This vote is for you! Big up for owning your dreamcar!
Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!! I finally own my original dream car, an AMC Javelin! Granted, it’s the 70 Mark Donohue that have always intrigued me, but this will do, as it can be a 73 Trans Am Championship car (which was a dealer-ordered fender decal). It’s a 1973 AMC Javelin SST. Trans-Am Red, Black interior with White vinyl high-back buckets. 360ci V8 with a 4Bbl and dual exhaust. 727 Torque-Flite transmission, full length console with a floor shift. Power brakes, front sway bar, power steering, and electric wipers. Mods so far: MSD Coil, K&N open-element air cleaner, 1970 high-flow non-emissions exhaust manifolds, 2.5” dual exhaust with Hooker Aero Chamber mufflers and downturns, KYB shocks, Weld Rodlite wheels with BFG radials, and a factory AMC front disc brake swap. Project costs: Car: $250 Transportation: $150 Solenoid & cables: $36.49 Remote start & ignition switch: $25.93 Plug wires: $24.72 Tune-Up parts: $100.72 Points & coil: $75.39 Air cleaner: $33.99 Brake lines: $168.32 Water pump, etc: $168.84 Wheels & Tires: $400 Fuel pump, hoses, shocks, etc: $181.72 Turn rotors, rebuild calipers: $52.00 Brake hardware: $34.40 U-joints and starter button: $78.63 Transmission and differential service: $212.01 Drums: $77.90 Mufflers: $152.00 Exhaust: $188.83 Optima: $169.09 Battery Return: -$66.01(CR) Oil change & wipers: $78.96 Lug nuts: $57.62 Spacers: $25.00 Total: $2676.55
Here’s the Optima I had to buy to make it through the autocross. This stupid …
The big news since the autocross is that my original alternator was dead (which killed …
Even though the Javelin still has teething issues, it really does drive well. Plus I …
So we had the car on jackstands before our run group went to decide on …
Well it can make it around a course! Nothing has broken, nothing is leaking, and …
Can you believe that less than 10 weeks ago this thing drove for the first …
More time, more drives, more miles. Just driving this thing on mundane trips, like here …
That same wheel is horribly sized for the front, however. The 285 is the absolute …
In preparation for the upcoming autocross, I borrowed a good friend’s Enkei RPF-1 from his …
When you look at pictures of just the Javelin, it looks massive. In reality though, …
On a drive home from work I started to get a growl, then a squeak, …
My lighting problem came and went and came again, and I finally traced it down …
We’ve all seen that commercial. Old dude in a Camaro, it overheats, he stops for …
The new exhaust collector gaskets needed to be tightened as well after a few miles, …
I started with the squeaky belts. They stretched as they wore in, so I had …
Suddenly the Javelin’s brake lights went out, and then the taillights and parking lights followed. …
Now that the Javelin is running and driving, it’s time to start putting some miles …
Do you see the busy road on the left? That’s I-5. I don’t like that …
After the show and cruise I ended up taking the Javelin to work nearly all …
And the first stop after the new exhaust? Why the parts store, of course! Actually …
With the new manifolds in I was finally able to make it to the exhaust …
The original exhaust manifolds on the Javelin had EGR provisions, which are these tubes that …
My Javelin got picked as one of the cars featured in Popular Hot Rodding’s annual …
I was tired of the outside looking like absolute trash, so I spent a day …
Now I can finally drive this project places, like to work! It’s still loud (no …
Lots of vacuuming, de-carpeting, scrubbing, de-molding, etc, etc got me to here… You can ride …
The rest of the front suspension finally arrived! My special welded LCA’s got damaged beyond …
The passenger door didn’t even open when I got the Javelin. It took longer than …
After a thorough scrubbing of the door panel pieces and a coat of 303 Aerospace …
Don’t be afraid of interior upholstery! After fixing the plastic inner piece’s cracks with JB …
Of course the main reason for popping the door panels was to rebuild the innards. …
The next item on the list was to rebuild the doors. I started with the …
Trip three was to the local repair shop staffed by some good friends. They are …
After getting some gas in the car (trip 2!) I decided it was high time …
Here’s what 5 quick minutes of hand-rubbing with a mild polish got me… I do …
Well if you watched the first drive video, you know the brakes were dragging. The …
With the Javelin out in the sun it was time for another pressure-washing. Goodbye mold, …
And there we have it! The first drive under it’s own power since 1986!!! Video …
The jackstand test of the transmission shows movement in both axles and all four (including …
The original duals have had it. Both mufflers were completely rusted out and both pipes …
With the correct spacers for the booster in hand I completed the brake rebuild/upgrade with …
It took a lot of unloading and cleaning, but here’s the bare trunk floor. There …
Yes, these are the original 1973 Oregon plates. Don’t be fooled by the “98” registration, …
And boy was it full! Two tires, a wheel and tire, and a wheel, plus …
This took way longer than it should have, but I finally got the right combination …
And I finished off by finishing mounting the spindle, caliper bracket, and dust shield on …
The new K&N filter is in and some general cleaning and maintenance performed. I want …
Then the problems started! The new water pump has a different shaft and snout compared …
The new GM-style alternator I have from a Wagoneer won’t work on my Javelin without …
I kept going on the engine today. The thermostat has been replaced, and I’m glad …
Yes, I painted my calipers bright red. It’s my car and I’ll do whatever cliche’s …
I removed the original water pump while I was doing the fuel pump for better …
Time to start attacking the front brakes now. I cleaned, sanded, and painted the various …
With the drums completed on both sides, I polished up the new Welds and mounted …
With the correct wheel cylinders in hand it was a snap to get the drums …
I cleaned and painted the power steering pump off of the bracket and reinstalled it. …
The new shocks are KYB’s. Not anything fancy, but since the suspension is stock right …
The shock tower hats/mounts are re-installed all cleaned up. The old Monroe shock is on …
Since the rear was up on jackstands and everything was apart, I blacked out the …
When I had the Javelin delivered the right rear axle was frozen solid and the …
The master cylinder, brake booster, and some of the lines are removed. Threading in the …
I took the front shocks out to replace them and cleaned and painted the mounts …
I also ordered up a new aluminum water pump, thermostat, some gaskets, and that K&N …
All the suspension parts (sort-of) came in! I’ll explain; I wanted to get a spare …
Got the fan and pulley cleaned, sanded, primed, and painted. Cleaned the spacer bracket as …
The roof primer is holding up well. There’s no bare spots or rust besides a …
The front plate mount was large, steel, mangled, rusty, and heavy, none of which are …
Since I was already there I decided to pull the original 55 amp alternator out. …
Now I’ve got some good access to the front of the motor. Obviously I need …
I have a seriously bad habit of going “while I’m in here” with this car… …
I also managed to start the coolant system rebuild. The old coolant actually looked really …
The grill header panel is finished and reinstalled. The driver’s fender needed a little tweaking …
This weekend was the giant swap meet at Portland International Raceway and the Portland Expo …
That wraps up the primer-thon for now. I removed the tape and I’ll let it …
After hand sanding or wire brushing in the channels, using compressed air to spray all …
Unfortunately, the a-pillars are rotted out. This is very common in cars this old, and …
An hour or so later, and many sheets of 80-grit gone, we had a somewhat …
One of the reasons all these little jobs take up so much time is that …
The bracket then got coated in the original semi-gloss black. Every little bit helps on …
Even though the Javelin came from a dry area and has minimal rust, there’s still …
One of the next little jobs on the Javelin was to restore the throttle and …
We had a freak snow storm drop 12” in 24 hours this January, which was …
The last thing to do to the control arms was weld in side plate supports. …
I also finally got around to scrubbing, sanding, and painting the wheelwell on the driver’s …
Here’s a spare pair of front lower control arms that came with the brakes. What’s …
I was finally able to get to the brake assemblies that my Dad sent and …
Part of the reason progress on the Javelin has been so slow is that my …
And with that I cleaned and painted the hardware for this side and installed the …
I finally got around to the Driver’s side valve cover and the numbers on this …
It may not look like much, but this metal and tarp contraption will allow me …
I finally started making some progress on the other side of the engine! The intake …
So the Javelin hasn’t been worked on much (at all) lately, because I’ve been getting …
Another box from Santa (my Dad) came in containing everything I need to restore the …
I celebrated July 4th by firing the 360 up and letting her turn some gas …
Not the most exciting update, I know, but the broken lens would have failed the …
Now that the battery tray is solid and rust-free I was able to reinstall the …
The new battery tray is now installed with new hardware. Since the fender/framerail metal was …
I kinda hate to admit it, but my motor is only 1/2 clean and shiny… …
I have to confess, I was nervous about this. See, there was supposed to be …
Well one box contained a new power booster, a master cylinder, a radiator hose, a …
There were some heavy boxes left on the doorstep, I wonder what they could be?
That’s why! After a few hours of cleaning, degreasing, scraping, and vacuuming, I was able …
These are reproductions of the decals originally found on my engine. Usually you got either …
The inside of the engine is amazingly clean! There was no varnish or sludge in …
I’ve slowly been able to de-grease the engine and get it repainted it’s factory EN66 …
The battery tray bolts to the inner fender apron, and mine was pretty solid underneath. …
I can’t help it. Old American V8’s are probably the only truly pretty motors out …
The first shipment of goodies has arrived! This is one of the many cool parts …
I also took the spindle off of the passenger front. You can see there’s a …
After much cursing and hammer beating I did finally manage to get the drum of …
Well work on the Javelin ground to a halt. Between Mother’s Day activities, making family …
So I did! I hand-scraped the majority of the gunk off, took a wire brush …
The Javelin is actually pretty clean underneath, but every car could use a good scrubbing …
Well yes, the actual trim molding will come off too, but right now I’m talking …
Now that the Javelin is a confirmed runner I need to start focusing on other …
While the suspension is no doubt tired, it should be OK for the inspection to …
The next step to getting the Javelin totally operational is to change the brakes. The …
After running up to temp again the old oil was drained. It actually looked pretty …
This is how it’s fueled for now. Basically, I have no idea what kind of …
Yesterday the Javelin got started again, she fired right up. The engine was run for …
So after months of trying, buying and swapping parts, testing things, and generally working my …
Hmmm, coil didn’t do it (even though the old one tested bad). Only one thing …
So after an off weekend to start autocrossing, it’s back to the Javelin! First up …
Yes, that is another new solenoid. I’m 99% sure the other two are actually fine …
Whilst chasing down the still no-start issue it was pointed out that grounds could be …
We got hammered with a snowstorm last week, and then again on the weekend. Hours …
Okay, a recap. The Javelin now sports the following new parts: battery, battery cables, ground …
Still had a no-start situation with the Javelin, so I grabbed a new ignition switch …
Here’s the new starter in place, with new cable. This old car is a joy …
Okay and a few hours later, everything is installed! We are really close to trying …
All eight spark plugs were then pulled both to assess their condition and to spray …
Now that the long, cold, and rainy winter is nearing being done I’ve been able …
This simple looking device is an AMC V8 engine priming tool. My grandfather actually machines …
This is the original Motorcraft 4 barrel carburetor. First time it has seen the light …
Did a little cleaning today and some more inspecting. The interior should clean up nicely! …
First off, under the hood. I shop-vac’d up all the dirt and mouse poo and …
This vote is for you! Big up for owning your dreamcar!
Big iron bucket-o-awesomeness. You sir, have made me a fan of Javelins.
How is the brake job coming along?
Not well. No issues with the brakes, issues with me having time to work on the car :(
Hey Javelin, when you swap out the control arms for the boxed set do you have any plans for the old ones if they aren't trashed, I'd be interested in them so I can get the rebuild started on mine.
The before and after picture of the motor is jaw dropping. Great job with it!
I miss this thing sometimes. Then I remember all the rust in the roof from the vinyl top.
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