Riley’s 78 Monte Carlo — "Rolling the Dice"

[Sodee]

Clean Monte, it's always nice to find a 78' - 80' that still has the chrome bumper strips on it, most don't make it.
I had one of those oil drain valves on my Monte long ago, it's a cool design but I felt it was restrictive since it reduces the size of the already small hole in the oil pan.

Thanks, I was surprised too because of how they’re made, I would have thought they would have been gone long ago..

It definitely does decrease the size a bit, which translates to it taking a little longer to drain but that just gives you the opportunity to enjoy a beverage [emoji481]


Next week’s fun will be rebuilding the carburetor, and replacing vacuum lines and getting those rubber pieces that seal the doors around the glass..

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[Sodee]

It’s been a while but I’ve done a little damage....

Figured I’d replace the carb, since it looked like I had seen better days. I tripped and fell over this guy and was given an offer I couldn’t refuse.

Also decided to pull the valve covers and there’s a little sludge in there so I’ll be doing a motor flush to see if I can’t get things cleaner.. likely mineral spirits. I’ve seen some reviews so I’ll try that after I pull the oil pan to check to see what kinds of goodies I find in there (metal shavings, etc)

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[Sodee]

Meanwhile trying to get the reminder of the crap out of the trim around the windows so I can install the new stuff.... proving to be challenging to say the least

Also replacing the transmission filter (pan was leaking so I figured I may as well...) and found this in the pan. So I have to see what this gray glaze is and how to remove it. Definitely not what I wanted to see pulling the pan.

This is all the types of fun you get when you buy cars that are largely unknown in terms of maintenance.. oh well.


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[Sodee]

Tiny update... got the new transmission pan in, and installed. It went on pretty easily once I got the right gasket. Slightly higher capacity pan.

I’m waiting to grab fittings for the transmission so I can mount this guy to the front of the car, courtesy of a 2001 1500/2500 Silverado I believe.

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[Sodee]

Also, as I mentioned already I am going a more obscure route for seating. I’ve seen people fit other Gbody seats in these cars and that’s cool but I haven’t seen much that I like so I branched out. I got a quote for $800 to redo the dash, headliner, front and rear seats and door panels pretty much any way I want but I’m cheap / have other projects so I wanted more options. I have a friend with a XJ8 and really liked the interior, and the fact the back seat had a fold down middle section... and I wanted that.

So I found one and it fits a lot better than I expected. I purchased the bottom section first, to test fit (only $10, so why not?) and I’ll buy the top section soon. Then work on fitment, then securing it to the car. I haven’t done any upholstery work so any feedback would be great. Here is what I have so far:

I’m wondering if, to make things easier, it would be possible to affix the mounting points or skeleton from the old seats onto these cushions. Not sure, I’ll look into it when it’s light again.


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[Sodee]

Got the top parts of the back seat today (total investment in rear seats: $30) and was pleasantly surprised at how little I’ll have to adjust. I will need to make adjustments for the driveshaft hump area but nothing major. I also won’t have to hack up the car to get things to fit so that’s a plus.

The slender part that is closest to the armrest area that the seatbelt comes out of will line up with the rest of the seat after I bend a mounting tab down. One thing I underestimated was the roof clearance in these cars versus the Jaguar. It’s creating a pretty big blind spot so I may delete them with some type of leather cover or small black plastic plugs, but the good news is that I have a 60/40 back seat now. I will say, it looks at home back there.


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[Rktpwrd]

Got the top parts of the back seat today (total investment in rear seats: $30) and was pleasantly surprised at how little I’ll have to adjust. I will need to make adjustments for the driveshaft hump area but nothing major. I also won’t have to hack up the car to get things to fit so that’s a plus.

The slender part that is closest to the armrest area that the seatbelt comes out of will line up with the rest of the seat after I bend a mounting tab down. One thing I underestimated was the roof clearance in these cars versus the Jaguar. It’s creating a pretty big blind spot so I may delete them with some type of leather cover or small black plastic plugs, but the good news is that I have a 60/40 back seat now. I will say, it looks at home back there.


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Very cool, and looks great so far. Interested to see the finished product, but I think you need to replace your “B” pillar pieces first...!!

 

[Sodee]

Very cool, and looks great so far. Interested to see the finished product, but I think you need to replace your “B” pillar pieces first...!!

Thanks! LOL yeah I’m trying to find some that won’t cost $100 / pair but that’s looking like what the going rate is, no matter the color lol. The whole interior is getting SEM black or dark charcoal gray treatment once I’ve replaced all plastic that the sun has eaten [emoji846]

I’m also trying to work from back to front. The rear deck, and door panel carpet pieces will all use the same leather fabric, I’m still looking at samples for that.

Also decided that these won’t return to the car. I’m going to look at modernizing by attaching the reels to the rear deck like modern cars. Just question the integrity of the metal there. May bee further reinforcement.

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[Sodee]

Ideally, as I’m moving forward in the interior, I want to relocate the reels for the front seatbelts to the B pillar but I want to make sure it’s done safely. If I can pull that off, I’m wallowing out the back seatbelt holes and using that for cup holders sorta like 2000 era GMC full cab trucks that are in the door.

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[Sodee]

Small update, I went to get the front signal lights but got a few pieces for the interior.. it required me to drive about an hour but it was worth it. I have my C pillar plastics (the ones around the back windows) in order now, and the small pieces that hold them down on the rear deck for $50. I need to check my A pillar plastics, and see if I need those. Unfortunately he only had one good B pillar one so I left it.

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