OriginalOwner

When your most-trusted mechanic says, "Yeh, I know it was incredibly hot in SoCal this Labor Day weekend, so I fixed you up with a most excellent airflow system that will cool you right down."

Fill the gas tank, then jump on the 58 westbound about 15 miles to Bealville Road, which will take you into Caliente and the Caliente-Bodfish Road, which will take you north to Lake Isabella and Hwy 178. Fill the gas tank, then head east on Hwy 178 all the way to Hwy 14. Then cruise 14 south to 58, and 58 west back home. Cheers, Carl

Cheers, Carl

I was driving my dad's cars. When I graduated college and went into the Navy in June 1974, I was driving his 1958 Morris Minor 1000, yellow in color. Very speedy if only compared to a snail. Then a couple of months later, he was fed up with high gas prices and low MPG on the '70 Chevelle SS396, so he "traded" me: the Morris for the Chevelle ....... It was my dad's Chevelle I was driving on the day I took delivery of the '74tii and (finally) became "independent" by owning my own car. My dad of course thought I was crazy: $7,200 for some foreign job, when I could get a new Chevy for half that price. Cheers, Carl p.s. 3 years later when my dad sold the Chevelle, without telling us: my sister and I took him out back to the woodshed for having done such a dumb and foolish thing. He never did anything like that again without asking our advice ..... and permission.

Conserv's comment just made me realize another "statistically improbable" aspect of the two cars: Vehicle Locations. 1) My dad bought the SS396 in Simi Valley in DEC 1969. I know for sure it been as far south as San Diego, as far north as Palo Alto, and as far east as Las Vegas. But the kid, I'm willing to bet it never ever got very far from Simi Valley. I feel safe in saying the car has only escaped the Simi orbit on oh-so-rare occasions for the past 51 years. 2) The '74tii has been as far north as San Francisco, and as far east as Las Vegas. And always homeported in SoCal. It has likewise spent lots and lots of time at the family home in Simi. So it seems a very safe comment when I say that both cars have always been stuck and/or rooted not only in SoCal, but "essentially" in the same little town. Cheers, Carl

It was interesting to read that other thread with the Hemmings article about The Coolest Performance Cars of the 1970's because the first car listed was the 1970 Chevy Chevelle SS454. Well, back when I bought my '74tii in November 1974, I was driving a '70 Chevelle SS396, which actually belonged to my dad. And therein lies today's tale of time travel. November 1974, the paperwork is signed and the '74tii is ready for pickup at the dealer. On that Friday evening in November 1974, I was stationed at the Naval Amphib Base in Coronado, CA. One of my Navy pals and I jumped into my '70 Chevelle SS396 and we headed north to Saddleback BMW in Mission Viejo. Signatures accomplished, my pal jumps into the Chevelle and begins the drive back to the Phib Base. I jump into the brand-new '74tii and likewise begin the drive back. Later that evening, both cars are on-base, parked side-by-side. Ease forward just a tiny bit to September 1977: my dad sells the '70 SS396 to a local kid in Simi Valley, CA. Now let us Time Travel ZOOM ahead just a bit over 45-1/2 years from NOV '74 ..... to arrive at this past Sunday (August 16th). I'm cruising around Simi Valley in my '74tii and in a housing tract I see an open garage door ..... and there is the '70 SS396. The kid (now a few years older) that bought it never left Simi Valley, and never sold the car. He's working in the garage and I stop and tell him the story. Neither of us can believe the "statistical impossibility" of these two cars being reunited after so many years apart, with such a unique story which first connected them together. They were side-by-side in 1974, often in 1975 and 1976 and a bit in 1977. Now in 2020, they are again almost side-by-side. One owner is an original owner, the other owner is a second owner. In this picture, there's the SS396 in the background, with the same license plate as when my dad first bought the car in DEC 1969. There's the '74tii in the foreground, also with the same license plate as when I bought it in NOV 1974. Cheers, Carl

albatcha, where to find an okay tii ?? I've got two of 'em right here in SoCal ....... and $15grand should just about cover the sales tax, maybe. One of 'em, well, the front rims ain't so clean and shiny, but for only $15K in sales tax, ya can't have everything ......... Cheers, Carl

https://www.hagerty.com/media/opinion/smithology-a-2002-for-1800-and-why/ Cheers, Carl

For many years I've used this spray-on lube, it's got Teflon in it which I think helps ...... Cheers, Carl

When your trusted mechanic guarantees that you'll have no more of that unexpected & dangerous front-end slide business when being "overzealous" on the brake pedal while racing around the slalom course ........ Cheers, Carl

I recommend removing the valve cover. When rotating the engine to get it to top dead center, you can then visually verify that the piston is actually at the top of the cylinder, not the bottom of the cylinder, by looking at the cam lobes and ensuring they are not pushing down on the valves. I read that advice years ago when my KF belt broke and I had to replace it. Other than that, the 4 marks that Wint shows in the picture above: I lined up the bottom 2 to ensure top dead center, then aligned the upper 2 marks, slipped the belt in place, and everything was just fine afterward. Nothing fancy, nothing difficult, very straightforward. Cheers, Carl

Steve, my educated guess: nope, oil won't magically transport from side to side. Here's an idea for your left-side oil leak: the little plastic oil tube which feeds the KF. Years ago mine got abraded (no idea how) and had a tiny pinhole leak in the back, out of sight. Nothing huge, but enough to keep me scratching my head trying to find it. It wasn't until the hole got bigger and more oil pumped out that I was able to figure it out. Cheers, Carl

The oil pressure sender switch right next to the distributor, the threads got messed up and I couldn't get the switch to thread-in and seal. Le brought an entire replacement of that whole bolt-on "piece" which also mounts the distributor. Thus, remove/replace would require a complete re-install and re-time of the distributor itself and I've never done that ..... and I don't even have a timing light, never needed one. Cheers, Carl

Looks OK to me. As for "correct" ....... it's just a matter of making sure the two are connected and the hose isn't rubbing on anything once installed, you don't want vibration to abrade the fuel hose. AND, don't forget: on the OUTLET of the fuel pump: use high-pressure fuel hose everywhere downstream of the fuel pump. And just to "say" it ..... here's reading on the topic .... http://www.my2002tii.com/tii-fuel-pump_how-to.htm Cheers, Carl

td, Nothing needed inside the tank to do the conversion. Cheers, Carl

I had a failure on the '74tii, a big oil leak problem I couldn't solve. As luck would have it, this morning Le Tran was heading up to Camarillo to pick up some wheels, so he and his assistant detoured a few miles over to Simi and solved the problem. Impossible for me, oh-so-easy for them ...... about 25 minutes later the tii was back on the road ..... and they were too. Cheers, Carl

+1 Paul Wint ...... I installed a -5 series pump 11 years ago ...... no problems whatsoever with install and subsequent operation. http://www.my2002tii.com/tii-fuel-pump_how-to.htm Cheers, Carl

When I installed a -5 series fuel pump 11 years ago, I installed an in-line nothing-fancy fuel filter between the tank and the fuel pump inlet. No problems noted since then, and I haven't touched it. And now that you mention it, I reckon it's time to change it. Cheers, Carl

When your favorite trusted mechanic installs new plug wires and promises you the cleanest spark you'll ever get ....... Cheers, Carl

TOTALLY AWESOME !!!!! Cheers, Carl

The Pinto got top billing because it was in build-up PR prep for a movie role the very next year in which it would fly into movie legend ........ Blues Brothers !! Cheers, Carl

https://www.imcdb.org/vehicle.php?id=1404248 Cheers, Carl

Cheers, Carl

from a SoCal guy: PCH and the Nacimiento-Fergusson sections are fantastic !! Cheers, Carl

Hot Dog !! There's tons of great driving around Tehachapi !! A good drive is to this place. The tasting room is open with food service, the view of the countryside is spectacular, and the owners are good friends of mine ....... Cheers, Carl