unimogjohn

Thursday, August 4th. Now that the Buick Nationals are over and thing are put away until Hershey, I decided I better start working on the Avanti to find out the source of the oil leaks on the front of the engine and develop a plan to fix them. First thing was to pressure wash the front of the engine and suspension, both of which were dripping with oil. Removed the radiator/engine shroud for better access. Also found the fuel filter was partially plugged, a new, clear plastic one was installed. These pics are before the pressure washing. After pics will be done today when I get it on the lift. Had to spend an hour cleaning the body as the pressure washing made a good mess of the body of the car.

Still Wednesday. We have an Avanti repair report from Greg. "Been very busy lately, lots on my plate that includes the maroon Avanti. I'll bring you up to date on that one. Got the transmission out (with the aid of your trans jack) , a quick trip to Harbor Freight (in Manassas) to pick up a small bottle jack. That was to support the rear of the engine while I removed the crossmember, bell housing then clutch assembly. As I said before, I've had more unexplained mechanical failures happen to me in this century than ever before. My clutch problem seems to be something internal in the pressure plate. I've never been inside one before (never needed to) but it appears that there are several cast iron shoes or levers and one of them broke (?!) rendering it inop. It also scored the face of the low time throwout bearing. These items are being replaced, the like new clutch disc as well. I can't help but wonder why the lever broke. Certainly not from abuse, I try to baby the car so that things like this don't happen. As this new replacement pressure plate is marked MADE IN KOREA, I'm wondering if these new parts that come in a plain white box are all "offshore". I machined an arbor to align the disc as the pressure plate was tightened, the bellhousing is back in place, crossmember and rear support, too. Tonight I've gotten the new throwout bearing in place, bellhousing cover and starter snugged. Biggest job yet is to get the trans back in position before hooking up all the linkages, exhaust downpipe, driveshaft, etc." So we're getting there. GREG"

Wednesday, August 3rd. Just received a couple of pics of the 1953 Ford F100, Barney. Daniel has fabricated a new transmission mount. You can also see the newly installed gas tank and brake master cylinder. And the new stance of Barney on the 2003 Ford Crown Vic suspension looks really good.

Tuesday morning, August 3rd. Yesterday I made an emergency repair to the auto transmission cooling line on the Trailblazer. It was starting to leak badly. In a few days I will replace the lines, but I need the truck running over the next few days for lots of farm work. The rust on the other line looks bad in pics, but is really not. Had to cover the repair in a heat resistant/protective shield as is very close to the CAT. I also took a look at the Avanti to see if I could see the source of the engine oil leaking. Nope, going to pressure was the front of the engine today and then run it to see if the leak will reappear.

Bernie, good luck and safe journey on your hunt for the Humber. Take lots of pics for us. John

I too had a great time at the meet. The organization and support were fantastic. I especially liked the format of all cars grouped by era. Made it very interesting to see restored and original cars side by side. We met a lot of new folks and was able to catch up with those on the forums and past shows. All in all, it was a really fun time. Thanks everyone who took the time to volunteer to make it such a great success.

Usually, the body color dictated the color of the interior. My 28, model 29 has a Harbor Blue/Black exterior and a light blue interior mohair. But over time it has faded to gray, but you can still see the blue in the folds where light did not affect it. If you do not have an interior and a different exterior paint that you plan to keep, I would just find material that looks right to the car unless you are going for a concours restoration.

Larry, and here are pics of your interview discussing your '25.

Sunday, July 31st, PM. Well we made it home. No problems, just zipped right along with just a little traffic. Now to unpack. Going to leave the 23 in the trailer for a few days while I work on the Avanti and the Trailblazer. Speaking of working on cars, Camaro Steve wrote me that Barney, the Ford F100 pickup, is starting to look like a truck again. The front of the truck is all back on. And the power steering hoses are on as well as new heater hoses. Steve figures that by next weekend he will be able to take Barney home. Here is the latest pic.

Still Sunday, just got back from the anniversary dinner. The place was full with about 2,000 people. What a great time. Presentations were short and sweet. Lasted about three hours. Mr. Bulgari spoke and told of his involvement with the BCA and car collecting in general. He introduced his crew that he brought over from Rome for the event. Must have been at least a couple of dozen folks, and then he had more of his American crew there also. Great time. Heading home tomorrow morning. And it is raining hard outside too.

David, I took most of the pics before some of the cars arrived and the public came at 9 AM. It was much more filled by 10 AM. I forgot to get a overall shot.

Saturday, July 30th. And then the sky opened up and it poured buckets, but we saw it coming and headed for the trailer along with most of the field. But we had a beautiful day until about 1:30 PM. We arrived at before 8 AM so we had a long day to see all the cars and meet folks. Heading to dinner tonight to share more stories and then head for home in the morning. We had helicopters flying low overhead, drones buzzing about, the Buick Bug driving by, and an appearance my Mr Bulgari in the Buick Y Body. He also seen wandering the 1920 field and talking to folks. One crazy moment happened when one of the drones crashed into the drive-in screen and crashed to the ground. No one was hurt and no damage to any car, but it sure captured the attention of the crowd. There was a Chinese film crews interviewing folks and several groups of young people talking to owners about their cars. We had lots of people talking to us, and Alice invited many to get into the old Buick and sit a spell. We even met some folks from Washington State who had two 1923 McLaughlin Buicks in their stable, both still original. All in all we had just a great day. The meet was well organized and run. We could not be more happier with the event. We got the 23 loaded and strapped down in the trailer before the big downpour happened so we just got a little sprinkle of rain on her. Those leaving later got just drenched. We left the trailer in the parking lot and will head to the dinner tonight. Early tomorrow morning we will hitch up to the trailer and head for home. Here are just some of the pics I took today.

Alan, here is a display at the 2016 Buick National Meet, which was held today. Thought you might enjoy the pic. I thought of you.

It is Friday, PM, July 29th. Wow! The Bulgari complex is something. We toured three buildings packed with restored and unrestored cars; a fabrication, body and paint building; a maintenance building with row of lifts; and an upholstery shop. He has it all. I took pictures of lots of stuff for your enjoyment. We got to the parking area by about 9:30 AM and unloaded the 1923 McLaughlin Buick. She fired right up and we ambled along for about a mile to the event. We got our parking assignment with a few other 20s cars. Had a great time talking to everyone. Then we went on a tour to see all of the Bulgari cars and equipment. He had lots of employees there to answer everyone's questions. He really has some very nice cars. In one building he had a huge white painted room with rotating platform. They said it is where cars are photographed, digitized, etc; inside and out for submission to the Smithsonian Museum. The Buick Y Job was being done when we were there, and the Buick Bug was going to be next. The Buick show is being run very well, with lot of volunteers handling everything. Great meet so far. Tomorrow we all need to be on the field by 8 AM as the public will start coming in at 9 AM. Rained in the morning, but nice the rest of the day. Hope the rain holds off until the end of the show, which is 3 PM tomorrow. We have a dinner to go to tomorrow at 6 with all the attendees; and then we head home Sunday morning. I am also posting a few of the cars on the show field as well as some design study cars by Buick. Boy, do they look nice. The future looks bright for Buick if they build them.

Larry, we are here with the 23 McLaughlin Buick. Still in the trailer. We will get it on the show field sometime early afternoon on Friday. Glad you got inside, it rained hard all night. Hope it clears for today and tomorrow. I had a thought re your running issues. I once left my ignition retarded and the car ran terrible after it warmed up. Went to full advance and she ran great for the rest of the tour. Could you be running retarded? I mean ignition timing

Thursday, PM, July 28th. We spent the day going about 200 miles R/T into the Simeone Museum. What a great place with lots of unrestored cars. We even got a tour of their shop where the cars are maintained. I took about 100 pictures and will put them up on my pic site at some point. But here are a few. Going to get the 23 onto the show field tomorrow and spend the day on the show grounds and visiting the Bulgari Museum. Tonight we are going to get hit with a huge storm and 1 to 2 inches of rain. Glad the 23 is in the trailer.

Chris, glad to see you and the Avanti are still motoring down the road. Keep us updated from time to time. It is Wednesday, PM, July 27th. At the hotel. We made it to Allentown, PA. Got a later start due to the fact that we were twenty miles down the road when Alice asked if I had the cel phone. Nope. So we had to head back home to get it. That mistake cost us about an hour. But we made it to the registration point at about 3 PM. Lots of people coming and going. It was so loud with all the people talking that we had trouble understanding what was being said. But we got our credentials and headed off to the parking lot to drop off the trailer and head to the hotel. Lots of Buicks coming and going onto the show field. Here are a couple of pics. Tomorrow we are heading into the race car museum in Philly. It will take about a couple of hours to get there, about 80 miles away. And the traffic is terrible. Truck ran great, got just over 11 mpg for the 400 mile trip. Our plan is to take the 23 onto the show field on Friday morning and leave it until Saturday PM.

Bernie, a very interesting body style. Do you have any of the original body parts or will you have to make them all?

Mike, great car! Where is it located?

Dale, have you been able to assess the condition of the drive train? What about the engine? Will you upgrade to a different engine?

Tuesday morning, July 26th. Another hot one expected today. Have tool and such to load this morning for the trip to Allentown. Other than a few odds and ends we are ready to go. But Greg and his maroon Avanti are going no where. But he has found the problem with the clutch. Here is his report. From: Greg <gregcone@msn.com> Sent: Tuesday, July 26, 2016 12:06 AM Subject: Saturday night update. Hadn't planned on this. Although I know that the four speed Avantis have a weak clutch linkage, and they are prone to fail only when in traffic, they sometimes do. That means either a call for a tow, or some creative driving technique for a car that you can't stop without pulling it out of gear. If you do, that means putting the car in first gear and waiting for your opportunity to go by turning on the ignition key and getting on with it. You also plan your route to avoid stopping again (right turn on red traffic lights, orbiting parking areas until the road is clear , etc. Once you are on a highway, shifting between gears is a matter of vehicle speed vs. engine speed. The maroon car did it to me a couple years ago, and that led me to beef up the linkage. Did it again last week. Getting it upon the lift ramps was a snap. Mounted a Harbor Freight winch and towed it on. When we troubleshot the clutch linkage, found nothing wrong. That led to a trip to the Feser Tool Rental Depot to borrow his transmission jack. Now that the trans is down and out: Good news and bad news. The good news is that with the transmission out, I can see a problem. The bad news (actually not that bad now that the trans is out) is that one of the pressure plate actuating fingers is out of place. We now know to pull the clutch and fix the problem. Monday night: This morning I ordered a new pressure plate, disc and throwout bearing. All these items had been renewed when I put the car back into service. I'd have to scan Unimog's blog to date when, but I'd guess ten years ago (plus or minus) and maybe ten thousand miles. With the trans out, now's the time. Tonight I snagged a bottle jack at Harbor Freight to use to support the rear of the engine when the the bell housing and such are removed to free the clutch. Steve, Don't you remember the Saturdays when you'd bring the old '57 over to my house, we'd pull it up with two wheels on the sidewalk....slide underneath to drop your transmission. Install a NAPA second gear assembly , paint the trans cherry red and put it back. Then you'd knock it out the next day at Mason-Dixon drag strip, but only on the trophy run. You'd limp around all week until you got paid and we'd do it all again. All the while eating cheeseburgers with greasy fingerprints on the buns. Didn't need no stinkin' lift either.

Chris, How is that Avanti of yours? Any updates? Joe, I have a nice waterproof cover for it. The 23 should be fine. In a way I hope we will get some rain. It was 115 degrees with the humidity corrected temperature, The outside temp was 106. Hot. Talked to Camaro Steve re Barney, the F100 truck. On Sunday, they fitted the the front fenders and inner liners. They had to do some cutting of the inner liners to make them fit around the new suspension components. Daniel is making up the power steering hoses and will rewire the lights and ignition. Steve and Daniel think that it will be a driving truck again in about a week and a half. Here is hoping. Daniel also has to make the patch where the floor shifter was, and a new battery cover. They also cut three inches out of the driveshaft. Dan will weld it back on the new front shaft that goes into the new transmission.

Monday, July 25th, AM. Going to be the hottest day of the year, over 100 degrees and with the humidity it is suppose to feel like 115 degrees. You cannot be in the sun for long. So this morning, while it was still under 90 degrees, I put down the top of the 1923 MB (with Aice's help as it takes two people), and drove her on to the trailer. All strapped down now and ready for Wednesday's trip to PA. It will only take us about four hours of drive time to get there so will leave home about 9:30 AM. We have to go and pick up our registration and then park the trailer. I hope to be at the hotel about 5ish so we can relax and have a nice dinner. On Thursday we plan to go to the Simeone museum http://www.simeonemuseum.org/ and then will probably head back to the show event to have a look around. On Friday we will spend the day at the event going thru the vendor area, look at some of the cars, and visit the on-site Bulgari Museum. May bring the 23 over and put it in its place for the show. Going to be over 700 cars trying to get in on Saturday morning so just may want to avoid the hassle and place it on Friday. We have special dinners on Friday and Saturday night with all the car folks, should be fun. And then on Sunday we pick up the car and trailer, and head for home. Short trip, but should be really fun. Pics of the 23 ready to go.

Just awesome work. It will be coming together quick now. Soon you will be rolling down the avenue. And keep cool. Hot here in VA 110 degrees for us today. Cannot believe what it will be in AZ.

Larry, I really acts like it is running out of fuel. Like others suggested, I would rig up a small plastic gas container above the carb and let it gravity feed the carb and see how it does. I think you should remove the vacuum fuel tank out of the mix. Also could the line from the tank to the vacuum tank be restricted? Might want to take an air gun and blow back into the main tank from the inlet pipe where it attaches to the vacuum pump.