Gunslinger
-
Posts
3,670 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Posts posted by Gunslinger
-
-
An aluminum radiator might help the problem but you need to isolate the root cause of the problem. Aluminum does shed heat faster and will take some weight off of the front end of the car, but it won't cure a problem that originates elsewhere.
If your car overheats, it could be from a number of sources...bad radiator cap, loose belts, bad water pump, hoses collapsing internally, slipping fan clutch, build up of crud in the block or the current radiator, etc. Just because the cooling system holds pressure doesn't mean there's not a restriction somewhere. You still have to determine if the engine is actually overheating...is it boiling over or are you going by the gauge? The gauge could be off or the sending unit could be bad.
Use basic diagnostic procedures...make sure you actually have a problem and go from there.
If you do actually need a radiator, you can have your present one re-cored with a unit that has more fins per inch. That increases the cooling surfaces by a large margin without changing the external dimensions at all. You can have an aluminum radiator fabricated which can help plus take some weight off as already said. I would only do that if your current radiator was the problem and needed complete replacement.
Electric fans can help...they can be thermostatically controlled or manually so. You may need to upgrade your alternator for the additional amperage if your a/c is drawing so much current.
You can add the Saturn air deflector under the front end...that reduced operating temperatures on my Avanti by 10-15 degrees while on the highway. It won't help at idle or slow traffic but it does make a difference.
-
The engine temps you're experiencing is quite acceptable. If it tops out at 205 in sitting traffic that's excellent. Many, many Avanti owners have experienced higher temps under those conditions. I don't see where you have anything to be concerned about. Just keep the engine in a good state of tune and the cooling system clean and flushed every year or two, belts tight, hoses good and radiator cap in good shape and you're golden.
The only thing I would add is occasionally open the heat controls and let coolant flow through the heater core and control valve...that will keep them lubricated internally and also keep deposits from forming and causing corrosion in them. Even if your engine runs within normal temperatures, it's still no fun if your heater core starts leaking on the carpeting.
-
The Motorcraft spark plug number is SP462 with a .054 gap. That's from the Ford Motorcraft application guide.
Also...big thanks for showing the interest and consideration for including Avanti in your catalog! Our cars are generally not thought of by most parts suppliers. I hope Avanti owners consider your brand with buying your products when we need them.
-
Enjoy the trip and take lots of pics for us! Keep the dirty side down and the clean side up.
-
I can't say if it's true or false, but I think most fiberglass boats are blown fiberglass as opposed to layered fiberglass in the Avanti body. Whether that makes for an incompatibility I don't know but it would seem preferable to keep the process the same when doing repairs, though I would imagine repairs to a boat hull would likely be layered and sanded smooth.
It's going to take someone with knowledge about boats and car bodies to give a better idea.
-
You can get the pads from most any of the Stude/Avanti vendors that support this site...Jon Myers, Studebaker International, Nostalgic Motors, et al. An old NAPA part number is S702. I have no idea if that's still a good number with them.
I would definitely go with any of the above vendors for those rear shoes...they're different from the original Stude rear brake shoes and I have no idea what they might interchange with. There will be a core charge for them without trade-in shoes.
-
I don't know what Nostalgic Motors has to offer, or whether it is actually a direct replacement. Maybe someone else has tried theirs and can comment.
I bought one from Nostalgic and it was a perfect fit and appears to very accurate.
-
It sounds that you likely have a bad sending unit in the tank. It could be a bad gauge but more likely the sending unit. If you have the shop manual, it has the procedure for determining which it is...sender or gauge. The procedure is the same for a Studebaker or Avanti II. It's really a pretty simple and straightforward thing to do. The worst part is removing the panel between the back seat and the gas tank but that's really not difficult, just tedious and time consuming. The easiest way is to take one of the bucket seats out so you have some working room and remove the rear seat cushion and back. It makes quick work of the numerous hold down screws if you have a drill/driver rather than just a screwdriver. It also helps to throw something padded on the floor for your knees.
Before removing the sender, disconnect the battery so there's no chance of a spark. You can just look at the sender and see how to replace it. You can get a universal sender from places like Summit Racing or Jegs...AutoMeter makes them...you need one made for 240 ohm empty/33 ohm full...that's pretty much a universal type. The float level is adjustable. It costs maybe $30-$40. You can get an exact drop-in reproduction from Nostalgic Motors and maybe a few other Avanti vendors. It's a bit more expensive but is an exact drop-in, no measuring or adjusting necessary.
-
Gunslinger, what model # of Sanderson headers did you choose? I have never used Sanderson but have heard a lot of good things about them. The only negative that i have heard is in show quality finishing. I am not into show cars just for the show aspect of having a car so it doesnt really matter to me.
I can't find the invoice for them, but I believe they're #CC-1 block huggers. Mine are ceramic coated which looked like they were highly polished when new, but after being run they have a more frosted appearance. All headers will change appearance after being run...painted units will blister and rust, chromed will discolor and turn blue, cast iron will rust...not a lot you can do to change it outside of get coated headers and that's more for heat reduction than anything.
-
Reprints of the shop manual are available from Studebaker International, as is the parts manual. Both should be considered essential and mandatory for owners of '63-'85 Avanti's. They are worth their weight in precious metals and aren't very expensive. They can supply every part you need for rebuilding your suspension, including the quick steering arms. If you're rebuilding the suspension anyway, you're already removing the stock steering arms so you may as well replace them with the new ones. To be candid, the quick steering arms don't provide a huge improvement but do reduce steering time somewhat.
I believe the car has Ross steering, not Saginaw. Studebaker was not the only automaker that used Ross gears so maybe some other make might fit or be adaptable. Hopefully someone with greater knowledge on that can provide such information. Your steering box and hydraulic steering ram can be rebuilt...I had mine done by Jon Myers. Turnaround time was fast and the quality of work is excellent.
Give Studebaker International, Jon Myers and Nostalgic Motors a call and see what kind of overall deal you can get from each for a parts package and whatever rebuilding work they can provide. There are other vendors who can do rebuilding as well and should be listed on Bob Johnstone's website. Those three are the vendors I used most when rebuilding my '70...all are first class people and you won't go wrong with any. Don't dispose of any of your old parts being replaced as many you'll pay a core cost and need to send them to wherever you get the replacement parts from. These parts need to go back into the "food chain" after being remanufactured so other Studebaker and Avanti owners can use them down the road.
-
An '84 Avanti is still the old Studebaker frame so the GM setup would likely not work. When they used the GM Monte Carlo setup, it was the entire GM chassis and the Avanti body was modified to fit it. You need a setup from another center steering type vehicle. I have not seen one myself but have been told Mustang II or Chevy Citation setups might be adaptable. Again...I have no personal knowledge whether that information is correct, but I would imagine a lot of engineering time and fabricating would be required to properly and safely install this regardless of what vehicle they originated from.
I have heard stories of such a swap being dangerous as the bump steer was almost uncontrollable. This may well be urban myth...as I said I have no personal knowledge of any such conversion. Just because I hear such and someone else said someone told them doesn't make it true.
I would suggest simply rebuilding the steering you have...the parts are readily available, the shop manual is available, it's already fully engineered with no conversion necessary. You could add the quick steering arms that are available...they do help some but not a whole lot.
The Avanti chassis is not and never was a racing or high performance chassis. It's basically a 1953 design and there's only so much someone can do with it. To do so would require a lot of time and money...probably more than reasonable. You can do things around the edges to improve things but that's about all that's reasonable...to me at least. I would suspect trying a conversion would lead to throwing things against the wall and being partway in the process and just sitting there with a case of beer and calling it a day.
-
If I remember correctly, I believe the LSC was stretched about nine inches over the standard coupe. You might try asking California Car Cover Company if they have that in their database, but somehow I doubt it as so few were made and pretty unknown outside of die-hard Avanti enthusiasts. You may have to buy a universal cover made for the car's overall length.
If you do contact California Car Cover Co., and they list a standard Avanti, they may be willing to tailor one with the additional length in the middle. It could be worth asking.
-
Does your car have the Studebaker steering wheel and column or the later column with the ignition switch on the column itself rather than the dash? Either way you should have little problem. If the Studebaker steering wheel and column, you can go to the Grant website and check their application guide for the appropriate adapter kit for whichever steering wheel you chose. If you have the later steering column, you need to determine what make it is. Some were American Motors and some were Chrysler. Maybe some were GM but I don't know for sure. You can generally tell by the keys...whether they're AMC or Chrysler keys. Regardless, the Grant application guide should tell you what steering wheels and installation kit will work.
In my '70 which has the Studebaker steering column, I installed a Grant steering wheel and kit...no problems at all. The steering wheel I bought locally at Advance Auto and the kit I got through Summit Racing. There are some other brand steering wheels out there that use Grant installation kits. Check on some websites to find out which.
-
While the guy obviously hasn't a clue when it comes to Avanti's, the fact is water injection does exist and has for many decades. Many military planes in World War II had water injection into their piston engines. It was called War Emergency Power and was only to be used in times of combat when the extra performance was necessary to survive.
It's actually a water/alcohol mix injected into the combustion chamber cools the chamber temperatures and allows higher compression ratio and/or higher manifold pressures without detonation. The alcohol acts as an anti-freeze for the water.
It does exist and has been used in autos to a very limited extent, but the guy is clueless about Avanti's.
-
My '02 has the headlight adjustments made from the rear, but since the whole hood/headlight assembly is one piece that tilts forward, it's only a matter of setting the hood back down, checking the light alignment, raising the hood again and making the adjustments and repeat until set.
Is there not adjustment access on the Mustang based cars with the hood up from the inside? If the headlights need to be removed from the rear I would think there would be adjusting screws there as well.
-
The hog troughs are structural...they tie the body to the frame and support the rocker panels under the doors. The roll bar is connected to the hog troughs and frame and without that tie-in, there is no structural integrity to the body and frame as a unit. The hog troughs also provide mounts for the seats and add increased safety in the event of a side collision.
Anyone who knowingly drives their Avanti with rusted out hog troughs (knowingly or otherwise) is taking a huge chance with safety. Bad hog troughs by themselves can turn an otherwise nice car into little more than a parts car simply due to lack of structural integrity. They're not cheap to replace. I would think many Avanti's have been parted out due to the the expense involved to properly repair or replace the troughs.
To pay a shop to replace the hog troughs may cost as much as $5k or even more, depending whether the body is removed (the preferred way). A $5k repair to a car worth about $15k, more or less depending on year, model, equipment, etc., makes for some difficult decisions for owners. You have to really love the car for its own sake, or because of family history with the car, to drop that kind of cash into it.
-
Several weeks ago I installed the Saturn air deflector under the front of my '70 Avanti and after two weekends of driving back and forth to car shows I can say it really works.
It was an exceptionally simple install and I think I can highly recommend it to anyone with a Stude framed Avanti...it might just as easily work with Larks as well since they share the frame. Whether it would work on a Hawk I don't know.
My '70, with it's new crate engine (now with 2000 miles on it), would run a pretty consistent 180-190 degrees on the highway, slightly more in higher outside temperatures and humidity. Rarely have I seen it go over 200 degrees other than slow traffic and idling.
Last weekend I took the car on a 45-50 mile each way trip to a car/airplane show at a local regional airport. The outside temps were in the upper 80's in the morning and low 90's later in the afternoon with moderately high humidity for our area. The engine ran 165-175 degrees on the highway at a steady 70-75 mph.
Today I went on a somewhat longer trip to a much bigger car show in Northern Virginia...temps were low 80's at most all day with very moderate humidity, though storms threatened they moved out of the area so no rain. The car stayed within 150-165 degrees at 70-75 mph.
I also noticed it ran a bit cooler at 70-75 mph than it did at 50-55 mph. I attribute that to the additional airflow. Possibly the deflector isn't fully efficient until the car gets to higher speeds.
After that I feel the Saturn air deflector is a very positive addition to the car and I can definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to try it. Of course, the deflector has no value at all at low speeds or stop and go traffic as there's too little airflow for the deflector to direct up into the radiator. The engine temps move up into their previous normal range under those conditions but rapidly cools when back up to faster speeds.
While I'm no engineer by any means, I believe it accomplishes the additional cooling two ways...the more obvious is that it directs additional airflow up into the radiator directly that would otherwise pass under the car. The other and closely related effect is the deflector, while directing more airflow upwards, is at the same time reducing turbulence under the car and decreasing drag to some degree. Whether I'm correct or not in my reasoning, I cannot dispute the results...a consistent reduction in operating temperature...10 to 15 degrees at least.
Possible downsides to that much decrease...running at less than 160-180 degrees doesn't really get some engines to best temps for proper emissions reduction and full fuel burn in the combustion chambers. On my engine with fuel injection, it may be borderline on getting the on-board computer out of open-loop into closed-loop operating, which could possibly increase mpg, but I noticed no change in fuel consumption so it may be an irrelevant concern.
As I said...in my car at least...it's seems to be a big success. For less than $30 in parts (air deflector and flat stock aluminum as a stiffener), and a simple install procedure, it's a great addition and even if it doesn't make a difference on a particular car, it doesn't break the bank finding out.
For those interested, the Saturn part number is 20131161. My local Saturn dealer had it in stock. The flat aluminum stock I picked up at Home Depot.
-
About 25 years ago I worked at an RV dealership and we would install hitches accessories so I have a bit of experience though somewhat dated.
1500 lbs. is Class 1 (2000 lbs. gross weight maximum rating). That means you can use a light duty hitch, though you can always install a heavier unit. Since you say a Monte Carlo hitch cannot be used due to the shortening of the frame, go to a certified welding shop that fabricates trailers for farm use, etc., and they can make one for the car. They will probably simply fabricate one and weld it to the frame. That will probably cost less than fabricating one, drilling and bolting it. I don't know what the maximum tow rating is for that car (the manual should tell you if you have one or a Monte Carlo manual should give that). You do need to find that out...some cars are only rated for 1000 lbs. towing...it's not just the size of the engine that makes the difference...it's the frame design and construction which is often the limiting factor.
Depending on your state, you may be required to run your trailer with electric brakes, though most states don't require brakes on a trailer less than 2000 lbs., some do. If so, you need to add a brake controller under the dash and run the electrical lines to the rear for the connector.
I realize it's only a lightweight trailer, but I would suggest having a transmission cooler added if you tow any real amount. I've seen what happens when people don't do that and burn up their transmission...and it rarely if ever happens close to home. An engine oil cooler is nice but not really necessary for light usage.
Make sure your cooling system is in top working order (always good advice regardless). Add a container of Redline Water Wetter or similar product...it's helps make the coolant transfer heat more efficiently, though maybe not enough to matter in your case with occasional light towing.
If you wanted to tow heavier weight, there are more bolt-on modifications that can be done, but in your case it doesn't sound like it would be necessary.
-
It's MSD, which as far as I'm aware does not have a system you can put on a Studebaker engine. It's possible to covert one I imagine, but there are other alternatives that are already available. You can use your stock distributor and add a Pertronix points eliminator kit...less than $100 and works quite well from what I understand. Many have used that system. Dave Thibeault (who advertises in Avanti Magazine) can provide a Mallory distributor for your car which also is an excellent way to go, but more expensive. There are also conversions to the GM window distributor out there, which is also easily converted to electronic as point eliminator kits are available from Pertronix, Mallory, Accel, Crane and likely a few others.
MSD makes a capacitive discharge add-on for cars, which is quite good, but to be honest, for a street car is not really necessary, but certainly doesn't hurt in any way. It probably works best with a points distributor as an electronic ignition really doesn't need it. For a car used on the strip, it's a different story. The same goes for other brand CD ignitions...a lot of advertising hype but little to show for it for a street car outside of lightening your wallet and you get a really nice decal to put on your car telling everyone what equipment your car has. I will say that a good CD ignition may provide better starting, but little more than that.
-
Not directly related, but....I would like to convert my '81 to the round headlight style of the originals; anyone ever done this with aftermarket parts, let me know. Just curious.
The front fiberglass panel and the headlight buckets are available from Studebaker International, so a good body guy can certainly make the conversion. The headache is sourcing the glass lenses and chrome rims...not that they can't be found but they won't be inexpensive in decent shape. By the same token, the same goes for the rectangular frames and lenses. If you do find the parts and perform the conversion, you can at least sell the old parts to somewhat offset the costs of the conversion.
-
I haven't received my copy of HCC yet so I can only guess you mean the dash inlay for the gauges. As far as I've ever seen, Studebaker Avanti's came with either the fawn dash inlay as fawn or later cars (true '64's and transitional '63/'64 cars) with the walnut tenite inlays. If it's black, someone modified it at some point in time.
-
For an '82 to have square sealed beam lights someone had to have changed it at some point as '82 models should have had the '64 style chrome headlight frames and bezels. It wasn't until the 1984 model year (maybe a some late '83s) that the changeover to square sealed beams and rubber bumpers began. Your car must have been retrofitted, which isn't too uncommon. I would think you need to acquire the chrome frames, bezels and seals to accomplish that, plus maybe a few minor parts like screw clips, round headlight retainers, etc. Regardless, those parts in decent condition don't come very cheap anymore when you can find them. I see those parts on Ebay with some regularity. Condition and price is a crap shoot. I don't believe any changes to the fiberglass is necessary which is a big plus.
You can probably come up with the necessary parts from some of the Stude vendors like Jon Myers, Studebaker International or Nostalgic Motors. They can also give you good advice on procedure.
-
It would be a big help for you to get copies of the shop manual and parts manual. Reprints are available from Studebaker International. They're for the Studebaker Avanti, not later models, but a great deal of the information is still relevant and very, very helpful.
-
The bottom cushion to the rear seat just pops out. Lift it up and pull it out. The seat back has two bolts to remove...they're obvious when the seat bottom is out. There are also two tabs holding the seat back in place...once the two bolts are out, push the seat back up and it should pop right out of the tab slots.
Once the seat is out, you'll see a panel held in by maybe twenty screws...use a screwdriver or screwgun and remove them all. The panel should just pull out and you have access to the gas tank.
A hint...place some padding on the floor...it's hard on your knees, but it's not a difficult thing at all to get to the gas tank.
R-2 supercharged restoration
in 1963-64 Avanti
Posted
Depending on how bad the car might be, it will take considerably more than $15k to restore it...depending on the level of restoration you're talking about. First...what condition is the frame and hog troughs? If they're shot, you're probably better off parting the car out...at least in the financial sense. It will take more to correct those issues plus any further costs for rebuilding than any resale value the car has. Now, if you have some personal desire to save the car...out of love for Avanti's or it's been in the family since new, you could be willing to get the car back into shape.
If the hog troughs and the frame are good, there's really no reason why the car cannot be restored...again, depending on the level of restoration you desire.
Is the engine locked up or not? If the engine is in good shape and the supercharger is there, a genuine R2 engine can bring considerable money...again, depending on what level of work it requires to rebuild. The rear glass is made of "unobtainium"...it can bring considerable money as well. The same goes for some specific trim parts.
There's more...brakes, electrical, etc. All that adds into the equation of whether to restore or part out. That goes for any older car, not just Avanti's, but Avanti's do have specific problem areas to address.
My own point of view is I'd like to see every Avanti that can be saved, gets saved. I know that there is a need for donor cars to maintain and get other Avanti's on the road, but I still hate to lose any.