83 WB_Ute's Ultimate Shed Thread

[83 WB_Ute]

Were back for another update!! Its only small, but its progress..

I have finally heard back from the instrument shop in Tamworth after 3 weeks of the gauges not even being touched.. Its not real good news..

They say that the clock is not working (but they don't know why..) ($103) the speedo is out of calibration and a piece needs to be replaced ($75+) the fuel/oil/temp/battery guage is fine, just needs a clean ($60) and the killer is the tacho needs to have the switchboard changed to suit the electronic ignition ($180) and there are a few light bulbs that need replacing ($12+)..

Ohh, and they have a 3 month warranty.. lol I think thats absolute crap considering I am almost spending $500 there..

So I spose my questions are how much would you charge to do the above work to the gauges?? @Absinth

I bought a cheap gearbox plug from supercheap to stop the oil from pouring out of the back of the gearbox when I take it out.. I also got the 'blue' VDO temperature sender to suit the GTS temp gauge and fitted it as well..





I then fitted the new heater tap and fixed up the hoses to be held in the factory bracket from the carby..



The I removed the old steering wheel using a harmonic balancer removal tool.. haha





It was pretty crappy in there..



I have also fitted the new indicator stalk and it all works good now..



Here is a picture of the GTS steering wheel lightly fitted so I could move the car around (after I put the radiator hose clamp on the clutch cable..) to a concrete slab so I can do the gearbox..



Heres a picture of the height of the clutch pedal when the hose clamp is in place..



Its a much better height..

Ohh, and the old girls new house!!!





Its not 100% done yet, but is insulated, 2 bay + workshop, electric roller doors, skilion on the front and a spot on the side for mum and dads caravan.. And we are looking at sealing the whole interior floor with cement sealer to protect it.. We just finished filling in the trench for the power today so its getting closer to being done..

[83 WB_Ute]

Well, its definatley long time no see!!

A lot has happened between last post and now, I have a big surprise that I will reveal later!

I finally got my guages back from the instrument shop.. Speedo was all rebuit, except they had put washers over the trip meter stalk (behind the guage face) to hold it in place.. But not only did they hold it in place, the washers fouled on the frame of the speedo and stopped the trip meter resetting :( So I removed them! haha
I then installed the new guage lenses..



We also worked out where the missing wire went.. They just linked together like this..



Then I fitted them and finally got the guages working.. It was just some corrosion on the fuse terminal :( Why the hell didn't I think of that earlier?? Then I found out by discussing with an Auto Electrician that the oil pressure sender is a faulty one.. :( So gotta fix that..
I also wired the tacho up.. So I have a fully functioning GTS dash except for the clock and the oil pressure guage..

I also fixed the clutch pedal problem.. I got the correct throwout bearing for it and put it in..
Correct throwout bearing is on the right.. Wrong one is on the left...



I also cleaned and fitted the clutch for cover..



I thought I'd chuck in some sneak peeks of the car with the freshly polished Dragways on it!







Then I finally got around to fitting the kingswood strips.. and took it back to 'factory' spec ready for it to pass rego (Hint Hint! ) haha









I also finished the GTS dash fasica.. There are a few little lines that I can get rid of later on.. And I also have to paint the chrome line around the edges, but not bad for a first attempt!

[83 WB_Ute]

I'm back after a little break.. I have done 6 of my 7 HSC exams and don't have the last one until the 7th of next month so I decided that I would finally finish something that I had started..

I had started creating some kick panes for the ute to fit the 6.5'' Pioneer speakers and tweeters into. I thought long and hard about it for a while and devised a plan that would allow me to mount them up fairly high aswell as fitting into the factory recessed bump in the firewall.

I mocked them up with cardboard to start with, I had to do this twice just because I wanted to move the speakers position so it was closer to the recessed bit..

I then got some 6-7mm wooden board from in the shed, traced the templates on and then cut them out.. Once they were cut out I trial fitted them to the car several time to make running adjustments to make them fit better, I chiseled a few sections down so it created a spot for the factory hold spot on the firewall and to make it easier for the pinchweld to fit over the back of the new panel.





Then I painted them black just incase if any holes happened when I covered them in vinyl.



I then bought some black grained vinyl and trimmed them myself with it. Its not the best trim job, but it'll do for now


(It needs a bit more work here, I fixed the bubles before I fitted them to the car..)

I then finally fitted them to the car to replace the original plastic items. I'm quite happy with the result What do you think??







I then turned my attention to the head unit.. I thought about it for a while and finally decided to mount it in the glovebox. I sat there staring at if for 20 minutes just playing out what I was going to do, I finally decided to mount the bracket straight to the top of the glovebox so the CD player was flush up against the to pof the glovebox..

Another 20 minutes later and it was done! I have cut two holes in the back of the glovebox to allow the wires to go into it and I'm going to line the edges of them with pinchweld to protect the wires..

So this is what it looks like now..





It isn't wired up yet, but it will be soon

Anyway, thats it for now.. Hopefully I can get some more stuff done soon

[jennie285]

That is a brilliant job Matt. All that and studying for HSC. I read thread from start to finish, and you have spent a lot of time sourcing correct parts, and reconditioning other, you will enjoy driving this old girl...

[83 WB_Ute]

That is a brilliant job Matt. All that and studying for HSC. I read thread from start to finish, and you have spent a lot of time sourcing correct parts, and reconditioning other, you will enjoy driving this old girl...

Thanks Jennie I'm glad with how it has turned out, even with most of my concentration being directed to the HSC.. Sure there are a LOT of things that need improvement, but I am very picky and if it isn't good enough then I'll do it again to make sure it is the best it can be.. It is heaps better having it on the road so that I can have a car and then make improvements while driving it..

All of this would not have been possible without the help from all the helpfull and generous members on her that have helped along the way, and for that I thank everyone

--- Updated ---

It never ends.. :( I just found that the drivers rear tyre is going flat and it has a leak right near the kick panel.. :( I'm pretty sure that it is coming from the tounge/metal clip that is pressed out of the firewall for the kick panel to fit behind.. :( So I'll have to fix that too..

[ambientgoat]

Nice one, those look neat.
The only suggestion I'd make it trying to get those tweeters up near ear level somewhere. The high frequency sound is very directional, so unless your ears are in your shins they're probably being wasted down there.
As I said tho, looks nice, suspect I'll be copying what you've done for my van in a couple weeks.

[83 WB_Ute]

Nice one, those look neat.
The only suggestion I'd make it trying to get those tweeters up near ear level somewhere. The high frequency sound is very directional, so unless your ears are in your shins they're probably being wasted down there.
As I said tho, looks nice, suspect I'll be copying what you've done for my van in a couple weeks.

Thanks mate.. Yeah, I was going to try that straight up, but thought I'd go for something a bit easier... I will have a set of four inch speakers a little higher up in the b-pillar and then some 6'' x 9'' down low behind the seats I will probably re-route the tweeters at some stage though..

Hahaha Glad I could inspire you to want to copy me! hahaha Let me know if you need a hand with measurements etc..

[Robbo]

You have done a great job with your ute, I am sure you will really enjoy driving it. Nothing like pride of ownership, and you have done all the work yourself.

[83 WB_Ute]

You have done a great job with your ute, I am sure you will really enjoy driving it. Nothing like pride of ownership, and you have done all the work yourself.

Thanks mate.. It is really good to drive, alot better than I expected.. It is good to know that if something does break that I can fix it there and then on the side of the road..

[SMQQTH]

Not sure weather I like the standard wheel with caps better or the Dragways....

One thing I think would look really good is if you lost about a foot suspension all around.

Good luck with it buddy! Hope you have plenty of cruisin time in her!

Cheers Jon