SkinnyG's V8 Pontiac Firefly

THAT is why I built it.

and that's why i follow this and the square and the 'patina queen' thanks 

Slow start, but some discussion before the run about the car and whatnot.  Then view looking out, a run with the camera outside, and a run looking in.

Glasspacks, man, because OMG, glasspacks:

Ran my second autocross today.  About the same.  Car handles way better than I expect.

The poly bushings are certainly holding me back, and lifting a wheel is not letting the torsen work.  Probably should have gotten a clutch style LSD??

Haven't decided if I will change the bushings out or not.  Still awesome as a daily driver.  Comforting to know that the car is very very predictable as a daily driver, even when wrung out in fury.

Alright, alright.  I ordered RH and LH rod ends and some swedged tubes from Speedway Motors.  It was only $115 US (likely $180 CDN??) Should be here in a week or so.

Great news everybody!

Something seems to have gooned in the 305.

A light ticking sound, to me sounds like a lifter, related to RPM not engine load. Slowly getting worse. More noticeable on passenger side, but lower down, not under the valve cover.  Still thinking lifter.

Today, sounded and ran like it dropped a cylinder.

I went through the easy button - plugs look good, no arcing on wires or cap or rotor. Lifter no longer lifting the valve?

Pulled the passenger valve cover. Rockers all look and feel fine.  Nothing obvious. Lifter?

Pulled the pan just to check the rods, but all "feel" good on the wiggle test.  I will plastigage them tomorrow. Will likely try pulling the intake tomorrow.

While I probably -can- pull the intake in the car, if I have to pull the motor, I think a 350 would be a wiser replacement. Or a 5.3L.

Good times.

So... a heart transplant equals a prolonged ownership????

A bad motor means less return, methinks.

I can scab together a cheap 350.

cheap...but stoutish perhaps........low 300hp???

Do not overlook exhaust manifold gaskets.  I've had them leak at the head and I'd swear it was a loose rocker.

I forgot to mention there was sparklies and chunks in the oil.

Low 300hp would still be even more fun than my 170hp TBI 305.

In reply to SkinnyG :

Ok, so probably not exhaust manifold gasket.

;-)

I -did- think maybe exhaust leak.  I have a header leak on my daily, but it changes sound with throttle.  The Firefly wasn't changing sound, it was always ticking. It might still be a leak, I'm just not as convinced that it is.

I went out to the shop to second-guess myself. Took a good long look at the oil in the drain pan. Shimmering sparkly goodness. Like a super-fine hint-of metallic, which, when you roll the oil around int he pan, leaves a sparkly discolouration as it goes. Much like metallic paint.  Only it's not paint.

You know how you do that first oil change after a rebuild, and you're like "oh dear god no!" when you look at the sparkly death staring up at you in the pan?

It's maybe a third that.  Except this engine is 30 years old. I don't think it's going through a mid-life break-in.

So......

Again, Budget-friendly.

I have a couple of flat-tappet 350's short blocks I can use, just needs a cheap "look-the-other-way" re-ring, and they'd be fine. One has flat-tops, one has dished. I might have another one somewhere. I have a variety of heads to chose from.

My easy button of the best of my worn-out parts are looking like a 4-bolt 350 I have with really good internals, probably 882 heads, steel shim gasket, and something like a 262 cam to keep the idle sedate, work with the relatively low compression, keep the stock converter, and still run 87.

Looks like I'll be swapping the plates onto the Lethal Locost Super 7 again.

This sounds like opportunity disguised as a bunch time and hassle.  So, congrats?

Should be pretty fun when you get it all back together.

Hard to see the sparklies, but see the colour change near the edges.

Reading motor oil is like reading Tea Leaves. These ones say "classifieds."

I took the old "882" heads that originally came with The Crusty Chevy, ground the valves, back-cut the valves, knurled and reamed the guides, and did a 3-angle valve job on the seats.

Porting is next.

It's nice that I have all this engine-rebuilding stuff I can borrow from work :)

"882" heads are #10 on the Small Block Chevy Best Cylinder Head list.  Yep - the WORST of the BEST. You can see in this picture, even from far away, just how crappy these heads flow:

That will all be fixed.

I'm also trying to pick a cam - I think it will be a Comp Cam 262 of some sort.  Good idle, good street manners, but more power everywhere.
 

I ordered a Lunati 10120701 (60101) cam for my 4-bolt 350 block. 

213°/219° @0.050" and 0.454"/0.468" on a 112°ICL. Should be a sweet streetable cam.

Parts are shipped, might be here by the end of the week.

Just need to yoink the engine/trans bolts, and it should come right out.

Started porting the 882 heads.

Out with the sparkly-oil ticking-sound 170hp L03 305 goodness:

And then I ported the 882 heads some more until my hands went numb.

Engine is all back together and on the test stand at work, but I ran out of time to fire it.  Monday.

I fabricated my own valve-guide-boss-cutter-down-inater, as well as a viton-valve-seal-pusher-on-inator. The heads can now run about 0.620" lift, though I'm certainly not running that. But I could.

I could buy this tool for $100.  Or I could spend $300 of my time fabricating one.  For $2.

Scrap bit of 1.5" steel, a cut valve stem from a small block Chevy, three lengths of 1/4" drill rod, and a couple set screws.  Works slick!

Cuts the guide boss down to 0.530, chamfers the top, and allows you to cut the guide shorter for more lift.

Tested on a junk set of heads:

While I'm breaking it in on a Rochester and HEI, I ordered the Moates TBI chip-burner and stuff so I can hack the ECU instead of re-wiring for Megasquirt. I may still give up and run Megasquirt, but a chip is $5 and the burner is a keeper.

According to Comp Cams' "Cam Quest," this engine with this cam should be around 320hp and 465ft-lbs of torque.

That would be nice.

For two, maybe three months.

Jeebus, that's a lot of torque.

What induction setup are you going to use?  You mentioned a TBI; four barrel setup?  Factory 5.7 truck TBI doesn't flow enough to get to 320hp, does it?  TPI + MS probably supports those kinds of numbers...

Good thread as always.

I bought (but haven't used) a Holley big-bore TBI unit for cheap off eBay.  Turned out the injectors were for a 4.3L, but rumour is the Holley injectors are poop. 

I Frankensteined a GM injector pod with GM 5.7L injectors, and made the fuel pressure regulator adjustable.  I am told the big-bore is about 670cfm, whereas the OEM one is 390cfm. I bought (but haven't installed yet) a '96 Vortec fuel pump which I am told bolts right in, and will provide enough fuel.

What could possibly go wrong?