Jackie and the torqueflite

Now back to the real stuff! Real steel, real nuts & bolts, real cars! The transmission was the first part of the 'Cuda that was finished. Actually, it has been sitting in the shelf for quite some time now, thanks to Jackies knowlege and finesse. After a dry ice shower the thourough inspection showed the tranny to be in pretty good shape, consistent with the suspected low milage of the 'Cuda. Clutches, seals and bearings were replaced and all the adjustments were returned to factory specs. The venerable 727 is now set and ready to handle bigblock power again.

Slammin the Slotcuda

A little project on the side. Got a small 'Cuda for the slotraces and the stance was awful...so I slammed it in the weeds! Took me about an hour and I admit it looks a little rough insinde but I won't show you that part. It's now lower front and rear and I think it looks a lot better.

Maybe someday I'll treat it to a respray as I don't like the orange all too well but we'll see...

My ship came in

Finally all the stuff I've been ordering in the US has hit these shores. Thanks to the patience and the logistic talents of my friend Hanno I've been able to save a lot of money on toll and shipping by storing all these boxes in his garage. Some of the first things I ordered must have been sitting there for months..the garage is all yours again now my friend!

Thanks to Norbert, who generously let my parts slip in on his container I was able to collect a whole van full of parts just around the corner here in Vienna!

Included are a new interior carpet, seat covers, dash pad, door panels, steering wheel and so forth, disc brakes for the front wheels, a suspension rebuild kit, front and rear bumpers and several dozend other things I cannot list right now. Also included is a brand new black vinyl top which I will try to sell again as I have other plans with the roof of the 'Cuda. More on that at a later time....

Enginework

The trusty old bigblock is bored and honed to make room for the 0.040 oversized Keith Black hypereutectic pistons. These are made of a unique aluminum alloy that contains dissolved and free silicon. KB pistons have shown improvement in power, fuel economy, cylinder sealing, service life, and cost effectiveness. The reduced thermal expansion rate allows the piston to be run with reduced clearance. A tight piston is less likely to rock, make noise, and burn oil. Anyway, I'm sure the engine will sound awsome.

Metalwork

Chris, the Metalman has started his magic. As there was an extensive amount of rust all around the body, not all of it can be cured by replacement panels. To begin with, the structural beam behind the c-pillar on the driver side had to be rebuilt from scratch. This is the kind of part you cannot buy in any store but it is vital for the rigidy of the unibody. Chris is doing a very good job, not just making the Cuda look good on the outside but also taking care of the things you normally can't see. The inner and outer fender on the driver side have also been put in place, but they haven't been welded in yet. This work will take some time, but I'd rather have it done once and .

On another front I have good news from the other side of the atlantic, the patrs I ordered ar on their way and should be here by the end of the month. Can't wait to do some serious unpacking!!!

New parts

This is the easy part: Buying stuff! This week I got the TTI Exhaust I ordered from the Moparshop in Germany, along with the Dynomyx mufflers and a pair of weld in - frame rail connectors. I expect a big gain in chassis stiffness from the connectors, the bottom line for any possible future suspension upgrades. The exhaust bits are 2,5 inches in diameter, they look massive and I hope the end tips I already have will fit without any further fabrication.

Blasted

Back from blasting. Now all the rust is gone and with it some parts of the body! Holes everywhere...ready to be welded. I'm not worried about the rear of the car -where the rust was worst - because most of the panels will be replaced. Quarters left and right, trunk floor, trunk floor extensions left and right, rear panel, rear valance panel, rear deck panel,inner fenders left and right, outer fenders left and right. In addition to that there are the lower corners under the windshield, ready to be welded in. Some parts of the structure under the C-post will have to be fabricated, the framerails and doorsills are good.

When everything is done I'll have the peace of mind, that everything was done right and no shortcuts were taken.

On another front, there is still no final decision on the color...the original color was sandpebble beige, I suppose not very many 'cudas were delivered that color and most of those have probably since been resprayed to one of the more flamboyant seventies colors. White is also still an option, I've still got time to think it over...