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It was bound to happen: head gasket time

--Yeah,its not like its a pound if weed or something!.:rolleyes:....but I would not doubt the EPA considers smuggling catalitic converters over the CA border a federal offense..:dunno:..

Beware of cheap aftermarket converters,many wont even pass a smog test or keep the CEL light off for long,they lack enough capacity..or have enough platinum in them..
 
Man you guys are a cool bunch. Never even occurred to me to ask any of you! Of course, I'd do the same if someone asked me :)

In any case, I drove the Suburban for the first time in what, a month? today. Took it straight to the shop, and they have it all day. They are going to rotate & balance the tires too (free since I got them there).

Sure did see a lot of steam coming out the tailpipe still, but this is the first time it really reached temp since putting it back together. White smoke, blue smoke, then white smoke. All expected I suppose for a 3 mile drive. It sure is running nice & smooth... so I hope nothing else is wrong at this point. Heck, when I dropped it off, there was still penetrating oil burning off the exhaust manifolds...
 
I finally got my Suburban back from the exhaust shop yesterday!

The only part that was good in the exhaust was the Y pipe. Everything else has been replaced at this point. New manifolds, new cat, and I believe it's 3" back from there to a (loud) Flowmaster, and finished off with a stainless tip coming out the driver side. I was really hoping for more of a rearward angle on the tip, but it's OK for now and it will probably grow on me.

I was really hoping for a Magnaflow muffler, but they were unable to get one. Nobody had one in stock I guess. They didn't ask me which Flowmaster I wanted on there... it had one before, but the old one had holes in it. I'll get some photos up later.

In any case, it seems the engine is running just fine now :) The computer is very obviously re-learning; but I am noticing much less throttle is needed for cruising now. I have a feeling my mileage is going to get a lot better. Of course, I have been keeping track of mileage ever since I got the truck, and will be sure to report any changes in a few weeks after I get fuel again.

No Leaks! Whoo Hoo!
 
My 94 is getting The same treatment today. I'm putting on a flow master 50 so it won't be quite as loud but a nice Tone when I get on it. My 40 series are a lot louder on my 72. Glad it's running good. Doesn't take long for the computer to start Learning and get you back to running good. Might pickup a couple
Mpgs. I'm sure will be a few more than running Nissan head springs or whatever they had On the heads before. Ton more compression.
 
Drove it to work today! Longest drive since it's been together. Found a bubble in the cooling system this morning... but it burped out pretty easy with the Lever Lock radiator cap I have.

It's definitely running better, but man this exhaust sound really makes you want to get on the gas. It's loud, but it sounds really good.

IMG_20131130_115026_910.sized.jpg


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It's so much smoother than it was before; between new rear axle bearings, a fresh rotate & balance, and a better running engine. I forgot how smooth this thing rides too :)

No leaks still!

Clay
 
I finally found the specifics on the exhaust.

3" Magnaflow hi flow cat
3" offset in/ center out Flowmaster Super 40 muffler
 
So my buddy ordered the cat from rockauto and we got it installed yesterday at a shop here in town. Then got it smogged down the street and it passed. So as long as there is a valid carb exec order number on the cat, you can order it online and have it shipped to california. The one we were able to get for his '84 jimmy was about $115 online.

Now that his rig will have valid tags, we will probably hit up cow mt within the next month. If you are interested in meeting up, I'll let you know once we have a date set. we usually plink a few rounds and cruise the trails, nothing usually too crazy for my rig as it is stock lift and nothing is locked.
-jacob
 
That's great info about the cat!

Shoot me a PM or email regarding Cow Mountain; I have some friends who are interested in going but are waiting for me to take them LOL. I tend to go slow out there due to the steepness of the roads. But it's always a good time! And heck, there might be snow with the weather we have been having lately.

Oh yes, and so far my Suburban has been running fine since getting it back. I need to look over a few things though; the idle, although steady in gear, sometimes takes a few moments to stabilize when warm. The EGR valve probably needs to be replaced as it's experiencing some symptoms that I read about here previously (it was doing that before the head gasket blow). And there's some minor vibe going on at higher RPM; may not have noticed it before though as I don't usually take it to higher RPM. A mechanic buddy of mine rode in it last weekend and says it's running as a TBI 350 should be... Mileage seems to be slowly improving. These 25 degree mornings probably are not helping though!

Clay
 
That's good news about the engine, bet it feels nice to get in and hear it run smoothly and hear that exhaust when you really step on it.

Will shoot you a pm when the dates are set!

-jacob
 
I accidentally put 91 octane fuel in last weekend. Funny how one set of pumps is laid out:
91 89 87
and the other set of pumps is:
87 89 91

I haven't filled again since, but it seems to be doing better mileage wise. And, it's running smoother. Perhaps I should have measured the chambers & figured out what the compression ratio is. Oh well...
 
Most vehicles will do better on the 91 octane. I go mid grade on my 94 because it pings some on 87. The 72 needs 91 or it has no power.
 
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