Auto Factoids for Week of 12/6/2010

Here are your Auto Factoids:

12/7/1950 – Buick builds it’s 6 millionth car

1950 Buick

In 1931 on the same day the last Model A was built.

1931 Last Year for they Model A

12/9/1963 Studebaker stops making cars in its South Bend, Indiana plant.

1963 Avanti - odd little car.

12/10/1915 – Ford tops 1 million cars.

Coupelet 1915 Ford

12/11/1905  I’ve never heard of a Delage but here it is:

1905 Delage

Some fact:

– Started by Louis Delage

– Company they started, in a barn on the outskirts of Paris in 1905, was an assembler of parts.

– Car was a steel chassis from Malicet et Blin

– Sported a three-speed gearbox and shaft drive to the rear axle.

–  The power plant (snicker) was Dion-Bouton 697cc cranking out 6.5 hps.

Thanks for reading.

Tim

Mod Decisions for ’70 Stang – Update 12/7/2010

What you will see unfold in these updates is an exercise in project management for the modifications.  When I originally scoped out the components for the 302 that replaced the 250, I used a similar process, but very detailed.  I wasn’t overly concerned with improvements other than what a dropped in 302 would provide over that tired old straight 6. (Clearly..I left the 3 speed manual trans in it.)

But this time it’ll be different.  There is a lot to do and unlike the previous rebuild, money will be tight and free time limited.  The main goal I have is to keep the car in operation in between stages of modification.  This will take a clear and well laid out plan, where issues similar to the installation of the dash pad before the pillar post trim arrived (doh!), could be more than just a cost in time.

Below is a high level sketch of what I’d like accomplish with the Mustang.  I’ll update this list with more details as I figure which brands, sizes and the like that will be used.  Over on my Facebook pages I have already received some feedback and suggestions and I’ll post these up here in some cleverly titled entry.

So give me your suggestions or opinions and as the progression goes even tell me if you don’t like the choice and why.

Brakes and Suspension:

– Upgrade to 4 wheel disc (Brand and size TBD)

– Replace front and rear stabilizer bars (Brand and size TBD)

– Control arms already replaced

– Rebuild power steering

– Shocks already upgraded

Exhaust:

– Add cut-out before mufflers

–  Extend tailpipes to exit rear

No other changes anticipated

Interior:

– Addition of upgrade dash and interior lights

– Possible upgrade of all gauges

– Replace front seat belts with 3 point harness

– Carpet replaced

– Seats re-upholstered (upgrade to Leather/Cloth?)

– Paint lower doors

– Tilt steering wheel (Flamming River?)

Training:

Transmission

– Option 1 – Manual 4 speed with Hurts shifter

– Option 2 – T5 5 speed

– Rear Differential * Unsure if upgrade is possible or required

Engine:

* 302 stays

– Replace intake (Brand and size TBD)

–  Replace 650 Holley (Holley 750 Avenger)

–  Replacement of heads for more  performance (undecided)

–  Add custom mounting and tension for Power Steering/Alternator

–  Remove Fan and replace with electric

–  Add more chrome to engine (but not too much Bling..hate too much Bling)

Exterior:

Paint stays except:

– Blacked out rear light deck

– Black  Hood stripe (1970 Boss 1970 302 or 1970 Mach 1) – See images below – What do you think?

– Blacked out grill

– Black Front Spoiler

– Black side Boss 302 Stripe (w/o the Boss) (dependent on hood choice)

– Magnum 500 wheels (newer version, not originals)

Hood lay outs:

Mach 1 Hood...Perhaps my favorite...currently not considering adding a scoop

Boss 302 Hood lay out

O.K., let’s hear your thoughts.  They will automatically appear to the right of this posting and I’ll add the good ones in the update posts.

Thanks for reading.

Tim

Readers comments and suggestions:
Byron McElfresh December 6 at 9:09pm Report
I seen your asking for advice on heads for a 302. I built a 302 that was .040″

over bore, The larger hyd. roller ford performance cam, used edelbrock rpm

heads, i did a little clean up and evened out the valve bowls, flat top

pistons, a 750 holley Street advegner carb, rpm intake, 1 3/4″ headers, and it

made 416 hp at 6000 rpm, and 349 tq. on the dyno. in the 60 Falcon with 3.73

gears, and a 4 speed,( the guy really needs an auto trans or get a shifter that

won’t granny shift speed wise!!!) But he still ran a 12.61 at gateway.

Wow, that’s pretty good. My 302 is bore .030. Hooker headers and 65O holley. I

wasn’t planning on changing out the cam. Now the rear end great. I just can’t

do the automatic trans though!

Byron McElfreshDecember 6, 2010 at 11:43pm
Re: Hi Tim,the 302
lol-the reason I think the guy should o to an auto trans is the ultra slow

shifts he makes with the old toploader! It’s a very painfully slow 2-3

shift!!!You can almost hear the multiple double clutches! yikes! lol

Tim Sweet December 6 at 10:11pm
good point

————————————————————————

Philip Daly December 6 at 8:58pm Report
351w

Tim Sweet December 6 at 9:36pm
Thanks Philip, But won’t that reduce compression? How much would you gain with

351w heads?

—————————————————-

Terry Wallace December 6 at 8:47pm Report
Ford Motorsports usually has some really great deals on 302 old school engines.

I would check there first. When it comes to flow numbers im finding through my

own testing at my machinists shop,,,,,most numbers are bullshit. beware and

test flow numbers using a reputable shop.

Tim Sweet December 6 at 9:35pm
Thank Terry. I’m with you on the numbers game…happens a lot even with

Corvettes. Regards

—————————————————————–

Bill Rice December 6 at 8:46pm Report
Trick Flow Twisted Wedge heads, Great gains in HP and Torque.

Tim Sweet December 6 at 9:42pm
Thanks Bill – what do you think those number might look like over a 302, bore

.030, hooker headers?
______________________———————————————————

—————–

Corvette Hangout December 6 at 8:28pm Report
C&C aluminum heads with small chambers to get higher compression larger valves

and install 150 shot of nitros.. CorvetteHangout

Tim Sweet December 6 at 9:44pm
I can get behind the higher compression..but I haven’t decided on NOS yet.

Thanks.
_————————————————————————-
Fatherlarry Monaco
‎1969 and 1970 Boss 302 heards and intake will work great.

Tim Sweet That was a thought I had as well.
2 seconds ago · Like

————————————————————————

Roy Oberg Aluminum is the way to go, go with a smaller combustion chamber that will give you more compression and less chance of spark knock.
about an hour ago · LikeUnlike
#
Tim Sweet ‎100% on board with the smaller chambers.
2 seconds ago · Like

Mod Decisions for 70 Mustang

After much internal debate about what to do with my 70 Mustang I’ve decided on a direction for Mustang.

Running out of car projects (there was always something to ‘fix’ on the ’84 Vette).  The 07 Vette is going to stay as if for a while, I like just it as it is for now.  The Mustang is nearly done, with just a re-upholstery with the front seat, restoring the back of the rear seat and replacing the steering column cover and new carpeting.  That’s all coming up soon.  But there are a few more things that are going to happen.  The time frame will be fluid given the availability of funds (Average Budget) and time.

I wrestled with keeping the car original in the beginning.  But with the tired old 250 straight 6 wasn’t going to make it possible, coupled with my desire to have more horse power.  I’ve often thought that the 302 swap wasn’t horrible and by keeping the 3 speed manual transmission, my changes didn’t reach the level of a resto-mod and I still think I’m good there.  Keeping it period (swapping out items that were actually available for a coupe as options in 1970) I thought was noble in trying to bring it up to a level of performance I “could live with” without straying too far from its original configuration.  However, I understand that a ’70 Coupe isn’t ever going to reach the value of  any other ’70 model or configuration of Mustang nor will it receive a comparable level of the attention at car shows.

So I’m working out a plan for taking this under rated coup to an all new level.

Currently as configured the car has the following:

Exterior:

– Original color – paint 2 years old.

– Mach 1 mirrors (Left and Right – I added those)

– Rear wing – added by previous owner

Wheels:

– Center Line with spinner centers

Interior:

– Original dealer installed AC unit

– Original materials  and color

– Dash pad replaced

Training:

– Original 3 speed transmission

– Original rear end 3.00 standard axle ratio

Engine: (my mods)

– Re-manufactured 302 (1970) bored .030

– Larger radiator

– A/C dryer kill switch

– Typhoon Intake

– Holly 650 4 barrel carb

Exhaust:

– Hooker headers

– Dual exhaust

– Thrust mufflers

Suspension:

– Standard

– Front and rear stabilizers (after market)

Brakes:

– Power assist Drums

So what’s my plan?

That is coming up next posting.

Thanks for reading

Tim

Auto Factoids – 1970 Mustang – Ford Assembly Line

Today is the anniversary of the assembly line created by Henry Ford, did he?

Like saying night is day or Pink Floyd isn’t the greatest rock band of all time, saying Henry Ford didn’t invent the assembly line goes contrary to conventional auto wisdom. But he didn’t. It was actually Ransom E. Olds.

I love engines and the options for a 1970 Mustang – like mine, were many.

 

My Mustang's Enhanced 302

The sixes consisted of the 200  (120 hp) and the 250  (155hp) –  mine started out as a 250

 

The eights consisted of  2 302 (2V and the 4V Boss), 2 351 (250 and 30o hp), 2- 428 (Cobra – 335 hp and Cobra Jet Ram-Air – 335 hp and the 429 Boss – 375 hp.

The transmission offered were – 3 speed manual Fully synchronized (currently the trans in my car), 4 speed manual sports-type w/Hurst Shifter and in the automatic the Select Shift Cruise-o-Matic Drive (more on that in another Auto Factoid.

Thanks for reading.

Tim

 

“The Mustang Dynasty” (Book Review)

I’ve had this book on the shelf for a couple of years now.  It is a  great reference to own.

The book is by John M. Clor and it features Mustang Memorabilia, a lot of cool stuff.

First thing inside the front cover is a CD entitled “Sounds of Mustang”.  Yup you guessed it engine sounds.  It includes:

– Launch and drive by of a 1967 Shelby GT 50o w/428 big-block

– Burn out of a 1973 Grande

– 1983 Mustang GT 5.0

– 1988 Mustang LX and spinning tires

and a bunch more.

The other items are:

–  brochure for 1962 prototype

– 1965 Registered Owners manual and a Ford Mustang Registered owner id card

– 1967 Ford Exterior color selections card

– 1967 Fourth Annual Glen National 500 pit pass

– 1970 Mustang Rallye (yes it’s spelled that way on the sticker) Day USA sticker for April 1970

– 1971 Mustang sale brochure

–  really cool Fold Up Model card (you can cut it out and fold it for a 3d model) of a 1974 Mustang (we use to have one of these cars)

– invitation to the Mustang 20th Anniversary from 1984

– flier from Ford’s Party Plenty..Mustang’s Twenty party, held at the Westin Hotel at the Renaissance Center in Detroit

– 1979 Mustang Official Indy Pace Car bumper sticker

– 1990 press release for the 25th Anniversary special edition Mustang from Public Affairs, Ford Division

– Tickets from the 1994 and 1999 Mustang Club of America’s Anniversary celebrations

– a 2007 Shelby Cobra sticker, and 2003 Mustang 1 sticker

These are all reproductions contained in pockets on the pages so they can be removed, the stickers are actually usable.

The book contains a lot of pictures and facts.

This book is a MUST have if you are a Mustang nut, but the are tough to find at times. (ISBN – 9781932855807)

Speaking of facts there’s an Auto factoid coming.

 

Thanks for reading.

Tim

 

mustang dynasty

More Car Art – Who says the Average Car Guy doesn’t like art??

Well, I don’t know about every car guy, but I do know what I like.

Some of my favorites are abandon car art, but I enjoy a lot of other subject matters as well.

If you look  to the right of this post you’ll see one of my favorites.  My old 1984 C4  red Corvette, closely following what would be my future car(unbeknownst to me at the time) a black C6 Corvette.  I have one other favorite and that’s a rendering of the interior of my 1970 Mustang.

My 1970 Mustang

I’ve known this starving artist (he’s not really starving, my wife won’t allow that) his entire life.  Ryan has a great eye for car art. (Shameless plug.  This image and the image of the Corvettes, nicely framed, make great gifts, tis the season.)

While tooling a round a little town in Southern Arizona this past Black Friday (Nov 26), I happened to meet an artist named Scott Taft and had to purchase  a picture of 1959 Chevy that he had transferred to metal.  You can see his work at http://www.fanartreview.com/sctaft.

One other web site I ran across was this one, it’s got a little more bling, but some very nicely done pieces. It’s called Car Art Work and you can see their offerings @ www.carartwork.biz.

Car Art Work

Just for the record I don’t receive any money, free stuff or benefit in any way (other than a big thank from my son if one of his images sell) for mentioning these artists or companies. This just stuff I like.

Thanks for reading.

Tim

Auto Factoids for 11/7/2010 and Beyond

Catching up and finishing up Nov. 2010

11/10/14 – The first Dodge is produced and on the same day 11 years later Ford built its first Tri-Motor airplane.

Not the plane:

1914 - 4 Door Dodge Touring

This is the plane:

Fords 1925 Tri-Plane

11/11/1940 – The first Jeep

1940 Jeeps

11/12/1908 – GM takes over Oldsmobile.

11/25/1844 – Mr. Benz was more in Karlsruhe, Germany (Been there, the wine is excellent, the beer is better and the food is OUTSTANDING!)

11/26/1966 -The DeTomaso Mangusta debuts

1966 DeTomaso Mangusta

11/27/1870 – Joe Mach’s birthday. Yeah…the guy that started MAC trucks.  The company started when Joe and his brothers purchased a carriage and wagon company in Brooklyn, N.Y.  The first vehicle they produced was a tour bus. (1900)  Next up was rail cars and locomotives. At the time they used the name Manhattan.  Somewhere between 1910 and 1911 the name changed to Mack at about that time the Mack brothers bought a truck company.  Oh..in case you are wonder the Bulldog became their logo in 1922 and the name was changed to MACK Truck.  When I was a very young, we called all tractor-trailer Mack Trucks.

1910 Mack Hook and Latter firetrucks

New Auto Factoid format.

The Ford Mustang sold 419,000 cars in the its first 12 months on the marked. That number trumped the 417,000 cars set by the 1960………………Ford Falcon!!!!

1960 Falcon - 417,000 Sold First 12 months

Ford Mustang II Concept.

Thanks for reading.

Tim

Car Technologies U.S. vs. Others.

Just recently I started comparing technology in cars that we own.  A couple of months ago I purchased a 07 Corvette that has a lot more technology then the 84 Corvette I owned and a lot more than my 70 Mustang.  We have also owned two newer vehicles a 2008 Lexus GS350 and now a 2011 Lexus RX 350.  I’m not going to compare the technology between the two Corvettes nor would there be any reason to compare the Corvettes to the Mustang.

But what I have compared is the level of technology between U.S. cars and the two Lexus (Toyota) vehicles we’ve owned.

First up is the 2008 Lexus GS350.  We purchase the car in late 2007, which, as far as a technology time line would be concerned, is smack in the middle of digital music, video and touch technology era. To better frame the time line 3 years ago while attending the Fords on 4th Ave Car Show, here in Tucson, I meet up with a couple of Microsoft guys (one of them I knew from a previous contract I worked) doing the first demo of Sync in a Lincoln.  They gave me quick demo and it was excellent technology which is now about 3 years old. Yet this luxury Toyota only managed to have a horribly  located, headphone port to headphone port connection for your IPOD or MP3 player. Compare this with the technology in my 2007 Corvette, it at least plays MP3 formatted CDs as well as standard CDs.

Next is the 2011 Lexus RX350, three years further into the mobile data revolution and it still seems lacking in technology.  The GS350 had a touch screen information center, the RX350 does not. What replaced that is a joy stick/mouse type device.

From my wife's Rx

It seems a like a step backward.  It’s much easier for you to touch the screen while driving.  The RX’s device requires the moving around of a cursor, centering it on an icon and clicking the mouse-like buttons. ( Don’t get me started on distracted driving, phone calls vs. eating McDonald’s fries.)  The RX is limited to a USB connection for music and that is it.  Sure it has options for  satellite and blue tooth (as did the GS) , but techno-backtracking from a touch screen is a bit odd and no music storage is nearly pre-historic.

Just comparing  technologies for music availability the U.S. cars are ahead.  Take the  2011 Buick Lucerne, it has a 60 Gig hard drive for storing music.  This particular car can even record radio station you are on for playback.  Ford has a host of technology to store music and using Microsoft’s Sync technology, their Fords and Lincolns brands (the dash of the new Lincoln MKX will blow you away) are far superior to the what I’ve found in the Japanese cars. Even a tone-downed Chevy Cobalt has tire air pressure sensors.

While we were test driving the RX a week ago, I asked the salesman about the missing technology and he agreed that Lexus does in fact lag behind in offering  this type of technology.

Don’t you think that’s odd?  Are American car manufacturers that advanced?  Are our car companies just toss in everything, even the kitchen sink to sell cars?  Hey..neither of those are  a bad thing!!! I’m sold!  Besides it a lot easier to eat fries while driving if you have a touch screen to change your music!!!

Your thoughts?

Thanks for reading and drop me a comment.

Tim

Comment from Bill

This reminds me of a co-worker who bought a new Chrysler minivan recently. He was excited to tell me about how big the harddrive was, the DVD system, the ‘info-tainment’ bus, the ability of the ‘my gig’ to link to the satiellite,and on and on. I asked what engine he had-he paused- gave me a dazed look-and said he didn’t really know?

I think Lexus does what US car manufacturers used to do; they build a car that will travel 100K miles with just a few oil changes and one set of tires, and a resale value that is 65% of the orignal sales price 10 years later. The lag of technology does not errode the MSRP sticker prices Lexus still demands for their products while Government Motors still discounts their Buicks $5,000 off MSRP to gain a sale. Then five years later that Buick has a market value of $2,200, and the poor upside down owner is looking for his own ‘bail out’.

Me personally, I’d like to see any car manufacturer ‘de-content’ their cars a bit. It not only reduces the sales price, the weight of the car (some cars have six miles of wire in them now days), but actually increases reliability (less to fail) and performance. That original formula of the Boss 302, or Plymouth Roadrunner where you got roll down windows, a bench seat, and for a few dollars you could get a tach, AC, or tinted glass as the only options is my dream come true. Don’t forget a LARGE V8 powering the rear wheels STANDARD! I’d buy a new 2011 car tomorrow if I could get a taxi cab interior with a 300HP V8 for under $25,000. I looked at the 2011 Boss 302, but it still is techno-overloaded for me to call it a true muscle car.

Can you tell now why I replaced our grocery-getter-always-repair-proned Impala with a Grand Marquis? It is (or was-Ford stopped production in September) the closest car out there that meets my formula: no navigation-no harddrive-no MP3-no Sirius-no 8 speed automatic. Bench seat-4.6l police V8-4 speed automatic-RWD; thanks, thats all I need! I’m used to the blue hair jokes and still happy with my taxi cab, hopefully for the next 20 years and 200K miles.

I have often wondered if Dodge introduced a Challenger with Hemi V8, roll up windows, AM FM radio, and the minimum government mandated equipment for around $25,000 if they would sell, or does our generation require several thousand microprocessors to be interested in their cars?

Thanks for letting me sound off! Take care, Bill

Tires: Nitrogen – Winter Air – Summer Air

If you’ve read my blog or found me on Facebook or MySpace or various forums you know that I recently picked up a 07 Corvette, which I love.

One of the things I notices was that the tire valve stems and a little “N2” them.  This was done to suggest that Nitrogen at one time filled the BFGs.

Valve Stem Caps

I wondered if any one (Average Guys) really put Nitrogen in their tires and really how much difference could it make.  When I asked a few guys at my vette club Arizona Corvette Enthusiast (ACE), we had lot of “Winter Air and Summer Air” discussions.  It stems from an old joke about a service attendant’s answer when asked by a customer why their was an extra charge on his bill when he had is tires rotated.  The attendant stated is was for filling them with winter air.

Of course there’s no such thing,  Nitrogen is used in tires, but is there really any benefits?

So what does GM say about the use of Nitrogen in tires?

From GM’s document #05-03-10-020C: Use of nitrogen Gas in Tires – (Apr 27, 2010)

GM’s Position on the Use of nitrogen Gas in Tires
General Motors does not oppose the use of purified nitrogen as an inflation gas for tires. We expect the theoretical benefits to be reduced in practical use due to the lack of an existing infrastructure to continuously facilitate inflating tires with nearly pure nitrogen. Even occasional inflation with compressed atmospheric air will negate many of the theoretical benefits. Given those theoretical benefits, practical limitations, and the robust design of GM original equipment TPC tires, the realized benefits to our customer of inflating their tires with purified nitrogen are expected to be minimal.

The Promise of Nitrogen: Under Controlled Conditions
Recently, nitrogen gas (for use in inflating tires) has become available to the general consumer through some retailers. The use of nitrogen gas to inflate tires is a technology used in automobile racing. The following benefits under controlled conditions are attributed to nitrogen gas and its unique properties:

• A reduction in the expected loss of Tire Pressure over time.

• A reduction in the variance of Tire Pressures with temperature changes due to reduction of water vapor concentration.

• A reduction of long-term rubber degradation due to a decrease in oxygen concentrations.

Important: These are obtainable performance improvements when relatively pure nitrogen gas is used to inflate tires under controlled conditions.

The Promise of Nitrogen: Real World Use
Nitrogen inflation can give some benefit by reducing gas migration (pressure loss) at the molecular level through the tire structure. NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) has stated that the inflation pressure loss of tires can be up to 5% a month. nitrogen molecules are larger than oxygen molecules and, therefore, are less prone to “seeping” through the tire casing. The real obtainable benefits of nitrogen vary, based on the physical construction and the materials used in the manufacturing of the tire being inflated.

Another potential benefit of nitrogen is the reduced oxidation of tire components. Research has demonstrated that oxygen consumed in the oxidation process of the tire primarily comes from the inflation media. Therefore, it is reasonable to assume that oxidation of tire components can be reduced if the tire is inflated with pure nitrogen. However, only very small amounts of oxygen are required to begin the normal oxidation process. Even slight contamination of the tire inflation gas with compressed atmospheric air during normal inflation pressure maintenance, may negate the benefits of using nitrogen.

GM Tire Quality, Technology and Focus of Importance
Since 1972, General Motors has designed tires under the TPC (Tire Performance Criteria) specification system, which includes specific requirements that ensure robust tire performance under normal usage. General Motors works with tire suppliers to design and manufacture original equipment tires for GM vehicles. The GM TPC addresses required performance with respect to both inflation pressure retention, and endurance properties for original equipment tires. The inflation pressure retention requirements address availability of oxygen and oxidation concerns, while endurance requirements ensure the mechanical structure of the tire has sufficient strength. This combination has provided our customers with tires that maintain their structural integrity throughout their useful tread-life under normal operating conditions.

Regardless of the inflation media for tires (atmospheric air or nitrogen), inflation pressure maintenance of tires is critical for overall tire, and ultimately, vehicle performance. Maintaining the correct inflation pressure allows the tire to perform as intended by the vehicle manufacturer in many areas, including comfort, fuel economy, stopping distance, cornering, traction, tread wear, and noise. Since the load carrying capability of a tire is related to inflation pressure, proper inflation pressure maintenance is necessary for the tire to support the load imposed by the vehicle without excessive structural degradation.

Important: Regardless of the inflation media for tires (atmospheric air or nitrogen), inflation pressure maintenance of tires is critical for overall tire, and ultimately, vehicle performance.

There you have it.  But the experiences of the Average Guys I’ve asked, detected no difference for daily driving or when we take our toys to the track.

Thanks for reading

Tim.