Doyle, the 16V.

[Reaper1]

OK, time for another update. I replaced the odometer gears in the cluster, and got the rest of the interior cleaned and conditioned. ALMOST ready to put it back together! 

 

I still need to fix the left door power lock as I think the linkage retainer is busted. I am going to polish the cluster lens tonight.

 

Neither of the dash speakers are working, so I am going to get some speakers coming for it as the rest seem pretty bad, too. 

 

I TRIED to fix the antenna, but failed horribly. I am going to have another thread about that for everyone to laugh and learn from. I just need to bite the bullet and order the correct mast. 

 

Anyways, it's coming along! 

[Reaper1]

Well, the saga continues with the stereo in Doyle. My original plan was to get a newer factory tape/cd player unit and use that because it would be of the correct era and do all the things needed, BUT, my plans have been foiled. While waiting on the new antenna mast, I decided to check to see if the head units I was attempting to use were even any good. I had my '90 Daytona just sitting there and it has no stereo in it currently, so I figured I could use that. 3 out of 3 head units produced NO sound! Well, the newest one tried, but obviously has an issue and doesn't work correctly. I tried a CD due to the tuner not being hooked up to an antenna (my antenna wire in the 90 is lost behind the dash someplace! LOL). 2 of the head units would read the CD, but no sound, and the 3rd wouldn't even read the CD. I'm kinda bummed because I REALLY wanted a factory head unit in there, but, it's not to be, I suppose. Newer aftermarket stuff *is* better, but it's the look I was really wanting. Oh well. Guess Doyle is going to get a new Pioneer. I won't be adding amps and all to this car. 

[Reaper1]

While trying to decide what to do about the stereo, I figured I would knock out a little bit of other work. Doyle needs a basic tune-up and I'd already gotten some of the things needed. One of them is plug wires. While technically not "bad", the ones on it are original, and one has been snacked on by some rodent or another (seems common as I've seen another person that had the same exact issue), so I got some replacements from RDI. Unfortunately red was not available. I decided to try and overcome that because I REALLY like the red wires on that engine...it just looks SWEET. So, I got some red expandable wire loom and installed that over the cables. I *could* have gotten away with only doing the amount that you can see, and that probably would have given me enough to do all 4, but I wanted to do the whole length, so I found out the hard way that 10 feet will only do 3 wires! Oops...oh well...ordered another pack. I even went as far as to take the boot off the distributor end so I could slide the sheathing on the cable AND shrink wrap it on both ends! It looks REALLY good! Little tip for getting those boots off, use some silicone spray. Man that makes it SO easy! I've fought with those things in the past...wish I woulda known that trick before! So...that's where I'm at so far...

[Reaper1]

OK...YOLO'd...got a nice Pioneer head unit and all Infinity Reference speakers coming. I want to get this thing back on the road while the weather is nice dang it!

[pesd]

Hi Reaper,

I also received black plug wires from rick last summer, sort of disappointed but didn't want to whine, never thought about the loom thing. What diameter loom did you use? I was just looking for red loom on line and came across these that could look sharp considering the original separators (bracket) disappeared. 

THANKS, Peter

[Reaper1]

I think it's 1/8" loom I used. NOT the plastic convoluted stuff! This stuff is like the "Chinese Finger Trap". I like those holders. I need to get my 3D printer...then I can actually fix it!

[Reaper1]

So, I have collected a BUNCH of parts and now it's time to do the work! I started replacing the speakers today. Got 3 of those in. Gotta do the head unit wiring. I'll get the other dash speaker in tomorrow and then I can put the entire dash back together! I'm excited to do that! I also got some butyl tape, so I can reinstall the vapor barriers on the doors properly. Got the lock rod retainers to fix the driver's side power lock. I sourced the correct spark plugs, so now I have all the stuff to revamp the secondary ignition. While I have that stuff out I am going to repaint the valve cover and intake, so that should look nice again. 

 

The hood came in today, and...well...I think something either got put on it during shipping, or fell on it, but it's not as straight as it is in the pictures. I will say I was VERY impressed with the way the part was packed. It came on a pallet with nice sides on it, and it was totally wrapped in bubble wrap. The only thing they could have done more was put a top on it. It *IS* better than what is on the car, which is bent, so I will sill install it. Since the hood isn't down during shows anyways, I'm not going to sweat it too much, but it does push me to go with my original plan. Guess I need to really scope out local suppliers. 

 

The last BIG thing to do is get the A/C working. It technically DID work, but the lines don't hold 134a...you can see the oil seep through little pinholes! I've been looking up A/C hoses, fittings, and tools...we'll see. I am SO excited to get back to driving it!

 

Oh, I got the hard top stand, too. It's pretty nice. Gotta say, for less than $120 shipped AND it comes with a cover...it's a nice product. 

[wild bill]

Where did you get your hood?  I could use a good black one.   Not many parts Cars in Colorado. 

[Reaper1]

J&J  Auto Wrecking on eBay. They price wasn't bad, and I did get what I paid for. I have no complaints there. I have looked at the pictures again they took (they did a good job where you can see the reflections and all) so, I truly think something happened in transit. Again, it is still a better part than what is on the car, so, going to roll with it for now. They have a white hood as well it looks like.

[Reaper1]

Continued the speaker install tonight. I forgot the dash speakers had their own bass limiting capacitors, so I had to take them back out and get that sorted out. No biggie. I used trim adhesive to reapply the sound director foam to the two storage compartment speakers. I think eventually I will get the foam to put behind them, too because right now they are basically free air, and that won't make for good mid response at all. It will still be better than nothing, though. I also got the adapter harness all soldered up for the head unit, so that will be ready to install very shortly, too. It's getting closer!!!

[Reaper1]

I was sick all last week with a sinus infection or some crap (NOT Covid), so I'm FINALLY getting back to working on stuff. So as an update, I finished the passenger's side door and got it all buttoned back up. I sourced some thin butyl tape that is used for RV gaskets or something and that works fantastic for putting the vapor barrier back on the door! No more duct tape! I gotta get more of this stuff!

 

I moved on to the driver's door to find more of the old alarm system tucked up in it and some hacked wiring. I ripped that crap out and fixed the wires, replaced the missed lock rod clip on the lock solenoid, and found that the door was missing the entire vapor barrier. I luckily had the one out of the other TC hanging on the wall, and I intend to do some different stuff with that car anyways, so I used that on this one. Installed the door speaker and decided it was time to toss the head unit in and see if this was all worth it. 

 

Well, I learned a lesson I will also post another thread about. I don't exactly know WHY this is, yet, but you can NOT use the black/dark green wire for the head unit ground. For whatever reason whenever I tried to get a source to play it would turn the unit off and put it in some sort of "safe mode" where I had to reset the whole blasted thing. Thanks to a buddy of mine for making me come to my senses, but once I used the braided ground strap...no more issues! 

 

The good news is that it works and it sounds pretty darn good. As I expected, it has fairly terrible mid and bass response, at least compared to my truck, so yeah, it will be getting some foam speaker buckets to try and help that out. But it's clear and seems like it has good staging. I was trying to NOT put a sub in it, but after having almost every one of my daily drivers have a sub...I think it's going to get *something*. It's just hard for me to listen to music that doesn't have a good, full range. 

 

Maybe by the end of the weekend I'll have it all back together.

[Reaper1]

Got the driver's side door back together, top of the dash all back together, and the head unit is mounted. I did order a powered sub...got an Infinity Mini Bass Link coming. 

 

I had to clean the connections for the tach driver board as it was spotty and even though I'd jostled it a bit while I had the whole thing out, I guess it wasn't enough. There was quite a bit of corrosion on the contacts, but now it works!

 

Only other thing that is bugging me is that the radio gets really poor reception. It almost acts like the coax wire itself is messed up internally. I haven't gone back to mess with the antenna itself yet (yes, it does go up), but with as long as the coax is, I would think it really isn't even needed. The reception changes as I mess with the cable or even change my own position in relation to it...kinda like trying to get better TV reception out of old rabbit ears. It's not like I live in a place where there's a lot of obstruction to the radio signal, so I doubt that is the problem. I dunno what is going on, but it's really annoying me. 

[Reaper1]

I started on the mechanical work tonight. Figured I would start with the basic tune-up stuff. I gotta say, doing the cap, rotor, and wires on a 16V is....challenging. I used my moving the A/C compressor trick, and that works ok, but man, it truly sucks to ACTUALLY get in there. I ended up rigging a 1/4" socket with a Phillips bit and a u-joint to get the cap off. 

 

I suppose I'd never seen a truly stock set of wires until this car, too. They have a little support strap and grommet that bolts up to where the oil dip stick is also supported on the intake manifold. It is part of the wire set as there is no way to get it off without either cutting it, or taking boots off of the wires. I bet an OEM set was REALLY expensive when you could still get them! This thing still had a stock cap and rotor, too. They didn't look horrible, but certainly were well used. The plugs looked nice and still were at factory gap. I kept everything...just in case (and I'm a hoarder that way!).

 

I got all the wires on and in the cap, now I have to get it all screwed back down and buttoned up. 

 

For those fretting about the spark plugs...they are still out there in the correct size...you just have to look. My 5/8 Snap-On spark plug socket fit in the head just fine. 

 

I want to re-paint the valve cover, but I really don't want to take it off right now. And of course then the intake won't look as nice either. Decisions....

 

Once I get the distributor cap back on and all, I will move on to the timing belt and tensioner. That won't actually take that long, though I technically *should* take the valve cover off to do it because you are supposed to pin the cams. Of course when the thing shredded on the highway, we didn't do that. We just put the cams where I knew they should be, lined up the engine to TDC, slapped the belt on and let her rip. Been that way ever since and it runs as it should with plenty of power, etc. 

 

BTW, just doing the cap, rotor, wires, and plugs took me a little over 2 hours, and I am still not done. Of course I was fiddling around and being meticulous, but still...that job, even on my Ram where the distributor isn't easy to get to and there are 8 wires only takes and hour. 

[Reaper1]

OK, so, I got some more done! 

 

I figured out the trick for doing the cap/rotor on the 16V. You need a Phillip's head bit, a 1/4" socket (1/4 drive), a universal or wobble joint, either a really long single extension, or a couple medium extensions and a ratchet. With that combo, a flashlight, and using the other hand to guide if needed...works great!

 

The car runs a little smoother with the new ignition components, so that's nice.

 

I also ran the power wire for the Infinity Mini Bass Link powered sub. I am going to mount it inside the storage compartment...I think it will yield some good results. We shall see!

[Reaper1]

Got the new powered sub hooked up and I tested it. WOW!! It produces WAY more bass than I expected! It fit nicely in the storage compartment. I need to screw it down and then adjust it, but right out of the box it was excellent! I can't wait to get it dialed in.

[Reaper1]

Pictures! I FINALLY am going to post pictures! Some may have seen this on Facebook, but since I know not everyone is on that platform I would share here as well.

 

I did a "beta" install of the sub and started getting the carpet back in. The front floor boards had gotten wet (convertible life) and the original sound deadening was peeling up and trapped water under it. No bueno. So, I scraped all that off, re-primed the floor, then reapplied new Dynamat, but left the drain channels free so water wouldn't stand under it. Next is a dual-density closed cell foam mat from Second Skin. I am working on the carpet today. It has decided to play rough! 

 

Oh and the last picture is of the spark plug wires that I did to make them red. I am still waiting on the holders and I am going to repaint the valve cover.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 15, 2021 by Reaper1
picture order (see edit history)

[Reaper1]

More pictures

 

 

 

Edited August 15, 2021 by Reaper1
picture order (see edit history)

[Reaper1]

And the moment I've been trying to get to for a while now!! The interior is back together!

 

[Reaper1]

[Reaper1]

[Reaper1]

 

Edited August 15, 2021 by Reaper1 (see edit history)

[mensanguy]

Lookin' good dude, just like OEM!

[Reaper1]

I figured I would share the progress. I've been detailing the snot out of this car! I did quite a bit in the engine bay today. I haven't done the timing belt or the valve cover yet, but I will! I promise! The rest of the car is looking VERY nice as well. I just have to finish the glaze on the bottom of the car, polish the stainless, and do all the plastic/rubbers. It was sorta smelling like a new car today! LOL

I am also including pictures of the OEM 16V plug wires. Interesting that it has this integrated support grommet and the tubing around the coil wire isn't split. Also note the Italian origin.

[shelbyone]

On 8/15/2021 at 10:03 AM, Reaper1 said:

Pictures! I FINALLY am going to post pictures! Some may have seen this on Facebook, but since I know not everyone is on that platform I would share here as well.

 

I did a "beta" install of the sub and started getting the carpet back in. The front floor boards had gotten wet (convertible life) and the original sound deadening was peeling up and trapped water under it. No bueno. So, I scraped all that off, re-primed the floor, then reapplied new Dynamat, but left the drain channels free so water wouldn't stand under it. Next is a dual-density closed cell foam mat from Second Skin. I am working on the carpet today. It has decided to play rough! 

 

Oh and the last picture is of the spark plug wires that I did to make them red. I am still waiting on the holders and I am going to repaint the valve cover.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

looks all very cool!  I did the same thing in june/july and about to wrap up the thermo-acoustic project with the completion of my hardtop!.

[Hemi Dude]

" and I am going to repaint the valve cover."

You might want to paint it a different color, this is HEMI ORANGE.

[Reaper1]

19 hours ago, Hemi Dude said:

" and I am going to repaint the valve cover."

You might want to paint it a different color, this is HEMI ORANGE.

I have tossed the idea around about going with crinkle red, but because I would have to take the intake off to re-do that, for now it will stay black.

 

Almost had a bad thing happen today. I had put the 10x17 enclosure up and didn't think much of it. I figured between the weight and the fact that all the sides were completely down that it would stay put...NOPE! Had a storm kick up today and that thing decided to try and take off on me! I had to stand out there for an hour to hold the stupid thing down! Luckily it only put one scratch in the car, and it's not that bad. Could have been WAY worse. It is VERY tied down now!

[Reaper1]

So I have been trying to figure out how to get the hard top off of the car by myself for a while. Today, I solved the problem! The steel structure of the enclosure is plenty strong enough to support the hard top. So, I went to Ace and picked up some pullies, a few screw-down eyes, a 5' long piece of 1" PVC, a few 10' ratchet straps (you need 2) and some pipe insulation foam. Then I went to Harbor Frieght and got a 120V remote controlled winch with 35' cable and hook. I picked the 2nd A-frame and got to work. At the top in the center I self-tapped (4 each) a hook and placed a pulley, then at the bend I did the same thing. At the bottom I use cement anchors and bolted the winch to the ground. Next you have the PVC wrapped in the foam insulation with a hook at each end for one of the ratchet straps. You place the PVC through the rear of the back window and run the strap from one side to the other with the winch hook in the center. Un-latch the top and start pulling it off slowly with the winch. Once it is maybe 1/2" off, take the 2nd ratchet strap, hook it to the winch hook, then run it back down the center of the top, loop it under and hook it to the PVC. Pull that strap tight. Now you can just winch the top right off of the car using one hand to steady it and the other to control the winch. Worked like a charm! I was then able to set it right down on the cart, no problem. 

 

So, for the first time I have been able to see the soft top on this car. It is a BEAUTIFUL black top that looks brand new. I doubt it's been up many times. I need to take a look at the pull-down because it seems out of adjustment and it wouldn't release with the button. Now I can totally finish the stereo install with the rear two shelf speakers. I left the soft top up, but not latched at all so the fabric can relax a bit. I also can polish the tonneau as it hasn't been done in a LONG time. I will take pictures of the top crane tomorrow. I just finished it tonight. Total cost was probably like $210 because I chose to go with the fancy winch. It could be done for probably $100 or less depending on what you already have laying around. 

[wild bill]

Looking forward to pictures.  I need to buy or build two.  Debating on manual or electric.

 

[Hemi Dude]

57 minutes ago, wild bill said:

Looking forward to pictures.  I need to buy or build two.  Debating on manual or electric.

 

I have a manual that is as good as an electric, maybe better if you already own a reversible electric drill.

Just cut the crank handle off the manual crank and attach your drill and run the top up and down. It works great.

[Garnet & Gold]

Here is my hoist .  The motor is from Harbor Freight and the rest of the parts from my local hardware store.  It cost me about $125 total.  HF did not have the remote controller at the time I put it in.  I went thru the ceiling with heavy duty metal straps and attached them to the joists in the attic and then ran a pipe between the two straps that let the motor slide back and forth a couple of inches.

 

[Reaper1]

Alrighty! Pictures as promised! 

 

[Reaper1]

[Reaper1]

[Reaper1]

[Reaper1]

And here is Doyle as he sits now. 
 

[Mark_Blodgett]

👍

[Reaper1]

Decided to finally tackle the timing belt. I wasn't really looking forward to doing it, but I'm half way in there now! Started with just the valve cover...cleaned it and repainted it last night. Today I went to go finish it off by re-finishing the fins and letters. Welp, my luck is such that I had to touch it up twice because the stupid sand paper kept messing up places. Oh well...it's ready now. Got to doing the belt...I thought I was going to be slick...nope. I forgot that no matter what, you have to at least lift up the right side of the engine to get the blasted belt out. I got that done and the covers and all are all cleaned. I have to fix the upper one as when the tensioner let go, the belt rode over and chewed it up. I think I can make it ok. 

I also finished the repair of the 3rd brake light. I simply use LED strips in there, that way I never have to worry about a blown bulb again. 

I hope maybe Monday I can go for a drive.

[Reaper1]

I was just watching the Ratarossa You Tube channel and he is working on a Ferrari 308 doing ignition stuff...guess what that Ferrari has on it that the original plug wires for the 16V cars have? That little support bracket/grommet! Same exact part! Interesting. 

[pesd]

I need one of those, I guess I'm going to have to find a cheap Ferrari 308 some place.

[Reaper1]

Well, great news! The timing belt was a success and Doyle is back being a roadworthy vehicle. I even drove it today! I was disappointed with one thing...stupid odometer quit only 3/10's of a mile in. These were brand new gears in there, so I'm not sure what happened. Honestly, I don't really want to pull it back apart right now. So, it will stay as is. I only need to put the passenger door trim back on and finish the antenna the right way. Oh, and see if I can make LED bulbs work in the back. Because I'm cheap, I refuse to buy the $15 pack of 2 resistors that they sell at the auto parts stores, so I went and got some resistors from an electronics place to see if $2 worth of resistors can do what $15 are supposed to. 

 

Beyond that, I got to drive it for the first time with the top down...OH YEAH!! I LOVE these cars so much cruising with the top down. Of course I had to get on it a few times...still pulls strong all the way up. I will post a picture of the completed engine bay here in a while.