Steady Sweeper

I have an Auto Meter 3363 Sport-Compact Fuel Pressure Gauge on the Bullitt. Most recently the gauge had been sweeping from 20-100psi for no apparent reason and with no drivability problems, which tells me the sending unit is probably bad. Before that, at idle the gauge was fluctuating between 30-32psi so it seemed like it was on the way out anyway.

Because the gauge is at least 5 years old, the previous sending unit (#4590-0008-22 P158-5190-2) was no longer available. Auto Meter has a new and improved replacement for these 0-100psi electric full-sweep gauges, but it's not obvious when calling the mail order places. It is Auto Meter #2246 Replacement Sender (#4590-0023-12). Besides the subtle differences in the photos, the port on the new replacement is quite a bit larger than the old one. With the new sending unit, idle is rock steady at 30psi and the gauge now sweeps correctly.


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Nothing Like a Little Stainless...

The Vortech supercharger on the Bullitt has a Vortech Aftercooler kit. Over the years, the anodized hardware around the stainless trim ring on top of the plastic tank got really rusty, looked lousy, and dropped crust into the coolant below. Also coolant would weep from around the gasket after using the car.




The hardware was so far gone, it couldn't be tightened. So I bought a gasket from Vortech for about $8, and since they wanted about $60 for the anodized hardware, I bought stainless hardware from the local hardware store. Spent about $14 or so on replacement allen head bolts with two washers and a lock nut for each.





It was definitely a hassle installing these bits with my big hands. I didn't drain the tank, and there are a pair of semi-circle trim rings inside the tank that is held on by the lock-nuts. Took a good hour to fiddle with this stuff. Looks great now though and should look that way for a long time. The stainless does not rest in the coolant, and the trim ring is stainless anyway so I can't see a downside at this time. We'll see!

Now You See It, Now You Don't

So I had a chance to use a Kozak 1050 Auto Dry Wash Cloth, which I bought through Amazon the other day for the princely sum of about $5. This thing is as great as I remember it from back in the 1980's.

It wipes up dust and pollen quickly and safely and even reduces static on the surface of the paint (to prevent more dust and pollen from accumulating). It has a great nap that holds the light debris tight until you shake it out. Comes in a resealable bag that fits under the seat or in the glovebox. Good for about 50 wipe-downs and then can use it on wheels. Great for car shows or to avoid rewashing a car that just has dust on it.

The pic shows the grey cloth (new area on left, used area on right) with the resealable bag.



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First Grill 57 Cruise-in of 2010

I stopped by Grill 57 this weekend for the first Cruise-in of 2010. There's always a good crowd there and plenty of different cars (and trucks) to check out. For instance, there was a new black ZR1 this time.

>> Check out my photo album (47 pix!)

Sunday Drive in the '66

I took the '66 for a drive this afternoon, since the weather was just perfect. I went through Youngsville, NC, and found a couple good backdrops for some pix of the car. It was pretty funny actually—while I was taking some pix, a woman in a pickup stopped, hopped out with her Nikon, and asked if she could photograph the car too.




I'll go back out there and get some higher-res shots without the date stamp and perhaps get a poster made for the garage-majal. :-)

Grill 57 Cruise-In Schedule

I stopped by Grill 57 last weekend and picked up the cruise-in schedule for this summer. (BTW, I have no idea if Grill 57 is in Garner or Raleigh?! It's on Fayetteville Road. People have referred to it as Garner, but the Grill 57 website says Raleigh—I'll say Raleigh from now on...)

They always have a good turnout for their local car shows, and I've been meaning to return since my trip there last summer.

The "official" dates are: April 17, May 15, June 19, July 17, August 21, and September 18.

See you there!

Ah-choo!

It's been just a few days since detailing the Bullitt, and Raleigh is covered in tree pollen. At this point, the cars need another washing, but when they are clean I'll keep up with occasional dust and pollen between washings with a Kozak 1050 Auto Dry Wash Cloth.

I used these cloths back in the 1980s on my Mustang at the time (an '83 GT—with a body kit!). They worked great then, and I've been meaning to try them again.




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The Green Monster

I drove the Bullitt home to NC last weekend. But first we ran it through a local Lorton, VA car wash, and frankly they did a pretty good job for only $8.




After I arrived home, I had some small tasks to complete -- including replacing the third brake light assembly, which tends to fade and scratch on these cars.

I'd have taken more pix after the big detailing I completed, but I didn't realize pollen season was already upon us here in NC. Now the car is covered in light green dust... Oh well. :-)

Eraserhead!

Since the Bullitt was used in the One Lap of America years ago, it was festooned with stickers of all shapes and sizes. Fortunately, most came off easily with some heat and 3M Adhesive Remover. There were a couple on the doors that required something a little extra, and some stickers on the aluminum wheels that were tough to remove as well. The sale of the car included an Eraser Pad (Pinstripe Eraser Pad).




I had never used one before and it seemed like I'd need an air compressor to power the thing. As it turned out, a simple cordless drill like this one -- Black & Decker CDC180ASB 18-volt Compact Drill with 20 Accessories -- works just fine. In fact, the drill spins about 1400 rpm and the eraser works fine at that slow speed.




I let the sticker warm up in the sun, but don't let it get so hot it starts to melt. Get a good grip on the drill when you start, because it will want to jump all over. Use multiple angles to find the best one for cutting the stickers down.




I cleaned the residue with the Adhesive Remover but some glaze or wax might work well too.



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