rapom

Sway bar end links are brand new this spring. I had 235 75 15's on the front last year. This year I put on 255 60 15's on 8" wide wheels. Last year I had to turn a lot harder to get it to knock or pop. Now with the wider wheels and new sway bar bushings, it is more sensitive. Still wondering if the spring could be making the popping, knocking sound. Both sides have no isolator but neither does the other side.

No, most of the time my foot is off the petal when I'm making the turns. Motor mounts are 1 year old.

It's not the lug nuts. I've had the rim off multiple times and the knocking is always there.

Had this for about a year now. Seems that if I take a hard right turn there is a knocking sound from the front left side of the car. I removed the clutch fan so I was sure that it wasn't hitting the shroud and it ain't the problem. I could be going straight and if I hit a bump or worst then normal expansion joint it will also give me the same knock. The faster I go, the faster the knocks get when I'm turning on a long right turn. Tire doesn't look like its rubbing anywhere. I'm wondering if it could be the front left spring moving it the pocket or maybe the exhaust system hitting the frame. Those are the next things I want to check. Just want to know if anyone else had this problem

Rapom, i wasn't dogging what you had done or saying the frame integrity was messed with. Hell, these x-frames seem a bit cheesy anyway, so you probably improved it. I think what you are doing is great, i am just trying to shave off some fab time if i can I never got that vibe from you. I just wanted to make sure I found all the info I had on the frame work and posted it. Good luck with whatever you do.

When I cut the frame I used heavy steel to box it up again plus with the gussets on the outside I'm sure the frame has the same strength as before. One of the reasons I stuck with the GV was the low cost of the job. It was just a lot of labor on my part which is no big deal when if you have the tools and time (Semi retired helps) Here is the best pictures I have of the gussets which are on the outside of the frame rail. And the metal I formed using a bench vise for inside the frame rails.

Thank you Devildog93, That would be the easier way to go and the way I would have went if my Riv was much nicer. Plus the overdrive gearing in the 200-4R would be much better than mine. I think the pricey part of the 200-4R swap is the transmission to engine block adapter.

Cheap is $800 found on craigslist using SearchTempest. The extra cost is a speedometer gear if needed and a shortened drive shaft. This is NOT an easy install. I had to gusset the outside of the X frame, Notch for the speedometer cable as seen in my last post. I also notched and boxed the inside of the X- frame for clearance. Since you have to raise the Trans tunnel 1 inch for clearance, I cut out the trans tunnel and did all the notching and boxing and sizing through the the floor. It was a lot easier. Since the tunnel was raised an inch, (See pictures below) I had to lower the shifter mount an inch which was easy to do because there was enough meat on the shifter bracket. Very little trimming was needed on the console since it already sits off the tunnel a bit. I used the button on the shifter knob to engage the overdrive. I mounted a momentary switch at the bottom of the shifter handle so that when the button is fully depressed the overdrive is engaged. It took me awhile to do the job because I wanted to do it right. What's nice is that it bolts right up to the tranny and the stock linkage still works. There is a slight shudder under 5 mph when you hit the gas hard. After a lot of research, I found that if the carrier bearing (new when shortening drive shaft) was lowered, or the gear vendors unit is raised (not possible) it would go away. This is a big problem with Toyota Tacoma owners and has never been fixed by the factory. But there are owners that have lowered the carrier bearing and it has gone away. Also you lose the parking brake doing this mod. That would require major surgery to the X frame and it is unnoticeable when accelerating normally so I'm letting it go. I got about 3000 miles on it now and it is working great. Once you turn it on, it turns off automatically at 5 mph when coming to a stop and turns on automatically at 20 mph. Or you can manually turn if off or on. I just leave it on all the time. I can tell you it is really worth it to me since I think it will extend what life my 105K mile engine has left. I've always heard that RPM kills engines. That being said, I have to say that these nailheads are the smoothest, quietest engines I've ever heard at high RPM which tells me that they are a well built engine. Below is a few pictures I took of the job. Unfortunately they are not in order

Slosteve, I also became very irritated at the rpm's my 64 was running going down the highway. I put at least 6000 miles on my car a year as I use it as my work car (40miles a day) plus kind of a beater/ratrod. At 105,000 miles it runs and drives great although the oil press is a bit low at idle. I installed sebring conv. (which match the interior pretty well) seats, a vintage air system, and a cheap craigslist Gear Vendors overdrive so it is a very comfortable car to drive. It knocks down the stock 3.07 gear to a much nicer 2.39 gear. I have a year on this combo now and I can tell you that at 70mph I still wish I had another gear because the engine doesn't work hard at all. I think a 1.90 - 2.10 final drive would be perfect. Like everyone is saying, there is plenty of torque to work with.

I'm sure it does. I had the same problem and what I did was drill an extra hole at the end so I could reach the engine. I know this is dangerous but I only was pulling the engine and everything worked out fine.

I grew up always wanting to know how things worked. If you have that mind set it goes a long way. My dad had zero interest in cars or anything mechanical so I had to repair my bikes and fix things myself. Mechanical aptitude also helps a lot. I worked at a Golf Course for 30 years as a Supt. that did everything. So turning wrenches and working with your hands a lot helps because you develop a good feel for how things should be handled. Hard to explain. I also had a few good mentors which go a long way speed up the process of learning things. I read a lot of hot rod, mechanical science, and other mags when I was young and still do. Now Youtube has so many do it yourself videos that if you know how to work and think well with your hands you can tackle most any project. As much as I know how to do things I'm not the best at most things either. I can restore, weld , and put together a car but I take a lot longer at doing it than others. (Ex. Bodywork. I can do it but it would take me a week to smooth a panel that someone else could do in a few hours) But when it comes to adjusting, cut, height, and bearings on reels and bedknifes that cut grass on greens. I'm sure I'm better than most people. We cut greens at 118 to 130 thousandth's of an inch. And there are 3 reels on one mower so thay have to match perfectly.

He's just being facetious.

I agree with the ratchet wrenches and if you get them make sure you get the angled ones and not the straight ones. I small led light that fits on your head is also nice to have.

I am also pretty sure that my drivers side didn't have any type of pad, isolator. Just wanting to know what is supposed to be there. thanks for the reply. Any other comments?

Is there supposed to be one at the top of coil spring between it and the frame or does the coil spring come in direct contact with the frame? My car sits a bit higher on the pass side since I installed the vintage air system which removed a lot of weight off the pass side. My car has a 1/8 shim plus the rubber or leather isolator which may or may not be stock since the car has had many owners and spring changes. I install 2" over stock last year replacing the 3" under stock which the car had in it when I bought it. I may be ok just removing the shim. Thanks for any help in advance.

The aeromotive stealth works at any tank depth, If that is what your asking. That being said, I don't know where the fuel sender is located. If anywhere but the top, it won't work. Plus you would have to either cut an lower the area on top where you install it. Or bump out the trunk for more room

I stopped using Armorall years ago because it was too greasy and smelled and damaged my dash. I believe it even accelerated the sun damage on the plastic parts on my Camaro. Plus I had to keep applying it as it would dry out the plastic. I was told to use Pledge back in the early 90's and haven't had any problems since. It's not real shiny or greasy and has a better smell plus you don't have to use it as often.

I sent you some pictures. The chrome on it is scratched, probably from cleanup from a dirt rag. Plus it has some other flaws. It looks nice from a distance though About 1/3 of it is detached from the Air cleaner so I believe it should remove easily. I didn't know about about the difference between the 445 and 465. Thanks for the info.

I sent you a PM

Which decal do you need? a 445 or a 465?

Here's a link to replace with a vintage air unit if your not worried about how it will effect your cars value. http://forums.aaca.org/topic/115312-vintage-air-ac-conversion-for-1st-gen-rivieras/?hl=vintage#entry1109770

I used this Retro radio but not in the stock location. What I like is that the face plate folds down to play CD's and it will also has a jack and a usb port. Here is a link http://www.classiccarstereos.com/product/USA4-DIN-Radios/USA-4DIN-C.html I also installed a subwoofer, under the pass seat to add some depth to the music

I bought an adaptor , reducer from NAPA and installed it near Vintage Air's 4 port bulkhead at the firewall in a way that it is hidden unless you really look for it.

I left the cover on as I thought it might quiet the noise of the fan. Picture is without the cover. Really don't have a good picture of the firewall but I see the bolt you are talking about. You could paint it black or maybe weld a stud to the firewall.

That looks great. It really does look like it could be factory.