Hey folks, sorry for the break there in posts, I got caught up in another project.
I have some great news is that the Chevelle is on the road and driving.
I believe we last left off where I was just getting to priming the motor. I primed the motor without issue. There is a port on the front drivers side of the engine where you can plug in a tool to prime the engine with oil. The engine ships full of oil from Chevy. I of course removed that oil when I did a pan change to the Holley oil pan. So far the Holley oil pan that I got from Schwartz Performance works perfect. Zero leaks, it went together great, lined up great with the block, they included all the small parts I needed to complete the install.
The Ultimate Headers that I also got from Schwartz went on next, well they went on and off the car many times making sure I could route the wires and get past the transmission housing. As it turns out I trimmed the transmission bell housing ear on the passenger side flush with the block. This made getting the headers in and out of the car super easy. The second challenge with the headers was making sure I clear the wiring that needs to pass real close on the passenger side. I made sure to use the factory heat shield supplied with the motor and I had to bend it a bit more flat that it was originally to clear the passenger header. The drivers side header would have fit perfect except that it contacts the lower rear control arm bucket that mounted to the frame. I used a grinder on the frame to remove some of the material and then I clearance the header pipe a bit (used a wooden handle to make a smooth dent in that pipe that getting in the way). The header clears the steering shaft without any issues. The header flanges are great and line up perfect. The headers came with a like a spherical ball like metal gasket surface with I and the exhaust shop were not a fan of. We cut of the mating surface on the header in favor of a better sealing surface.
For the rest of the exhaust the O2 sensors are right at the end of the header in the collector. The pipe is 3" to a X pipe and then 3" all the way back thru a pair of Dynamax mufflers. My local shop here in Vista CA, called Warner's Muffler came highly recommended and they did fantastic work. They will be doing all my cars going forward.
Being that I'm driving the car now I've been able to work out any issues with the cooling system. The radiator setup from AutoRad had worked great so far. The car has no issues staying under 200 and typically will stay around 195. There are two fan in a fully sealed shroud and one at a time will come on as the heat increases. So far it has only ever turned on the first of the two fans. The engine controller from GM has full control of the two fans and turns them on as needed. As you an imagine the biggest challenge with the cooling system is hooking it all up. The radiator hoses are easy enough to deal with. The heater hoses are the same story and nothing special to deal with. The intercooler was next hurdle. I needed to be able to hook up the radiators that are in the supercharger housing (using two special connectors), then from the SC unit it connects to the intercooler tank. The intercooler tank is a small unit that is used for expansion and passthru for the pump. From the SC to the tank to the pump to the inlet on the front mounted intercooler, from the outlet of the intercooler back to the SC. Lots of connections and of course a size change half way thru the system (the pump). I mounted the intercooler pump just below the airfilter on the front inside of the drivers inner fender. This was the best spot for hose routing and wiring. The intercooler expansion tank is mounted to the radiator core support above the drivers high beam head light.
Getting all the air out of the intercooler setup isn't too bad. They have air bleeders at the SC unit. I"ve been happy with how cool the car runs even when hot out and stop and go traffic.
More to come, feel free to ask away
