Aussie 55 Restomod (1 Viewer)

[serenity]

The old bushes can be tapped out but I have a hydraulic bearing puller so I did it that way.
Your bushing looks the same as my old ones with the oil grooves, but mine have way less wear. I still have around 75% coverage of white metal on mine.
It will be interesting to see how well the new ones go without the oil grooves, hopefully I don't end up with a system full of ground up brass!

 

[PabloCruise]

The old bushes can be tapped out but I have a hydraulic bearing puller so I did it that way.
Your bushing looks the same as my old ones with the oil grooves, but mine have way less wear. I still have around 75% coverage of white metal on mine.
It will be interesting to see how well the new ones go without the oil grooves, hopefully I don't end up with a system full of ground up brass!

Let us know! I can't wait to see how yours wear, I know there are a bunch of guys in the 60 section that would buy some...

 

[serenity]

Well isn't life crazy! As mentioned I am packing up and moving the family so my wife can continue and improve her career. Moving day is about a week away now. Just to add to the fun my wife fractured a vertebrae and compressed several others about 2 weeks ago so she is laid up sore and cranky!

To move I need to have the 55 running which I only got done yesterday. I also have a lawn ornament 80, a yaris and a Camry to move too. So I thought, cool I'll put the cruisers on a truck and my dad and I can drive the cars down.

Then I get a phone call this morning asking if I can do 3 weeks work 150km inland from where we are. Normally this would be no big deal but of course there is the move going on. Also I have to take a heap of tools for work plus gear to camp for 3 weeks then drive to brisbane. Which means that the damn lawn ornament needs to run before Sunday!

So the 55 will be parked for a while once it reaches it's new home. Hopefully we won't be separated for too long!

 

[scrapdaddy]

Good luck, just when you think it's all worked out. Hope your Wife gets feeling better.

 

[serenity]

Wow it's been a while since I posted here! My move to Brisbane went well and the piggy is settled in to its new sty. Not the best place but I am making do until we find a more permanent residence. Haven't been doing any work on her, I just start her up and run her for 20 minutes once a month and re apply lanolin to any rust spots. Other than that the tailgate is being used as a work bench while I service my 80. This year is the 80s year, it's getting a complete service top to bottom front to back. New wheel bearings, brake pads, knuckle rebuild, gearbox, rear main seal and a new turbo. After all that is done I will focus my efforts on the 55 again, I feel bad for neglecting her but I know if I spread my work between the 2 it will take ages to fix them both and my enthusiasm will suffer.

Hope all you guys are doing well, Just wanted to let you know this piggy is not forgotten and it will cruise the outback once again.

 

[scrapdaddy]

She'll wait for you.

 

[serenity]

I haven't checked into the 55 section in way too long, became a moderator for the diesel section and it's amazing how much mud time it takes up.

I found this when I was visiting my parents on the weekend. A little front end bling for the old girl. The fitter turner in my couldn't resist, there is some bad rust on the support frame but I will replace all that. It won't stay stock though, the fairlead support frame will be replaced with a big bit of box section so that I can run an ally fairlead for synthetic rope. I would have kept it original but the fairlead rollers and frame are toast.

It's a slight deviation from getting the 80 done but I couldn't help myself.
In other news, my 80 diff looks healthy, I was expecting it to be trashed but it looks like I may re-install it as is. Got valve shims done, I'm half way through cleaning up the wiring look in the engine bay and my new gearbox is buttery smooth! Bloody keen to get back to the 55!!

 

[PabloCruise]

Nice find on the PTO winch! Are the roller farileads seized? If not, I would love to take them off your hands...

 

[serenity]

Nice find on the PTO winch! Are the roller farileads seized? If not, I would love to take them off your hands...

Well and truly seized unfortunately, hence my decision to go with synthetic rope and replace the whole fairlead system. They are bad enough that on some of them there are big gouges in them from the rope. I can see if some of them are salvageable but I think the 2 vertical ones are beyond repair.

 

[PabloCruise]

Well and truly seized unfortunately, hence my decision to go with synthetic rope and replace the whole fairlead system. They are bad enough that on some of them there are big gouges in them from the rope. I can see if some of them are salvageable but I think the 2 vertical ones are beyond repair.

My issue was that I had a horizontal roller seize on me, and then I buggered up the threads trying to separate the roller from the shoulder bolt. If you had 1 good horizontal roller, bolt and nut, that would be the ticket!

 

[serenity]

My issue was that I had a horizontal roller seize on me, and then I buggered up the threads trying to separate the roller from the shoulder bolt. If you had 1 good horizontal roller, bolt and nut, that would be the ticket!

I'll see what I can do for you my friend, hopefully I can find some salvageable parts in amongst the rust. I'll try get a spanner to it tonight for you.

 

[PabloCruise]

Thank you! If it is a lost cause, please do not waste any time...

 

[serenity]

Well the 55 project has completely stalled for the last year now. For those who have read my 'The Long Cruise' thread you will know that my piggy has been parked in a shipping container since october. @PabloCruise I did try free up those fairlead rollers before I packed everything away but they were toast.

Good news for the 55 is that my wife and I are planning on heading back to our home in November which we are currently renting out. So my pig will be back in its original warm sty and I will have all my gear available to get it going.

In anticipation (the wild assumption) of us moving home in November I have been on a research and planning frenzy.

I have contemplated a v8 swap, looked at the LS1 from a locally produced Holden Commodore but wasn't convinced it would be a good match for a 55. I then proceeded to drool over @scrapdaddy 5.3 Vortec swap, but the cost involved with importing either a 5.3 or 4.8 are concerning as is the availability of spare parts as this engine was never used in any vehicle sold in Australia.

I don't want a diesel as I want something different from my 80 and hilux.

That left me with the original 2f, which has a total of 96,000km (60,000miles) on it. So this motor has easily got another million left in it right? It would be a waste to junk it.
But I'd like to modernise it to make driveability better, so in my long drawn out decision I have decided on upgrading it with a TBI kit. I'll pull the head also and wake it up a little, machine the head a bit to up the compression and install some stainless SBC valves for a bit better flow.

On top of that my drivetrain plans include reduction/overdrive Tcase gears from marks adapters to make both highway driving and low range easier.

And now I wish it was November already.

 

[onemanarmy]

Are you going to piece together a TBI kit or buy a pre made one?

 

[serenity]

Are you going to piece together a TBI kit or buy a pre made one?

Having zero experience or knowledge of GM products and EFI other than what I have researched recently, I am going to buy a kit. Probably the AFI unit with a vss going by what I have read on mud.

 

[Megadoomer]

I just put Fast EZ EFI on my 350. It is super easy and doesn't need and rewiring or programming. I know they make one for the jeep 4.0 which might be a good fit for the 2f.

 

[serenity]

I just put Fast EZ EFI on my 350. It is super easy and doesn't need and rewiring or programming. I know they make one for the jeep 4.0 which might be a good fit for the 2f.

Thanks Megadoomer, I hadn't realised self learning efi even existed. I like the idea of it compared to the 2f specific kits which seem to use outdated 2nd hand parts.

Done a bit more research and found heaps of companies that provide kits.

 

[PabloCruise]

Well the 55 project has completely stalled for the last year now. For those who have read my 'The Long Cruise' thread you will know that my piggy has been parked in a shipping container since october. @PabloCruise I did try free up those fairlead rollers before I packed everything away but they were toast.

Good news for the 55 is that my wife and I are planning on heading back to our home in November which we are currently renting out. So my pig will be back in its original warm sty and I will have all my gear available to get it going.

In anticipation (the wild assumption) of us moving home in November I have been on a research and planning frenzy.

I have contemplated a v8 swap, looked at the LS1 from a locally produced Holden Commodore but wasn't convinced it would be a good match for a 55. I then proceeded to drool over @scrapdaddy 5.3 Vortec swap, but the cost involved with importing either a 5.3 or 4.8 are concerning as is the availability of spare parts as this engine was never used in any vehicle sold in Australia.

I don't want a diesel as I want something different from my 80 and hilux.

That left me with the original 2f, which has a total of 96,000km (60,000miles) on it. So this motor has easily got another million left in it right? It would be a waste to junk it.
But I'd like to modernise it to make driveability better, so in my long drawn out decision I have decided on upgrading it with a TBI kit. I'll pull the head also and wake it up a little, machine the head a bit to up the compression and install some stainless SBC valves for a bit better flow.

On top of that my drivetrain plans include reduction/overdrive Tcase gears from marks adapters to make both highway driving and low range easier.

And now I wish it was November already.

Thank you for checking for me, it was worth a shot!

I hope your move goes smoothly...

I know you can get those 3FE parts onto your 2F - that might be fun! Or you might get better utility out of a more modern system.

 

[Megadoomer]

The modern kits are nice. They have a setup that has a fuel pump and regulator. It needs 43 psi (3bar) and all the sensors plug into the throttlebody except the temp and o2. The only mod you need is to weld a bung into your exhaust for the o2. I'm happy with the upgrade.

 

[serenity]

Thank you for checking for me, it was worth a shot!

I hope your move goes smoothly...

I know you can get those 3FE parts onto your 2F - that might be fun! Or you might get better utility out of a more modern system.

No worries!

Surprisingly 3FE's aren't that common over here, even the early 80 series could be had with a carb. Also I'm not great with wiring and the thought of dealing with a second hand wiring loom fills me with dread.

The modern kits are nice. They have a setup that has a fuel pump and regulator. It needs 43 psi (3bar) and all the sensors plug into the throttlebody except the temp and o2. The only mod you need is to weld a bung into your exhaust for the o2. I'm happy with the upgrade.

The heep system could work, I love the Holley Sniper setup except like most of the others it's too big for a 2F. I've noticed 95% of these are for v8s.

FI-Tech makes a system for engines up to 400hp which I like the look of, it's simple to install and it comes with a fuel pump.

Go Street EFI 400 HP – FiTech Fuel Injection

FiTech Go Street EFI 400HP Self-Tuning Fuel Injection Systems 31003