"Lt. Dan" - 1989 C1500 Regular Cab SWB NASCAR tribute and Autocross Build

[BubbaGump]

Holy back-from-the-dead thread, there, Batman!

No I didn't die or get rid if the truck or anything; just got distracted by life and stuff. The truck build was going to take forever and I really wanted to go autocross racing, so I bought a car off copart and fixed it enough. I've spent the last two years racing and improving it a little at a time. Don't hate, but it's a 2005 Ford Mustang. Now that the car is built as far as I can build it and stay in my class, I'm getting back to the truck. I've done a few things and I should be posting those shortly. Glad to be back on here.

 

[TexasRebel]

I forgot about this thread. Curious to see how the build goes.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

 

[Supercharged111]

No hate as long as it's a GT.

 

[BubbaGump]

So I yanked the motor and trans.

You must be registered for see images attach

Went to the u-pull-it yard and got a clutch pedal and bracket, then got them installed:

You must be registered for see images attach

Installed a new clutch master and hydraulic hose:

You must be registered for see images attach

Then I blew apart the front suspension:

You must be registered for see images attach

And started to burn out the old suspension bushings in preparation for new urethane stuff. I did the torch method here because I have to retain the old outer bushing metal shells and reuse them with the new energy suspension bushings.

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[BubbaGump]

The lower control arm bushings ended up being a big ole PITA. I ended up using a hole saw to cut most of the bushings out, then using my shop press to punch out the center metal sleeve. I was then able to collapse the remaining rubber on itself and push it out. The results were pretty good.

You must be registered for see images attach

Here are the remnants of the bushings:

You must be registered for see images attach

I then painted the control arms with Rustoleum hammered silver spray paint.

You must be registered for see images attach

And then I painted the front frame rails with the same paint as the rear.

You must be registered for see images attach

Next I'll start reassembly of the front suspension.

 

[BubbaGump]

So I didn't take a bunch of pictures of the suspension reassembly, but it's pretty much just the reverse of disassembly. I greased up the polyurethane bushings and jammed them into the old bushing shells, then reinstalled the upper and lower arms. The springs and spindles went in next (4" lowering kit in the front) then rotors and calipers. Here's the result:

You must be registered for see images attach

I rebuilt the brake calipers before I put them in; the kit is a NAPA 1973 for the light duty brakes on 1/2 ton regular cab trucks. It's just a dust boot, o-ring, and little vial of lube.

You must be registered for see images attach

Make sure your bleeder valve works before you tear the caliper apart; I had to run to the upullit yard for a new caliper because one of my bleeder valves was so rusted in place I couldn't get it free and finally snapped it off. The first step is to put an old brake pad in place to stop the piston when you pop it out. Then you apply air pressure to the hole on the back of the caliper and the the piston should pop out.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[BubbaGump]

You'll have a nasty mess because brake fluid absorbs water and nobody changes it like they should. So I cleaned up the piston with a little brake parts cleaner.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

And then pulled out the dust boot. It can be a little tricky; you have to drive a screwdriver in the edge of the seal and pry it out.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

It's gross in there, full of gunk and muddy rust.

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[BubbaGump]

Got it pretty clean with more brake cleaner, then dropped in the o ring seal.

You must be registered for see images attach

I lubed up the piston and put the dust boot on it first, then pushed it slowly but firmly into the bore.

You must be registered for see images attach

I then took a screwdriver and seated the dust cover into its machined bore.

You must be registered for see images attach

Then I pushed it back and forth a couple of times to make sure it operated correctly.
Ready to go:

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[Supercharged111]

I snapped off a bleeder in the wife's rust free Envoy. I ended up welding a nut to the rest and spinning that mess out. Easy peasy. Whatcha gonna run for pads? Fluid? Cooling?

 

[BubbaGump]

I don't have my shop built yet, so no wiring in place for a welder. It was easier just to slap down $7 at the parts yard for another caliper, but someday I'll get a place to really work on stuff.

The goal of the build has changed somewhat in the past two years. Since I have a pretty successful autocross car already ( I've won my class the past two years), and I spent most of my budget on it, I need to get this truck together and on the road pretty cheaply. That's the reason for the rebuilt calipers and stock rotors and pads. I'll use the good stuff I've already bought, but everything else will be budget minded. So, nothing special on the pads or fluid. Trying to do what Lucky Costa calls a "fun driver".