Hi all,
So I'm doing a full resto on a LX SS L31 original numbers matching car, original engine. This resto is going to be done as close to original as possible. I'm after as much info as I can get to try and get this car as close as possible to how it left the factory, so please be understanding if some of my questions may seem basic, or not important.
The only things that won't be original will be the flares and drop tank. This car came into NZ from new ( or at least entered NZ in 1977 with only delivery km's on the clock ), and from all the research I've done, it seems that the car either came into NZ with the flares and tank fitted ( I know these where not factory fitted, but wonder if a dealer in Australia had them fitted ) or if not, then they where fitted to the car fairly early in its life. Because I believe the car had these fitted very early in its life, I would like to keep them on.
From the original ownership papers ( which I still have ) I can gather that this car may have been imported into NZ privately from new, as there doesn't seem to be any mention of Holden NZ. I'm also told that Holden NZ didn't bring any SS L31's into the country ( can anyone confirm this? ).
So here goes...
Horn: Would this car originally had twin horns or one single horn fitted on the passengers side of the radiator support?
Rad Fan: Is the radiator fan that this would have had the same as the one you can currently get from Resto Country ( #3927791 - 17.5" four blade manual fan )?
Radiator Fan Decal: I've got photos that show there is a decal on the fan shroud, but some photos have the "Beware of fan" wording on the RH side of the decal, and others have the wording on the bottom of the decal. The decal kit from Resto Counrty has the one with the "Beware of fan" wording on the bottom of the decal. Is this correct for this car?
L/H Rocker Cover Stamp: I see some cars with two letters stamped on the front of the L/H Rocker Cover. What do these letters represent? Did all cars get them?
Exhaust manifolds: The car currently has Pacemaker Headers fitted. I would assume this car would have left the factory with Cast exhaust manifolds. Are the original cast manifolds it had the same as can be found on other 308 cars of that era?
Air Filter Housing: Would the original air filter housing be the same as the likes of the HZ V8 housing? Seems I can get my hands on the HJ / HZ type relatively easy, but haven't found one that was said to be off a LX. My assumption is that these wouldn't have been specific to the LX.
Engine Paint: I know this is getting into fine detail, but my assumption is that the rocker cover bolts, oil cap, oil pump, sump etc where all painted at the same time once the engine was together in the factory ( rather than what I see on some cars where the rocker cover bolts are bare steel or zinc coated ).
Engine Paint Colour: Am I correct in saying the original engine colour for the 308 in the LX was Rocket Red? Does anyone have a paint code that I can give to the paint supplier to get some mixed to suit the original colour?
Spark Plug Lead Holders: Would this have originally had the holders that attach to the rocker covers to clip the spark plug leads into? I see some cars with these fitted, and some without. The rocker covers that came with this car ( but not fitted to the engine ) don't have the slots that lead holders would slide into. No guarantee that these are the original rocker covers, as the car had chrome covers fitted to it at some stage.
Engine Cam Specs: Would someone know what the cam specs are for these engines from the factory. I gather there was nothing special about the engine build for these L31 SS's
Drive Shaft: Would this have been painted black originally? and would there have been any stamps or decals on the driveshaft and transmission?
If anyone has any other information of Decals, Delivery Stamps, Assembly Markings etc, then I would really appreciate as much info as I can get.
I think that's probably enough to start off with. I know as the build progresses there will be more questions that come up, but these are the initial questions off the top of my head.
Thanks in advance,
Tony