Where do I begin? I guess I have to go back almost 4 years to continue on from as purchased condition in the previous couple of posts. The old 267ci was very tired and was due for a date with the scrape yard gods. I pulled the engine and sent it on it's way to the highway in the sky.
With no replacement engine on hand, I focused on the parts I did have. I replaced the rear bumper with a rust free part I had from an El Camino Royal Knight that was just too far gone to save. The replacement is in very good condition as you will see in the pictures once I round them up and get them uploaded.
The next project was to replace the rear axle. Upon inspection of the stock 7.5" open rear end axle, I found the left rear axle seals completely blown out and oil everywhere. It was of no concern though, as I had a nice positraction complete axle from another donor car. This one was a 1980 Grand Prix that I picked up for a $100 and the labor to pull the engine for the previous owner. You will notice a bunch of parts from this GP throughout my build. It was a tired old girl but I saved what I could. The frame of the GP can actually be seen on my driveway in some of the original purchase pictures in the first post. The rear ends were swapped with all factory arms in use for now. A bit of research shows that this axle has a 3.18:1 gear ratio that was a factory option in 1980 and I non-scientifically confirmed that with a count of wheel turns to a single pinion turn. I have yet to pull the cover and confirm this, but maybe some day soon.
Next up, the hunt for a power plant begins...
With no replacement engine on hand, I focused on the parts I did have. I replaced the rear bumper with a rust free part I had from an El Camino Royal Knight that was just too far gone to save. The replacement is in very good condition as you will see in the pictures once I round them up and get them uploaded.
The next project was to replace the rear axle. Upon inspection of the stock 7.5" open rear end axle, I found the left rear axle seals completely blown out and oil everywhere. It was of no concern though, as I had a nice positraction complete axle from another donor car. This one was a 1980 Grand Prix that I picked up for a $100 and the labor to pull the engine for the previous owner. You will notice a bunch of parts from this GP throughout my build. It was a tired old girl but I saved what I could. The frame of the GP can actually be seen on my driveway in some of the original purchase pictures in the first post. The rear ends were swapped with all factory arms in use for now. A bit of research shows that this axle has a 3.18:1 gear ratio that was a factory option in 1980 and I non-scientifically confirmed that with a count of wheel turns to a single pinion turn. I have yet to pull the cover and confirm this, but maybe some day soon.
Next up, the hunt for a power plant begins...
