The title of this post is more of a hope and a prayer as I put the finishing touches on Ariel’s car. I spent some time Sunday attempting to optimize the output of the oil pump. I had received the collection of gaskets from Clark’s in the mail the day before and was dying to see if I could improve things. I followed the directions included and selected a gasket to shoot for the low side of the .0025 to .0045 inch face clearance. To get access to the pump which is located on the engine’s rear cover, I had to lower the rear of the drivetrain enough to remove the rear engine mount bracket. With the pump cover back on and the engine back where it belonged, I refilled the crankcase with oil and started the engine. After a couple seconds the pressure gauge shot to about 35 psi. The real test will be when the weather gets warmer and Ariel drives him to school. I’m planning on removing the lower shrouds to improve the engine’s ability to shed heat. A cooler engine means higher viscosity which results in higher oil pressures.
With his rear already resting on jackstands, I raised Ringo’s front end and set it carefully on two more stands. After sliding a large piece of cardboard onto the floor and grabbing the seam sealer and work light I slid my body under the car and squeezed an entire tube of sealer into the joints I’d created when welding in the floor patches. There are still plenty more joints, so I bought a couple more tubes at NAPA on my lunch hour today. I also had them throw a couple air cleaners into the deal. Replacing the oil-soaked ones I’d installed years ago is a far overdue task.
I’ve been driving him as frequently as possible to ensure I’ve got all the bugs out before I give him back to Ariel. I’m still a little concerned about a vibration that seems to be coming from the front end. I’m probably going to take off some afternoon and have the front end looked at professionally. I’ll ask them to give him an alignment and they’ll come back to me with whatever’s loose.
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