I have a 1983 engine that's going into my '78 Oldsmobile Starfire (long story - bought to be a cheap extra car, turned into a project), and I really hope to get it done this summer. It's been a few years in the making, but the NOS engine is now fully rebuilt, partly by me but mostly by the racing mechanic son of my neighbour. His help did cost a bit, but he really knows what he's doing, something I don't... Torquing with a 1000 dollar, digital wrench is always impressive! I gave it new gaskets and seals, new bearings, the oil flow mods for the front cover and removed some internal rust from when it was stored in a shop in Michigan until 2010 and I got it sendt to Norway. I also have an older carburetor from when there was nothing electronic in it, to make stuff simpler. So all that is now on the engine, and the swap is getting a bit closer. This actually look like an engine now, not a set of random parts! (Oh, and I did not mount a mirror on it, it's from my son's Yamaha RZ 125 standing next to it...)
But before I get that far I need to sort out the distributor on this thing. For now I only have the original 1978 distributor that was on the Oldsmobile Starfire when I got it. Can I use this, or do I need to get something else? Then there's the knock sensor. I really don't feel like having spent six years on this car (well, more like having spent one year and stored it in the garage for five...) only to blow up the engine on the first "power run". I have an MSD 6 BTM that I was told I needed when I first started, and the engine has the knock sensor at the rear of the block. But do I use the MSD in stead o f the knock sensor setup, or do I need a new distributor and controller for the knock sensor, in addition to that? And if I only use the MSD, where should I take the vacuum from?
But before I get that far I need to sort out the distributor on this thing. For now I only have the original 1978 distributor that was on the Oldsmobile Starfire when I got it. Can I use this, or do I need to get something else? Then there's the knock sensor. I really don't feel like having spent six years on this car (well, more like having spent one year and stored it in the garage for five...) only to blow up the engine on the first "power run". I have an MSD 6 BTM that I was told I needed when I first started, and the engine has the knock sensor at the rear of the block. But do I use the MSD in stead o f the knock sensor setup, or do I need a new distributor and controller for the knock sensor, in addition to that? And if I only use the MSD, where should I take the vacuum from?
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