Thanks. I did the 200-4R swap a couple years ago and just cut-n-spliced a TH200 crossmember. It works but it's pretty wonky. These parts are long overdue.
Grandpa Car: 1979 Cutlass Thread
- Thread starter DRIVEN
- Start date
Oil change.
Diff service with new cover.
Installed G-force crossmember. Before and after for comparison.
That poor, poor exhaust system. Had to shift the cat over a couple inches. Couldn't find a band style clamp so I'll order one at work tomorrow. Next spring I'll be doing new exhaust from the front to the back.
Also completed but not shown, installed Painless lockup kit.
Diff service with new cover.
Installed G-force crossmember. Before and after for comparison.
That poor, poor exhaust system. Had to shift the cat over a couple inches. Couldn't find a band style clamp so I'll order one at work tomorrow. Next spring I'll be doing new exhaust from the front to the back.
Also completed but not shown, installed Painless lockup kit.
So here's a review on the products...
The LPW rearend cover came from Ebay and looked great. It was the least expensive cover of this type but best of all it was unmarked -- no logo! I'm not a huge fan of free advertizing.
The G-force crossmember lived up to it's reputation. It was very well made and fit great. I ordered it with the frame extension and the only massaging I had to do was to enlarge the holes in my frame just slightly to accommodate the larger bolts supplied with the kit. That took all of 20 seconds. I know that you will hear/read the occasional complaint about fitment due to worn body mounts but it wasn't an issue for me. Also, it was no surprise that I needed to move my exhaust as the cat was in the wrong spot. When I do new exhaust next spring it'll look great. If I were to whine about anything, it would be the price.
The Painless lockup kit was just that, painless. The instructions were great and everything fit as it should. Once installed, it looks absolutely factory. I haven't had it out on the highway yet but drove it to the end of my street and could feel it working. Seemed to lock up sooner than I'd like but I'll reserve judgement for an actual highway test. Again, about the only complaint I might have would be price (see a pattern of thriftiness?) because there really isn't much to the kit. I know that individual pieces can be sourced cheaper and if I have another project that needs this kit, I may do just that.
The LPW rearend cover came from Ebay and looked great. It was the least expensive cover of this type but best of all it was unmarked -- no logo! I'm not a huge fan of free advertizing.
The G-force crossmember lived up to it's reputation. It was very well made and fit great. I ordered it with the frame extension and the only massaging I had to do was to enlarge the holes in my frame just slightly to accommodate the larger bolts supplied with the kit. That took all of 20 seconds. I know that you will hear/read the occasional complaint about fitment due to worn body mounts but it wasn't an issue for me. Also, it was no surprise that I needed to move my exhaust as the cat was in the wrong spot. When I do new exhaust next spring it'll look great. If I were to whine about anything, it would be the price.
The Painless lockup kit was just that, painless. The instructions were great and everything fit as it should. Once installed, it looks absolutely factory. I haven't had it out on the highway yet but drove it to the end of my street and could feel it working. Seemed to lock up sooner than I'd like but I'll reserve judgement for an actual highway test. Again, about the only complaint I might have would be price (see a pattern of thriftiness?) because there really isn't much to the kit. I know that individual pieces can be sourced cheaper and if I have another project that needs this kit, I may do just that.
Ordered up an AC kit yesterday to do my R134 conversion.
Went in to the shop this morning and did the deed. Evac.
Remove compressor, receiver dryer and hoses. Flush hoses, condenser, evaporator core with solvent and blow everything dry. Replace all O-rings and the orifice tube. Add oil to system. Reinstall everything and recharge to approx 2/3 R12 spec. Once the system is up and running I slowly added a couple more ounces until the gauge readings were where I wanted them.
One other component we've found necessary for most 134 conversions is to add foam around the perimeter of the space between the radiator and condenser. In this case there is almost a 2" gap. This is typically worth 5+ degrees from the vents.
Normally a compressor replacement isn't necessary for a conversion but in my case the original compressor was really noisy when I last used it. Once I got the system opened up I found that the system had no oil in it -- at all -- anywhere. There was powdered metal piled up behind the orifice tube and I'm honestly shocked that the compressor wasn't locked up. No huge surprise that all the threads in the new compressor were different pitch so I needed to round up a few new bolts as well. Now I shouldn't have to worry about it unless the 37 year old hoses start to leak.
Now this thing needs a bath.
Went in to the shop this morning and did the deed. Evac.
Remove compressor, receiver dryer and hoses. Flush hoses, condenser, evaporator core with solvent and blow everything dry. Replace all O-rings and the orifice tube. Add oil to system. Reinstall everything and recharge to approx 2/3 R12 spec. Once the system is up and running I slowly added a couple more ounces until the gauge readings were where I wanted them.
One other component we've found necessary for most 134 conversions is to add foam around the perimeter of the space between the radiator and condenser. In this case there is almost a 2" gap. This is typically worth 5+ degrees from the vents.
Normally a compressor replacement isn't necessary for a conversion but in my case the original compressor was really noisy when I last used it. Once I got the system opened up I found that the system had no oil in it -- at all -- anywhere. There was powdered metal piled up behind the orifice tube and I'm honestly shocked that the compressor wasn't locked up. No huge surprise that all the threads in the new compressor were different pitch so I needed to round up a few new bolts as well. Now I shouldn't have to worry about it unless the 37 year old hoses start to leak.
Now this thing needs a bath.
My car goes infinity...
Did a 450 mile trip to a car show this weekend with my brother and met up with my dad who came from Boise. AC worked great -- it was in the 90s. Cutlass ran great, as usual, and got 21mpg.
Did a 450 mile trip to a car show this weekend with my brother and met up with my dad who came from Boise. AC worked great -- it was in the 90s. Cutlass ran great, as usual, and got 21mpg.
Man, it's sooo nice having it working again. It barely worked when I bought the car but the compressor was so noisy I just quit using it. Been 7 years.
see what you made me do !!!
I came home tonight a grabbed the compressor and lines from the shed and put them in the car before I even had supper. Ill mock it all up tomorrow and drop it to the shop behind work this week ( I can see his whole shop from my dock door so there will be no test drives 🙂 )
How much was the kit and compressor if you don't mind ? I am hoping for a less than $1500 fix here LOL
I came home tonight a grabbed the compressor and lines from the shed and put them in the car before I even had supper. Ill mock it all up tomorrow and drop it to the shop behind work this week ( I can see his whole shop from my dock door so there will be no test drives 🙂 )
How much was the kit and compressor if you don't mind ? I am hoping for a less than $1500 fix here LOL
I get a pretty good deal through my shop and my labor was free. Kit was about $280 plus a few bucks for the 134a.
