1973 Monte Carlo S

[hetman]

This post I wrote last October after taking delivery of this Monte:

I know you've all been waiting with baited breath for this report, like I've been waiting 10 months for delivery of this car (by far the most expensive car I've ever bought in my life), so I'm glad to report that the car is finally here! In fact I am tremendously excited, tired from the stress and over 600 mile journey to pick it up, and overcome by the reality of finally, nearly 19 years after buying my first one, and 13 years after it was stolen, owning another example of my favorite car of all time - Motor Trend's Car of the Year - the 1973 Chevrolet Monte Carlo.

So allow me to go back to where it all started for me. Back in March 1989 I'd just returned to the States after spending my first two years of college in Munich, Germany, where I'd owned a 1975 BMW 2002, and I was looking in my local Highland Park, Illinois newspaper for a suitable car for college, when I happened upon a small, nondescript ad for a 73 Monte for $1400. My mom and I went to look at it, and it turned out the second owner of this car was selling it after using it as his business car for two years. Fortunately the first owner (and the seller) took wonderful care of it, and what I saw was a completely mint, flamboyant looking large coupe which was a Monte. Our family had been a Ford family, so this was my first exposure to Chevies, but this design knocked me off my feet with its overwhelming beauty. Plus it had a factory electric sunroof, which is my favorite option and extremely rare in an American car, especially from the 70s. Anyway, I took it for a test drive but already had made up my mind. The owner admonished me to never drive it over 65 mph, but at least I never promised.... This car was awesome, and over the years it took me across the country many times and to college and to work, everywhere, safely, comfortably and very quickly. I'd never experienced such a fantastic car, and it was really fun to drive too. Many years later I found out the 73 Monte had won Motor Trend's Car of the Year award, and even when I bought it I was astounded at how well it handled.

That car was stolen from my driveway in Huntsville, Alabama in June 1994. I still own it, and I still dream that some day it will be recovered. But lately I'd been toying with the idea of getting another one, especially seeing how the prices of formerly affordable muscle cars have sky-rocketed, souring way out of reach of my meager budget. So I knew I had better act fast or never be able to afford another 73. That idea, coupled with the catalyst of getting married, spurred me to pull the trigger on the purchase of this 73 big block back in January of this year, before I got married. That way (or so I thought), my wife wouldn't be able to complain that I made such a large purpose without her permission. LOL, just this week she reminded me that I went behind her back to buy this car. Fortunately, she loves it to death already.

I found out about this car from the yahoo second generation Monte group, where someone alerted us to the ebay auction of David Vrooman's project car, saying it was a heck of a deal. So I contacted him and agreed to pay the $5000 he was asking if he'd take the money in installments and also do his best to finish up the car, since there's no chance I'd be able to get those parts over here. He agreed, and I started buying and paying for missing trim pieces and a new radiator, which he installed. It took me many months to finally pay for the car, and the few missing trim pieces cost over $2000 to acquire. He did a fairly good job of putting it back together (it was almost finished anyway, just missing some details) but when I picked it up two days ago, I had to contend with no wipers (and it rained all day too) and no speedometer or tach. In fact, these details are rather small, but it's hard to drive in the rain without wipers.

Overall, I am really happy with the car, it being a practically new car mechanically, and body-wise it's also basically mint. It hails from the Mohave Desert, where it spent the first 20 years with one owner, garaged. It was sold to David in 1993 with 95,000 original miles on it, but minus its original 350/350 combo and Rally wheels. Obviously, the car has no rust anywhere, and the interior was also saved from the ravages of the sun, so it's still mint. The dash isn't even cracked. David never got a chance to enjoy the car, spending the next 14 years building it up the way he wanted. He took a barely used early 70's 454 and had it rebuilt by a race shop in Arizona, where he lived. The engine has such little wear that the original pistons were reused, but he did put in other high performance parts, which are listed below in the ebay ad. A new Summit TH350 transmission shifts amazingly well, I've found out, and the engine runs quite smoothly. I haven't dogged it yet, since when I picked it up it had only 100 miles on everything. All the suspension and steering components are new, as are the new Rally wheels and tires. It was repainted in the original color as well, with a new vinyl top added. The car is really sharp, and drives great as well. It has all the options I was looking for (save the sky roof) - sport coupe (not landau), full vinyl roof (I don't care for the looks of second gens without a vinyl roof, because to me the roof doesn't mate well with the lower body without that horizontal line that is formed by the vinyl roof), extra guage package, F41 suspension, posi, and swivel buckets. And that big block!!

So the big day finally arrived. I got the car that the car was in port, and made arrangements with my father in law to go with me to pick it up. I'd had it shipped using a Roll On/Roll Off method, after the horrible disaster that befell my 1984 Monte using a container. And I was rewarded by a car that was not damaged in transit. We drove over 300 miles there, arriving at 6:45 am, since the offices opened at 8. However, we didn't get through with all the bureaucracy till after 3pm. We were quite tired by this time, having had no time to eat or sleep for a long time. I got a chance to see my beauty through the customs holding area fence, sitting in the rain a hundred yards away. It was beautiful, and when we finally got the release to pick it up, I couldn't contain my excitement. As I got closer, it still looked as good as in the pictures. I started the big block up and boy was I not prepared for the melody (let's call it that, for the sake of argument; it really was a hellacious roar). I looked under the car; it had dumps!!! I couldn't believe that. Dynomax ceramic coated headers merging into 2.5 inch stainless steel pipes routed into Flowmaster 40 mufflers, dumping right outside the mufflers. All new and shiny. And LOUD. So loud it shook the ground and reverbrated inside the car like a giant drum. Very menacing. Aggressive enough standing still, but with the engine on it was a beast. Get on the gas pedal and the beast jumped and roared. What madness!!! What fun.

The drive home proved uneventful, in fact. I drove for the first 100 miles, but my father in law quickly found an excuse to take my place (we were in 2 cars), and he loved it so much he refused to relinquish the keys till we got back home. No problem, I'd spent many years driving one, so I let him enjoy this outstanding piece of Yankee engineering. USA #1!! That's it, baby!! That car has so much power it can go anywhere it wants, but even idling in traffic it causes an uproar. Everyone staring at it, everyone wanting to talk to you about it, even people chasing us down the street in the hopes they could get a longer glimpse of it. Yesterday I took it into downtown Warsaw again to get it looked at by an automotive appraiser expert (so I can get an exemption on customs duties because it's a historical car), as well as to show it to a few friends. One gearhead friend of mine simply stood in awe, speechless, just listening to the sound of the idling engine. I know, I can understand. This car drops people's jaws and causes them to lose their minds.

OK, I think it's time for some pics. This is my first and probably only writeup for this car (in English), so Tony, here's to you and your awesome website!! Of course, it's only a second gen, so I can't even post this "over there". Please forgive the low quality of the pics from my cell phone.

My first glimpse of the car, in the customs yard in Gdynia:







Outside the customs yard but before finishing up the red tape. My little red commie car is next to it:








God blesses us with a full double rainbow before we hit the road:





Filling up with premium at well over $6/gal. Notice how people are so stunned by the car they can't move:







And yesterday in downtown Warsaw:











I couldn't leave my car for more than 3 minutes before someone was begging my friend to show him the engine bay:





Showing it to another friend, who is also a gear head. His face tells the story:





Safely put away for a little while:

[hetman]

Here's the original ebay ad for this car:

You are looking at a 1973 Monte Carlo that has been a project car for me for nine years or so. It spent most of it's life in the desert and is a super solid car. This is a mostly completed project car, there are still e few odds and ends to complete. Monte Carlos of this vintage are starting to bring the dollars in, and should only continue to gain value as the idiots at a certain auction in Arizona bid $100k plus for muscle car era iron drive the prices up beyond the reach of the average joe, who is in turn made to settle for later model steel. 1973 is the last year for the smaller bumpers, which make this the most desirable of the mid-70's Monte Carlos. In addition, the 1973's have the strong 8.5" rear, 4-link rear suspension, and aren't much heavier than a 68-72 Chevelle.... making them a great alternative to the more popular and higher dollar machines.

Engine:
Early 70's 454 with 396 heads
Less than 100 miles on engine
New crank, reconditioned rods and standard bore pistons
Edelbrock Performer cam and intake
Holley 770 Street Avenger carb with electric choke
Dynomax ceramic coated headers
Heads completely redone... new seats, valves, guides, springs, keepers, etc.
Repro chrome SS valve covers from OPGI (the expensive ones)
Milodon stock replacement oil pan
Melling HV oil pump
Pete Jackson gear drive
HEI distributor with MSD coil and module

Tranny & rear end:
Summit TH 350 with less than 100 miles
Summit 2100 stall converter
SFI approved flex plate
10 bolt 2.73:1, factory posi rear

Front end:
All bushings, ball joints, springs and shocks replaced and aligned.
New tie rods and center link

Wheels and tires:
Wheel Vintiques-type Rallyes with chrome outer rims, 15x8 rear, 15x7 front
Disc brake caps
BF Goodrich TA radials with less than 100 miles 275/60/15 rear, 225/60/15 front

Body:
**NOS sealing strips on the doors**
This car lived entirely in the desert until February of 2006, and it's been in the garage since then. There is zero rust through anywhere... period. The front driver's fender was replaced and the car was re sprayed in the original white using PPG Omni base/clear. The paint job is pretty good, and is six years old and seems to be holding up fine (of course, it has been garaged most of that six years). There is a quarter-size chip from when I peeled off the masking tape after glueing down the vinyl top, right under the driver's side opera window. The bumpers were rechromed, and all of the emblems were replaced with NOS pieces except for the grille shield. The lower rocker pieces on the fenders are all NOS, and I have the door center strips NOS that aren't installed yet. The rear shield on the trunk is also NOS as well as the tail light pieces. One of the lower door pieces was damaged and will need replaced, I believe on the passenger side. The ones that weren't replaced were polished and the stripes re painted.

Interior:
This is a console and bucket seat car with manual windows and locks. The front seats were redone to original and turned out beautifully. The back seat is original. The carpet has been replaced, but it will need new sill plates. The passenger side upper door panel will also need redone and is not currently installed. The headliner is in good condition. I installed Auto Meter electric oil and temp gauges in the center pod.

What it needs:
As I mentioned, this is still a project car. In addition to the above mentioned needs, it will also need a larger radiator and a big block shroud, which are available new. It also comes with new in the box Richmond 4.10:1 gears that will need to be installed if the new owner wishes to have an off-the-line car. It also comes with A/C brackets if the new owner wishes to install the air conditioning.

Terms:
Winning bidder should contact me by e-mail ASAP after auction ends. 10% of the winning bid is due in the form of a money order or certified check within 5 working days of auction close with remainder due at pickup. Buyer is responsible for picking the car up or having it shipped. Please do not bid if you do not intend to purchase. Please do not drink and bid




And here's a write-up I did for my application for historical status for this car:


The Chevrolet Monte Carlo was first introduced in September 1969 as a 1970 model, and is still in production today after many 6 different generations and mechanical updates. Chevrolet targeted a younger market of professionals who wanted a personal car with sporty character along with luxury and styling.

The first generation was produced from 1970-72, and incorporated a distinctive long hood and short rear deck, giving the car its trademark silhouette and body lines which would carry through its 37 years of production. The base engine was a 350 c.i. V8, and a larger 400 c.i. and big block 454 c.i. were also available. A Super Sport (SS) package was also available, as were various automatic and manual transmissions, though the vast majority of Monte Carlos were delivered with automatics. Fully loaded, the car cost over $5000, equal to a Cadillac.

The second generation, produced from 1973-77, incorporated even more swoopy body lines with bulging sculpted fenders, yet still maintained the long hood and short deck look. General Manager John Z. DeLorean had the suspension and steering geometry re-engineered for the 1973, making it handle like the best European cars, for which Motor Trend magazine awarded the Monte Carlo its coveted Car of the Year honors. This year also proved a roaring sales success for Chevrolet, with over 250,000 units sold. 1973 also marked the first year of production of an electric steel sliding sunroof, adding a full 1/10 of the cost of a new vehicle! The SS option had been dropped in 1972, but the motor and handling package remained so drivers could still have a muscle car wrapped in a luxurious body. The second generation Monte Carlo proved so popular that it spawned the creation of other similar personal luxury cars from other manufacturers, such as Ford, Chrysler and AMC.

Third generation (1978-80) and fourth generation (1981-1988) Monte Carlos were down-sized in response to the fuel crisis, but maintained the standard shape and function of the traditional sporty luxury coupes. A V6 and smaller V8s were de rigueur now, but the cars remained rear-wheel drive vehicles on a full frame, and the SS package reappeared again in 1983. The SS was the darling of the Nascar racing circuit, garnering more wins than any other model in history, and to keep its edge on the track, Chevrolet even introduced a limited run of “Aero-coupes” with a more aerodynamic, slanted rear window. Unfortunately, production of the Monte Carlo was axed in 1988 due to corporate planning. In 1995, production resumed but as a unibody with front wheel drive and a 3.8 liter V6. Some claim these fifth and sixth generation models can no longer be considered “real Montes”.

This 1973 Monte Carlo, VIN 1H57K3Z429480, represents one of the best surviving examples of this historical vehicle from Detroit’s muscle car era. It hails from Arizona, and being a desert car, has never seen the ravages of winter, snow, salt, or even rain, thus preserving it in pristine condition. Nonetheless, it has undergone substantial refreshening, with new paint, new vinyl roof, new vinyl seat covers, as well as all chrome trim either being rechromed or replaced with factory NOS parts. Additionally, the big block 454 has been professionally rebuilt to exacting specifications, along with a new transmission and new Rallye rims, which this vehicle was also equipped with originally. This car also sports the rarely found Strato-bucket seats, which swivel out 90 degrees for rear passengers.

[hetman]

Posted October 21, 2007:
So today I was over at my friend's place where the car is parked temporarily, cleaning the interior and glass (looks like new now!) and lo and behold, as I was sitting there a 78-80 Cutlass cruises by. It's the second one I've seen here. So I decided I needed to go take some pics of it, and started packing up my things, when guess what? A 79 Monte low rider rolls by, followed by two Caddies, then an old Caprice sedan, and an old Buick. WTF?! I've never seen so many old American rides in one place in Warsaw before, so I had a better idea - drive the Monte down to the restaurant where they were congregating to see what's up and show them another nice car!!! It took some time to get it started (flooded carb), but then VROOMVROOMVROOM and off I went. They'd all gone inside the restaurant but as soon as I pulled up and parked, they started streaming out to check out my ride. What a cool bunch of people - they have a club LoRider.PL, so I'll be joining them just to hang out and enjoy a good time with. They seem like some really hip cats, and boy did they like my Monte.

[hetman]

Posted October 22, 2007:
So one of those guys compiled a video of the few minutes I was with them, and put it on the net:

Representin' it video.google.pl/videoplay?docid=7675803090082828693

[hetman]

Posted November 3, 2007:
The car does intimidate people...women and children, run to the hills!! LOL. Like George Thorogood said in the song Bad to the Bone..."I make little girls squeal..." Literally, that's the impression this beast gives. And the gear drive is definitely audible.


I wanted to share some interesting stuff from the 1973 owner's manual. On page 33 under "ventilation" the manual shows an interesting hybrid Monte. Take a look for yourselves: the front half is a first generation, and the rear half is a second generation. The front is a giveaway because of the bumper and lack of fender lines, whereas the rear shows a typical 2nd gen.




And in the specification section, page 70, mention is made of a Turbo Hydromatic 375. WTF?! I've never heard of one of those, have you?

[hetman]

Posted December 22, 2007:
Got some more videos for your pleasure:

s238.photobucket.com/albums/ff196/yogreasygramma/

I have since added more videos.

[hetman]

Posted March 4, 2008:
Today I took a few pictures under the hood. They don't show too much, and the car is dirty, but what the heck! Enjoy!

Of course, any constructive criticism is also welcomed. I did not put this car together, so please let me know if you see anything wrong or missing. For example, I wonder if the power steering pump is aligned properly, because it looks like it might not be, and if it's not, what would cause that? Is there a bracket missing? The pump also leaks a bit, so I wonder if the problem might be related to this. Another thing is that the choke doesn't work on the carburetor, and the engine doesn't like cold starts, but once it's warmed up it's fine. The carb is a Holley Street Avenger.

[hetman]

Posted April 21, 2008:

The last few days I've been working to free my car from its garage prison where it's been held captive over the winter. Due to extreme lack of space, the garage is built perpendicular to the driveway, so it's rather impossible to drive the Monte into the garage without either dismantling the fence and trampling the old lady neighbor's flower garden (which I did to get the car in last October). So the next and only other possibility is to tear down a side wall and build a door on the side. This is what I have accomplished, so now I can drive out without causing too much trouble. I had to measure, cut, weld and paint a framework to support the garage since I took out a major supporting beam. Now this is the strongest part of the garage!









Anyway, back to the car. Friday I got the car registered temporarily, which was a big feat. However, I'm not out of the woods yet. It has to pass a rigorous inspection, and this car has a lot of unfinished areas I need to address. Yesterday and today I made some headway, but I have a lot yet to do. So far I hooked up the windshield washer fluid lines and reservoir (had to find and buy them), rewired and mounted the backup lights, and cleaned out, checked and adjusted the rear drums and brakes, including the emergency brake cable.

I'm having a devil of a time with the carburetor, however. The choke plate seems to like to stay open, and it should be closed upon start up according to your advice. It runs really rich, and the inside of the carb is fairly black. Plus, I seem to smell gas when it's trying to start up. There's evidence of gas on top of the carb as well (yellow stains), which you can see in the pictures on the first page of this thread. I turned down the idle speed screw and the engine seemed to be idling right when warm, but when it's cold it's a beast and likes to cut out, not to mention while running rich. Where's the fuel/air mixture adjusting screw? Is it possible that this carb, though new, has sat too long and will need a rebuild? Does anyone have access to a Holley manual for this carb? I think I need some pointers and I'm hating this carb at the moment. The Holley carb on my 84 works like a charm. But this one is a pain in the ass. I don't want to think about having to buy a new Demon carb....grrrr.... a rebuild would be bad enough. But if I could just get it tuned I think I'd be a happy camper.

[hetman]

Posted April 23, 2008:
Here's a view of my garage and the long driveway perpendicular to the door of the garage. See why I felt the need to chop out a 7-foot section of the side?! LOL







The youngest Monte fan in the family:




So the last few days have kept me really busy working on the car. I was able to accomplish quite a few things more, but I still have a ton of things to do. Here's what I did today and yesterday:

1) Tore into the interior, trying to track down the back up light switch or wire. The lights work (tested fine before installation) but not after installation. I still haven't found the cause yet. I can't tell from the fusebox exactly which fuse operates them, but I do have one fuse blown and one missing, which I'll have to replace ASAP. I don't know how easy that'll be over here.

2) Took apart the console, connected and soldered the wire (which had been cut) to the shift lever light. It still doesn't work, though - bad bulb and/or fuse problem. No interior lights work, nor does the horn or windshield wipers/washer. I cleaned the console and put it back together.

3) Took out all the seats. The driver seat's swivel mechanism wasn't working properly, being unable to clamp into place in the resting position. After dismounting the seat and mechanism, it turns out that the little metal piece that fits into the space to lock it into position had been cut off. Don't ask me how or why or when, but it had been cut off purposely. So I had to weld a new one into the mechanism and reassemble the seat after cleaning it all out and greasing it. I took apart the right seat as well and cleaned and greased it before reinstalling it. I reconnected the wire to the passenger's weight-sensitive buzzer system. I also took out the rear bench to clean out underneath and find and put into place the rear seat belts because I'll need them to latch in my son's car seat for the Lowrider weekend picnic in 10 days.

4) Fixed a couple shorts in the headlights by locating and connecting a ground as well as reconnecting a small ground coming off the battery terminal (Thanks Brian for the tip!). Now the blinkers work correctly, not super slow as before.

5) That was all for yesterday. Today I jacked up the front and went to work trying to trouble shoot various problems. My speedometer cable is not hooked up yet, and I still haven't been able to overcome that hurdle yet. The cable is down by the transmission just hanging there, and I can't find an opening in the transmission to put it in. The transmission is from Summit, and was brand new, so perhaps they plugged up the hole and I need to unplug it (there are 2 holes in the rear of the transmission which appear to be possibilities) and reinstall the drive. I had to tighten down plenty of bolts, clamps, etc down there because the previous owner simply did a half-ass job putting this car together!! I still wasn't able to locate the backup light switch or wire.

6) Tightened up all the transmission and oil pan bolts, as well as other body bolts in the front end. There are plenty of missing bolts in the front clip! Makes me kind of sick to think what shoddy workmanship the previous owner displayed on this car.

7) Inspected the power steering pump again, which has had a bad leak. Put a new clamp on one of the hoses and tightened it down. End of leak. But as y'all know it still is not resting correctly, not lined up with the rest of the belts. I found out that there is a mount in the back, but the bolt to the block is missing. I'll try to find a bolt and put it in there to remedy the situation, but I'll have to first take the pump off to see if the bracket is bent or not. I hope that fixes the problem.

8) Took out all the spark plugs and cleaned them and checked the gaps, which were good. But, they were all black and sooty. I don't know why the engine is running rich (inside of carb is also black), but after reinstalling them, the engine fired right up and ran pretty smoothly. I feel a bit better about it now, but wish I could tune the carb correctly.

9) Checked for current to the choke, and surprisingly, it has 14.5 volts going to it, so that's not the problem. [by the way, thank you Tony for the link to Holley's instruction manual for the carb!]

10) Tightened down all the engine bolts I could reach, including the intake bolts (some were loose!) and carb bolts (all loose) and water neck bolts (both a bit loose), and valve cover bolts (all a bit loose). There's still a serious leak in the right valve cover and I'll have to take that off and see what's up with the gasket and try to reseal it properly. But there's no coolant leak anymore out of the water neck (ugly! dripping and collecting on that nice intake...), nor any more gas leak from the carburetor onto the manifold. I might have also remedied possible vacuum leaks in the carb as well, because it runs much better now. But I still need to be able to adjust the carb, and soon check the timing because it seems the engine isn't running as well as it could and should. But it sure sounds much better!

That's about it for now, folks. The car is coming along fine, and I still need to fix quite a few more things before it'll pass inspection.

[hetman]

Posted April 25, 2008:
OK, I spent another grueling day working on the car. Grueling not only because it was hard work and I nearly sprained my wrist, got cut up from my fingers to my elbows and am dead tired now, but also because I seem to find more problems the more I fix!!

I found some fuses and put them in, and now I have working interior lights (and door buzzer). The passenger seat weight alarm doesn't work, however. Nor does the horn. Anyway, I will have to locate all the electrical gremlins. Most of them are due to the incompetence and *%&%$*@# engineering of the previous owner. Why couldn't he have been a bit more honest with me when I asked what the car was missing or needed done? Why couldn't he have said, "yeah, I neglected to put in half of all the body bolts. I just wanted the car to look good in the pictures. I forgot to tighten down the ones I did put in. I needlessly cut wires when I could have disconnected them at the relay or other connecting point 3 inches away. I didn't think it was necessary to seal the coolant lines properly. I didn't think anyone would notice that everything I touched was disgracefully half-assed and incomplete. I don't think a car needs a thermostat, guages, lights, signals, alarms or even properly installed accessories."

So there I was today trying to figure out where the new leak from the power steering system came from. I mean, a big one. The reservoir that I'd filled 2 days ago was empty again! The fluid had leaked out, mainly while turning the wheels. On Wednesday I'd cleaned up the whole underside just to make sure the leaks could be targeted easier next time. Little did I know it would be today. I didn't move the car, so nothing else leaked from the power steering lines. Or so I thought. In order to have better access to the car, I drove it out (unlike Wednesday when I had just jacked it up and worked all day under it in the garage). By the time I got it out, I noticed major spillage, indicating heavy fluid loss while turning. I went under the car, and the bottom of the steering box was dripping. But the hoses above were also dripping, so I didn't know the source. I checked the clamp I'd just done, and it seemed fine. Perplexed, I tried to search for the answer. It didn't come till later, when I had dismantled the whole power steering pump and brackets. The reservoir itself leaks (cracked seam, hole? I don't know yet) AND after running the engine again, the bottom of the steering box has a fountain of a leak underneath, where the rod attaches to the box, when you turn the wheel. So some kind of seal broke. It looks like I'll have to try to rebuild it using my 84's gasket/seal, which doesn't leak. And I'll have to try to take off the reservoir and find the hole and try to weld it up. Or simply take the one off my 84. It's a real bummer that my 84 is becoming a parts car but it's not such an easy task for me to get parts over here and fortunately I can scavange my 84 for these much-needed parts.

Prior to taking apart the power steering assembly, my father in law revved up the engine hard, and the belt flew off. So then I noticed that the alternator wasn't exactly lined up properly. So I spent the better part of 2 hours to take that apart, and fabricate some parts to mount it better. Fortunately that went well. I also improved the grounds and took a nut off the 84's alternator positive lead because the one on this car was not correct, a 10mm nut instead of the proper SAE nut, which didn't fit properly.

I also took off the coolant elbow on the intake because it wasn't sealing properly. I had to clean this up quite a bit and reseal it. While scraping off all the crud, it looked to me like the improper seal had been present for years, because the intake side was corroded worse than I've ever seen any aluminum parts from coolant! Also, there was no thermostat. My 84 to the rescue!! I took it apart and found a new-looking 180 degree thermostat and installed it in my 73. Which ran much better afterwards, heating up quickly as it should.

I spent about 4-5 hours trying to work with the power steering pump, trying to get it lined up properly. No go. I got close, but I'll have to take it all apart again and weld extra metal onto the back side of the supporting bracket and redrill the hole because I'm nearly 1 inch too close to the block. And I have a cracked reservoir, and now a broken steering box (don't know when it happened - sometime in the past 6 months when the car was garaged or moments before then). My car is grounded for now and I doubt it's going to make the club meet next weekend. And my body is worn and torn.

I love working on cars!!

[hetman]

Posted April 26, 2008:
Today I took off the right valve cover to find out what was wrong with the gasket causing a serious leak. As I suspected, the gasket wasn't seated correctly, in two places even, and cut in another place from being bolted down too hard. How hard is it to properly seat a gasket? So I cleaned up the area, checked the head bolts (tight - obviously done by the engine builder, not the previous owner...LOL), checked the header bolts (all loose, both sides) and the rest of the intake bolts. After tightening all the bolts and reinstalling the valve cover, I went to take another look at the steering box. From the underside, the big bolt that the Pitman arm attaches to had fallen down about 1 inch. So I'm not sure that the problem is the lower seal. I took a jack and placed it under this bolt and lifted up the car (after removing the cover on the top of the steering box). The bolt went back into place after moving the steering wheel back and forth. It stayed in place until I bolted the cover back down, but then fell back into the down position where it was before. So I guess I wasted a couple hours trying to trouble-shoot this, but now I have a little bit more experience...LOL. What could be the problem with this box? It's a remanufactured unit and otherwise it looks fine to me, and not too old. Obviously something is loose or broken off inside the box. Can I repair this myself? My father in law says it's worth trying. If all else fails and I have to buy a new box, I will have to take it out anyway, so might as well remove it now and get inside it to see what's wrong, huh? What a drag!

While I had the valve cover off, I saw different numbers casted into the head. Do they mean anything to you folks? Here they are: K12 8, PASS, GM4T, and 3931063. I just did a google search for these casting numbers and specs vary from source to source, but they appear to come from a 396 or 427 made between 1969-70. I suppose then that the K12 8 numbers refer to December 1968?

[hetman]

Posted May 1, 2008:
Here are some pictures of the underside of the steering box. See how the pitman shaft has fallen down about 1 inch? How can this have happened? What's the cause (inside the box somewhere)? Also, what is the size of the nut on the bottom so I can take this the pitman arm off?





Here are pictures of the engine after doing some detailing and eliminating the leaks in the right valve cover and coolant inlet.

[hetman]

Posted May 1, 2008:

I just got off the phone (almost an hour!) with Mark Savitske of SC&C and he said basically my steering box is toast. He was surprised the sector shaft could have fallen like that. He also said the size of the nut was 1 5/16, so that answers a couple of questions! LOL. Mark is a really great guy, and knows a lot and is really helpful and friendly to talk to. I highly recommend talking to him if you need any help or info, or want to do business with him.
I'm completely in awe of the way SC&C handles customer service. They are a top notch outfit! Mark is a complete enthusiast and very willing to share info with you. By the way, that's a +1 for Pennsylvania, isn't it?! LOL.

I've ordered a 670 box because the 800 boxes are back-ordered for at least 2 months and I need mine now. SC&C doesn't stock these steering boxes, but has Lee Engineering custom make each and every one. So I'll have to wait 2 weeks for delivery. The 670 box is based on rack and pinion hydraulic internals, which is superior to the standard 800 series, plus it's CNC machined for better tolerances. Mark said they are vastly superior to standard 800 boxes, with no loss in strength, so I should be good to go when I get that 12.7:1 ratio in the beast

[hetman]

Posted May 7, 2008:
I did some more work on the car yesterday. First, I got out a spare steering box I remembered I had bought from a guy a few months back in a package deal from a parted out 79 Malibu. I bought a 7.5" axle, complete with control arms, brakes and sway bar. Since I was already there, I also bought a bunch of other parts from an 80 Cutlass, including a lot of front end parts (control arms, spindles and disc brakes, power steering box and manual brake booster). Basically, I had forgotten about the steering box because I thought it was manual, but didn't check it till just now. The brake booster was manual, it turned out. Anyway, the box looks just like what's in my 73, but the pitman arm is curved instead of straight on the 73. Here are some pictures, after cleaning it up:







So one of my main questions is this: why does there seem to be a big gap between the case of the box and the pitman arm? Is this normal? It doesn't seem too much different than what's going on with my 73's steering box. This box seems in great condition, with hardly any play at all, and no vertical play like on the 73's box. So I assume it's normal for there to be a gap between the pitman arm and casing of the box. Of course, on my 73 I could push up the pitman arm and sector shaft into the case, and it falls back down, and the washers are visible as well. In any case, this box seems very tight and usable. Here are the numbers off it:

end cap: 5693463
alum. cover: 8A 314 1A
7812145
main case, top: 7826692
067
bottom: 92
pitman arm: GM 7828464 T 10A

Do these numbers tell you anything? Is the box interchangeable with my 73? The pitman arm is different so I can't just bolt the whole thing up, but I have to use my 73's pitman arm. But they are the same length.

My father in law tried to remove the pitman arm from the steering box, and broke two pullers, then went to a store and bought another for $40, which also failed. So I'm going to try to get one from the US. Another question: What kind of puller do I need for the other bolt on the pitman arm (not the one that attaches to the steering box)? Here's a link to Harbor Freight's puller:

www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=1752

Or this 5-piece set:

www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=92882

Does anyone think this is good quality? A friend gave me some links to others, and I'm going to check them out in a second, but I need to know what other specialty tools I'll need so I can buy them in one go to save on postage and frustration.

Of course, I already ordered the new steering box from SC&C, which should be here in 3 weeks or so. But I was trying to get the car on the road even before then, if possible, and if I can get this pitman arm off, then I can try to bolt up the other used box I have to get the car on the road.

Let's see, what else did I do? Not much, but I did manage to hook up the speedometer cable to the transmission. That took all of 15 seconds. The cable was hanging loose, and I slipped it into the slot of the bullet that was already installed in the new Summit TH350 transmission. I took off the bullet that was on the cable (probably original to the car, but I cannot be sure). So now I wonder if Summit's bullet will read accurately, or if I should try the other bullet that was on the cable, or simply drive the car first to check the accuracy of the speedometer before making any more changes.

Next I installed the "Monte Carlo" bars to the engine bay, which I had to source elsewhere because the previous owner lost them after taking them off (seems epidemic!). I found some, paid shipping and then sanded and painted them. They do look awesome! As far as I know, they were a one year item for 1973, only to come back in 78 for the 3rd generation. But to my knowledge no 4th gen had them.

[hetman]

Posted May 12, 2008:
I've been doing some asking around as to what I have in the way of steering pumps/brackets, etc, and what's correct, etc. I asked Chris from the yahoo group after seeing this picture of his engine (here's his profile on horsepowerprofiles.com www.horsepowerprofiles.com/profiles/index.php?option=com_comprofiler&task=userProfile&user=87&Itemid=27 ) :



Here are some pictures of an original 454-equipped 1974 Monte, sent to me by Phil Kmett of montemania.com:





Here are scans of some parts manual Phil sent me:





And, once more for comparison, my pump:



I've been trying to figure out if I have the proper pump. It seems that mine is different from both Chris's and Phil's. Chris said I have the wrong pump as well. Do I have a pump for a 350? Obviously they are different. I wonder about my mounting brackets, then, if I have the ones for a 350 or for a 454. Another thing I noticed is that Chris's car has the belt mounted in the same groove as I do, and Phil's car has the belt in the other groove. Which is correct?! Chris's car obviously has some alterations to it (headers), but I assume everything lines up properly. And Phil's car is bone stock. My pulley doesn't line up properly, and the belt wouldn't fit right in the other groove either. Phil has offered to research all the proper parts for me (and source them and sell them to me as well) for a small fee. I don't even know if the stock parts for a 454 would line up correctly on my engine if my engine isn't completely stock. I wonder if my balancer, being non-stock, would place all the belts off-center if I indeed had all stock hardware. Since my steering pump leaks, I need to replace it anyway, and I'll need to get a new pump for a 454. Then I guess I'll just have to see if the belts line up properly. How much would a new pump cost for a 454?

[hetman]

OK folks! Good news. My brother in Florida took delivery of a package from Lee Engineering, and inside was an invoice for two items, "12.7:1 670 steering gear plated 40 lb valve (sm) and 1973 chevelle coupler, small 3/4-30." And here are those items:




And here's a box from Harbor Freight:




So I should be in business whenever I get these two boxes. I'll keep you posted and will accept any advice or constructive criticism as the situation warrants...

[hetman]

Posted June 11, 2008:
OK, now for a long-awaited update (as far as I'm concerned!): two days ago I got my packages and today I did the swap. The steering gear is brand-new, with LEE ENGINEERING and 5-6-08 stamped into the box, as well as 12.0:1 and Delphi. So I think it's a bit strange that it says 12.0:1 when it was supposed to be 12.7:1. Anyway, now I have less than 2 1/2 turns lock to lock. I can't wait to drive it (didn't get to do that today due to other things cropping up). I'll have pictures to post tomorrow because I'm away from my regular computer. Anyway, it went pretty well and straight forward, though I've never done this operation before. The hardest part was getting that d**n pitman arm off the steering box, and I had it in a vise but nothing worked till I heated that sucker up and it came off pretty easily then. Since I have a slightly different box from stock (670 vs. 800), I also had a coupler that matched the box to my steering column. This too went on without a hitch. Everything lined up perfectly, and the swap was as smooth as can be. My box was custom made to accept the old style fluid fittings. The steering gear is a thing of beauty, and I'm excited about its performance potential.

Of course I ran into other lingering issues, like the leaking steering pump (for a small block; it doesn't even mount up right), from several places. I can't fix that till I get a new/rebuilt one, so for now it'll have to continue leaking. After mounting the steering gear and tightening everything up, I tackled some other things that were bugging me, like the fuel/air ratio on the carb, which had been backfiring a lot. I also played around with the timing (how hard can it be to access that adjusting bolt on the distributor on a big block?!), without a light because I don't have one. But after advancing it some, the backfiring quit and it seems to run a lot better now. But then I noticed a d**n gas leak from the carb!! The brilliant previous owner didn't even bother to tighten down the gas line inlet nuts onto the carb. That would explain what I'd found before of some staining on the intake manifold, which I thought I'd fixed before on my previous going over of the engine. Boy, how many things can a guy mess up on new parts?! And this can lead to total destruction of the car in case of a fire, not to mention loss of life. So after I got all this done, I noticed some pretty big leakage under the car. It turned out it was coolant, and it was dripping from the frame rail towards the back of the engine compartment. WTF?! I traced it up to what appears to be under/behind the heater/AC box. What could have happened? Did the heater box take a dump? Or a valve? Will I have to go under/behind the dash, or take out that AC box on the firewall?

After this I got a bit frustrated and did some other work in the garage. But tomorrow I should be able to take it for a ride and see how it handles. And go fill it up! I can't wait.

[hetman]

Posted June 12, 2008:
Besides the hour or so I drove the car on the way down from the port, when the steering was sloppy due to the gear going south on me (though I didn't know what was the problem then), I haven't driven a second generation Monte since my first 73 was stolen in July 1994 (last drive was to a Blue Oyster Cult concert and back....), so I have very little to go on in the way of comparison of how the car drives now and how it handles stock. In any case, I took it out today and let the rear end slip around on me a few times....LOL....the car handles really well now and has tons of power. I'm almost afraid of stomping on it because it tries to break loose on me and slides around even on dry pavement. d**n it's a beast!! The engine is running better than before too, and overall I'm quite happy with it.

But yes, the steering gear just wakes up the handling. It's sharp, accurate, responsive and sensitive. Also what I've noticed is that it's a much less "floaty" feeling, even heavier like manual steering is. I've never driven a power steering equipped car that feels like this. It's like I have absolute road feel but with some effort involved, almost as if it didn't have the power assist. I only drove it around for 20 minutes or so, filled up the gas tank and had the tires switched around to let the white letters show (they were mounted black side out), and balanced. I didn't get a chance to take it on the highway or through any twisties. But it handles like a totally different car. I will have to spend some time to get used to it. And as I mentioned before, I have to be really careful in general with this car, trying to relearn how a big Monte handles and feels, and especially with a mildly hopped up big block. Now with the steering tight as can be, I'm ready to relearn how to handle this beotch!

I forgot to say that yesterday the car drew first blood the first minute I went to work on it. Taking off the cotter pin that secures the bolt to the center link/pitman arm, my hand flew back along with the pin right into some piece of Christine, ripping a gaping hole in my left middle finger. It bled like hell and hurts like a mofo still. Not to be deterred, I patched myself up and went back to work. And at the end of the day, as I was doing a bit of adjusting to the spark plug wires while the engine had been running, I melted a good chunk of my right middle finger's skin on one of the header pipes.

Brian, thanks for the info as well. If it's one of the two lines that run from the radiator to the firewall, I don't see any leaks there. Those lines run behind the fire wall into the heater core, so is it possible the leak is behind the fire wall? And why would it appear to be leaking fluid from behind the A/C box which is inside the engine compartment? I'm just trying to get a feel for where this leak might be coming from. I don't look forward to tearing out the dash, but I am more willing to take apart that big A/C box attached to the front side of the firewall, because I'm going to delete the A/C equipment fully. I have a non-A/C air box to replace it with.

Here's the steering box in the vise while installing the pitman arm. Then the box installed in the car, and later some pics from today at the tire shop.

[hetman]

Posted June 18, 2008:

The car handles great. I was driving it around a bit the last few days, mainly to get it inspected. It passed inspection with flying colors, despite the fact it has a leak in the power steering pump and it's missing the rear license plate lights and the backup lights don't work. Anyway, it's a real blast to drive, and I have to get used to it, though I've driven a 73 for many many years, it was a long time ago. But mainly it's the power that takes some getting used to. You simply can't stomp on the gas without leaving a lot of rubber on the road and having the rear end fishtail around. It's crazy. I don't know what I'm gonna do when I have to put a Pro-Charger on it later...LOL...

For some reason the coolant leak has disappeared of late. The last 50 miles or so I've driven I've experienced no leak whatsoever, so that's a bit confusing to me. I didn't notice any moisture in the cabin when it was leaking, either. And my thermostat controls don't seem to move. Something's stuck in the lever mechanisms.

[hetman]

Posted Jul 6, 2008:

Today I celebrated Independence Day over here in the form of a picnic hosted in part by the American Embassy and lots of other big name organizations. The Ambassador made an appearance, but I was more interested in his brand new bullet proof Cadillac! Forgot to take a picture of it though. So anyway, I rounded up my wife and son and my father in law and my wife and I took the Monte down to the festival, about 40 miles away. My father in law drove our Focus wagon with my son. It was the maiden voyage for my wife in that car, and I guess it made an impression because she was happy all day. Part of that had to have been due to the car, but also the picnic was well done, attracting hundreds upon hundreds of people from not only that small town (Warka, home of a famous brewery) but all over, including Warsaw. One of the main themes of the festival was to celebrate a hero of the Revelutionary War, Count and General Pulaski, who financed his own private army to fight alongside George Washington and surely without whom we wouldn't be able to celebrate July 4th to this day. Y'all should read up on his courageous contributions to our freedom; it's incredible. He as well as a guy named Kosciuszko helped win our freedom. In any case, Pulaski was from Warka and the venue of the picnic was his spread. Yes, he was quite rich. So there were a lot of activities, including demonstrations of how his cavalry officers controlled their horses and fought. Having had horses when I was a kid, that was an awesome sight. My son seemed to be enthralled by those big beasts too. Also there were mock battle scenes and intermittant firing of period cannons. There were a lot of concession stands, selling among other things, sausages, shis-ka-bobs and of course, much Warka beer. I don't drink, but it was a good atmosphere, and very kid friendly. Another tie-in to this great exhibition of Polish-American friendship was, of course, a mini show of antique American cars. One of the clubs I belong to was asked to come and show some cars, and about 5 of us made it. About as many other cars showed up as well courtesy of a local museum, but I'm ashamed of the way they "restore" and keep those precious icons of Americana. In any case, a few cars made it and my Monte made its show debut. A stunning success it was too, as people were flocking around it all afternoon. That's fine with me; I don't wish to be famous, and prefer to be incognito, but I do love cars and these wonderful examples of American sculpture on wheels (no offense, Tri5... heh heh heh) and I'm happy to be able to show at least one car, which I happen to believe is one of the most awesome and beautiful and powerful examples of a muscle car. So the people loved it, as well as the other cars there, and were not disappointed when they heard my engine either. Essentially, I am quite happy with the way it drives and handles, and as I get more and more bugs worked out, it becomes even more of a pleasure to drive and cruise.

Here are some pictures:













And here are some pictures of the other club member cars:



















And here are some pictures of the museum's cars. Tony, a shoebox vert for you!

[hetman]

Posted July 31, 2008:

Here are some shots from a local cruise through the city a month ago. My friend was riding shotgun and has a great camera, but it took me a while to get the pictures.




















Imageshack just took a $hit so I'll have to post more later.

[hetman]

She's running like a champ, like a scalded dog, like greased lightning!! I don't bring her out much since I haven't received the new steering pump yet, and it leaks down every time I let it sit for a few days, but every time I bring her out I fill up the pump and am good to go for the day. So I hope I get that fixed before winter's hibernation! But this car is wild to drive. That new steering box is just the ticket for accuracy needed when you punch it and the rear end slides all around in tight traffic.

Here are some more pics:

[hetman]

Posted August 26, 2008:

So, I finally got my new/rebuilt big block power steering pump installed. It took 3 months to get, and the seller caused me a lot of trouble by not going along with my wishes to have it declared at a value of $50. So I had to spend 6 hours or so, making two trips to the airport to pay customs on it - a total of $60 extra and much aggravation. Then it turned out that the pulley was out of round, so I had to use my old one, but finally got everything buttoned up after 5 hours of work and much pain (the normal scraped up and bruised nuckles and forearms, plus bruised ribcage and chest from leaning over the engine bay for many hours), it's installed and so far doesn't leak. All the belts line up properly now, thank God. It does sort of make a different noise and I suspect the bearing isn't in good shape (there's play in the shaft). I think I got shafted on the deal, in fact, and though the parts are newly powder-coated, I don't think the pump has been rebuilt like was promised. Anyway, it's better than it was and I was able to get it on the road and to a local cruise that very day (this past Saturday). Lots of burned rubber, leaving countless new cars in the dust, etc etc etc. We had lots of fun and the car performed perfectly. As I've mentioned, I roll with a local group calling themselves lowriders (but they're not really lowriders, just a bunch of nice young people fascinated with American cars). The guy who shot this video is a rapper and is on his way to fame and fortune (I guess...LOL) so don't mind the soundtrack. Actually, I wish we could hear the music of the engines. I'll try to get some pics up soon.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPbH4L1nM4s

[hetman]

Posted September 23, 2008:
Here's a video from that meet I posted pictures of a month ago:

s238.photobucket.com/albums/ff196/yogreasygramma/videos/?action=view¤t=006.flv

[hetman]

Posted October 19, 2008:

Here's a video of last night's cruise. This is another 73 Monte I picked up 2 days ago at the port; it's a Landau from Arizona with original paint.
pl.youtube.com/watch?v=MstB9kX8SNg