Topic: Core support swap and under hood restoration (pics)

[78Formula]

I started on swapping out my radiator core support (which is rusted out underneath the battery tray) with the one I got from Tonyuh60. I got the radiator drained and taken out, got everything unbolted from the core support, and taken the front clip off of the body. Here are some pictures:

Got everything taken appart



The rust on the right side of the core support (left side of the picture)

I also decided, since I have the car this tore down, that now would be a great time to clean up and repaint under the hood. Which color would be correct for my engine block? Also, which areas should be painted gloss, semi gloss, and flat black? I think the fan shroud is falt black and the innder fenders and core support are semi gloss black, can anyone tell me if this is correct? Also, any advice or tips would be greatly appreciated.

[78Formula]

Finally got the core support out of the car this morning with some luck. I also took the alternator, A/C compressor, power sterring pump, etc. and all the brackets taken off the engine block today and sprayed everything down with some engine degreasser before I get it ready to repaint. Heres some pictures of the progress so far:

[transam dave]

This is a time consumeing job ,but is well wourth it when completed.

[78Formula]

Yeah it is kind of time consuming, but I knew that the core support needed to be changed very badly due to the rust and I knew it was just going to get worse and worse unless I did something about it. Since I may not have the car this tore down again for a good while, I might as well take a little extra time to clean everything up and repaint it and take the time to do it the right way.

[transam dave]

I understand i have a few rad supports ,would not want to sell hard to find in nice condition.

[78Formula]

Yeah theya re very hard to find in great condition. I was just lucky enough that Tony wanted to sell the one he had to me and it is in great condition.

[tonyuh60]

Just glad it found a good home...I can now move my lawn mower into the shed now that the core support is out..lol..Glad it worked out for you and I could help.

[BusDriver]

Looking good... Mines rusty too, but only in 1 place so I'm gonna try to repair mine. Worst that can happen is I dont succeed and it's ruined already anyhow.

[78Formula]

tonyuh60, haha I'm glad everything worked out great and I really do appreciate you going out of your way to help and get the support to me. I'm also glad I could help you clear up some space haha

Bus Driver, Well, I could have just patched mine, but it was so far rusted through that I would have been better off down the road to just go ahead and replace it. Which side is your support rusted on?

Also, Here are some pictures of the repainted motor, brackets, etc (Everything isn't painted yet though)

[BusDriver]

mines bad right where the battery tray is. Or rather, was... mine was gone. Only thing left was a little rusted metal where the bolts were, the rest evaporated.

[78Formula]

I got everything repainted and reinstalled, got the new radiator in today and finally got everything put back together. The only thing is the brake booster needs to be reapinted (going to get some gold paint tomorrow) , but here are some pictures of the final product:





BusDriver, If your battery is on the drivers side of your car, I still have my old rad support that you may could cut and weld onto yours. My battery is on my passenger side and the driver side of the old support is in really great condition, no rust or anything.

[CT Bird Fan]

Wow, that looks fantastic, great job!!

What kind of paint did you use for the engine? Does it go right over the surface rust?

[ZachAttack77TA]

Man! That's great work, 78Formula!

[78Formula]

CT Bird Fan, Thanks man! It's Duplicolor Engine Enamel and the color is Pontiac Blue (the non metallic one), but I got it from my local O'Reilly's. I cleaned up the engine with degreaser and scrubbed the rust down with a wire brush, but other than that the paint went driectly onto the block fine.

ZachAttck77TA, Thanks man! I'm really proud of the way it came out.