Friday, November 13, 2009
Quick trip to Torquay
Took the van out for a quick run down the road a couple of weekends ago to Torquay for the annual show on The Esplanade. A good turnout (I'd say a couple of hundred cars at least) and plenty to look at.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Help! What brakes are these?
Well, I'm averaging about 6 months between posts here, so I thought it was time to try an improve the average.
As you may (or may not) remember, there's an old HJ ute sitting on a property somewhere in country Victoria that has a 350 Chev, Turbo 350 transmission, and Ford 9 inch diff in it. The whole drivetrain will eventually be transplanted into the van.
My brother-in-law was either a bit bored or got tired of having the ute sitting around, so he ripped out the engine and transmission. Looks a bit tired now, but all good things start from humble beginnings! A few photos for you.
The diff and steering gear still needs to come out, then the shell will be sold off.
Rear shot - tranny is still attached.
Front shot - transmission oil cooler still attached.
All the bits I need are there - somewhere!
Side shot - I believe that it's now sitting on a custom welded frame :-)
One of the things I don know about the ute is that the wheel stud pattern all around is Ford. It looks like it was better to put a later model Ford wheel hub and brake setup on the front. I'll probably transfer the whole thing over to the van and look for some wheels to suit.
Help! Can anyone identify the brake calipers in the shots below? I'd like to know what model Ford they came from :-)
What do these calipers originally come from? Click on the picture to zoom in.
Another view. If you can identify them, please leave a comment. Thanks!
As you may (or may not) remember, there's an old HJ ute sitting on a property somewhere in country Victoria that has a 350 Chev, Turbo 350 transmission, and Ford 9 inch diff in it. The whole drivetrain will eventually be transplanted into the van.
My brother-in-law was either a bit bored or got tired of having the ute sitting around, so he ripped out the engine and transmission. Looks a bit tired now, but all good things start from humble beginnings! A few photos for you.
The diff and steering gear still needs to come out, then the shell will be sold off.
Rear shot - tranny is still attached.
Front shot - transmission oil cooler still attached. All the bits I need are there - somewhere!
Side shot - I believe that it's now sitting on a custom welded frame :-) One of the things I don know about the ute is that the wheel stud pattern all around is Ford. It looks like it was better to put a later model Ford wheel hub and brake setup on the front. I'll probably transfer the whole thing over to the van and look for some wheels to suit.
Help! Can anyone identify the brake calipers in the shots below? I'd like to know what model Ford they came from :-)
What do these calipers originally come from? Click on the picture to zoom in. 
Another view. If you can identify them, please leave a comment. Thanks!Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Another Van Show - Easter 2009
Not great, I'm averaging one entry on this site every 6 months. Oh well....
Went for a drive last weekend to make sure that our donor ute was still where it should be - I'm pleased to day that it is, and that there's some chance of the 350 Chev coming out of it soon.
In the meantime, the Yellow Van will be at the Van Nats 2009 in Geelong this weekend (on the Sunday anyway).
Click on the image above for more details, and if you are in or near Geelong it will definitely be worth a look!
Went for a drive last weekend to make sure that our donor ute was still where it should be - I'm pleased to day that it is, and that there's some chance of the 350 Chev coming out of it soon.
In the meantime, the Yellow Van will be at the Van Nats 2009 in Geelong this weekend (on the Sunday anyway).
Click on the image above for more details, and if you are in or near Geelong it will definitely be worth a look!
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Update - long overdue!
It's been a while since the last entry, so I thought I'd better put an update in, just to prove that things are alive and well!
Not much has changed for the van in recent months - building and moving into a new house have seen any time we had to put into the van disappear.
On the positive side, we have a new shed where we can put the 350 and running gear from the ute, so the plan is to move those things in over the next few months and start working on them.
In the meantime, here's a local event which may be of interest:
Not much has changed for the van in recent months - building and moving into a new house have seen any time we had to put into the van disappear.
On the positive side, we have a new shed where we can put the 350 and running gear from the ute, so the plan is to move those things in over the next few months and start working on them.
In the meantime, here's a local event which may be of interest:
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Front Off
Did some work on the donor ute over the weekend and prepared it, ready for the motor to come out.
Took out the radiator, radiator support panel, unbolted the exhausts, disconnected all the wiring etc.
I ran a compression test on the engine before the disassembly, and found that one cylinder was slightly (20psi) below the others. After the engine is out we will be taking the heads off and checking things out - a new set of gaskets and welch plugs will be the go!
Doesn't look all that flash now - but keep watching!
Took out the radiator, radiator support panel, unbolted the exhausts, disconnected all the wiring etc.
I ran a compression test on the engine before the disassembly, and found that one cylinder was slightly (20psi) below the others. After the engine is out we will be taking the heads off and checking things out - a new set of gaskets and welch plugs will be the go!
Doesn't look all that flash now - but keep watching!
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Van Nationals 2008 and 2009
Van Nationals 2008 - come and gone! We went over to Port MacDonnell (near Mt Gambier) for the 2008 Nats, and saw some great vans, met some nice people.
Pictures can be found in the Van and Ute Gallery here:
The Van Nationals of 2009 will be held in Geelong at the Showgrounds, and should be huge!
Some early information is already available here:
Pictures can be found in the Van and Ute Gallery here:
The Van Nationals of 2009 will be held in Geelong at the Showgrounds, and should be huge!
Some early information is already available here:
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Safety first
Well, the old van is a bit safer now. The brakes were behaving badly, and a simple check of the components and bleed wasn't enough to improve things much.
I gave the van to the pros who decided I needed a new master cylinder, some work done on the calipers, and the front rotors machines.
The end result is a hole in the bank account, but at least it stops properly! I'll put some pics up here soon.
I gave the van to the pros who decided I needed a new master cylinder, some work done on the calipers, and the front rotors machines.
The end result is a hole in the bank account, but at least it stops properly! I'll put some pics up here soon.
Friday, March 7, 2008
Engine update
A couple of weeks ago we moved the ute out to a place with a bit more space, and I stripped some bits off and sold them on eBay. The ute is rusty, and while it would have looked pretty good a few years back, the bog is falling out and it's very sad.
The good news is that the engine started, and the ute was driven off the trailer.
The plan is to remove the 350 Chev motor, TH350 transmission and Ford 9" diff, give them a spruce up (and check them out) and them put them in the WB.
This presents some problems from a registration point of view. In Victoria ("The Nanny State") if the engine swap is to an engine offered as an option with that vehicle, then all it's not too much of a problem.
In this case, because the WB never came out with a 350 Chev, so I will need to obtain a VASS (Vehicle Assessment Certificate) from an approved Signatory - this replaces the old "Engineers Report". Once you have the certificate you attend an inspection at VicRoads where you present a completed "Change of Vehicle Description" form, proof of ownership of the new engine, and the VASS.
The other catch is that the new engine must conform to the vehicle anti-pollution parts that the original engine was fitted with. In this case, the charcoal canister, pcv valve, yadda yadda. The way to avoid this is to put the thing on straight gas (cleaner, less emissions), which is what I'll be doing.
Haven't got any new pictures really, so here's a picture of a 350 Chev in a HQ.
Interested in the VicRoads regulations? Here's the link:
http://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/Home/Registration/ChangeOfVehicleDetails/
The good news is that the engine started, and the ute was driven off the trailer.
The plan is to remove the 350 Chev motor, TH350 transmission and Ford 9" diff, give them a spruce up (and check them out) and them put them in the WB.
This presents some problems from a registration point of view. In Victoria ("The Nanny State") if the engine swap is to an engine offered as an option with that vehicle, then all it's not too much of a problem.
In this case, because the WB never came out with a 350 Chev, so I will need to obtain a VASS (Vehicle Assessment Certificate) from an approved Signatory - this replaces the old "Engineers Report". Once you have the certificate you attend an inspection at VicRoads where you present a completed "Change of Vehicle Description" form, proof of ownership of the new engine, and the VASS.
The other catch is that the new engine must conform to the vehicle anti-pollution parts that the original engine was fitted with. In this case, the charcoal canister, pcv valve, yadda yadda. The way to avoid this is to put the thing on straight gas (cleaner, less emissions), which is what I'll be doing.
Haven't got any new pictures really, so here's a picture of a 350 Chev in a HQ.
Interested in the VicRoads regulations? Here's the link:
http://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/Home/Registration/ChangeOfVehicleDetails/
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Chev 350 running!
Last weekend it was time to start stripping the donor ute, but before we started we decided we should try and run up the 350.
Edward, our intrepid camera man, caught the action and I've included the short video here.
Edward, our intrepid camera man, caught the action and I've included the short video here.
The engine fired up and ran, although it was missing on one cylinder which we think may be a stuffed plug. At some point we will give it a thorough check and assess the health to see if any work needs to be done.
Thanks to Ed for his help in stripping the ute, and to Dave for helping with the pickup and storage.
Thanks to Ed for his help in stripping the ute, and to Dave for helping with the pickup and storage.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Donor Ute
Thought I'd share with you some picture of the ute I picked up from Canberra earlier this week.
It has a Chev 350, Turbo 350 Transmission and Ford 9 inch diff. Many of the parts will go into the van (eventually) and the stuff I don't need will be sold off.
A big thanks to Harro for driving up with me in his Pajero to pick up the ute. Diesel power!
It has a Chev 350, Turbo 350 Transmission and Ford 9 inch diff. Many of the parts will go into the van (eventually) and the stuff I don't need will be sold off.
A big thanks to Harro for driving up with me in his Pajero to pick up the ute. Diesel power!
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