So, obviously, things are going rad.
We last left off on a stupid mistake I made. But guess what, thanks to my friends; this was a fixable thing. So armed with a lift, pry bars and Jim's hulk strength, we somehow managed to separate the engine. Seriously, this was not fun. I have a feeling an experienced engine builder would magically part the block and tranny like the seas but Jim and I had a hell of a time with it. But enough about that. We got it.
Before:
After:
[Fanfare playing]
And with that, the engine came back together - NEVER TO BE SPLIT AGAIN! The engine was placed, all bolts tightened and a few beers were consumed in celebration.
I put the air cleaner on just to make it look more complete; ignore the wires...
"Hi Mom"
"It doesn't fit"
So the hood does not clear the stock air cleaner; at all. Crap. I don't have the time to drill into the hood at all and probably damage it beyond repair...but Summit does have a selection of air cleaners that sink a bit lower on the carb. Let's see exactly how much clearance we have! (Thanks to Mick, we had a few tests to see where I am at with things)
Not much at all. We tried the same thing with the actual air cleaner housing too; it kisses the hood too much. So I snagged a Summit brand air cleaner that sits lower on the Carb and only is 2.5" from the top of the carb as opposed to the stock air cleaner which is 2.6/2.75".
I add this to my shopping list and move on to the next thing.
Leaky Tranny Pan
The stock C6 pan does not have a drain plug. Mickey gave me the bright idea to just punch a hole through the bottom for an easy drain rather than attempt to unbolt it slowly and leak fluid everywhere.
So I gave the pan a few smacks with the punch and ball ping hammer and boom; drained the thing of fluid.
Once drained, I removed the pan, gasket and the filter.
Along with my new pan and gasket, I have a replacement filter as well.
I clean the surface of any gunk with some acetone then add some gasket maker to both the pan and tranny surface. I place the pan on and torque in a opposite sequence and finally torque it about 12 ft-lbs. Since I've been in an insane hurry, my documentation skills have suffered and I don't have a picture yet. But trust me, it looks a lot better than the old pan. And no leaks!
So I lay the Beast to rest for another night. She is almost ready to rumble!
Everything is together but.....WHY ISN'T IT STARTING??
(stay tuned!)
