What have you done with your Charger lately?

[Dino]

I can pick it up any time, but I'll probably get it when I'm ready to install it. I've got enough parts and boxes in the car as it is!

I was looking at that fuel command center again. Any reason you didn't go with that? I have a brand new tank and new lines so it would certainly make it an easier install, and cheaper as well.

[JR]

Yeah I like the concept of the fuel control unit . It functions fine, and saves 200 bucks or so. But i wouldn't buy it for my car unless I had a really odd vehicle I couldn't buy a replacement tank for, or if I planned to swap back to a carb or sell the car in the future.

The negatives I see with it:

-Takes up a large amount of space underhood. Big blocks are tight underhood as is. The more stuff underhood, the less air there is circulating, the hotter the engine runs.

-Two fuel pumps that could potentially fail. More parts = more chances for something to go wrong.

-The fuel is stored in the hottest possible location. FiTech says it's not an issue, but if you're driving the car for a few hours at a time, it seems like it will gradually heat up inside the tank and cook the fuel. And hot fuel = less power. Even for a fuel injected engine.

-In the event the car is crashed, there is a gallon of fuel right at the nose. It would probably take a freak accident to rupture it, but I don't want to chance that.

-Asthetics underhood. The FCU is ugly. Really ugly. I really don't wanna look at it Everytime I pop the hood. I relocated my battery to the trunk (for performance reasons primarily), and since I don't have the FCU, there's very few auxillary components cluttering up things under my hood. I love it.




Those are purely my personal reasons, based on nothing at all but my own preferences. There have been plenty of people that have installed the fuel control units and loved them. But it's not for me.

That said, if I were in the habit of swapping engines often, or flipped cars regularly, or was building a full sized truck, I'd probably run the fuel control unit.

If it helps, I threw out a brand new 1/4 inch return line, and a perfectly good fuel tank to install mine. Absolutely no regrets whatsoever.

[Dino]

Thanks for setting me straight there JR! This car will never go back to a carb and since I put loads of miles on it I should and will go for the Tanks Inc setup.   

Do you or anyone else running Fitech happen to have a picture of the line connections? I'm not familiar with high pressure lines and I'm not sure what I need to do to convert the stock lines.

[JR]

It's worth it man. Were on the same page with how we use our cars.

I'd like to think I'm building a "Grand Touring" car, not a "Pro Touring". Something that can be driven for 300 miles at a time, but can still hustle when it needs to. (I want the classic American equivalent of a Ferrari Daytona and an E39 M5 amalgamation ideally.)  The FiTech has been perfect for that.

The fittings are pretty easy. It has 6 AN sized fittings on the housing. You'll simply make a pair of 2foot or so 6AN hoses to go from the throttle body to your hard lines.(With a filter in the inlet line) They make 3/8th to 6AN fitting adapters (you'll need 4) so it's easy to connect it.

I think the tanks Inc setup comes with AN fittings already, so again, you'll just make a couple of 6AN hoses to go from the hard lines to the tanks Inc unit. It's really easy.

There's all sorts of little tricks I've learned since I started this. I'll wait til you get the parts so it's not information overload here.

[Dino]

Thanks JR, I sincerely appreciate all the information.   

I'll let you know when I'll start the project. Got a bit more school to concentrate on for now. Almost there!

[JR]

It's no problem man, glad to help.

Good on you for focusing on college, I wish everyday I'd of pursued a degree instead of going to trade school. By all means finish your education and don't end up working in a factory like me.  

[Dino]

Never too late bro. I spent my days working in auto body. It wasn't until I was 35 that I started working in health care, bottom of the barrel. I started taking community college classes a year or so later and gradually spent more time in class and less at work. It's not easy doing this full time, especially the funding, but it's all worth it. When I graduate I will have been 8 years, almost to the day, since I took that first college class. It's a huge investment and takes commitment but it will all pay off.

I'm not saying you have to follow the same path I'm taking, but check with your local college just to see what's out there. You might be pleasantly surprised.

[JR]

That is quite a coincidence Dino.

I'm currently 33 but i went to trade school for auto collision repair also. And as a career, that SUCKED. And it's terrible for your health. It's like Russian roulette but with cancer instead of bullets.

Youre right, I really should go back. I have a decent paying job (especially for the Southeast) at a car manufacturing plant in Georgia, but the wear on my body is brutal. It's almost as hard as collision repair, but atleast there are no chemicals/isocyanates/dust to deal with.

Something to think about.

[Dino]

Wow small world! I did auto body for 15 years. Collision and resto and I'm paying for it. My health has taken quite a beating. I'm doing alright but I will be the guy in the doctor's office with a poker face when he/she tells me cancer is eating me up. I'll be like "saw that one coming a mile away doc."

There's loads of stuff you can do for a living, just make sure that it's something that is actually needed and that it pays well, because student loans are a bitch!

[sanders7981]

Just picked up my motor from the engine builder... Time to get serious and start putting the pieces on it!

[cdr]

Had a nice new Pilkington windshield installed , it is the very 1st thing that someone else besides me has done on my car, hope this one dont leak LOL.

[keith88]

Swapped out my 318 for a 360, put new tires on the rear and fixed my gas gauge that only ever went to 1/2 tank now it reads full when full  this problem was stopping me from going any distance because I wasn't sure how much i had in the tank. Come on 2017 season ready for it!

[funknut]

Fired it up for the first time since winter and ran it for about 5 mins.

Doesn't seem to be charging, though.

[71charger_fan]

Started it, let it idle until it was hot, shut it off. Still putting off changing out the A/C compressor; it's too noisy to drive.

[blakemon]

Just installed new side mirrors and cleaned the interior.

[JR]

Just got the timing control function operational on my FiTech. Installed an MSD Pro Billet distributor, changed the plug wires and two harness wires, and it fired right up. I'll post a detailed follow up in the FiTech thread, but first impressions are awesome. Ill fine tune the system tomorrow, but a quick drive around the block was awesome. Even faster startup, silky smooth timing advance, all changes now can be done by pressing a button instead of popping the the hood, etc.

I know I sound like a salesman for EFI kits, but if anyone's on the fence about converting, go for it! Best mod I've ever made to the car.

[69wannabe]

After a busy day of washing and getting a jeep grand cherokee ready for the sale block I swapped out the wheels and tires out on my dad's old ford truck and finally got to washing the charger. It was filthy since last week I drove it to the upholstery shop in the rain to get the carpet fixed and haven't had time to give it a bath until today. Drove it out for the first time since I put the cool it mat in the floorboard and it is a bit quieter since I installed it and the new carpet went in. I had driven it to the upholstery shop but with no back seat and the shifter was just stuck in it to drive it without the boot and that was a noisy ride for sure! It feels more solid in a way, kind of hard to explain but it's better than it was before the cool it mat. Also the shifter boot was torn so I got a new one for that too so i'm sure that made a difference since I didn't realize the old boot was torn for no tellin how long. Gave it a good bath and got it back to normal and put it back into it's resting spot. Next thing for the charger is to try and fix a nagging rear main seal leak!! Always something I guess.....

[Draco]

    Just mounted rear speakers now I have to decide what amp to go with.

[Vegas_Nick]

I'm just trying to get wiring done and get the dash ready to go back in.



Thinking in about three more weekends, I'll try to bring the old 318 back to life again.

[Dino]

Watched my brand new hp manifold hardware rust. The engine hasn't even been broken in yet and stuff is rusting already.   

Got my vent window hardware (thanks Joe!) so I'm ready to put the doors back together one last time. But school starts again tomorrow so no time to do anything dammit. I didn't do much else besides going over everything that still needs to be done. It's quite a bit but nothing crazy either. I do have to decide what brakes to go with so I can have wheels on the front. I was going to buy the 13.2" Mustang rotors but I'm not sure yet if I want to shave the calipers to make them fit my wheels.

In any case, I had a whole week off and it was damn nice to at least do SOMETHING with the Charger. I miss that beast.

[funknut]

I was going to buy the 13.2" Mustang rotors but I'm not sure yet if I want to shave the calipers to make them fit my wheels.

I don't know which wheels you have, but would a 1/4" spacer work?  The calipers are pretty meaty. I ground off a fair bit of metal to clear and wouldn't hesitate to grind off a bit more.

[Dino]

I was going to buy the 13.2" Mustang rotors but I'm not sure yet if I want to shave the calipers to make them fit my wheels.

I don't know which wheels you have, but would a 1/4" spacer work?  The calipers are pretty meaty. I ground off a fair bit of metal to clear and wouldn't hesitate to grind off a bit more.

Yeah Ryan C. did the same thing and said there's plenty left on them. I suppose I could add a spacer as long as it's safe.

[EMCustoms]

Blasted the inner structure of quarters and trunk to prep for paint before installing the rest of the rear end.

[EMCustoms]

Last one

[BDF]

Adjusted fast idle & checked timing. Told wife I was going "around the block", fueled up and kept on driving for about an hour.
Sometimes I end up going to the coast and back without her which does not go over well...  
Tomorrow: To the Paint Guy for road-rash examination.