[njsteve]

I located an NOS Delco Remy distributor cap for the car. The second owner gave it a "tune-up" in the late 1980's and must have tossed the original AC spark plugs and cap.

The correct cap should have the "Delco Remy Patent 2769047 R" embossed in a circle around the coil terminal. All the modern replacements (including the brand new AC Delco cap I bought), are blank on top. There is also a noticeable difference in the weight of the original caps versus a modern Delco cap. The old ones are glossy, heavy, and thick. The new ones feel almost like ABS plastic and are very flat and cheap looking.

[njsteve]

I was talking to the third owner, Mike, the other day. He mentioned that there is evidence of the exploding recalled Firestone 500 tires on the car. I recalled that the front of the driver's side rocker panel had a wire brushed look to it and that must have been where the separated tread flapped against it during the blow-out when the second owner bought it and drove it from AZ to CA. But he mentioned that on the driver's side of the hood there is a "cat-o'-nine tails" mark across it. And wouldn't you know it, I looked closely and there is a series of small chips in a flail pattern on the hood from the direction of the driver's side wheel well.

Here is the wide angle and the closeup of the battle damage:

[njsteve]

The next item on the To-Do list is replacing the heater core. The car has had its heater core bypassed since before the third owner bought it, which in car-guy language means it must have been leaking at some point, early on just from sitting. So stay tuned for that funfest.

[Formulabruce]

Originally Posted by njsteve

The next item on the To-Do list is replacing the heater core. The car has had its heater core bypassed since before the third owner bought it, which in car-guy language means it must have been leaking at some point, early on just from sitting. So stay tuned for that funfest.

Just put one in an AC car box,( out of car) and now I want to have the original rebuilt. The new one is aluminum and seems cheap to the copper unit. Curious as to what you find for parts. Im betting you will want yours rebuilt too.

[RamAir]

Originally Posted by Formulabruce

Just put one in an AC car box,( out of car) and now I want to have the original rebuilt. The new one is aluminum and seems cheap to the copper unit. Curious as to what you find for parts. Im betting you will want yours rebuilt too.

I was able to source a copper/brass one from O'Reilly's. I've heard others say the aluminum is better, but I liked the copper unit.

[njsteve]

I brought the original one from the black car to my local radiator guy. He said there is no way to successfully repair the old copper cores. They get what he called "champagne leaks" which are hundres of tiny pinholes in the decaying solder that dont show up until a certain psi is attained. He said that the new aluminum ones are fine. I got one from Rockauto for around $30.