So I am going to use this thread to detail my build progress on the 67 Firebird.

I bought the Car From Volo Auto museum. I will say it was an Easy experience. The car was explained well, but as you know when you are not there in person. You should prepare for a few Surprises..... Which I found!!

This Car is actually for my wife as she has always wanted a "classic car" I am big into 3rd and 4th gen Firebirds and this is my first 1st gen.

Initially I was going to leave it all stock, but as you will see below the direction has changed a bit.

This is the Description of the Car from VOLO

#’S MATCH, DOCUMENTED FIREBIRD 400. HAS PHS PAPERS, BUILD SHEET, PROTECTOPLATE AND MORE. VERY NICELY OPTIONED WITH AIR CONDITIONING DISC BRAKES, POWER WINDOWS AND MORE. HAS A BEAUTIFUL GLASS FINSH BLACK PAINT JOB. IT HAS RECHROMED BUMPERS, NEW EMBLEMS, NEW WINDSHIELD AND NEW DOOR WEATHERSTRIPS. CORRECTLY RESTORED RALLY II WHEELS WITH BFG TIRES. HAS VERY WELL CARED FOR ORIGINAL DELUXE INTERIOR. MOTOR WAS PULLED AND COMPARTMENT WAS DETAILED. TRANS REBUILT AND CLEANED. THE FLOORS ON THIS CAR ARE CLEAN METAL. CLEAN METAL TRUNK COMPARTMENT. HAS ORIGINAL COLLAPSIBLE SPARE & JACK. HAS BINDER OF MISC RECEIPTS, PHOTOS & HISTORY. IT’S A SHARP DESIREABLE CAR.


Lets talk a bit about the "AD" and what I actually Got. I will start from the top.
A/C - Is present but not working with a small rats nest of wires to figure out
Disc Brakes - Present, but rotors are on last leg with one side has a seeping caliper
Also the master cylinder and power booster was shot (not disclosed) ,but Volo is making it right
-Power windows work, but when I got it the driver rear was stuck down. ( A Little lube and works great now)
-Paint is VERY nice. Top Notch. HOWEVER. It wasnt disclosed to me that it was not the original color. That was
a surprise when I received the PHS docs (in fairness I cant believe I looked over that detail)
-The Rally II are ok..... someone didnt follow the stencil that well though.
-Engine compartment is very nice the paint on the block is starting to peel in places but the rest is VERY presentable
-Transmission WAS NOT rebuilt. IT came with receipts that show the original case was trash and a Reman Th400 was put in.
- No Rust and this thing is SUPER solid.

So finding out that it is not the original paint and the transmission was changed compounding the fact,, the brakes were toast. I have decided to take this car into what I would Call a Resto-mod. Not pro-touring type, but more of an updated driving experience.

STARTING HERE.

Took off the Rally II's and Installed 17X8 Rally inspired wheels that are Black with machined front.
Tires are 225/45 front and 275/45 rear.

Here are a couple of shots.









This concludes the First Mods

Next. I decided to start running down every wire in the car to make sure everything was good. I had an issue that with the key out the power windows would still operate. to make a long day short. It turns out it was a ground wire under the dash that was not connected. WIN for me!!!

another issue was no horn. Ran that down to it simply not being connected. It has 2 horns, but one just clicks so I only hooked up the one and that is sufficient.

Still working on getting the A/C wires ran down, but am going to save it for when I get the new components. Which I will post when that happens.

In the process of Running down wire I lay down and feel somthing wet on the floorboard.. Guess what it was?

OIL!!!!!!



Turns out the previous owner went to disconnect a oil pressure gauge and it leaked oil all over the driver floor board...... I called VOLO and they made this right for me so kudos to them.

I DIDNT want to replace the carpet...

So hmm when you rip out all of the interior might as well install some nice sound / heat insulation.
This actually took longer than I thought like HOURS
The product is Thermo-tec I used 4 rolls of 15 SF.








Carpet hasnt arrived yet, will show you guys the results as it comes.

Remeber that Resto-mod theme?

Well with the front rotors at near end of life and the 4 piston calipers needing a rebuild I got Something else.
Firs the logic behind this was that the Only replacement rotors that work for factory disc brakes are about $250 then a caliper rebuild kit is about $120. This is not going to be a concurs type original so.......

I bought a Wicked set of Wilwood Brake Kit. I didnt go to crazy as this is an entry kit, They make good stuff and this should for sure give much better braking with the wider tires and these discs.

The install is Fairly straightforward and the instructions are fabulous. I took my time and torqued as instructed and used loc-tite as recommended.

Here are the Install Progresss. Oh one thing to mention. The studs are 1/2 inch so I have to go buy different lug nuts as mine are to small. (thats not what she said ) nudge nudge...

Guess what? Brake LEAK. it is at the factory distribution block / proportioning valve.
Waiting for the UPS man to bring that part.

But I do have this For another Day. a Complete MSD setup.

upside down. sorry

Hopefully that Wilwood kit comes with SS brake lines over the original rubber. They don't bulge out when stepping on the brakes and really firm up the brake pedal.

Suggest you don't throw any of the original parts away. Remember that is a 1 of 1500 numbers-matching car.

all original parts are going to be stored and marked.

Also yes the Wilwood kit has braided stainless lines.

Today I got the New carpet in and while the seats were out did a Detail cleaning on them. They came out Very Nice.

Here is the New Carpet from ACC laying out in the Sun getting set



Getting There..



Almost...



still going



The biggest issue was The Thermo-tec I put down is really thick and the adhesive is gummy. So trying to bolt in the seats and console was a pain. That took the longest.

Looking good!

Ya it is!

Which brake kit is that, Part number? You just do the front?
What's the rotor Dia?

This is the Kit on Wilwood Site. Something I didnt realize is the studs are 1/2 inch so had to buy some lug nuts just for the front. The rear are stock size.

I did just the Front. They are 11 inch rotors. The stock 14 inch wheels do not fit, but I bet 15's would OR 14's with the correct disc brake offset which the rally's that came with the car were to close for comfort anyway.

http://www.wilwood.com/BrakeKits/BrakeKitsProdFront.aspx?itemno=140-10996-D

I bought the it from amazon which was about $100 cheaper.

LOVE THIS KIND OF STUFF!

So Today I was trying to finish up the Brakes.. Installing the Stainless wilwood lines was Easy with the exception of running into a small problem. The stock rubber lines go into a bracket on the frame and are round with a flat side. So I had to modify (file it open) to fit.

Here is a Pic of the Stainless lines hooked up.



Ok I know. not completly hooked up. The passenger side fitting had a bit of corrision on it and when I went to loosen it you can guess what happened. Snapped off. So Tomorrow off to Autozone to kit new brake lines for the front. Might as well replace the whole line.

Second issue I had was the new Proportining vavle mounts in a different spot and the lines dont reach.
This saved some money rather than buying 2 pieces the factory disc brakes had.



So Tommorow Hopefully will be able to get the brakes done!

In between fighting with the brakes I worked on a couple of bugs in the interior. As ALL the courtesy light bulbs were missing. Traced wires, all looked good so didnt understand why there were no bulbs. installed new bulbs
Bam all lit up...... Then Shut the door and they stayed on. Ok Now I know why they were no bulbs in..... Im sure you guys know how to fix it. After a few minutes scratching my head easy deal just adjust the springy push pin thing (not sure what they are actually called). all good go on and off as they should with the door open as well as the light switch.

Interior 95% done. just a couple odds and ends. will finish that tomorrow while taking a break from the brakes!

So Finally got the Brakes done. The passenger side brake line sheared off when trying to undo the fitting. So I had to re run a brake line under the engine on in the factory spot. talk about a PAIN!! The new brake line I bought from Autozone was this armor coated kind Bends Really Easy, but it is a tad bigger then 5/16 so in the flaring tool I had to end up filing a bit of the coating off so it would seal in the flare. This took the longest time trying to route and flare the line. Started to bleed the brakes and had a Massive Pressure leak. anyone that does brake work make sure you have a line wrench sso you can really torque it down just enough so you have no leaks.
All good! no leaks and they stop great. Did the break in procedure to seat the pads. Still have to adjust the rear drums which I didnt even do yet so it has more of a nose dive than it should at the moment.

For the last couple days I have worked on getting the ignition system complete. The MSD is really top notch stuff.
Here is a pic again of the components I installed



Thanks to this forums I searched an found out about not using the resistor wire and wired the IGN wire directly under the dash in the IGN fuse. Also ground is VERY important. I had an issue with the system cutting out and I had the ground from the dizzy to the firewall where the strap for the block went. No go. One Thing I have learned so far is these cars like dedicated grounds for Accessories etc.

Here is a pic of the hole before I stabbed it and cleaned the old gasket.



Also here is the Box before I wire loomed everything.



So when I got it running it wouldnt turn off. THANKS again to this forum search I found I needed the diode on the number 4 brown wire off the voltage regulator.

I couldnt find any info on timing marks, but I set it to the second from the top. all done with the vaccum advance capped off. Runs AWESOME. Cranks AWESOME!

Next on the list is a new Jet performance stage 2 carb, Classic Auto Air engine upgrade kit, clutch fan, lower filler panel, electronic temp gauge, front spoiler.

Can you Say drain your wallet!!!!!$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Thanks for sharing. A lot of that looks very familiar.

WHEW Lots of stuff done since my last update.

First I will start off with this. I go the lower fiberglass filler panel installed. It seemed to have the two rubber pieces beside the radiator, but was missing the lower filler panel. Just want to make sure all cooling aspects are present. installed a clutch Fan with clutch that I searched up on here for the Hayden Part number works better than the flex fan also installed a 160 thermostat. Still running about 210 in stop in go at 90 degree heat. and about 190 at 45 cruising. Have a new 4 Core Champion aluminum radiator on its way hope that helps even more.

So for the lower filler I know a lot of people say the quality isnt the best, but after drilling holes in it to line up with the factory holes, using 1/4 x 20 bolts with "speed nuts" it holds in place very nicely! I went ahead and added a camaro front spoiler for looks as well as the additional downforce you guys say it creates. here are some pics .

Here you can see the Filler panel with the Spoiler. I had to go to the zone for a cheap tap and die kit for the middle spoiler support bar not shown in pic


Next you can see the finished product!

A/C SYSTEM!!!

Wow, Money, Time, Headache, Learning experience.

I bought the Classic Auto Air Engine upgrade kit.
Basically it is a new Sanden Compressor, lines, and condenser drier setup.

Also purchased separately a POA valve re calibrated for 134 , new evaporator, new oriface tube, new relays

So the WHOLE A/C system is brand new. Thanks to the A/C hall of fame thread which helped quite a bit as the Classic auto air instructions were "ok" , but didnt cover the original components.

First thing was to take out the old evaporator.





as you can see all those old leaves and such, all cleaned out now of course.

Im VERY happy I didnt break the plastic Case. Last time I changed one it was my s-10 and ripped the case in half! not fun. Anyway it went pretty smooth.

So I get the New Evaporator ready to put in, but first there are these little tabs that need to be bent up. The tabs are for the screw to go in between to hold the evap core tight in the suitcase.
In the process of being extremely Gentle this is what happens....



The tabs were like soldered onto the fins. Im freaking out right now and pissed at the same time. I call CAA and he said to send pics. I told him im in the middle of an install and please get back to me right away. tick tock tick tock. After about an Hour I call back and he says it should be ok as those dont hold pressure. I took his word for it. BTW the system held vacuum -29.9 for over 40 minutes so I guess he was right!

Evap Installed



Tightened all screws and used black RTV to seal around the case.

Next On to the Condenser install.
Very straightforward. Simply remove the kidney pans and test fit the bracket. Two small holes and secure with Tek Screws that are supplied.



See easy.

Next was attaching the drier.

One thing I learned about the A/C stuff is use the supplied gaskets and mineral oil liberally.





The two wires are the pressure switch. On my 67 the green wire goes to one of the white ones then the other white goes to the compressor, just makes a circuit.

Time to mount the Compressor. This caused me the most pain. I watched a video on youtube of a guy that has a 68 and did the compressor install and the belt he used would simply not work with my kit. Finally just said screw it and went with what the instructions recommend which was a 60 inch belt. Still to long the magic was 59.5 for me.

Also what toms poncho video on youtube did get right was the bracket says to use two spacers between the block/head and the mounting plate for compressor. However as tomsponcho pointed out this makes the compressor to forward and belt hits the pully. Anyway got it perfect now.



you can see it mounted in the top left.

So ran all the A/C lines. all hook up fine with some contortion. Note that two lines need to have the fittings crimped. Have to measure it out, mark it, then either send the hoses back to classic air for them to crimp for free or find someone local. Luckily after a few calls I found a Hydraulic hose shop about 20 mins away. He said now problem. went there and for a whole $8 he crimped them for me. I gave him a $20 as I was happy to get them done with no wait! Big hydraulic press to crimp them and was super legit.

Here it is with the POA Valve as well.


I think Im ready to get it charged!!!!!!

Went to my friends Auto shop (hes a friend, but still charges). And they could not get the A/C machines hoses to tighten on the POA valve. the Evap box is in the way and you dont want to bend or break the evap lines. After a while of thinking it over,, they advised we find a r-12 to 134 , 90 degree fitting. Went on a mission and luckily Orielly's in the next town had one in stock. $15 later had the fitting.

Put it on and Bingo I have a 29.9 vacuum for 40 minutes. Im relieved since I put the whole system together and prayed for no leaks. also at the shop put the tar tape on as well. Here is the finished product!!




see the 90?

Blows COLD!!!!!

And the wiring is all much better now. I had it mocked up.

back to a previous post. Here is my MSD wiring

Before.


After.


wire looms are a pita...

Nice job on the A/C install and glad it blows cold! Is that a parallel flow condenser (which is supposed to work better with R134A)? It doesn't quite look like a stock one.

yep everything is brand new and calibrated for 134. It is a parallel flow condenser. need to send my old POA valve back in CRAZY core charge

So I went ahead after doing some research and Talking with Hotchkis and got this kit.



With These Shocks



I pieced together the Whole kit so I didnt go with the Rear Sway Bar for now. Basically ordered the part numbers they say is in the kit minus the rear sway bar.

Yall think this will make the old bird Handle better than 47 year old Shocks and coils?!?!?!

ohhh! your going to love it. I got the hotchkis stuff and car is tight tight tight.

FYI: Get the rear stuff; WIth rear sway bar and chassis brace there is almost no body role.

nice

]

"So when I got it running it wouldnt turn off. THANKS again to this forum search I found I needed the diode on the number 4 brown wire off the voltage regulator."

Yes. I remember...

So to Everyone that has had cooling issues, I had the same! even after ALL the panels. Rubber fillers, Bottom panel. even the new clutch Fan and 160 thermostat still ran 185 at a steady 45 and 210 with the AC on.

I saw Bronze Bird put in a Champion Radiator so I figured it would work.

Wound up buying this



It is the 4 core version.



Very Nice Quality.

The original came out very easy, only issue was the lower trans line was seated FIRMLY in the radiator. After some persuasion it came out.

Here are some Pics of the Install

Original 4 core Radiator


Its Out! you can see the New A/C condenser.



Original Radiator (not throwing it away ha!) Im guessing it could be recored? didnt leak, but sure it had some repairs in the last 47 years.




All in,


Results are impressive! 165 or so cruising 175 or so with A/C on. hasnt gone above 175 yet! Sure this old engine finally likes being cool!

ALMOST done the Rear new Springs and Shocks with the Hotchkis TVS minus Rear sway.

PAIN IN THE [censored]!!!!!!!

by myself in the garage with jackstands. No pics of the progress, but a few notes.
Drilling the 5/8th holes for the new u-bolts = PITA!
Removing the old frame bushings = PITA

I still have to drill the shock bottom shock mounts since the Shock bolts are a tad bigger than factory hole.

Front springs dont come in until next week so then I will tackle the front sway bar, shocks, and springs then.

Well for the past 2 months I have been simply driving and enjoying the car, BUT I have come to the conclusion that Im doing a LS3 crate engine swap. It will be a longer term project and collecting parts for the next while. Since it has the original engine im simply going to store it until these cars are worth A LOT.

The 3 speed Transmission , still cant take longer interstate trips without it creeping to 220 or so, and piece of mind reliability are the factors in my decision.

I use kleenflo multiclean plus to clean and degrease parts, engine compartment, tires etc. I have a similar rad to yours and got some of that cleaner on it and it instantly ruined that nice finish. Neill

WELLLLL. After plenty discussion with others and time for reflection. I think the route im going to leave the Poncho motor in. My good friend said it right that now days you almost expect to see a LS motor in these classics at car shows. When you walk up and see a real Poncho motor you actually get taken back.

My current project is a 4l60E to be built and Swap. Then going to do EFI, then later down the road take the motor out to stroke & bore.

So it will still have the heart and the look of factory just with a flare of modern.

Not if you live anywhere near the Midwest. I moved down to TX from Ohio and the contrast in car culture is pretty big.

This is a great thread. Much of it sounds very familiar. Wis I could do my own work like you, but I know just enough to be dangerous.

FWIW, which is probably not much, I can't imagine ever swapping my Pontiac 400 for an LS, even though it's not original and only sorta correct.

tbtx2010,

Thanks for the props on the thread, Im in the process of looking for a 400 or 455 block to build a mild motor. I want to preserve the completely original engine.

Wonderful thread. I am starting on a build with a 68 Bird.

Was fun seeing your progression.

I am a large fan of LSX based motors but I have to keep this 400 pontiac in this car.

WELL, Its Official I am having a BUTLER PERFORMANCE 467CI Short Block Kit delivered Soon!

Going to Be SWEET!

I will post pics of the build up when it comes. Also have a Stage 3 Built 4l60E Transmission coming as well.

Phew.... Talk About some $$$$$$... All for the best though. I want this engine to last forever and I think the Parts from Butler Will do just that.

Here is what UPS Freight delivered just last week.





Everything Packed Solid. No Movement on the Crate and condition was just as it left Tennessee.

Here are a few Pics of the Block. It is a 71 400 block bored out to 4.180 and will have a stroke of 4.25
Prepped and painted!

So Over the Weekend I took my time and got started on the bottom end.



Plastigauge is somewhat controversial, but I did it anyway. On my spec sheet from Butler listed the main bearing clearances i just wanted to verify



Very Nice ARP Studs that I torqued using the ARP Lube to Spec

I also Did something that may be overboard, but should be done with a blueprint. Checked Crank Endplay
It was also in Spec




Then I spend some time with the Pistons and Connecting rods. Much research went into making sure They were oriented the correct way. You will see others have made a boo boo and put the rods on backwards. Essentially the Chamfered ends ride against the Crank fillet (I think that what they call it).

I had to take a couple of pistons apart since I had them incorrect. I admit it! Also I BROKE!! two rings and had to order two single piston sets since they dont sell the rings individually.

These Are Ross Forged Pistons with Forged H Beam Rods. These Rods are BIG!





Slid them in and Torqued to Spec with the Correct Orientation of Rods and Pistons making Eyebrows

Hess is More!