April 2013 Newsletter

Transcription

1 April 2013 Newsletter Celebrating the Golden Anniversary of the 1963 Cadillac Doug & Elaine Meloan s 1963 Coupe DeVille - Director s Message - Chapter & Website Updates - Grand National Updates - Car Shows and Other Events - Doug Meloan s 1963 Coupe DeVille - Looking Back: 1963 DeVille - Tech Tips: Injecting New Technology by John Leonard Chapter Facebook Page Chapter Website Chapter YouTube Channel

2 Director's Message by Jason Edge Last month we covered those sporty 62 Series body styles, as we continue to take a closer look at the 63 Cadillacs during their Golden 50 th Anniversary year. We will continue looking at the different body series and body styles throughout the year until we have taken a close look at all of them. We begin out spotlight on the DeVilles this month and hope to wrap next month with a special feature of a restored 1963 Park Avenue Deville. For this month s DeVille spotlight we have a nice article with pictures by chapter member and friend Doug Meloan. I met Doug and his lovely wife Elaine at the 2012 CLC Grand National, and am very pleased to feature his and Elaine s Caddy! Speaking of the Grand National, the alternate host hotel for the 2013 Boston Grand National has almost sold out and have included this and other information in our Grand National page below. If you have not booked your room and plant to attend you need to book now! I am also very pleased to include an article written by our 63/64 Cadillac Website member John Leonard as he summarizes the changes needed to install a 6.2 liter L92 sourced from an Escalade and 6L80E 6-speed automatic into a 1964 Eldorado. Having a keen interest in new technology and owning an Escalade with the older 6.0 liter LQ9 engine, I found this article fascinating and would like to thank John for sharing it with us. As I was putting this newsletter together it dawned on me that we have a great example of the extremes between original and custom, with our spotlight of Doug s flawless 63 Coupe DeVille and John s 64 modern marvel. Original Tech Hi Tech As a CLC chapter we respect and support all Cadillac enthusiasts regardless if they lean old school and keep everything exactly original, or if they lean new school and love to see how they can apply new technology to these grand old automobiles. Regardless of where you fall on the old school/new school scale, I can say it takes a lot of hard work, time, money and perseverance to achieve to achieve what Doug and John have, and congratulate both! On one last note, I hope to kick-off a CLC Museum Chapter Donation Drive in the coming weeks and have more information in the next newsletter. You will find some new pages on our website regarding the CLC Museum and hope you will join me and the chapter in supporting Our new Museum Jason.

3 Chapter Status Our chapter became a provisional chapter in July 2010 and was approved for permanent status at the winter CLC Board Meeting in Jan We are now one of 11 CLC Chapters. You can see a list of all Chapters at Chapter Organization Currently, I serve as Director and we have 3 officers: Gary Westfall, Alex Figueroa, and Jeff Kinzler. NOTE: If you have an interest in taking on a more active role in the club please contact me. I am always looking to enlist those that want to contribute more and put their skills to use in helping us grow the club. Chapter Membership MEMBERSHIP: Our current membership is at 193, an increase of 2 in the past month. MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL REMINDER: Remember that being a member of the CLC is a requirement to belong to the CLC Chapter. If you have let your membership lapse be sure to renew today! WEBSITE: Our Website has had 679 members sign up since going public on August 9 th 2012! FACEBOOK PAGE: We maintain a Facebook Page at that points anyone interested in 63 & 64 Cadillacs back to our main website and the Cadillac LaSalle website. We currently have 984 Facebook users that "Like" our page. NEW MEMBERS! Please join me in welcoming the following new Chapter Member: - John Solder from West Port, Connecticut - Ray Schick from Chicago, Illinois

4 Website Updates: New Features Recently Added to our Website Weekly Chat Sunday 6pm EST (3pm PST, 11pm UK) We have a recurring Weekly Online Chat on the website on Sundays at 6pm Eastern (3 pm Pacific and 11pm UK time). These can be seen on our events page at and invites will be sent out before each weekly chat. New CLC Museum Facebook Link added to Website Header If you hover over the CLC Museum tab at bottom of our website header, you will now see a new sub tab that points directly to the CLCMRC new Facebook Page at New CLC Museum Information Page Added If you hover over the CLC Museum tab you will now see a new sub tab that points directly to a page for sharing CLCMRC updates and other information. The March Newsletter that was sent out a few weeks back has been copied to the page. To go directly to the new page click on: New CLC Museum Chapter Donations Page Added If you hover over the CLC Museum tab you will now see a new sub tab that points directly to a page for sharing CLCMRC Chapter Donations. This is a work-in-progress page and more will be added later. To go directly to the new page click on:

5 2013 Grand National Boston Marriot Quincy Host Hotel of the 2013 Grand National NOTE: Host Hotel is Sold Out! See below for Information on Alternate Hotel. ALTERNATE HOTEL INFORMATION Courtyard Marriott Boston Stoughton 200 Technology Center Dr Stoughton, MA Reservations online: Click Here Reservations by phone: mention event "Cadillac & LaSalle Club" Room Rate: $129/night single or double occupancy Sunday, July 28 through Saturday, August 3 Parking: There is no parking fee charged at this hotel. There is no parking under the hotel canopy or in any fire lane. Trailers: There is no trailer parking at this hotel. Please plan to leave all trailers at the host hotel and utilize your own towing vehicle or the free hotel shuttle to travel between the two properties. Campers and Motor Homes: Campers and motor homes will be allowed to park on site. There is no water or electricity connection for campers or motor homes. GUESTS MUST USE A HOTEL ROOM. NO OVERNIGHT ACCOMMODATIONS IN YOUR CAMPER OR MOTOR HOME. Those found to be in violation of this rule will be required to reserve a room at standard hotel rates at the time of booking. Currently, that rate is $ per night. IMPORTANT EVENT UPDATES The host hotel is sold out! The alternate hotel is nearly sold out! THERE WILL NOT BE ANOTHER ALTERNATE HOTEL. Once rooms are sold out at both event hotels, guests will need to find their own accommodations in the local area. More information regarding the event hotels can be found on the Hotels page. The following tours are nearly sold out: Wednesday - How It's Made Friday - Dick Shappy Classic Cars Free Shuttle: A shuttle will be provided to all guests of the alternate hotel to transport attendees to and from the host hotel. A pre-determined schedule will be published closer to the event date, but will include pickup and drop-off times to allow for attendees to comfortably attend all scheduled events. Other Information: There will not be a hospitality room in the alternate hotel. Internet access is free to all guests. For additional information on the 2013 Grand National, click on

6 U. S. Car Shows, Cruise-Ins, Auctions And Swap Meets May 2013 Courtesy Hemmings Motor News Click Here for a list of Car Shows in May Click Here for a list of Cruise-Ins in May Click Here for a list of Auctions in May Click Here for a list of Swap Meets in May Have an event you want listed for June? me at jasonedge@nc.rr.com to make sure we include in our national listing of events. The Northern California Region CLC Presents National Driving Tour June 3 7, 2013 Contact: bob.fracolli@gmail.com or edgunther43@yahoo.com

7 Member Cadillac Spotlights Periodically we spotlight a member Cadillac on our website and Facebook page. If you would like to show off your 63 or 64 Cadillac on our websites for a week send an to jasonedge@nc.rr.com with pictures or pictures links. Story by Doug Meloan 1963 Cadillac Coupe deville Manhattan, Kansas It was the summer of 1992 when one of my employees, who knew I was an old car buff told me of an old car that her husband had in his garage that hadn t been driven for years. She thought it was a Cadillac but didn t know the year and thought he might be interested in selling it to the right individual. A few weekends later I went out to where they lived in the country near Wamego, Kansas to see the car. When he opened the garage I immediately fell in love. Even though it was covered by a heavy layer of dust and was being used as a shelf, I immediately recognized it as an early 1960 s Cadillac Coupe DeVille. He told me it was a 1963, and that he had bought the car new from McCaddon Oldsmobile-Cadillac in Boulder, Colorado for his first wife. (The original bill of sale shows the car listed at $ 6, and that they traded in a 1959 Buick LeSabre coupe when they bought it). After she passed away in 1978, he very seldom drove it and finally just parked it in his garage. Fortunately, even though it had not been driven, he had started it up from time to time to keep it running and the seals in fairly good shape. We uncovered the car from the items that were piled on top of it, dusted off the windows and he let me take it for a short drive. It had 93,000 miles on it then. When I got back he offered to sell it to me for $3, I talked him down to $3,000 and bought the car that day.

8 When I got back home my wife Elaine asked me how I liked it and I had to tell her that I had bought it. We were a young family at the time and that was a lot of money to spend, especially without asking first, but she just smiled and said she figured I would buy it if I liked it. I might take this moment to mention that I have a very understanding wife! The car soon became a member of our family and we started the gradual process of bringing it back to its former glory. Fortunately, the car was all there so we did not have to find parts, but it was weathered. We had the seats recovered the next year using correct fabric. Front shared with all other 1963 Body styles. This one is really sharp! The rest of the interior, including the headliner, carpet and dash were still like new. The next year we had a new coat of Aspen White paint applied. In 2005, when the car rolled over 100,000 miles I had the engine rebuilt and detailed. The friend who rebuilt the engine said it was in extremely good condition and that the block didn t even need to be bored as it was right on. Very nice example of the 1963 DeVille interior. Note the still optional and quite rare for 1963 seatbelts. Also note this will be the last year of the guide-matic photo cell mounted on center of the dash for regular body styles. Each year that we have owned it I have invested a little bit of money and time into having some part of the car restored, and today, it looks and runs like a new car again. I must add that I am a stickler on keeping the car to original equipment. If it didn t have a certain part on it when it was new, I will not put it on, even if it would improve its operation. The only exception I have made is that it has radial tires instead of bias ply and the factory air was converted to R-34. Total engine displacement and a few odds and ends are all that the engine shares with the This 390 engine bay is an excellent example of factory original.

9 Doug and Elaine Meloan s 1963 Coupe DeVille at Manhattan Train Depot This train depot was built in 1902 and in 1903 President Theodore Roosevelt stopped here during his 1903 Whistle Stop Tour (110 years ago!). Old photos show him standing at the back of the train right beside the Manhattan sign. The Depot was in operation for passengers until 1971 and freight until 1984 when it was finally closed. It was restored about five years An interesting story about the car is that in 1974 it was featured in a television commercial for Delco batteries. The battery was eleven years old, and when Delco found out following a letter sent by the original owner, they sent a film crew to make the commercial featuring the car. I wrote to Delco several times years ago to try to obtain a copy but never heard from them. The only items I have are some old slides taken when the commercial was being filmed. The Flemings (original owners) never saw the commercial on TV but had friends across the country that would call them and say, I just saw you and your car on TV! Mr. Fleming said that the day after the commercial was filmed the battery went dead! We are the second owners of the car which we have now owned for 21 years. I am a funeral director and my friends say Doug and Elaine Meloan 2012 Cadillac Grand National Castillo de San Marcos Fort Tour that I need to be buried in it. I reply that I would not waste a good Cadillac for that, but it better lead my funeral procession, just as it did when the original owner died!

10

11

12

13

14

15 From Jason s Garage This month we have a special Tech Article by John Leonard. Injecting Technology into your Cadillac By John Leonard A car buddy of mine bought this 64 Eldorado about 12 years ago. When he moved from Indiana to Tennessee, he offered it to us and we couldn t resist. The car was complete minus the 429 and turbo 400. Having restored cars since the mid 1980 s and performing EFI swaps in beginning in the mid 90 s, I tend to favor the Resto-Mod approach. Since 2008, I have been building these GM LS-series engine - transmission wiring harnesses. I knew I wanted the 64 to be totally drivable, anywhere at any time.

16 Why adopt this technology? Here are some thoughts Today s gasoline is junk, and expensive. The ethanol added eats away the inside of carburetor bowls and mechanical fuel pump seals. You get a lower first gear as well as an overdrive or two for improved mileage and performance. If you re on vacation or a power tour and a problem occurs, not only can you get parts at the local parts store, you can have them, or a GM dealership, plug in the scan tool for a quick diagnostic check. Engine parts are widely available. An all-aluminum version subtracts around 300 pounds from your car versus the 429. In the 1990 s the EPA did what they could to take zinc out of our motor oils. We lost cam lobes on flat tappet hydraulic lifters. These engines are all roller-cam. Fewer parts. No mechanical distributor, no cap or rotor. No coolant in the intake manifold to leak. Say you change the differential ratio or a tire size; you can correct the speedometer with a simple program. The ignition timing adjusts automatically for octane levels. Altitude changes are also automatically compensated for. The best advice I can offer is to get the engine, transmission, computer(s) and the electronic gas pedal from the same donor vehicle. Secondly, never buy an engine without the front accessory drive on it. This is how junkyards hide bent crankshafts from front-end collisions. Yeah sure, everything in their yard has 30K miles on it. Power up the car and check the odometer if possible. We won t buy engines unless we can verify mileage. The truth never changes. Without overloading you with technological babble, there are two basic GM LS-based operating systems. These systems are centered on the reluctor wheel that is indexed and pressed onto the crankshafts. If the crankshaft sensor plug is black, it reads 24 inputs per revolution. If it is grey, it reads 58 inputs per revolution, which is the current operating system. The crank sensor plug is right above the starter towards the back of the block. If you are considering the GM LS transplant please know that there is a vast amount of misinformation on the internet. When you consider that all the necessary peripheral parts cost the same whether it s a 5.3- liter iron block or a 7.0-liter and you realize that the older technology is more expensive for computers,

17 modules and pedals, the cost gap narrows. Our reason for performing these swaps is extreme drivability under any conditions; just like a new car, but with style. Turn the key and go. When an LS conversion is performed on any classic vehicle, almost always, the front accessory drive needs to be changed as well as the oil pan. No matter the engine. This one, at the moment, has the truck oil pan but we might change to the Mast Motorsports oil pan for added ground clearance. The accessory drive here is the Holley setup using a 2000 Corvette P/S pump, Camaro water pump, and a Sanden A/C compressor to fit the Cadillac.

18 I shaved the exhaust manifolds to a Trailblazer SS LS2 of their aluminum guards and they fit very well. You can look at Wikipedia for the GM RPO LS engine codes if you want to. It can be confusing for certain. Some engines and transmissions will not communicate. You can t have a mechanical throttle with these new 58X operating systems. You can t have a 6-speed automatic or variable valve timing with the older 24X systems. Variable Valve Timing (VVT) retards the camshaft timing at lower RPM s for added torque and advances cam timing at higher RPM s for added horsepower. The aluminum block variants typically have higher compression ratios and use less fuel. However, the newer cylinder head designs also flow better and are more efficient than LS1 or gen3 truck heads. In our car, I opted for a 6.2 liter L92 sourced from an Escalade. This is basically a LS3 with VVT. This is a 6L80E 6-speed automatic. I cut the transmission tunnel out for fitment. Not much tweaking is necessary but a 4-speed automatic (4L60E-4L70E) wouldn t require tunnel modifications at all.

19 In this picture the (E38) engine computer is shown mounted out of sight on the driver s side of the firewall. The weather tight, made in USA, fuel pump relay is located in the recess where the throttle linkage used to be. The plug towards the bottom controls the cooling fan relays. Plans are to make a smooth firewall cover to hide the wiring and wiper motor etc. There s a fairly big gap between the firewall and the back of the LS engine. I built this harness in the car and used existing holes in the cowl to pass the wires thru. The accelerator pedal is current generation Corvette to communicate with this ECM. It is a very easy gas pedal to modify and make it look however you want it to Corvette Engine mounts were swapped side-to-side to locate the new engine into the 63-4 Cadillac frame. All LS engines have a mirror image 4-bolt pattern for mounts on each side of the block. Thank you to all the club members! Thanks to Jason Edge and Russ Austin for the parts and their expertise. Call if you should need a wiring harness or an engine and transmission. All of our engines are aluminum block, higher compression versions. Feel free to me with questions or like us on Facebook. Jleonard.chevypro@yahoo.com or Modern Vintage Systems Central Indiana. John Leonard

20 Until Next time Happy Motoring