Caddy thread

[LLeff]

there was more metal in the oil than i was comfortable, warm idle oil pressure was down 10 psi, i could probably throw a cam and lifters in it and be fine or it might not be

Why not just replace the cam and lifters? Too much metal in the oil?

, but then i wont have the opportunity to upgrade lol

 

[Chevy305]

What made you decide to pull the plug on the ZL1 for the SS?

Well the price difference was a large driver, they kept pushing the delivery dates back and I was impatient, but mostly I didn't want to be afraid to drive it. With a ZL1 I'd be afraid to drive it in the rain and want to keep it nice, with the SS it's not as special of a model so I feel like I could drive it everywhere even in the winter. Besides the ZL1 is way more car than you could truly use on the street while the SS I better matched for my driving style/skills.

I had a ton of fun driving and modifying my SS. These cars were still pretty new and you didn't see that many of them back in '12 so it was still kinda unique. I actually met my wife with the car. I sold it for some life reasons. I really miss that car.

 

[beags86]

Well the price difference was a large driver, they kept pushing the delivery dates back and I was impatient, but mostly I didn't want to be afraid to drive it. With a ZL1 I'd be afraid to drive it in the rain and want to keep it nice, with the SS it's not as special of a model so I feel like I could drive it everywhere even in the winter. Besides the ZL1 is way more car than you could truly use on the street while the SS I better matched for my driving style/skills.

I had a ton of fun driving and modifying my SS. These cars were still pretty new and you didn't see that many of them back in '12 so it was still kinda unique. I actually met my wife with the car. I sold it for some life reasons. I really miss that car.

A 2012 zl1 was 550hp. I honestly thought that any 500 hp daliy was would be plenty. But after a year with my caddy at roughly 525hp, it could use more.
Once your use to it, it becomes the new norm.

 

[LLeff]

went down the might as well rabbit hole and told the machine shop to bore and stroke it, maw do an 8.8 rear end swap as well

 

[LLeff]

Well covid-19 has slowed down the arrival of the rotating assembly to the machine shop. Going with a Scat assembly with 4.030 bore, 4.125 stroke for a total of 421 cu. in.. The heads have been sent to precision race components for cnc porting. went with a tick sns stage 3 cam. fast 102 intake and Nick Williams 102 tb. I was able to get the coilovers installed and the suspension bushings and ball joints replaced. Parts have started trickling in, received the intake yesterday. Sorry i didn't take any pictures of the suspension install. But here is one of the intake that most have seen before.

 

[LLeff]

I was able to get the trunion upgrade kit installed this weekend. Currently waiting on a few more parts, mainly the short block. I was starting to get concerned last week as I revived only one cylinder head back from porting and the tracking wasn’t showing the other to be moving. Luckily it came 2 days later. I still wish I would have ditched the cathedral port heads and went with the rectangle port ls3 style but I’ll just make do with what I have. Hopefully late this week I’ll get the short lock back and start assembly everything. Check for pushrod length get them ordered and get this turd slapped back together.

 

[ZooMad75]

Parts car got towed in yesterday. Got a little hot out back.

No details on how it started but it looks like it started around the space saver spare on the left rear. Got the trunk lid hot enough to allow the outer skin to release from the inner panel. It got hot!

 

[beags86]

Mor speed parts for mine arrived.

 

[LLeff]

Finally got the bottom end for mine back from the machine shop, started assembling it and have it ready to head over to my uncles shop. He let me use one of his lifts as long as I helped with harvest, maybe I can it put in tomorrow instead of discing

 

[beags86]

Intercooler installed.
Time to go hunting.

 

[LLeff]

Got the motor and trans back in the car, still have little things to do, wire the afr gauge, install the radiator bleed the clutch and breaks. Figure out the new intake piping, make the fuel feed line. I’m still waiting on pushrods hopefully they will arrive soon

 

[beags86]

Why does the intake not have a spinny thing in it?

 

[LLeff]

Because the thing under the intake has a stroker crank, I decided to do the built bottom end instead of a supercharger. The supercharger is easier to add down the road, and doesn’t require removing the engine again. That was my thought anyway.

 

[beags86]

Because the thing under the intake has a stroker crank, I decided to do the built bottom end instead of a supercharger. The supercharger is easier to add down the road, and doesn’t require removing the engine again. That was my thought anyway.

I just looked at a V1 with a 6 speed.
49k on ticker. She would have looked nice next to the stsv in the driveway. Unfortunately I couldn't do it. 20k for a 15 year old car, just doesn't make sense.

 

[LLeff]

20k for a v1 is a little steep, if seen a few higher mileage v2s for close to that.

 

[beags86]

20k for a v1 is a little steep, if seen a few higher mileage v2s for close to that.

It came down in price! Lol

I think 15 would be fair.

 

[LLeff]

15k is the going rate for one that has some of the problems already sorted and maybe a cam, or a stock one with low miles. I had everything set up to go to the alignment shop on Saturday then drop it off at the tuners but i didn't make it. Tried for hours to get the clutch to bleed, tried a 2 different master cylinders and was still getting air in the system. got pretty frustrated at the point. most likely one of the fittings in the trans isn't tight. i really hope that isn't the issue but it probably is. i already have a new master and slave cylinder on the way. as far as the hydraulic line from the master to slave has anyone ever used an line for that before? Am i just asking for another potential leak point if i try to switch to an line and fittings?

 

[LLeff]

Well after way to long i think this thing is finally ready to go for a final tune. I got the clutch to bleed or so i thought hauled it to get it aligned and dropped it off at the tuner. He got it close then got busy with thanksgiving so he told me to go ahead and take it for a few days and he would finish it up after the holidays. When i went to pick it up i had to bleed the clutch before i could take off. get it bled and all seems fine, tune still needed some work but i figured i could enjoy it for a little bit. well thanksgiving morning i had to run to the store to get something the lady friend forgot, figured i might as well take the car hopped in it got about a mile down the road and figured why not ill give it a little gas. As i was slowing down after the short pull i did i started hearing a terrible noise, limped it back home and tried to figure out what it was. I double checked lifter preload, checked all the valve springs didnt see anything. took my borescope checked the lifters themselves cylinder walls didnt see anything. so i decided it was time to pull the motor back out. upon draining the oil i found the culprit. a piston pin clip had come off. So i took to motor back to the machine shop. One of the good things about the stroker motor was that the piston pin is placed so high on the piston the oil ring actually kept the pin from getting into the cylinder wall. so everything gets checked over and put back together i put the motor back in the car and still have clutch trouble. Thought i got it resolved again only for it to go to crap after about a 20 min drive. I pulled the transmission back out double checked the slave cylider shims and they were right at .090" in spec. i was beyond confused.

To be continued

 

[beags86]

Well after way to long i think this thing is finally ready to go for a final tune. I got the clutch to bleed or so i thought hauled it to get it aligned and dropped it off at the tuner. He got it close then got busy with thanksgiving so he told me to go ahead and take it for a few days and he would finish it up after the holidays. When i went to pick it up i had to bleed the clutch before i could take off. get it bled and all seems fine, tune still needed some work but i figured i could enjoy it for a little bit. well thanksgiving morning i had to run to the store to get something the lady friend forgot, figured i might as well take the car hopped in it got about a mile down the road and figured why not ill give it a little gas. As i was slowing down after the short pull i did i started hearing a terrible noise, limped it back home and tried to figure out what it was. I double checked lifter preload, checked all the valve springs didnt see anything. took my borescope checked the lifters themselves cylinder walls didnt see anything. so i decided it was time to pull the motor back out. upon draining the oil i found the culprit. a piston pin clip had come off. So i took to motor back to the machine shop. One of the good things about the stroker motor was that the piston pin is placed so high on the piston the oil ring actually kept the pin from getting into the cylinder wall. so everything gets checked over and put back together i put the motor back in the car and still have clutch trouble. Thought i got it resolved again only for it to go to crap after about a 20 min drive. I pulled the transmission back out double checked the slave cylider shims and they were right at .090" in spec. i was beyond confused.

To be continued

Caddy curse? My intercooler is leaking. Stupid God damn plastic fittings, i was second guessing them, but I wanted to slam it back together.
Guess I'm not pulling out my engine. Lol. Stupid cadillacs.

 

[LLeff]

And the story continues..
I put the transmission back in bled the clutch again and had the same issue of the clutch not disengaging. I was extremely frustrated at this point, I had tried 3 master cylinders 3 slave cylinders and ran almost 2 gallons of fluid through this thing trying to bleed it. I took it on a test drive any way and it did horrible as expected. I turned around to head back home, crested a hill and there stood a white tail doe. My first instinct was to swerve so that’s what I did put the car in the ditch after it had just rained. Awesome. It could have been worse if I would have hit it most likely the whole front end would have had to be replaced or repaired. I ended up with a tweaked exhaust broken fog light/turn signal housing and paint chips on the rear bumper. After this I towed the car home washed it off and let it sit for two weeks after being just tired of it. Monday of last week I finally decide to start working on it again. Rewrapped the rear bumper, put in a new fog light changed the exhaust. Then it was back to the clutch. I shoved fluid through the bleed to the resivior and that seemed to work.... until I took the car for a drive then it was back to shit again. Bled it about a half dozen times getting a good pedal then trying a test drive it went back to crap after about 5 shifts. So last night I finally figured it out. The clutch switch to start the car wouldn’t always make you had to make sure the pedal was buried before the starter would engage. I looked and the clutch pedal is sitting lower than the brake. I pulled up on it as much as I could and the pedal instantly felt better. I then shimmed the master cylinder about an 1/8” and it solved all my troubles. Apparently the master cylinder didn’t have enough throw. Never would have guessed. I am not sure if the aftermarket master cylinders are being made incorrectly or if this issue was isolated to my car but I am very glad I finally figured it out.