Jump to content

EnduroDriver

AOAI Forum Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    16

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Posts posted by EnduroDriver

  2. Under hood heat

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    I wouldn't recommend removing the insulation, part of its job is reducing the impact of heat on the hood and paint. Fiberglass is a terrible choice for a hood for that reason but that's what we have to work with. 

    The two things I'd recommend are switch to EFI, the idea being fuel the car more efficiently to simply generate less heat in the first place. And install an electric fan on the radiator. The factory fan is cute and simple but pretty much useless for moving air. Especially at low speed. Install something that can move air and carry that heat away. 

  4. 63 avanti battery holder

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    Using a group 51 Honda battery as an example I think you could fit two in the space of a 3EE, obviously would require a custom hold-down but that's not to complicated to sort out. The depth dimension of the group 51 is slightly bigger. 

    That said a group 51 AGM battery has more cranking amps and more reserve capacity then a flooded 3EE so not a ton of reason to do it.

    My car already has a group 65 in the trunk wired in parallel with the 3EE, installed by the previous owner and it's pretty well done. My plan is to covert to a group 51 AGM under the hood and replace the group 65 in the trunk with an AGM and maintain the parallel configuration. Leaving batteries connected in parallel full time can be tricky so it's important they at least be of similar age and identical chemistry. 

  5. Safe to disconnect the power steering pump?

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    Appreciate all the advice. I definitely want to rebuild the power steering system, just the timing isn't right at the moment. Really just being able to move the car around the shop, maybe take it to the dyno for some tuning before digging in. I do have a steering arm off a Lark, not sure if it's for the Ross box or not, it was just available so I grabbed it on the chance it was the right one.

  6. Safe to disconnect the power steering pump?

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    I'm in the process of digging through my lengthy list on the R1. The previous owner, bless his heart, was shall we say very creative regarding repairs. Anyway getting started on a complete makeover on the ignition and fuel systems while repairing some under-hood wiring butchery.

    My question is actually about the power steering, it leaks, it leaks from everywhere it could leak from, it leaks from places it can't possibly leak from, it's quite the spectacle really. It's on my list to pull all the components and send them out for rebuild but I want to kick that can down the road a bit while I work on getting it running and driving properly.

    1) Is it safe for the steering control valve if I just disconnect the belt on the pump and disable the system? I don't know if the valve can be damaged if hydraulic pressure being delivered to it while driving. 

    2) Is there an off the shelf pitman arm that I could install to convert it to manual steering temporally while working out the other kinks.

     

  11. Halibrand Wheels

    in Avanti Parts

    Posted

    I put a set on order back in March, at the end of June contacted Pat and was told they'd received the test articles from the manufacturer and had a couple minor changes to make. Sent an email to Pat at the end of August for an update and it's been all crickets since then. 

    Normally I'd find this kind of thing from vendors to be unacceptable but I've learned (this is my first Studebaker) that this the SOP for the Studebaker world. The wheels on the website look fantastic, I hope all this is worth the wait. I'm going to be very disappointed with myself if this ends up being a dead-end and I end up ordering Holley Vintage wheels after waiting so long. 

  14. Puzzling rear suspension modifications

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted · Edited by EnduroDriver
    Pics flipped

    Doing rear brakes on the 63R1 and that project is going well but I noticed some more rather questionable modifications done by the previous owner(s). Most of them are either poorly engineered or at least poorly executed but I get what they were trying for. I'm just struggling to figure out why these particular ones were done. Apologize for the picture being upside-down, no matter how modified it it always gets flipped by the website.  

    First they installed air shocks which isn't all that unusual I guess but but short of there being a trailer hitch on the car the only reason I can think of is to raise the back-end of the car, give it some more rake. That brings me to the second mod which is they install 1.5" lowering blocks on the axle perch which seems to be totally counter productive if their intent was to raise the car with the shocks.

    The final mod was the radius rod has been modified. I don't know if it was shortened or lengthened, the current length bolt center to bolt center is 17-7/8". Not sure if they were trying to make this adjustable but ended up welding it or if that's just what they had lying around. The only thing I can think of here is they wanted to adjust the pinion angle.

    Any clues as to what they were trying to do? My first inclination is to restore the original configuration.

       

    20210110_154840.jpg

     

     

  16. replacement brake booster?

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    Just did this on my 63 (front disc / rear 11" drum) using the kit from Avanti Parts and Restorations, Inc. using a refreshed factory booster as well. Actually the failed booster was the real reason I did this project and just decided now was the time to upgrade the master while I was there. The single circuit master cylinder definitely represents a safety shortcoming of any car of that era. The kit installed pretty easy, the factory lines you'll be connecting to as well as the new lines in the kit will take some tweaking but in general it's no more than a half-day project. 

    Couple tips from my experience:

    1) 3/16 tube bending pliers will be easier to work with in the chassis than a regular tubing bender. I have a Lisle 44150, less than $25

    2) Buy a new brake light pressure switch if yours in mounted on the master, I'm told some are on the pedal, couldn't get mine out of the old master but was lucky enough to have a spare. Don't turn this into a week long project just to save a couple bucks on the sensor.

    3) As with any new master cylinder doing a bench bleed will make everything go smoother.   

    http://avantiparts.biz/dual-master-cylinder-conversion-kit/

     

    Good luck, glad your getting back in the saddle.

     

×
×
  • Create New...