My aunt Amy called a specialist today. As soon as they have an opening, the Grand National is going to a shop that specializes in Turbo Buicks so it can finally run 100% right for the first time in probably 25 years. I certainly don't think it ever ran right after it came home from storage in 2009 or 2010 and that's partially because Pappaw never had the time to devote to it and just had a (good) local shop fix things as needed.

And I hope to have the bumper fillers put on soon and maybe have the paint corrected (as much as very, very thin 1980s GM single stage can be- Pictures hide a lot

Now it can languish in my garage and look pretty here instead of at my dad's.

Hey Oppo, time for my bi-yearly check in. Still alive, so there's that I guess.
Screw it, straight to the cars:

Chevelle: Still around, popped a wheel cylinder and the driver's window fell off the track. That's okay, both should be easy fixes.

Mustang: Haven't touched it. Was waiting for probate to finish up and I hope to fix it ASAP come spring. Why not over the winter? Well, I don't want to leave the GN outside. Speaking of... (This is from the Spring, hence the truck being in the garage, it's under the car port now)

IT MOVES AND STOPS. It doesn't run good, it still doesn't cold start, it's developed a slight oil leak (which is apparently on brand for them) and might have the slightest leaky injector. I did get the brakes done with help from my uncle, got the bumper fillers painted (but not installed yet) and it'll be registered in the spring and hopefully go to a specialist. The car is old enough to be wonky as hell, and new enough to be complex as hell. It's at my house because my aunt has no where to keep it and I have no issues giving it a safe place to stay.

F-150: Trans is most of the way out. For personal reasons I won't go into, I'm kinda having a hard time even looking at it at the moment. Still love it, still want to fix it, just having a hard time dealing with other shit that affects the truck somewhat in particular.

Camaro: Stranded at mom and dad's. Between the other cars, I don't even have the space to bring it over here yet. I did do a tire swap between it and the Chevelle to see what it'd look like with taller rear tires. (Chevelle has 255/70/15s on the rear, Camaro has 255/60/15s)

Editing the Cragars back on

Lincoln (Have I ever even posted this? It was Pappaw's main car for the last 20 years): I drove it all summer after I wrecked my Ranger. Decided I couldn't bear to let it rot driving it daily and also couldn't afford the maintenance. Gave it back to my aunt, who reached a similar conclusion. She's selling it to a friend who promises to take care of it and we get dibs if he wants to sell it.

And, the replacement. I loved my '96 Dakota so much I bought another one. '02, V6, 5 speed. Slow and ugly but the heat works

Hello again, Oppo.

Decided I'd check in.

2022 isn't even halfway over and it's put our asses through the ringer.

I'm not even sure how to put it in typing other than that we lost our hero in March. Pappaw had been battling lung cancer (which we all suspected but he refused to confirm) and COPD and, as Norm Macdonald put it, came to a draw.

Remember that motor in his garage that I like to mention? That, ten minutes before, was our last conversation. The entire family said as we were talking about it, his voice was clearer and louder than it'd been in days. I like to think I gave him one last burst of energy.

I definitely miss him greatly. We all do.

I've been going through the garage and it's crazy how much stuff was in there. 40 years of ECUs, throttle bodies, coil packs, random wiring harnesses- the man never threw anything away. Fittingly, it's all going back to the same yard he more than likely got most of it from. (Bishop Auto Wrecking for my fellow Metro Detroit Oppos).

I've already been given clearance by the rest of the family that everything in the garage is up to me. Basically, the layout stays as is, the motor stays, the transmissions (a TH350 and 4 speed manual) are staying, a T5 with his invention (that I'm not going to divulge but it's sweet and another one is in his Mustang) is staying.

Which brings us to the fleet.

It's like this: My aunt gets his Lincoln and the Grand National. This is good because she loves both cars as much as I do.

The Camaro and Mustang are going to me. The Mustang, specifically, will not ever, under any circumstances, leave this family.

The Chevelle is up in the air.

So, yeah. Been a rough couple of months.

That's Pappaw, sometime in the 80s or 90s.

And it all comes down to this

Seriously I've been trying to get 100 takedowns in one go since I was a kid. Finally pulled it off.

Hoo boy, it's been a while.

Shit has been rough for a while here lately. I won't get into any of the personal stuff though, I'll just launch into car updates.

F-150: I knew it was coming. Transmission died right before Christmas. You ever been outrun by a school bus? It's not fun. I have the kit, but need a torque converter. I'm going to pull it and have one of the dealership's mechanics rebuild it for me when it gets warm out. Thank goodness the Ranger's still truckin'.

Chevelle: Still runs, but I'm heavily debating changing the exhaust. The Bullets sound good, but especially with the 4.56 gear and short pipes, it's just way too loud. Thinking Dynomax Turbos. Can't even give it throttle because it'll just alert everyone to where I am.

Mustang: Down with a bad freeze plug. First it was the radiator, then a hose, then the plug. I got pissed back in May and just shoved it aside.

Grand National: Never even touched it this year. Still have to bleed the brakes and get an intercooler-turbo hose that actually fits and seals.

Camaro: Same as always- broken. Changed the fuel pump in a last ditch effort to see if it was the engine noise but it's time to face reality- it's a lifter. Brakes still suck, shifter still sucks, and the last time it ran the tach was dead.

So yeah, 2021 had its' moments (seeing Staind and Korn with my best friend was a highlight worth mentioning) but ended on a crap note as always.

Picture of Ace on Christmas morning for your time.

Well, it certainly makes for a very pretty garage ornament.

Also some music that will be on the short list of songs to cruise in it to

I decided, as a last ditch effort, to change the filter, fluid, and add Lucas Trans Fix to the F-150's trans. I didn't expect it to actually work, but it appears to have done so! And I love this thing.

Okay everything else aside the hubcaps-as-air-cleaners idea is pretty neat.

Too bad they didn't come with the decals for the windows but that's okay.

I really want to do Route 66 in the Camaro some day.

I have never liked the Disturbed cover to be honest.

Strangely, my Pappaw loved it.

@LooseonExit That's pretty much the boat I'm in with the Camaro only it isn't fresh. Think it was built like 38 years ago and hasn't been out since. Mid 1980s build for sure.

454, flat tappet cam, I really, really like the profile that's in it and I like the idea of keeping that car era correct but the cam companies need to get their shit together with these lifters and cams killing themselves out of the box.

@Demon-Xanth Haha nah, we want this car to stay as close to stock as possible... other than the aforementioned cat back and I'm trying to talk my aunt into converting it away from the very unreliable Powermaster brake system.

@LooseonExit Google says he's still in business. There's a place 45 minutes from the house that specializes in the turbo Buicks and GMCs. It'll be going there as soon as they get an opening.

@ItalianJobR53 Knowing my luck, just like the Camaro, a lifter is on its' way out the door.

@ItalianJobR53 This thing is all stock save for a cat back, it shouldn't be sounding like this.

It's been surging when cold, and dumbass me thought 'well give it a bit of throttle and see if it smooths out'. It just backfired a couple times.

It's probably not the case but I'm praying that maybe the backfires just blew the collector gaskets apart.

I've already got one car that knocks, I don't need another!

That clang is me bumping into a ladder that hangs in the garage btw

Might be a hot take but I love the non widebody front fenders mixed with the rear flares. It's a very 70s look.
I'd also have to yank the front splitter to complete the look personally, and I wonder what it'd weigh and run if you gutted it.

@RamblinRover Seems like every time my buddy Jeff and I get into a car Peace Sells ends up playing at some point. No exceptions.