Thread: 2010 Turkey Run - Great show with the exception of...

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This was a VERY strange year for mechanical issues. I blew a water pump the Monday before Turkey Run, had one air freighted in, installed it, and left on Thursday. Drove all the way to Daytona (250 miles one way) no problems. Went to go to dinner Thursday evening and as I pulled out of the RV resort I kicked it a little and got a facefull of antifreeze, like buckets of it! Pulled off the road, coolant pouring out of the new water pump.

Had AAA pick us up and take me back to the campsite. Next morning I had Enterprise Rent a car pick me up and I spent the morning finding parts to repair the pump. Of course no one stocks a Ford Racing short pump, so I used gasket paper and lots of permatex and got it to hold. It worked fine Friday night and all day Saturday.

Sunday we are heading home and 5 miles from Daytona, as I am following Don and Dan towing Dons T behind the motorhome, I start hearing rattling from my engine. It gets louder, so I signal them to pull over, and by now it is really noisy. So we pull Don's T off the trailer, put mine on it, and we drive to the nearest U Haul dealer (about 25 miles) where I rented a truck and trailer to haul my 27 home. I am not sure what happened, but I suspect something in the valvetrain, like a roller rocker or pushrod.

Bill (Gastrick on here) got part way to Daytona and the hemi in his 32 lost fire. He had to flatbed it back home and come in his daily driver. On the way he passed his Brother Rod, whose Vette also lost a fuel pump, and it went back home too. WHAT A YEAR!!!!!!!

I also learned my 27 is not the fun long distance cruiser it was when it had a mild 302 and 3:70 gears. The 331 stroker with 4:30 gears is cranking 3000 rpms at only 60 mph. This setup would be much happier in the quarter mile than going down the interstate. I spent more money on this engine than any other one I have owned, and it is turning out to be a little too radical to be practical on the street. Live and learn.

Lots of people were boiling over going into Turkey Run on Friday. It took Dan and Don over 2 hours of creeping to get inside. They said the people running it really had it screwed up, and the plywood that had been laid across the track to keep oil off from the cars entering really slowed things up.

Don

Originally Posted by Itoldyouso

This was a VERY strange year for mechanical issues. I blew a water pump the Monday before Turkey Run.....
Don

Don,
Did your water pump blow the gasket between the pump and the back cover? Reason I ask, mine did that, blowing out the gasket mid-way between the two thin head bolts at the bottom in the long span between pump to engine mounts. I bought new pump to plate and pump to engine gaskets to fix mine. Just wondering if there is some assembly problem at the factory??

Ouch Don...sorry to hear about that. I had hoped to spend some time and try to hunt folks down at the show this year, but...

There is always next year!

sorry to hear of all your troubles guys. better luck next year maybe..

Hot Rod Surfer- do you by any chance have more pictures of that red wagon? Odd request, I know, but I am curious why it is a ford/chevy. It looks like a Taurus wagon maybe with a 350?

Originally Posted by 35fordcoupe

Hot Rod Surfer- do you by any chance have more pictures of that red wagon? Odd request, I know, but I am curious why it is a ford/chevy. It looks like a Taurus wagon maybe with a 350?

I have several pics of it from several years ago when it was under construction, I'll gladly post them tonight if you want to see them.

Mike

Originally Posted by 35fordcoupe

sorry to hear of all your troubles guys. better luck next year maybe..

Hot Rod Surfer- do you by any chance have more pictures of that red wagon? Odd request, I know, but I am curious why it is a ford/chevy. It looks like a Taurus wagon maybe with a 350?

I think that I do have one or two...am traveling but will check when I get back on Friday!

Mike52 - Do you have any details on the two cars that were used to build this beauty? I really liked the paint job and its overall appearance!

Originally Posted by 35fordcoupe

Hot Rod Surfer- do you by any chance have more pictures of that red wagon? Odd request, I know, but I am curious why it is a ford/chevy. It looks like a Taurus wagon maybe with a 350?

Here are the pics I have from 2008.

HRS, I don't know any details of it's origins, I simply thought it was a cool 'in progress car' and took a few pics of it. Notice the Ford/Bow Tie emblem next to the driver's door already on the car in the first pic.

Mike

Originally Posted by rspears

Don,
Did your water pump blow the gasket between the pump and the back cover? Reason I ask, mine did that, blowing out the gasket mid-way between the two thin head bolts at the bottom in the long span between pump to engine mounts. I bought new pump to plate and pump to engine gaskets to fix mine. Just wondering if there is some assembly problem at the factory??

Roger, that is exactly where mine blew. There are bolts all around the perimeter of the pump, holding it firmly to the timing cover, EXCEPT at the bottom. They depend on those two small thin-headed bolts that go in from the backside of the plate to hold that area. When I took the brand new pump off that had failed, I found those bolts were not torqued down. I should have checked them when I put the pump on, but didn't.

No one carries that football shaped gasket so I made one from gasket paper and glued the heck out of it, then torqued those two bolts down, as well as all the other bolts. It seems to be holding ok now, but then the other, more serious problem surfaced. Sometimes I REALLY hate cars.

We also saw a 59-ish Chevy sitting at a red light that a young girl had run into the back of. They were waiting for the cops. Bet $ 10 she was texting or on the phone.

There seemed to be less cars cruising around at night, but there were some real idiots out there. Two S-10 Chevys lined up at a red light on A1A and squared off. We were going the other way in the left lane and the one almost went sideways into us. He had to slam on the brakes and get into the center turning lane to avoid traffic stopped in front of him. There were lots of similar things going on, and I bet it ruins it for those of us who don't act like squirrels. The cops there were very forgiving this year, but if that keeps up they won't be that way in the future. All it takes is for one person to get hurt or killed.

Don

Originally Posted by Itoldyouso

We also saw a 59-ish Chevy sitting at a red light that a young girl had run into the back of. They were waiting for the cops. Bet $ 10 she was texting or on the phone.

There seemed to be less cars cruising around at night, but there were some real idiots out there. Two S-10 Chevys lined up at a red light on A1A and squared off. We were going the other way in the left lane and the one almost went sideways into us. He had to slam on the brakes and get into the center turning lane to avoid traffic stopped in front of him. There were lots of similar things going on, and I bet it ruins it for those of us who don't act like squirrels. The cops there were very forgiving this year, but if that keeps up they won't be that way in the future. All it takes is for one person to get hurt or killed.

Don

I really think that they should have a gps in all phones and if it is moving faster than 5 mph, it won't work!!!

As for the street racers, well said!