Jump to content
Forums Gone... but not forgotten!
Pontiac of the Month

FBIRD69's 1969 Firebird

2024 March
of the Month

  • Rev up your passion for Pontiacs and join our vibrant community of enthusiasts!

    Whether you're a die-hard fan of classic muscle cars or you've got a soft spot for sleek modern models, you've found your home here at Forever Pontiac. Our community is dedicated to celebrating everything Pontiac, from the iconic GTO to the legendary Firebird and everything in between.

    Unlock access to expert advice, stunning photo galleries, engaging discussions, exclusive events, and more!

    Start your Pontiac journey with us today!

    Sign up now! 🏁

Project V6 Firebird (lots of pics)


Recommended Posts

Halfway finished collecting my budget trackday wheels!  Just need one more pair of 18x10.5 C5 Z06 Speedlines and then I can get some sacrificial rubber!  Probably not hoosiers A6/7's for the first set, gonna need to save up for replacement front hubs so I don't have any catastrophic failures!

13744079_1778377145732395_1199545966_n_z[/URL]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Tired of these Ads? Register Today!

Just scrapes and stuff.  It was a tracked set of wheels.  Straight, not bent, just really well raced.  I didn't want to buy a flashy new set of wheels only to run them through the gravel pit we have for a parking lot, lol!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Founders

Ah, gotcha. I kind of got that from your explanation originally but they looked pretty good elsewhere (might just be the pic or early morning :lol: )

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Got out and enjoyed some partly cloudy weather.  Wish I had more time to mess around with the shots, but this was my favorite one out of the bunch!

instadambird_zps5gnxtfty.jpg

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

So a month ago, I hit some nasty, nasty debris on the highway.  Didn't have anywhere to go (sandwiched in with traffic) and the danger wasn't quite apparent until all hell broke loose.

At first, I thought it was a pair of ratty blue jeans, and then it sounded like everything exploded under me.  Lo and behold, that ratty blue jean was a strap, attached to a tie-down hook.  It punched through the barrel of my driver's side rear wheel and left me sidelined.  New wheel was ordered and a replacement tire had to be ordered (thank goodness for road hazard warranty).

I walked a mile back and picked up the piece of debris so nobody else would run over it.  Hitting this damnable piece at 70mph was not the way I wanted to end my day.  Crazy thing is a month or so prior, somebody was killed while passing through town when a receiver hitch and ball went through their windshield.  This wouldn't have been any exception to the rule, so I was pretty pissed at somebody's negligence.

20160823_152555_zpsitddxn6d.jpg

Everything else is good under the car, I needed a change of pants, that's for certain.

The wheels are a flow-formed set, and I've got a sneaking feeling that if I had gone with cast reproduction Corvette wheels like every f-body owner on the planet, that wheel would have disintegrated.  I was able to come to a safe and controlled stop and wasn't in much danger outside of the rear end of the car going airborne.  I had to retighten the watts link setup as well.

5e51e7b1-9004-4c8b-9c68-3e1ce9e836b3_zps

20160907_161001_zpsj0dc8w6m.jpg

Because of this turn of events, I didn't get to run the last auto-x event of our season here, so I was a bit saddened since I didn't have track tires yet or the final dynotune completed.  Anyway, I figured I'd get my "big boy camera" out and take some pics, I'm super rusty and always pressed for time.  It's an older rig with a regular kit lens so it's not super flashy.  I feel the pics came out good though.

2_zpsmfn1n58r.jpg

1_zpsdufj74yz.jpg

3_zps11bpzoax.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Founders

Dang, that blows! I hate people like that. Couples years ago I was traveling on the highway and watched some guy loses multiple bags of (what looked like) soda cans and they didn't even turn around or look to go pick it up. Horrible that people don't secure their load then when something happens doesn't even care about others.

On the bright side, your bird still looks amazing!

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Same thing here - guy carrying the spring bed of an old mattress didn't secure it and it tumbled down the freeway and hit a car windshield on a hop. He kept going... 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

One of the idiots I work with lost a BBQ in the middle of the highway. Failed to secure it, thinking its weight would hold it. He stopped. A cop came along .. fined him $400 for unsecured load and made him wait for a tow truck to come along and remove it from the lane. Had to pay the tow truck too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here's one of the reasons why I had the car parked at the house all fancy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5mw7-tzu7M

My neighbor thought I was working on something to sell the car :lol:

Edited by WarShrike
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 months later...
  • 4 weeks later...

Finally have the dyno sheet scanned.  I'll mess with the intake stuff later, busy with a lot of other things, new job (working two jobs, transitioning out of the old one), about to have a new addition to the family, etc.

Dyno%20Jan%202017_zpsf9qc0voo.png

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...
  • 1 month later...

Got my "trackday, bro!" wheels/tires mounted.

Here's hoping I can cut loose for the CAM invitational at Mineral Wells towards the end of June.
18620344_1439901199400060_35554029926064

18664219_1439938696062977_59109680337186

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Got some more stuff done on the car, alignment is finished and ran it with the track day wheel set to make sure nothing interfered.


IMG_20170607_072144_007_zps1azocrwu.jpg

IMG_20170607_092646_760_zps2ewocdpf.jpg

New helmet, just a budget setup, we also have some open cockpit cars come into the shop so this might come in handy.

IMG_20170606_155853_724_zpsxzoztphn.jpg

SKF hub adapters so I can upgrade the front hubs to something safer with sticky tires.  There are quite few documented failures of stock hubs and replacements are dodgy as is.

20170606_155132_zpsnbhewqio.jpg

Replaced the stock rack with an FE4 rebuilt setup.  I didn't feel like trying to do the EPAS setup because a manual rack alone for the fbody is stupid expensive.

IMG_20170606_235904_509_zpsqn4eu2kz.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Tired of these Ads? Purchase Enhanced Membership today to remove them!
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.