The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network - View Single Post - Beelzeburb, The Story More Than a Decade in the Making

Beelzeburb · 04-30-2011, 03:42 PM

5 miles. That's how far I drove it yesterday, straight from the house to the muffler shop.

I had found the appropriate flexplate bolts with the help of a friend and torqued the three of them down to 33 lb-ft. I think the flexplate is the original T400 piece and even though it has six holes, three of them just don't quite align. Yesterday morning (after two trips to the auto parts store for more fluid) it sucked down approx. 10 quarts of ATF before the dipstick registered the correct level. The CompuSHIFT controller's readout was now displaying the correct gears while shifting, and I added the Suburban to my insurance policy so it was ready to go.

There were so many simultaneous sensory inputs to interpret and adapt to. The first thing I noticed was that the acceleration wasn't like it should be. I knew why too, the gas pedal needs more of a bend because even mashed to the floor I could only get half throttle. Not that I really wanted more throttle than that though because 3-4K RPM was way too loud. I felt bad for everyone in a half mile radius and was on a constant lookout for police. I only saw one police Durango in the 5 mile journey and it was coming the other way as I approached a red light, so I let the Suburban idle as he passed. Whew.

Some things worked wonderfully though. The brakes were excellent and immediate, very happy with that. The transmission shifted flawlessly. Bwwwwwaaaaaaaaaa, second, bwwwwwaaaaaa, third, BWWWWWWWAAAAAAAA!, fourth, and then I could feel lockup too. Power steering did it's thing and made it very easy to turn. It was a bit of a handful on the highway though because I've got about 1/4 turn of play total in the wheel from one side to the other. Just like it was in High School. The Autometer speedometer hasn't been calibrated yet, so I used the CompuSHIFT display's speed reading (based on the axle ratio and my best guess on tire size) to know how fast I was going. I had someone following me for safety and they said it was about 5mph off at highway speed.

I arrived at the muffler shop before 5:00 on Friday, but they were gone already. I gave the Suburban a quick once over before locking it up for the weekend, and there were no leaks or fluid drips anywhere. On Monday morning I'll leave the keys with them and discuss the exhaust routing. Once it's back home (and much quieter) I can resume troubleshooting. I've got a few theories I want to investigate. Still need to get to the bottom of the 'lack of fuel while cranking' problem. I think it might be the previously kinked flexible fuel hoses that attach to the TBI or perhaps the short piece of flexible hose on the in-tank fuel pump is rotted.

04-30-2011, 03:42 PM	#114
Beelzeburb Devil's in the Details Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Southern Utah Posts: 353	Re: Beelzeburb, The Story More Than a Decade in the Making 5 miles. That's how far I drove it yesterday, straight from the house to the muffler shop. I had found the appropriate flexplate bolts with the help of a friend and torqued the three of them down to 33 lb-ft. I think the flexplate is the original T400 piece and even though it has six holes, three of them just don't quite align. Yesterday morning (after two trips to the auto parts store for more fluid) it sucked down approx. 10 quarts of ATF before the dipstick registered the correct level. The CompuSHIFT controller's readout was now displaying the correct gears while shifting, and I added the Suburban to my insurance policy so it was ready to go. There were so many simultaneous sensory inputs to interpret and adapt to. The first thing I noticed was that the acceleration wasn't like it should be. I knew why too, the gas pedal needs more of a bend because even mashed to the floor I could only get half throttle. Not that I really wanted more throttle than that though because 3-4K RPM was way too loud. I felt bad for everyone in a half mile radius and was on a constant lookout for police. I only saw one police Durango in the 5 mile journey and it was coming the other way as I approached a red light, so I let the Suburban idle as he passed. Whew. Some things worked wonderfully though. The brakes were excellent and immediate, very happy with that. The transmission shifted flawlessly. Bwwwwwaaaaaaaaaa, second, bwwwwwaaaaaa, third, BWWWWWWWAAAAAAAA!, fourth, and then I could feel lockup too. Power steering did it's thing and made it very easy to turn. It was a bit of a handful on the highway though because I've got about 1/4 turn of play total in the wheel from one side to the other. Just like it was in High School. The Autometer speedometer hasn't been calibrated yet, so I used the CompuSHIFT display's speed reading (based on the axle ratio and my best guess on tire size) to know how fast I was going. I had someone following me for safety and they said it was about 5mph off at highway speed. I arrived at the muffler shop before 5:00 on Friday, but they were gone already. I gave the Suburban a quick once over before locking it up for the weekend, and there were no leaks or fluid drips anywhere. On Monday morning I'll leave the keys with them and discuss the exhaust routing. Once it's back home (and much quieter) I can resume troubleshooting. I've got a few theories I want to investigate. Still need to get to the bottom of the 'lack of fuel while cranking' problem. I think it might be the previously kinked flexible fuel hoses that attach to the TBI or perhaps the short piece of flexible hose on the in-tank fuel pump is rotted. __________________ '70 K10 Suburban - TBI 454, 4L80E, NP241C, Dana 60 & 44 - The 10+ Year Project Thread Datsun 240Z, 510 2 door and an old Honda motorcycle Last edited by Beelzeburb; 04-30-2011 at 03:52 PM.