The car was originally purchased Christmas eve 1996 and driven from Texas to south Florida (think Fort Myers area) where it appears to have been driven regularly...no mean feat for a car with no air conditioning in such a southern tropical clime. That owner, #1, passed away and owner #2 purchased from the estate of owner #1. Owner #2 kept the car for a year, stored, in the Minneapolis area and rarely drove it. I purchased the car from owner #2 and drove it back non-stop from Minnesota to Georgia, a 1000 mile trip.
Over the course of the trip, some interesting traits emerged.
-upon brisk acceleration, at each shift change there is an unusual noise that sounds suspiciously like a blow off valve. However, the car is original and is still NA. Could this be a by product of the "air cavitation" issue I've read about, regarding the upper manifold? The exhaust is completely stock and dead quiet.
-the rear axle hops like mad, especially on the large undulating whoops present up north. Is the car undersprung, underdamped, or both? If underdamped, I can dial that up (I hope)...not sure what the settings are on the shocks presently.
-rear suspension is extremely loose. A 302 1995 Cobra I previously owned exhibited this same trait. It can turn into a dangerous oscillation, similar to a tank-slapper, by steering the car from the rear axle similar to a Hyster. I remedied this on the other car by increasing the durometer of the bushings in the lower 4 link bars. Other than a panhard, what have others done to fix this?
-previous owner had the sail panels surrounding the quarter windows repainted along with the top parts of the rear quarter panels. During this operation, apparently part of the fixings for the headliner were missed and the headliner is sagging on the edges close to the windows. How to fix? Disassemble and re install?
-wheel finish is poor due to years of salt corrosion in south Florida. The paint is bubbling. I intend to refinish, even though the car is intended to be a driver. Would this salt air oxidization damage the integrity of an aluminum wheel? The car is rust free otherwise, save for the odd bolt head here and there.
-has anyone had any luck with sanding and repainting the front and rear bumper fascias? There are numerous star breaks in the paint, although the material appears otherwise intact. I suppose flex agent in paint only does so much.
Over the course of the trip, some interesting traits emerged.
-upon brisk acceleration, at each shift change there is an unusual noise that sounds suspiciously like a blow off valve. However, the car is original and is still NA. Could this be a by product of the "air cavitation" issue I've read about, regarding the upper manifold? The exhaust is completely stock and dead quiet.
-the rear axle hops like mad, especially on the large undulating whoops present up north. Is the car undersprung, underdamped, or both? If underdamped, I can dial that up (I hope)...not sure what the settings are on the shocks presently.
-rear suspension is extremely loose. A 302 1995 Cobra I previously owned exhibited this same trait. It can turn into a dangerous oscillation, similar to a tank-slapper, by steering the car from the rear axle similar to a Hyster. I remedied this on the other car by increasing the durometer of the bushings in the lower 4 link bars. Other than a panhard, what have others done to fix this?
-previous owner had the sail panels surrounding the quarter windows repainted along with the top parts of the rear quarter panels. During this operation, apparently part of the fixings for the headliner were missed and the headliner is sagging on the edges close to the windows. How to fix? Disassemble and re install?
-wheel finish is poor due to years of salt corrosion in south Florida. The paint is bubbling. I intend to refinish, even though the car is intended to be a driver. Would this salt air oxidization damage the integrity of an aluminum wheel? The car is rust free otherwise, save for the odd bolt head here and there.
-has anyone had any luck with sanding and repainting the front and rear bumper fascias? There are numerous star breaks in the paint, although the material appears otherwise intact. I suppose flex agent in paint only does so much.
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