Since the last update, I haven't really done a whole lot on the car as I'm getting ready to shift gears and concentrate on Project Olds Cool for a bit, but I did manage to knock out a couple little things.
Now that the air management system is up and functioning, I was able to more closely scrutinize the front wheel alignment. Particularly toe in/out and camber at ride height. While I had it as close as I could get it initially based on nothing more than my best guess and the 'ol calibrated eyeball, I needed to be able to have the car at its "for sure" ride height to get things a closer.
You might recall in the video a few posts back the front tires rubbed pretty badly on the insides of the front fenders on the way down. This is mostly due to the increased track width from the F body spindles and the Wilwood disc brakes, but also because I apparently didn't have quite enough shims in the upper control arms.
I just needed something quick and dirty alignment wise for right now, so with the car aired up and at ride height, I laid a large carpenters square flat on the floor, and up against the sides of the wheels. This told me roughly where the camber was at.
The passenger's side took two additional 1/8" shims to get it perpendicular, while the driver's side took additional 1/8" and 1/16" shims for 3/16" overall, front and back.
The toe adjustment was even less precise, I just used the calibrated eyeball to get them "close" to straight. A couple of turns in and out on the Hotchkis tie rod adjustors both sides got me where I needed to be. This helped the fender rubbing issue greatly, but then I also found that the body mounts for the radiator support had come loose. The whole front end had shifted over to the driver's side substantially. This made the rubbing issue on the passenger's side seem even worse.
With the front end shifted back over to where it was supposed to be, the majority of the tire rub is gone. I will still need (and want) to add the Malibu fender flares, but now at least I need to buy a lot less clearance.
My dad gave me a hand reinstalling the hood during one of his visits, and now it almost looks like a car again. My lovely female companion DEMANDED I take video after I showed her the height presets and self levelling features!
Lol
So after I explained that I didn't have enough memory left on my phone to take any more video, she offered to take some for me with her phone.
So here you go, video again finally. The compressors seem really loud, but they're honestly not that bad in person. I think the acoustics were just more pronounced because she was recording from near the back of the car where the compressors are. Once sound deadened and upholstered, the sound level should be negligible.
This is for everyone of course, but especially Opie.
Enjoy.
