1971 Pearson GTO

[Pierre Rivard]

Work on the engine so far. For some reason engines are not something I find easy to do and this one more so due to a decision to use Vallejo for metal finishes. The paint seems to remain "tender" so Handling with care is a must.

The GTO kit has a very average engine but I have nothing better to put in the car. It's a small block 400 so I decided to keep the block, heads and valve covers and try to make it look like a 366 race engine. I could not find reference pics of the Pearson car so there's a lot of guessing involved.

Transmission is from a GM eighties Monogram Nascar engine assembly

Front engine cover/water pump housing from the spares (don't know the source)

Oil pan is from Salvinos generic engine. I did not dare try to build a dry sump type pan but knowing some GM race engines from the era had dry sumps with conventional looking pans. May not be accurate but there it is.

Accessory drive started with the pulley/strap part from the GTO kit but with a fan blade, alternator and dry sump pump/pulley from the spares

Intake manifold is from AMT 80's T-Bird Nascar hit. I flipped it around to put the distributor in the back.

Oil breathers scratch built.

Within for the engine to eventually dry harder to do washes and complete the assembly

 

[afx]

Nice work on the engine.

[MarkJ]

Wow, Mini Cooper Electric. I bet that is fun. Is it all electric or does it have a backup gas deal.

[Pierre Rivard]

15 hours ago, afx said:

Nice work on the engine.

Thanks JC. You know how much I admire your engines and this one pales in comparison but I'm ok considering my skill set and the poorly molded parts I had to work with.

[Pierre Rivard]

14 hours ago, MarkJ said:

Wow, Mini Cooper Electric. I bet that is fun. Is it all electric or does it have a backup gas deal.

All electric and loads of fun to drive. I'm a car nut and have owned all sorts of rides going from SS Camaro to Miata. This one is special.

[MarkJ]

31 minutes ago, Pierre Rivard said:

All electric and loads of fun to drive. I'm a car nut and have owned all sorts of rides going from SS Camaro to Miata. This one is special.

Have any trouble finding charging stations? Or do you just stay close to home? Hopefully in the future everybody will be driving electric, or we will all be wearing oxygen tanks on our backs. Luckily, I'm too old to worry about it. 

 

 

 

[Pierre Rivard]

3 hours ago, MarkJ said:

Have any trouble finding charging stations? Or do you just stay close to home? Hopefully in the future everybody will be driving electric, or we will all be wearing oxygen tanks on our backs. Luckily, I'm too old to worry about it. 

 

 

 

I installed a level 2 (240V) charging station at home so I always leave home on a fully charged battery. There are also quite a few fast charging stations around in case I need a top up on a long drive. We did this move because the car is a blast to drive and to do our bit with the environment. Electricity is cheap here and all hydro produced. A side benefit is cost. Electricity is super cheap here but gasoline is taxed to the roof. Cost per 100 km is $1.75 electric vs. $18 gasoline!

[Hobbyguy]

On 3/7/2022 at 6:17 AM, Pierre Rivard said:

Thanks for the feedback guys. It's a bit more work than expected but a fun challenge nevertheless.

Nice GTO Hobbyguy, how did you make that net. It's very nice!

Thanks Pierre I used drywall repair screen for the net with fine Tamiya tape for the edges. 

[MarkJ]

20 hours ago, Pierre Rivard said:

I installed a level 2 (240V) charging station at home so I always leave home on a fully charged battery. There are also quite a few fast charging stations around in case I need a top up on a long drive. We did this move because the car is a blast to drive and to do our bit with the environment. Electricity is cheap here and all hydro produced. A side benefit is cost. Electricity is super cheap here but gasoline is taxed to the roof. Cost per 100 km is $1.75 electric vs. $18 gasoline!

Now i can see why you went electric. Thats a huge savings. i'm sure down here in the states it would cost a lot more for a charge. The car itself is a little pricey, I have heard. Like the new Silverado all electric is 100 grand. The gasoline  company's down here are fighting hard to keep us from going electric. 

[DoctorLarry]

Here's Herb Adams' 366:

[Pierre Rivard]

No no no!

Don't show me 366 engine pictures.

Engine is done. Nope, not changing it!

Kidding aside, thanks Larry for sharing these 

[MarkJ]

I don't know where you would find a single plane hi rise manifold like that. Looks like the air cleaner is part of the hood.

[Pierre Rivard]

44 minutes ago, MarkJ said:

I don't know where you would find a single plane hi rise manifold like that. Looks like the air cleaner is part of the hood.

Like I said, engine is done! I did not have a picture of the Pearson car engine but for 1 the chassis ref pic shows air intake through base of windshield (conventional way) and I have ref pics showing the engine of another GTO from 1971 (Charlie Glotzbach?). I'd rather go by these assuming the setup would be the same for this new for 1971 Pontiac engine.

 

[MarkJ]

Pierre, yes, the reference you used is much different than the one shown with the super high rise intake. So I think you are good to go with what your doing. Yours is  totally correct, so no need to even think about changing it.

[Pierre Rivard]

Engine has received washes to add depth, then added wiring and rad hoses. DONE!

 

[Pierre Rivard]

A part of the project I have been fearing. Finding a way to paint the two tone with the white to purple cutting across the top 1/4 sail to the 1/4 panel and then a sharp turn to circle the rear window.

Painted the white roof and then after masking i did some white along the edge on the purple side. The thinking is that initial bleed through (if any) wouldd be white over white. After a quick dry I moved to the purple layers. 

Minimal purple bleed through. Should be easy to fix

[afx]

I'm always amazed at the finish you attain brush painting.

[MarkJ]

Pierre, that purple really pops. Your mask job is superb. Cant wait for the final paint job reveal. 

[Pierre Rivard]

11 hours ago, afx said:

I'm always amazed at the finish you attain brush painting.

Thanks JC. It took some experimenting to get there but I now have a formula that works for me. Successful brush painting requires thin laters with very thinned paint. This way brush marks disappear but some pigment laying at the surface affect the finish ( see hood in reflected light). The color coats I use don't take polishing well so instead I lay a Tamiya acrylic clear on it and polish that. Then Future, decals and Future.

[Pierre Rivard]

44 minutes ago, MarkJ said:

Pierre, that purple really pops. Your mask job is superb. Cant wait for the final paint job reveal. 

Thank you sir. It will take a few days because I want to let that paint cure before I do the chrome trim and clear.

Moving back to the chassis and interior stuff in the meanwhile.

[Pierre Rivard]

Here's a picture in a light that better shows the color as I see it. Products I used are from Vallejo.

This was an easy color to mix (for a change). 3 parts violet, 2 parts metal medium and 8-10 parts thinner. Multiple thin coats to avoid brush marks.

 

[MarkJ]

I needed that refresher course. I can see I need to double up on my thinner

[Pierre Rivard]

2 hours ago, MarkJ said:

I needed that refresher course. I can see I need to double up on my thinner

It depends on the color. In this case I am using the metal medium as part of my mix and it has a heavy viscosity so I added more thinner.

[MarkJ]

4 minutes ago, Pierre Rivard said:

It depends on the color. In this case I am using the metal medium as part of my mix and it has a heavy viscosity so I added more thinner.

Sounds good. I actually had to go back to Vallejo because the Creatix was just too thin right out of the bottle. It must be pre thinned for airbrush use. The red on the Comet is now Flat red Vallejo. i figured the gloss clear I'm going to put on it will gloss it up enough and the future as well.

[Pierre Rivard]

Home made seat belts. This is the third time I do this and I simplified (i.e less detail) because they don't show that much in the end. They're a little rough but ok considering the time I put in. Belts made from a ribbon with a glue/water mix, then strips cut to desired width. Buckles made from Evergreen sheet and 0.5 mm rod as well as thin craft wire.