1987 Shelby Dodge CSX Build Thread

Tank ordered.

Found a tank for a decent price on Parts Geek's website.

I spoke to a local guy who also has a CSX, and he explained the differences in the two tanks (he went through this when replacing his a while back). The 1987 cars have a different tank ventilation system than the 1988-up cars. If I use the later tank, it will cause pressure issues.

I hope to have it up and running soon.

The new tank arrived!!!

It looks like it should work nicely, and the price was right. Also, the fuel lines were not as bad as I thought. They are rusty right around the tank inlet area, but I should be able to do some high pressure rubber line to the good parts and just use what's there.

I also have a deal worked out to do a straight trade or some more fuel system parts, including a Holley 225gph pump and some other odds and ends. I'm trading him some parts from a parts haul I got a while back. Once I get the pump, I will be installing everything and getting the car running.

I also tried my hand at welding a small patch by myself this weekend.

Yes, the welds are boogery (I'm using flux core) but it's attached to the car now. I did weld a bit more after taking the pic. Welding is fun!

SilverFleet wrote: Yes, the welds are boogery (I'm using flux core) but it's attached to the car now. I did weld a bit more after taking the pic. Welding is fun!

MOAR WELDING!

I know the joys of using flux core wire all to well on my Camaro project.

Keep up the good work.

In reply to t25torx:

Thanks! The whole reason I bought this car was to learn how to do this stuff for when my Trans Am goes under the knife. That car needs the front floors, door skins, a quarter patch, and some other odds and ends. It needs a fuel tank too. The funny part is that it's still in better shape than this CSX.

For rusty floors it can be a pain to clean all the rust, paint, and seam sealer on hard to reach places so I like using flux plus it’s cheap. It’s tough to make nice looking welds on 20 gauge steel but it works. This is the best I could do and it's still not pretty. Just keep at it and remember no one is ever going to see the welds after you grind them down and seal them.

Nice thing is when you switch to MIG you will feel like a welding god, lol. I think that if we were using MIG we would have spent more money on the cost of gas and wire then the purchase price of the car.

PseudoSport wrote: Nice thing is when you switch to MIG you will feel like a welding god, lol.

Too true. When I took the welding class and got to use a proper MIG, ZOMG you can make some pretty welds with that thing when you get it properly dialed in.

SilverFleet wrote: In reply to t25torx: It needs a fuel tank too. The funny part is that it's still in better shape than this CSX.

yeah sounds like you got your work cut out for you for a while. Atleast with the T/A you'll be able to replace the tank with a plastic one from a 4th gen, it's lighter and you won't have to worry about rust with it.

t25torx wrote:

PseudoSport wrote: Nice thing is when you switch to MIG you will feel like a welding god, lol.

Too true. When I took the welding class and got to use a proper MIG, ZOMG you can make some pretty welds with that thing when you get it properly dialed in.

SilverFleet wrote: In reply to t25torx: It needs a fuel tank too. The funny part is that it's still in better shape than this CSX.

yeah sounds like you got your work cut out for you for a while. Atleast with the T/A you'll be able to replace the tank with a plastic one from a 4th gen, it's lighter and you won't have to worry about rust with it.

Whoa whoa whoa, what is this about replacing the tank with a plastic one??? My car is a 2nd gen, a 1979. That's possible?

SilverFleet wrote: Whoa whoa whoa, what is this about replacing the tank with a plastic one??? My car is a 2nd gen, a 1979. That's possible?

Dude, my bad. I immediately think 3rd gen when I hear Trans Am. But.. I did find this bit of info for you about using a plastic tank out of a Caprice in a 2nd gen.

pro-touring.comwrote: 1. I used a heat gun and gently curved in the tank right at the differential. It was an easy and smooth process by applying some heat and then pressure to curve it in. 2. I cut the floor pan out of the Caprice that humps up to clear the fuel pump/sender location. I cut the Camaro trunk and made it to where the Caprice panel could be removed for quick access. 3. I used the Caprice straps hooked into the stock Camaro location in the rear and dropped new carriage bolts down from plates in the floor for the front. 4. I cut the metal part of the caprice neck shorter and made a simple quick bracket to get the filler neck in the right spot. 5. Running a Walbro 255 pump and using the stock Caprice sending unit on the Auto-Meter gauge. It is a tight fit but works great.

In reply to t25torx:

That's what I thought. I was planning on doing that to my old Camaro. I never got that far, because this Trans Am showed up in my yard and kicked it out. Wow... that was 11 years ago...

Coat that shiny new gas tank in spray-on bedliner. Seriously, it will protect it and actually clean up the looks of the underside of the car.

In reply to Sky_Render:

You know it! I think the new tank is powdercoated too.

In reply to SilverFleet:

Great progress man. Can't wait to hear that it is up and running

In reply to Billy_Bottle_Caps:

Thanks! I will be turning wrenches on it tonight and tomorrow. Hopefully by tomorrow, I will have the rest of my fuel system in my possession. I want to finish all the welding I need to do before installing it though. One thing at a time...

Another quick update:

I tested the fuel pump I pulled from the stock tank. I put power to it using my battery charger. It didn't kick on, so I confirmed that it's part of the problem. Good to know.

Also, another tip for those doing in-tank fuel pump stuff that involves submersible lines...

I just learned that if you use 30R9 hose (the stuff that they sell at Autozone) it will MELT over time when submersed in gasoline. I guess you have to get 30R10 hose, which is rated to be submersible.

Check this thread out on Turbo Mopar: http://www.turbo-mopar.com/forums/showthread.php?66378-30R9-fuel-injection-hose-doesn-t-belong-inside-the-fuel-tank!&highlight=30r10

This morning, I met with a local guy who also owns a 1987 CSX. He has had his since 1991, and has quite the horde of parts. We agreed to trade a NOS 1989-90 Shadow ES hood that I have from a parts haul I bought recently for a Holley 225gph fuel pump and assembly, a pair of complete Mopar Performance front strut assemblies, new fuel tank hardware and a fuel pump sock, and a roll of sound deadener. I tested the pump and it kicks on just fine. I'm not sure how this works budget-wise, but it was a straight trade. I can't use the hood on my '87 because the core supports are different, and he plans on buying a 1989 CSX soon, so he was happy.

I've already started to assemble the tank, and I am going to go grab some bedliner spray this afternoon to coat it before installation.

Now for some bad news... I found more rust.

I was getting ready to start making spare tire well patches when I noticed that there was another giant hole in the spare tire well under the anchor point for the spare tire. It's going to be nearly impossible to patch, so now I'm on the lookout for a junkyard car that has a good spare tire well. It will be easier to just cut it out and weld it in. I wish I could just cut the whole thing out and do a piece of flat steel over it, but I've been told that doing that messes up the airflow under the car.

I will be visiting some local yards toward the end of the week looking for another P-Body. Anyone know if other Chrysler cars of that era share the same tire well, like the Lancers, LeBarons, Spirit, etc?

SilverFleet wrote: I'm not sure how this works budget-wise, but it was a straight trade.

I thought if you traded take-off parts for parts, it didn't affect your budget?

In reply to Sky_Render:

That's what I thought too. It's not like I'm trying to cheat the system here. The hood is worth a lot more that the parts I got in return. I just couldn't use it and I can use the others.

Another update:

Pseudosport stopped by Saturday and we worked on the car some more. He finished up the front floors!

I still have some grinding, seam sealing, etc. to do, but it's nice to have solid metal there again.

We began working on the rocker replacement as well. More rust was cut out, and we started measuring up and mocking up the replacement panels. I hope to have those in place in the next couple weeks.

I installed the fuel tank parts to make sure they fit, and they do. I didn't have the chance to pick up any bedliner or undercoat spray this weekend, so I will be doing that in the near future.

Also of importance, I did some research on the fuel injectors that are currently on the car, which have been a mystery. I forget the part number off the top of my head, but they are in fact +20 injectors. With the "Stage 2" Logic Module, they should be good if I run an adjustable fuel pressure regulator, which I have (came with the car). That's one more thing I don't have to chase down.

Last weekend, I shot the fuel tank with some Bondo undercoating. I only did one coat so far, but it looks good.

I also went out last weekend to just about every local junkyard looking for a spare tire well for the CSX, but found only one Shadow and it was completely thrashed. The spare tire well was rotted and crushed. I really don't know what I'm going to do about fixing mine. I wish I could just cut it out and keep the spare in the hatch when I drive it, but from what I'm told, that creates airflow issues when you are going real fast down a track or traveling at highway speeds. I may have to resort to fixing it with fiberglass for now.

Also, another thing I have turned my attention to is looking for some new seats. While at the junkyards, I looked for seats and found nothing even remotely salvageable. Then, today, I remembered that I should probably check out my old Subaru stomping ground over on NASIOC to see if anyone is selling some WRX or 2.5 RS seats. Low and behold, I find a set of 2003 WRX seats in decent shape for $60! Not bad, right? It gets better.

My wife calls me on the way home from work tonight to talk to me like she usually does. Then, mid-sentence, she stops and tells me that there is a random set of seats on the side of the road. They where sitting in front of a house that I know well, because in the driveway, there is a beautiful late 90's World Rally Blue Subaru 2.5 RS as well as a late 90's red Volvo V70R, and I want both cars BAD. She stopped and snapped a few blurry pics (it was raining) and I told her to just snag them.

She came home with them and they have turned out to be mid 1990's Subaru Impreza 2-door seats.

As you can see, the driver's seat has some tears in the vinyl, but my wife wants to try and patch them up. The dilemma now is if I should also get the WRX seats too. I like these Impreza seats because they fit me nice and they are very close to the color of the rest of the interior.

Special Thanks to my wife. She is awesome.

If I believed in karma I'd say your luck is changing due to your good deed in fixing up this classic rust bucket, but then again you just found more rust too.

Giver your SWMBO a pat on the back, thats a great score!

In addition to those Impreza seats my wife snagged, I ended up picking up those WRX seats I mentioned before. They were in perfect shape, and I just couldn't pass them up. If there is budget left, then I will use them in the CSX. If not, they will go into my Trans Am later on.

So right now, I have a seat problem. The problem is that I have too many! Right now, I have all of these:

-1 factory CSX seat

-1 Omni GLH seat

-2 Shelby Charger seats

-2 Starion leather ESI-R seats (the good Starion seats, not the ones that look like an alien phallus)

-2 Impreza coupe seats

-2 WRX seats

If anyone local is interested, I'll part with the Omni/Shelby Charger seats cheap (like REAL cheap) and I'll sell the Starion seats too. I was saving them for my Trans Am, but they need to be reupholstered and I don't feel like doing that. Also real cheap!

I haven't turned a wrench on the CSX in a while, mainly because life has been getting in the way, but I did order some parts:

-4 spark plugs

-new timing belt

-fuel filter

-filler neck grommet

The filler neck grommet is for an '89, so I hope it works. They no longer make the ones for the '87 Shadow, so I figured this would be close enough. Once I get all of that stuff, and some high pressure fuel line at the parts store, I can install my new gas tank and see if the car fires up. Hopefully the rusty junk tank didn't hurt my injectors, because sourcing a set of CSX Stage 2 injectors won't be cheap.

SilverFleet wrote: I haven't turned a wrench on the CSX in a while, mainly because life has been getting in the way, but I did order some parts: -4 spark plugs -new timing belt -fuel filter -filler neck grommet The filler neck grommet is for an '89, so I hope it works. They no longer make the ones for the '87 Shadow, so I figured this would be close enough. Once I get all of that stuff, and some high pressure fuel line at the parts store, I can install my new gas tank and see if the car fires up. Hopefully the rusty junk tank didn't hurt my injectors, because sourcing a set of CSX Stage 2 injectors won't be cheap.

FFV injectors are a close replacement and cheaper to find. Plus you know, Ethanol + Da Boosts = Fun :)

turboswede wrote:

SilverFleet wrote: I haven't turned a wrench on the CSX in a while, mainly because life has been getting in the way, but I did order some parts: -4 spark plugs -new timing belt -fuel filter -filler neck grommet The filler neck grommet is for an '89, so I hope it works. They no longer make the ones for the '87 Shadow, so I figured this would be close enough. Once I get all of that stuff, and some high pressure fuel line at the parts store, I can install my new gas tank and see if the car fires up. Hopefully the rusty junk tank didn't hurt my injectors, because sourcing a set of CSX Stage 2 injectors won't be cheap.

FFV injectors are a close replacement and cheaper to find. Plus you know, Ethanol + Da Boosts = Fun :)

Yes, I know all about the FFV injectors. My friend just picked up a set for his TII-converted GLH. E85 is really tough to find up here in the Northeast, so tuning for it is not happening.

There is a place that I know of that sells straight-up race fuel though.