CARB replacement

While I was at GTE for the alignment I noticed that the car was running rich. When we examined the carb, we realized it was a frankenstein of a couple different carbs! I didn't feel like rebuilding a carb with different bowls vs body, etc. So I went out to summit racing and bought a 750 CFM ULTRA DOUBLE PUMPER from Holley. Here are the pictures:

Alignment and Brakes: Gran Turismo Vist #1

I brought my car to Gran Turismo East here in Atlanta to have them double check my brake work and align the car. As they were checking out the brakes, they confirmed for me that the tires, although they have lots of tread, are toast. In fact the front right tire is coming apart. They didn't want to do the alignment with the old tires. So now I have to find rear tires that fit a 15 inch rim. Very tough stuff! Here is a pic of the car on their lift:

Wash, Wax and Detail

This is just a quick post. I spent DAYS washing, waxing and detailing the car. You will see the clay bar below and how much crap was on the paint. The paint buffed up really nice. The engine compartment was rediculously nasty. It was like they took a can of goop, rubbed it all around then forgot to take it off. I scrubbed and scrubbed. It came off just fine. Here are some pics:

Electrical WOOPS

I was disconnecting the battery and my wrench fell across both posts! This resulted in shorting out the voltage regulator. I discovered this as the alternator was trying to blow up my battery :) Anyway, replacement was pretty simple. You have to contort yourself a bit to get to the voltage regulator on the rear wall. I took the opportunity to clean up some of the acid residue that the previous owner just left. Rust isn't bad at all. I put the battery in a box just to keep some sense of containment Here are the pics:

Front Suspension and New Brake Install

Front Suspension
As with the rear shocks, I had the spacers removed to lower the car to european spec. Here are the before and after:

Front Caliper Install

The new "Super Brakes" actually use a new routing for the brake fluid. Instead of two bleed screws and external brake lines like on the original caliper, the new ones plug up the external lines and utilize one of the bleeders as the fluid connection point. Anyway, I received overwhelming feedback on the forums NOT to use original compound brake pads and to purchase some Porterfield brake pads. I heeded their advice and purchased a set (both front and rear). These are the pads that I am using today. I also saftey wired the caliper bolts like I did in the rear. Don't want to lose a caliper!

Front Brake Removal and Clean Up
The front brakes were in some sorry shape. They were frozen and laden with rust. It was very difficult to get them off the rotor. The pads have lots of life with them and they also have the built-in wear sensors. However, the folks on the pantera board said that I should consider new pads. The front wheels were pretty nasty as well. They are not as in good of condition as the rears but I will have to work with them to make 'em look nice. Anyway, I got the calipers off and I installed the front shocks. Here are some pics: