06 Gt Hot Rod cam install

Midlife Crises

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It really is a good idea to come up with a bore scope and look inside each cylinder for chunks. I have an inexpensive one I purchased through Summit. Great for piece of mind. Also, when you get the fuel line depressurized and disconnected it would be a great time to replace the fuel filter.
 

Laga

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Go rent a bore scope or visit Harbor Freight. Think they're less than $100?
Mine is the $84. Works great.
Also, while you are working in that area. Clean off the rust from the negative ground bolt that’s on the strut tower.

5E7E73C8-7135-4DA2-86B1-25D1CD30EFF1.png
 

RED09GT

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Agree with the borescope. I would not even rotate the engine a mm until you know all the porcelain is out of there. If a piece of porcelain gets between the edge of the piston and the wall, it will dig right in.
This is when pieces of the #8 spark plug migrated to the #4 cylinder on my car after melting a piston. I was able to pick one of the pieces of porcelain out of the cylinder wall.
PXL_20210401_192417731.jpg
 

kstall

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Went and bought a scope. We are still trying to get pieces out. This is almost ridiculous now. But hey 1 cam in and working on driver side now
 

kstall

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So we just finally ate some dinner and sat down. We have been going non stop since about 9:00. Driver valve cover is off but I think its time we shut down for the day. Holy cow the backs of my knees and lower back are killing me lol. My mind is fried and I've been so stressed about cleaning those cylinders out that I need a break. I'm glad you guys recommended the scope. What I thought was cleaned out wasnt at all. I know this has taken a lot longer than it should but I'm fine with that. 3 trips to the parts store and few cuss words here and there. Its really weird about the plugs. I teased them out very slowly. The parts guy and a mechanic I called where both scratching their heads on the porcelain deal. It is what it is I reckon so we gotta deal with it and figure it out. Tomorrow is a new day with a fresh mind. Thank you all so much for the help so far. Now pray this thing starts when we're done lol
 

GlassTop09

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Holy cow the backs of my knees and lower back are killing me lol.
I definately can relate to your present physical distress as I've been there & done that myself..........
A hot tub w\ some epsom salt dispersed in the hot water & a bottle of some type of distilled spirits to drink to pass the time away will work wonders..................but you might need some help getting out of the tub afterwards.

:beer:
 

kstall

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Ok its a new morning and I wanted to make sure this looks right. Is the tensioner working properly on drivers side? Also am I right that the wedge will thru the bottom and not the top side as on passenger side?

 

kstall

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Ok we cannot get the drivers side cam to insert all the way in to the phaser. ARGH!!!
 

kstall

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Finally got it in. Covers are back on and working on cleaning the porcelain out again. The end is in sight now
 

kstall

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Guys I cannot even begin to explain how I feel right now! The only mechanic work I've ever done is oil changes and brakes and thats about it. My 17 yr old son and I just installed freakin cams and the car runs!!! We are both on cloud nine right. It sounds something at a drag strip. Took us about 16 hrs total but the spark plug deal threw a bunch of extra hours in there but man o man....WE DID IT! Thanks to each and every one of you who offered advice and wisdom. We could not have done this without you all. And here is the startup vid

 

Juice

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Well done!
I wrenched for a living, and a simple tire rotation and oil change hurts now!! lol I can feel your pain.
 

DieHarder

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Congratulations! Best part, you did it with the help of your son...;D

Don't forget about the tune. You may also want to consider purchasing and installing a wideband AFR so you give feedback to Lito using video during your tuning runs. There are a number of good ones on the market. I use AEM myself and have found them easy to install and reliable.
 

kstall

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Sent Lito the initial datalog just a bit ago. The base tune he sent is running ok but I think it still needs some tweaking.
 

kstall

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Ok so we've noticed a small issue on a cold start. As soon as it cranks it runs up in rpm but nothing crazy...probably just normal there. But once it peaks it will drop to like 200-300 rpm and flop around there for a bit and sometimes die out. We have speed bumps in out neighborhood and when I hear my son coming up to one and clutching it, it again will drop and sound like its about to shut off. Once its good and warm it doesn't do it as bad. We are still using the base tune Lito sent us. Should be getting an updated tune in a day or two. Is this normal for these cams or do yall think a tune will clear things up?
 

RED09GT

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The tune should fix it. I've had base tunes where the car stalled completely when coming to a stop.
 

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