and nicer looking (at least in my opinion.) Here is another angle:
Better still, Biquette's beauty most definitely isn't only skin deep! She is performing much better on just about any parameter you can imagine. With the 3.20:1 rear end ratio, she is accelerating better. However to my amazement, nonetheless she is actually quieter! Moving the engine RPM up seems to put it in a better "sweet spot." She is actually easier to control and the transmission is shifting much more smoothly. The brakes are performing very well. I'm definitely very pleased! We have some of those digital speed limit signs that report your speed. I checked the speedometer against those and it does look spot on. So at last I can know what my speed is and can finally start tracking gas mileage.
As always there are still a few details to be settled, but at least Biquette is in large measure "finished" at least as far a the drive-train is concerned!
Cheers, Edouard [cheers1]
Blicj11:
This is one of my favourite threads on the forum. What an amazing project and the photos always allow us to get a much better appreciation for the restoration of this family heirloom. Thanks for keeping us in the loop. And of course we want to know what kind of mileage you get, if you drive often enough to figure it out.
elagache:
Dear Blick and WeatherCat automotive enthusiasts, . . .
--- Quote from: Blicj11 on November 16, 2018, 08:38:21 PM ---This is one of my favourite threads on the forum. What an amazing project and the photos always allow us to get a much better appreciation for the restoration of this family heirloom. Thanks for keeping us in the loop.
--- End quote ---
You are most welcome! Thanks to SmugMug, it is easy to keep track of photos and post them on any forum.
--- Quote from: Blicj11 on November 16, 2018, 08:38:21 PM ---And of course we want to know what kind of mileage you get, if you drive often enough to figure it out.
--- End quote ---
Well, I thought I would try to compute the mileage for whatever driving I end up doing just to see. However, getting her out on long stretches of freeway driving isn't very likely at the moment. Just to add to "fun," there are a few additional issues to be resolved. The brakes do work, but look at what Greg and the gang did to the rubber pad over the brake pedal!
Moreover they changed the oil and replaced it with oil for a modern engine instead classic car oil. So I have 6 quarts of specialty oil coming by UPS today and I'm still looking for a replacement brake pedal pad.
Always something!!
Edouard [cheers1]
xairbusdriver:
! ??? ! :o ! :( ! >:( !
elagache:
Dear WeatherCat users who like their cars to be spick and span,
As someone who is constantly struggling to keep up all the things I need to do, it should be no surprise that I didn't manage to give my trusty wagon her fall wash and wax until this past Monday. It is certainly the latest I've finished up with the cars. I use a foaming sprayer as a pretreatment. Somehow a car covered in soap suds reminds of me of how a dog looks utterly miserable when washed. Here is Biquette from the front:
Here is the foam rolling off the tailgate:
It was cloudy on Monday and the weather was bad until Friday when the sun finally came out. So I could finally photograph the fruits of my labors:
Here is the passenger side of the tailgate:
Here is the driver's side front:
Finally the driver's side view of the tailgate:
However late it was, Biquette did turn out very nicely! [bounce]
Cheers, Edouard [cheers1]
P.S.It was a good thing that I took those pictures when I did. Today the Tule Fog from the central valley spilled over into the bay area. Definitely no sun today to show off that shiny wax!
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