wheee!

I did a quick check with the defrost vents as they will be the most difficult. It seems there will be just enough room to run them!

I’ll be using a Retrosound unit probably so lots of room. The HVAC controls look like this so they are very small. The slider type didn’t fit properly.

Holy crap! That’s a ton of room in there!

This also leaves me maximum room for the ac and heat hoses.

While I’m waiting for the new fan box, I got the main evaporator bolted in with strapping. I used the front stock mounting plate with a few mods. Cut off some capture nuts and some tabs then I welded a washer to the top to give me a mounting point for the front. This stabilized the bottom nicely and offset the floor vents from the tunnel the max amount. I then used one stock firewall pass-through hole on the driver side to the factory capture nut in the evaporator unit. Then I drilled a hole in the ABS case on the passenger lower opening to bolt a strap to the stock fan box firewall mount. I will clean up the brackets and powder coat etc. Whew!

Shiny stuff arrived today!

Paid homage to Big Bertha while I was there. Ogled the various 240 project cars. Mr. Modest didn’t even mention the gem tucked away in the corner awaiting its spa treatment. Numbers matching early 70 with vertical defrost lines and air conditioning! Plus the other nice candidate in the other room Let’s just say that @ConVerTT is a true connoisseur of fine automobiles. Just an ordinary guy with skill and passion. A lot of skill...

The Roadster will be Sleeping Beauty a while longer before she becomes my Fair Lady. I plan on waiting till the spring to bring her back to my home and shop. She will remain a faded rose until the Z is complete and running, then I will decide on how best to rejuvenate the topless cutie.

You had to leave one for someone else! I’ll keep my eye out for a 510 for you..! PS: I wanna drive the Porsche one day...

I don’t have enough pages for Kent’s list of cars... But yes, I bought the roadster today. Couldn’t resist.

1966 1600 Roadster

Slight diversion today. Had to rescue a damsel in distress....

Well the spare firewall plates arrived today so I got to work! First a picture of the problem. The current jig puts the column down and to the right. Next step was to carefully grind off the welds and free the collar from the plate. Then I bolted the firewall plate in, then slid the collar over the steering column. I then bolted the column into the proper position with no strain. I then slid the collar thru the firewall plate and tacked it into place with my welder. I then pulled it all out again and ground down the ugly welding and media blasted it clean. and because I can, I decided to powder coat the finished amended firewall plate. Now to get this back off to @silverminemotors for making the next set of power steering firewall plates!

In case anyone is sitting on the fence regarding picking up this kit, I added a special note to the top of the thread! PM me for details on how to save money!!

But yes, as the market starts to rise for the 240’s, the 280’s start to look more attractive to people. Lower price, arguably better construction, and similar looks. We all want the original, but with a few mods like dropping the 3,000 lb bumpers and swapping indicators and taillights... it’s pretty hard to tell. Of course, the resale value will always be higher for the original of whichever flavour you own, but that only means anything if you plan on selling it! I never buy a car based on what I’ll sell it for later. When I’m ready to sell it, the car owes me nothing....!

Never tell her you can sell it in a heartbeat! Tell her, “If I just fix it up a little more, I can get our money back” That at least buys you time and more mods...[emoji6]

Are you going to use the stock rad?

Not round but “more round” than the inside diamond shape. The bottom groove in the crossmember and the top clamp on that side are smooth and allow the rack to slip a little. The purpose of the u-clamp and the rubber stopper “lock” the position along with the upper bushing clamps. Or that’s what I’m going with anyways..!

Plus, the not-round bushing didn’t move on the inside... the outside ROUND section of the bushing rotated under the clamp. The rotation stop was the biggest issue as I had mispositioned it.

There is a rack rotation stop on the rack. That had to be loosened of course. The two bushings have enough slack to allow the rack to rotate the 1/4” or so with no problem. Once I tightened up the rotation stop, and clamped the bushings back down there was zero movement. Plus, it is now in the correct factory position versus my “guess” after restoring the rack and re-installing it.

You should see the shark holding it...

They are working on a solution. It was from an eBay vendor. Local suppliers in Canada are rare and expensive.

Bin there dun that!

Crisis averted, lesson learned, idiot badge earned... Rotating the steering rack solved the issue!