Gnx X-ray

[X Ray]

Well for me, today was like the first day of spring in Michigan …..It was sixty degrees and I was able to work on the Buick. Worked on removing the headliner and replacing the material as it started to sag : …the removal process went nearly flawless except for the fuse I blew when removing the dome light (yea I know always disconnect the battery)… as you all know if you have done this before it is not hard but it is time consuming because of all the parts that need to be removed.
I actually received one bit of good advice that helped for removing the foam backing from the substrate. Richard Clark said to use a garden hose with high pressure for its removal. This process worked fairly well but I also used an ice scraper on the wet foam...I spent approximately two hours getting the headliner strip to the condition you see in this picture.
Now all I need to do is get some good headliner material ….I purchased material from e-bay but the color does not match close enough for my taste, so now I am looking. I actually found a sample of material from a local trim shop but found out it was discontinued. Any help would be appreciated . I also plan on re-trimming the sun visors.
Well today was the car…. tomorrow the yard ….do I have to?! Regards Rick

Well the headline and re-trimmed sun visors are in ...so I got carried away and decided to put in the new carpeting while I was at it..... besides half the trim was already out.....next project DRIVE..... Regards Rick

[jmidolo]

Originally Posted by X Ray

Well for me, today was like the first day of spring in Michigan …..It was sixty degrees and I was able to work on the Buick. Worked on removing the headliner and replacing the material as it started to sag : …the removal process went nearly flawless except for the fuse I blew when removing the dome light (yea I know always disconnect the battery)… as you all know if you have done this before it is not hard but it is time consuming because of all the parts that need to be removed.
I actually received one bit of good advice that helped for removing the foam backing from the substrate. Richard Clark said to use a garden hose with high pressure for its removal. This process worked fairly well but I also used an ice scraper on the wet foam...I spent approximately two hours getting the headliner strip to the condition you see in this picture.
Now all I need to do is get some good headliner material ….I purchased material from e-bay but the color does not match close enough for my taste, so now I am looking. I actually found a sample of material from a local trim shop but found out it was discontinued. Any help would be appreciated . I also plan on re-trimming the sun visors.
Well today was the car…. tomorrow the yard ….do I have to?! Regards Rick

Well the headline and re-trimmed sun visors are in ...so I got carried away and decided to put in the new carpeting while I was at it..... besides half the trim was already out.....next project DRIVE..... Regards Rick

Looking good as usual Rick. You planning on attending BG this year? First year I will not be staying at the Hampton..but I'll be there.

[novaderrik]

another quick question about the headlight bucket thing:
how does jamming more air into the engine bay make the fender vents more efficient? isn't the whole point of the vents to help to draw more air thru the intercooler core and radiator core by giving the air an extra escape path, thus cooling the pressurized air in the intercooler and coolant in the radiator a few more degrees before entering the engine?
how does jamming more air in the engine bay- behind the intercooler core and radiator- help accomplish this? then, of course, there is the extra front end lift and drag from having all that extra pressurized air in there..
don't get me wrong- it's an awesome car- but i personally think that by doing that, you managed to undo some of what the GM engineers did for the aero package of the GN and GNX. if the GM engineers had wanted more airflow under the hood around the radiator and intercooler, they would have left a way for the air to get in there.

[jsta6]

I can't imagine how this would affect the air going in to or out of the intercooler? I think it would be infinately better to use a trashcan / scoop to force air in to the intercooler than it would be to use the fender louvres to draw air out.

It seems to me that you are letting more outside cool air to get in to the engine bay to help cool the entire engine bay area. Else, the air would just get pushed around the car if the regular headlights were left in place.

I have also heard that it was good for a tenth in the 1/4 ET to let air come in through the headlight bucket (also seen gains for the FWD 3800 regal and GP crowd).

Additionally, you can gain a tenth or two by removing the weatherstrip on top of the cowl at the back of the hood.

[X Ray]

The though had had was to simply help remove the hot air out of he engine compartment ……the performance minimal at best….I think it looks neat, given it a 1960,s race car theme….. your correct it probably not that affective….regards rick

[novaderrik]

Originally Posted by jsta6

I can't imagine how this would affect the air going in to or out of the intercooler? I think it would be infinately better to use a trashcan / scoop to force air in to the intercooler than it would be to use the fender louvres to draw air out.

It seems to me that you are letting more outside cool air to get in to the engine bay to help cool the entire engine bay area. Else, the air would just get pushed around the car if the regular headlights were left in place.

I have also heard that it was good for a tenth in the 1/4 ET to let air come in through the headlight bucket (also seen gains for the FWD 3800 regal and GP crowd).

Additionally, you can gain a tenth or two by removing the weatherstrip on top of the cowl at the back of the hood.

in order to jam more air into the intercooler, you need to be able to get air back out of the engine bay. it's all about the pressure differential across the core.
the air going thru the rad core and intercooler works on the same principle as any other fluid in motion- nature is always seeking a balance, so things go from high pressure to low pressure. one good way to increase flow thru the cores is to put vents behind them- which is what the fender vents do. but, by jamming more air into the engine bay that doesn't go thru the rad or intercooler, then you will get less airflow thru the cores, since there is more pressure built up in the engine bay behind the cores. all this air piles up under the hood, increasing drag and causing lift on the front of the car. the GNX fender flares sole purpose was to help to bleed off more of this excess pressure, and get more air thru the intercooler and radiator.
just watch a NASCAR race and watch how they play with the amount of tape on the grille and how it affects the cars. if more openings in the front of the car made the cars faster, then you can bet the NASCAR guys wouldn't block off as much of the grille as they can get away with. at high speeds, even a few square inches of extra opening on the front of the car can really upset the handling and speed of the car. of course, i doubt if XRay will ever go into turn 1 at Talledega at 190mph- or will it?- but i can say from my experience with my new beater 97 Cavalier that just by totally blocking off the grille in the front bumper i gained 2 mpg and the car feels more stable at speeds above 50mph, and my 74 Monte Carlo responded about the same when i blocked off all openings on the front of the car and just put a simple chin spoiler under the radiator support to jam just enough air up there to keep things cool. i've been thinking about making some custom blockoff plates to put behind the grille of the T Type just to see how it responds.

[JSTTA]

I would say it personal prefrence. I like it, and its time period correct if you think back to the 80's. Plus the car is famous , needs to be left alone and enjoyed! Nice car wish i had it!

[novaderrik]

i mostly pointed it out just in case someone comes thru and thinks "hey, that car has the middle headlights gone and it looks fast, so if i do it, my car will be faster, too".
i'm just pointing out that although it might look cool (which i think it does), from an aerodynamic standpoint it's kind of counter productive.

[X Ray]

Originally Posted by novaderrik

i mostly pointed it out just in case someone comes thru and thinks "hey, that car has the middle headlights gone and it looks fast, so if i do it, my car will be faster, too".
i'm just pointing out that although it might look cool (which i think it does), from an aerodynamic standpoint it's kind of counter productive.

Well said......

[rarperformance]

Hello Guys.
By the way Rick, I love the car. I'm origanally from Mich. I recently moved to Alabama. I have 3 TR's myself. Right now I'm doing a frame off restoration on a GN, Making a GNX clone in silver. I always had that idea and now going for it. I have all the parts except for a GNX turbo cover. Someone said they made copies, but I could never find one . If anyone could help, it would be greatly appriciated.

[JST A 6]

Originally Posted by rarperformance

Hello Guys.
By the way Rick, I love the car. I'm origanally from Mich. I recently moved to Alabama. I have 3 TR's myself. Right now I'm doing a frame off restoration on a GN, Making a GNX clone in silver. I always had that idea and now going for it. I have all the parts except for a GNX turbo cover. Someone said they made copies, but I could never find one . If anyone could help, it would be greatly appriciated.

Try here:

GNX PARTS NOS & OEM