Dino Restoration

My wife caught me staring at pictures of the underside on this car. She asked what I was staring at for so long............I told her it was a job better than well done. Amazing just amazing!

 

Today we put the wheels on and had the car rolling for the first time in a very long time! The car sits fairly high right now with all the new rubber and shocks, ect. I was told by Seleven and others that it is normal and to let it sit for a while and it will settle in. Any other confirmation of this? It sure looked like a 4x4 dino! Its about 2-3 inches higher than my black dino. It really seemed like it was a car today, being able to roll it outside and all. We were going to rig up a seat and drive it around the block but had a little snag while adjusting the gear shifter. We did put the car up on some custom made attachments for the lift so we could torque the suspension while in static position. Half day tomorrow and off to Utah.
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Jon,

When I completed a two-year restoration of my Lotus Elan and rolled it on its tires for the first time, I was horrified to find it standing so high off the ground. I had torqued the suspension bolts at ride height, with measured wood blocks under the designated chassis points, and did everything by the book - but the car looked like a 4x4 too! It settled promptly after use, so I wouldn't worry about your car.

You might remember I posted a picture of my Dino when I bought it two years ago, and you emailed me privately about the color of my car when you were still deciding on the color. Looking now at your car's clean, side-marker-less flanks, I am so envious!

The car looks fantastic.

Warm regards from Manila.

Andy
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As does yours!

Coop

 

Do you think you should leave the suspension bolts a little loose till the car settles in and then torque them up at ride height?

 

The doors, trunk items (heat shield, pan, etc.), spare tire, seats, carpet, various items will add 250 pounds or so. Furthermore, as Jon completes the project and sits still for a few minutes, he will gain weight. All of these items will contribute to settling of the car.

Jim S.

 

adding the ferrari script and prancing horse should bring it down to proper height.

 

Why would he add that... after ALL this work do you think he should put a fender badge on it as well... I'm for the way it is, I don't think John cares if someone doesn't know what it is I think it is fine this way...

 

maybe he should put some neon under it and get some spinners too

 

ya blue neon would look sweet. Would go nicely with his twice pipes and fuzzy dice in the mirror.

 

This car looks so perfect from that rear picture it almost looks fake.

Great job and enjoy the ski trip, we are dying for more pics.

Andy

 

Incredible car, and it will settle, no worries there. Tremendous effort on your part - that car will probably run another 200,000 miles if you asked it to. Just beautiful.

 

Jon,

Constructive comment

i can see you are a perfectionist but the black underbody lines (under LH & RH rear bumpers) on the rear photograph are different. Or is it a photographic illusion

Dont want standards to slip!!!!

Tony

 

Must be an illusion. No horses or Ferrari script will be going on the car even if it would bring the ride height down. Maybe the spinners, neon and dice though, I like that touch. Just some odds and ends before leaving for Park City today.
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it just gets better,love the colour.

 

Jon

OK please yourself!!!

 

Very good job, restoring a car is always a fantastic project.

The tubi looks great, perhaps i gonna change the one I have in my dino.

 

5 days with out a post to this thread??? I almost could not find it. Maybe someone is taking a looong drive...

Aaron

 

That's my thought too- he can't stop driving it long enough to post anything.

 

HE said a few post ago he is going skiing for the week... come on guys there is more to this thread than pictures...

 

There are cars that are sorted and then there are cars that are SORTED!

 

This is my favorite car of all time, I've only seen 2 in person, this one looks stunning! All the best with your project, can't wait to see some "action" shots.

 

Hi Jon,

I know you're off at Park City, please excuse the request in advance.

If you have a chance when you get your suspension setup, would it be possible to note the number of ball joint shims front and rear (table 32, items 17 and 18). The parts book shows 2 in the front and 2 in the rear as standard but Fchat discussion states these are moved front/rear to make finals minor adjustments to fine tune the Caster angle.

I'm just curious if mine at (1:3, 0:4) would be unusual.
Thank you for considering it.

Sincerely,

Scott

PS - I searched and looked back at your posted photos and couldn't clearly count the shims; as I assume you replaced in the same order as they were removed.
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Mine were 3 on one side and one on the other. Now that the A arms are powder coated 4 won't fit. I guess I'll have some combination of three.

 

Scott,

I replaced my shocks a few months ago- I had 2 in the front and 2 in the back of the lower ball joint. I don't know about the top one since I did not have to take that apart.

Hope this helps

Pietro