VIN 11596 Frame Swap - a rolling frame-off restoration

[Timeless]

I had my engine cover over with another owner and he riveted a thin aluminum strip to the back side of the cover so that it doesn't flex anymore when it is open. Excellent upgrade, and invisible after re-painting the whole cover. I'll have to check my hinges but I think they are OK. I believe my issue is the prop rod/stay might be rattling while the cover is down. Should be easy enough to figure out.

My factory prop triangle assembly was deleted the day I got the car - installed the DMC louvre support. I like the alum strip idea and also DPI has an engine cover support which I'm sure you're aware of.

[82DMC12]

OK, here is reinforcement strip I had added to the engine cover. As you can see, it was riveted in and then the whole cover was painted to help it blend in nicely. It's just a thin strip of aluminum.

PXL_20230507_183329035.jpg

PXL_20230507_183404816.jpg

[82DMC12]

I was out of town most of this week so no DeLorean updates until this weekend. I went to a car show on Saturday and had a great time but also got a bit sunburnt LOL.

When I was driving to the show, I noticed my speedometer was not working! Dang it. This morning I took the wheel off and found my plastic cup is OK, the Grady Angle Drive remains OK, and I could spin the lower speed cable from the wheel well. But, when I put the tire back on, still no speedo. Took the tire off again, and this time took the lambda counter out and found it also to be working perfectly smoothly (freshly greased, too). The upper cable was also working with no binding. Well, it turns out the inner cable for the lower speed cable snapped straight in half. No binding or twisting, it just cracked right off. This was a cable from DMCMW installed about 2 years ago but surely under 1000 miles on it. Since there doesn't seem to be unraveling or damaged to the angle drive or adapter cup, I am going to chalk it up to a materials defect. I can't find any cause for the break since everything else is working smoothly. I think the cable was routed correctly in the wheel well and yes I do have the speedo guide installed.

I think I am going to replace the upper and lower cables as well as the lambda box with a new one-piece cable from PJ Grady.


PXL_20230507_120257575 (1).jpg

PXL_20230507_113946422.jpg

345441962_521820196642337_834057324631641450_n.jpg

[82DMC12]

One more update for the weekend. I have topped up the A/C now that it's a hellish 90F in Kansas City already. I think it might be slightly undercharged but I'm going to roll with it and see how it goes. Honestly it was working really well with only about 24 oz in the system (R134a) but I added about 5 more oz to bring it up to approximately 29 oz. The low pressure switch is cycling the compressor off at 20 - 25 PSI which I read somewhere is correct for an R134a pressure switch. High pressure is a bit low (maybe 20 PSI low) compared to the chart I'm using but I really don't want to overcharge.

I'm getting about 35F vent temps during testing (fan speed on low) and my accumulator isn't frosting up so I know I'm damn close. I think I'll just drive with it for a while and see how it goes in real life driving.

[DGI]

Great thread. Read it from beginning to end.

Car looks amazing and hope you enjoy it for (at least) another 20 years!

[SupercoolBill]

One more update for the weekend. I have topped up the A/C now that it's a hellish 90F in Kansas City already. I think it might be slightly undercharged but I'm going to roll with it and see how it goes. Honestly it was working really well with only about 24 oz in the system (R134a) but I added about 5 more oz to bring it up to approximately 29 oz. The low pressure switch is cycling the compressor off at 20 - 25 PSI which I read somewhere is correct for an R134a pressure switch. High pressure is a bit low (maybe 20 PSI low) compared to the chart I'm using but I really don't want to overcharge.

I'm getting about 35F vent temps during testing (fan speed on low) and my accumulator isn't frosting up so I know I'm damn close. I think I'll just drive with it for a while and see how it goes in real life driving.

Sounds like it is working pretty great. Like you said, I wouldn't mess.with it.

Sent from my SM-F926U1 using Tapatalk

[82DMC12]

Great thread. Read it from beginning to end.

Car looks amazing and hope you enjoy it for (at least) another 20 years!

That is some epic dedication! I salute you, sir!

Sent from my Pixel 6a using Tapatalk

[82DMC12]

Speedometer is now working properly again, thanks to Rob Grady.

Since I had already invested in a rebuilt Smiths angle drive, I didn't want to throw it all out and go speedbox yet since the speedo cables are really pretty cheap to replace. I elected to buy a one-piece cable that replaces the upper, lower, and Lambda box. Rob sells these and knowing they are quality, made-in-USA, is what you want to hear.

Received it today and less than hour later I already had it fit and driving around the block. No more low speed speedo needle bounce which I've had forever, less moving parts, less friction and resistance, and hopefully a lasting repair.

-7361306839549735117.jpg






Photo of the cable Rob took for me prior to shipping











PXL_20230512_223732781.jpg






Lambda counter removed and cable routed up and over to the dash. I have it attached to the lambda box bracket with 2-sided velco tape, which also holds my backup hood release up and out of the way.

[82DMC12]

I've got a couple projects to work on over the next few days.

1) Washer fluid tank has a pinhole leak in a section where it has already been repaired. Another owner and I fixed some major cracks in it with black plastic weld and it amazingly worked quite well however we might have gotten the weld a bit thin in one spot. We are going to try again this weekend! If that doesn't work, I'll just get a new tank from Ed.

2) Looking forward to pulling my steering rack out again and getting the inner tie rod ends set up properly. It sounds like I didn't get the passenger side one under the correct pre-tension so I have a loose joint there. It is noticeable at highway speed. Rob Grady is sending me new cups and springs, and this time I'll set the pre-tension with a spring scale. Should be a nice afternoon project (but then have to get another alignment!)

3) I have a very slight transmission leak on the driver side where the axle comes out. While rebuilding the transmission, I replaced the axle seal, inner o-ring, and differential nut o-ring. I also have sleeved axle yokes. Fortunately there are no leaks actually on the axles, but the differential nut is leaking. I wanted to confirm this 100% so I used a UV lamp and glasses to check and sure enough, you can see gear oil coming out of the threads. I actually found the correct tool to remove/adjust the differential nut so I'm planning to mark the nut, count turns, and apply Hylomar AF to the threads this time. That will definitely seal it up. Might get to that this weekend too.

These are currently top priority before I go back to addressing other cosmetic things.

PXL_20230513_184541490.jpg






Here you can see a thin bead of gear oil pooled under the diff nut. It's hard to see with a work lamp, but a UV light easily reveals the leak. Gear oil appears to be opaque white under UV lamp. The color difference is very pronounced if you have the tinted UV glasses on too (my phone camera doesn't pick it up like that).








PXL_20230515_230211965.jpg








Snagged this Kent Moore tool for adjusting the Renault differential nut on ebay for almost nothing. Might be willing to loan this tool out to other owners once I'm done using it.

[82DMC12]

Today I decided to see if I can fix the differential adjustment nut leak referenced above. I received the adjustment tool, bought 4 liters of gear oil, and got to work. First I drained the "old" oil out - actually less than 500 miles on it since I put the transmission back together but I was planning to drain it anyway to make sure there wasn't anything I should worry about. After that, zipped out the allen screw bolts that hold my axle in with the air impact, withdrew the axle, then tapped out the roll pin that holds the axle yoke onto the axle stub. After removing the yoke, I got a better look at the diff nut and held the tool up to the nut to make sure it will work. All good.

I set the parking brake so I was sure the differential would not turn at all while working.

Next I took a paint pen and marked the three teeth that are touching the lock clip. I checked the lock clip to see that it was actually pretty much centered over the middle tooth. I could also mark the clip if I felt it was necessary so I could get the nut in exactly the same place it was.

Then I removed the nut while counting revolutions - it was about 8.4 revolutions to remove the nut from the transmission. Once on the bench, I cleaned the threads and laid a thick bead of Hylomar on them. After waiting a few minutes and letting the Hylomar run a bit, I reinstalled the nut using the tool and putting it right back where I found it.

Reinstalled the axle and refilled with fresh gear oil. I think I was done in less than one hour.

Test drive went great, no gear whine and so far no sign of leakage. Will continue to monitor!

PXL_20230518_220912811.jpg








Diff nut castles / teeth marked so there's no question where the clip goes again. Could also mark the clip on either side of the gold M8 screw to get it exactly correct.












PXL_20230518_221327214.jpg








Diff tool fits inside the ring and is driven with a 1/2" ratchet












PXL_20230518_222218032.jpg









Diff nut removed, o-ring already replaced 300 miles ago. Cleaned the threads. Now would be the perfect time to replace the lip seal if required.











PXL_20230518_222506886.jpg









Bead of Hylomar applied.











PXL_20230518_230035822.jpg






Fully re-installed and now ready for the axle.