1956 Plymouth Belvedere Convertible Great 8 Detroit Autorama

When I begin to lose enthusiasm I take another look at this beauty to see how beautiful a modernized '56 Plymouth can be!

Income Tax preparations and spring yard work have priority for now, but I managed to find a couple of hours to continue engine bay wiring. 

I finished the alternator/AC mounting bracket and got those parts relocated. They fit fine with both parts on the passenger side of the engine, but the driver's side sure looks bare without a battery or power steering pump! Plenty of room for a relay/fuse block.

I wrote a nasty review of the electronic ignition cable assembly I got from Summit Racing. They posted it on their website without question and then asked me if I wanted to return it, or refund my  PayPal account. Before I answered, they sent a refund and didn't even ask me to ship the bad part back to them. 

Maintaining great customer service must be a pain with all the Chinese car parts these days.

Hope everyone has an enjoyable Easter.

Good News...Bad News

The good versus bad news comment always makes me think about the joke I heard maybe thirty years ago.

The guy who whips the crew that rows the old Roman galley announces to the crew that there is good news and bad news. The good news is that they will all be getting double rations. The crew cheers wildly! Then the bad news..."the skipper wants to water ski this afternoon!"

My good news is that the Champion radiator arrived today and it was a nearly perfect fit. Three of the four mounting holes fit were in the exact location needed, and only one hole will have to be drilled in the radiator bracket about a half-inch lower.

The bad news is that there is not enough clearance to install a clutch fan. I can't see bolting my 6-blade fan to the water pump as it would take a lot of horsepower to run constantly. This car isn't going to be raced or hot-rodded, but I know I would worry about that big fan dragging down power and would ultimately decide to replace it with an electric fan. If I do it now, I'll have all kind of room to work, so it makes sense to do it now. I will also upgrade the charging system so the electric fan doesn't overload the circuit.

I decided to move the alternator to the same side as the AC compressor, and have been designing and fabricating the new mounting brackets. This time I used heavier material so they won't have to be re-done. I might have pictures tomorrow, if the paint dries and I get time to install them.

Engine Bay Wiring

I'm getting a little deeper into the under-hood wiring and like everything else, unexpected issues bog down progress.

After laying out the ignition component locations, the next step was deciding where to mount the fuse and relay block, so I decided that it would be advisable to verify the configuration of undecided parts, like the radiator. There wasn't a radiator in either project car to use as a guide, and I haven't given much consideration to cooling...like if I should go with a stock clutch fan or an electric fan. Both have their advantages and disadvantages, but since an electric fan needs 12 volts to operate, and I'm totally rewiring the car, it makes a difference where I place the wiring and power source.

I expected that I would need a radiator shaped somewhat like the stock version, but the first and most obvious differences were the hose connection points on the original configuration and the later 1966, 318 engine. The '66 lower hose connects on the driver's side, while the '56 version is on the passenger side. Naturally, that means the top connection is also on the opposite side, so a custom radiator looks mandatory.

Champion lists a '55-'56 stock configuration, but according to their price list, having the manufacturer move the outlets and petcock more than doubles the price of the stock configuration, and that places it in a similar price range as a full custom design.

Going with Champion does give me a substantially reduced price on a Spal electric fan, so I'll do some more pricing before I decide. Unfortunately, choosing the electric fan would mean a heavy load on the stock 60 amp alternator, which may mean an upgrade there.

I'm also reconsidering my original decision to swap sides for the AC and alternator mounts. Most of the brackets I made to test mounting locations and methods were intended to be temporary and would have to be re-made from heavier material when the car gets is ready for the road. The radiator configuration I choose could affect how I decide to mount them, so in the meantime wiring in the engine bay goes on hold.

J.S.Bach and Friend

One of my favorite online people to visit is the mostly Cajun blogger at: http://mostlycajun.com/wordpress/
He posted this video today and admitted he stole it from yet another blog, but after watching and listening, I fully concur with his reasoning. Even if classical music isn't your thing, I can't imagine anyone not enjoying the young lady doing the strumming.

Underhood Wiring

Finally got a start installing underhood wiring. I had been waiting for the new ECU connector and harness I ordered from Summit. It arrived Tuesday, but I spent much of the day trying to get the connector to fit the box. The grommet was so deformed it wouldn't insert to full depth, so I had to use a needle-nose plier to re-shape it to fit. For the price, it really was a thirty dollar piece of junk, but my old harness wires were cracking and the terminals were corroded, so I had to replace it. I might end up finding an OEM part and replace it again.

I decided to use the firewall to mount most of the hardware so I can use shorter wires. I'll probably mount the voltage regulator near the alternator and the fuse box on the inner fender. No pictures yet, as I'll wait until I can show more progress.

The last two days were spent framing the bathroom in my wife's studio/pool house/ greenhouse, and replacing the fence that had to be removed for the builder, so fun work has again been placed on the back burner.

My wife is spending a few days visiting a friend next week, so I'm going to ignore her honey-do list and spend at least a couple of days on the car.