What did you do with your Trans Am today?

**pajeff02** · 02-01-2019, 02:59 AM

You may as well look at your knock sensors and associated wiring while you are down in there. Any water pooling on top of the engine goes right for them.

**herculesrider1** · 02-01-2019, 08:02 AM

Good idea Jeff. Will definitely look at them. Don't have any issues with them, but if nothing else, will coat them with RTV to insulate them from any water pooling. Good recommendation! Thanks man!

***SMWS6TA*** · 02-02-2019, 09:08 AM

My baby is dropped off for paint. Going to be a long month

**herculesrider1** · 02-02-2019, 09:25 AM

Pulling my intake. Took the Lingenfelter Launch Control Module off. Never used it. It was the culprit that was causing the intermittent dying scenario as I was driving down the road. Moving all the cruise control lines, fuel line, injector electronics, throttle body, then gently pull it up and out so as to not break off the OPSU, even though I will be replacing it after going to O'Reilly's to get the removal tool. Also ordered some dash 113 O-rings to replace the o-ring presently on the Camshaft Position Sensor, clean up the valley tray, being very careful to not get anything down the intake ports. Wish the made rubber plugs you could install to tighten and expand in the intake port to guard against trash falling down into them. Anyway, then get new intake gaskets and reinstall. Hey Scott, what color you painting her? Staying with blue? The blue looks nice!

***SMWS6TA*** · 02-02-2019, 07:58 PM

Use painters tape on the heads, clean off with alcohol or carb cleaner.

As much as I wanted a color change I'm staying with Navy Blue Metallic but the sail panel, wing and doing a CETA mod in high gloss black

**herculesrider1** · 02-03-2019, 01:52 PM

Good idea with the tape. Trying to clean off as much grease and grime as possible while it's still bolted down with nylon and wire brushes. Amazing how filthy a faulty PCV system will cause your engine. Carb cleaner sounds like a good cleaner along with Brake Cleaner. Just need some gloves that won't melt! Navy Blue Metallic is a rare color and in my humble opinion makes the car even more valuable. Good choice. Redoing the door jambs or just the outer panels?

***SMWS6TA*** · 02-03-2019, 02:07 PM

He's doing all but the engine bay.

I would have to pull my motor and all to do that right as well for a color swap.

I swear the NBM is a Chameleon. In bright sunlight you see the NBM, cloudy it looks deep purple sometimes and at night it's easy to think it's black.

**herculesrider1** · 02-03-2019, 02:26 PM

That is very true. It's kind of like a candy color. And when it's wet sanded and clear coated to get the orange peel out, it looks wet. I was in the Walmart parking lot, had just got out of my red T/A, and a little 4 or 5 yr old kid was walking past me, and I overheard him say, "Momma, I just wanna lick that car". As he was pointing at my car!! Hahahaha Made me proud of the coat of wax I keep on her! The CETA scheme should look really nice!

***SMWS6TA*** · 02-04-2019, 06:32 AM

Found this last week after my track day. I felt the ass end unload and kinda like it hopped on my last launch. So I knew something wasn't right. Between breaking the wheel studs and having balance weights scratching up my new drag wheel I ended my day. Good thing too. Found this after I got home. Got torque?

Yes you'll see that it had been modified a lot on the top of the mounting bracket some. Well there use to be a lot more metal up there then what is there now. There was a piece that was between the front and rear bolts, damn did it bend the bracket. UMI is not at fault here. I did this to make it work with the 8.8. With street tires this was never an issue, however with slicks and it getting much more traction this is going to require me to figure out another way to do this.

With the 8.8 housing it's required to do so if you don't want to use a BFH and make a shit ton of clearance on the tunnel wall in order to use the brackets 2 bolt pattern. I luckily have a spare that I was using for mock ups for building another 8.8. Looks like I've got an appointment with a BFH and some sheet metal.

I didn't have time to swap out the new on so I was able to get this one back in position and bend the bottom back in the correct place. A test drive I just needed the car to be able to load/off load off a trailer and for my painter to move it around. I briefed him on it and the studs so he knows not to do anything (Not that he would). His C7 was

and his 4th Gen Camaro had a burnt orange (not Hugger Orange) color that was gorgeous.

Also looks like my pinon seal is leaking like a SOB. :growl. What a major PITA to fix.....

***SMWS6TA*** · 02-04-2019, 07:46 AM

Also may be having a new project coming some time.

All depends on cost. Either I'm going to have it recovered or may attempt to do a carbon fiber in place of the POS cheap ass vinyl

**Whamhammer** · 02-04-2019, 06:30 PM

Originally Posted by pajeff02

Hmm. Only way this might happen is if the nuts were loose.

Thats what I was thinking. Oh well 191k isnt a bad run for a sway bar.

Anyone here running the UMI Performance front sway bar street (not drag) kit? Any impressions?

**Whamhammer** · 02-04-2019, 06:39 PM

Originally Posted by herculesrider1

Good idea Jeff. Will definitely look at them. Don't have any issues with them, but if nothing else, will coat them with RTV to insulate them from any water pooling. Good recommendation! Thanks man!

You might as well replace them, and the harness too, if they are original they are going on 17 years old. I saw what mine looked like a day after soaking them when I cleaned my engie. (For Carlisle 2017), they were already rusted out aland had holes.

**herculesrider1** · 02-05-2019, 12:05 PM

I understand your rationale, but if I replaced everything that was 18yrs old, I'd be replacing everything!! Right now, only fixing things that are broke or an issue, maybe later I will pull the engine and go through it with a fine toothed comb. Already too deep into the savings account...!

***SMWS6TA*** · 02-05-2019, 01:40 PM

I agree on swapping in new knock sensors and harness while it's off. Cause if it goes you'll need to pull all this off to fix. A helpful item here - before you go to install the intake use some masking tape to hold the knock sensor harness in place. Otherwise you rise it getting pinched in between the intake and heads. I may have had this happen to me before.

**Whamhammer** · 02-10-2019, 03:03 PM

Originally Posted by herculesrider1

I understand your rationale, but if I replaced everything that was 18yrs old, I'd be replacing everything!! Right now, only fixing things that are broke or an issue, maybe later I will pull the engine and go through it with a fine toothed comb. Already too deep into the savings account...!

I understand where you are coming from but as the other Scott said anout having to go back in when they go bad, and they might be on the cusp anyways.

An AC Delco set of 2 sensors and the wire harness are $150.00, probably slash that price on a decent aftermarket set.

***SMWS6TA*** · 02-11-2019, 01:22 PM

OMG what a PITA it is to find this piece for the vert top......

I found it on RockAuto but it didn't show any pics to confirm it was it. So I was able to find the vendor and lucky for me they responded to my emails for a pic and it matches.

Without this you can't do the top correctly and as you can see this one is ragged out.

Yeah $450 cars......

<SARC

It's day 10 without my Trans Am.......

Does it miss me?

**raynor139** · 02-12-2019, 05:21 AM

Pretty sure my starter is going out. Surprisingly with all the cars I've had I've never had one go bad. So looking for recommendations on what brand to use.

**Redphoenix1998** · 02-12-2019, 09:31 AM

It's been a month since I drove my Trans Am. The crackdown on aftermarket exhaust is crazy out here! California always finding new ways to get more money! The funny part is I have a stock exhaust and my car at idle is waaay over the 92db sound limit due to heads and blower. With the cutout open it's about 150 db's

***SMWS6TA*** · 02-12-2019, 10:26 AM

Originally Posted by Redphoenix1998

It's been a month since I drove my Trans Am. The crackdown on aftermarket exhaust is crazy out here! California always finding new ways to get more money! The funny part is I have a stock exhaust and my car at idle is waaay over the 92db sound limit due to heads and blower. With the cutout open it's about 150 db's

Move.....

So how does that bullshit tax scheme called a law work with Harley's?

**herculesrider1** · 02-12-2019, 11:39 AM

Originally Posted by SMWS6TA

I agree on swapping in new knock sensors and harness while it's off. Cause if it goes you'll need to pull all this off to fix. A helpful item here - before you go to install the intake use some masking tape to hold the knock sensor harness in place. Otherwise you rise it getting pinched in between the intake and heads. I may have had this happen to me before.

Thanks for this recommendation. After I get her all cleaned up, I will do just that. Thanks again. Man, it was filthy under my intake. Hope none of it fell down into the heads when I was pulling it off. I cleaned it up as well as I could before I pulled it, trying to avoid anything falling down into the cylinders....I didn't know the knock sensor harness was attached to the intake!! Which made for another time I had to set the intake back down, unhook the harness, and lift it up again before taking it all the way out. Thinking about sealing off the underside of the intake so all that trash and sludge will not accumulate. Maybe a goopload of RTV at the front of the intake and then on the risers where there are small openings to the valley cover......Might be for airflow to keep the intake cooler, but the LS7 intake actually sits down on top of the valley cover doesn't it? Any opinions?