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Ardun Motor Install - Meticulous MercAll The "Little" Jobs Ardun From the November, 2010 issue of Rod & Custom By Kev Elliot
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We're back at Wheeler's Speed Shop for the second month running to follow their buildup of a Merc woodie with a new, all-aluminum Ardun motor and modern 700-R4 trans. I'll reiterate what I said last issue in that this isn't so much a "how-to" but more of an overview of how the crew at Wheeler's overcame the packaging problems of squeezing the Ardun into the Merc's engine compartment. While the block is the same as the Flathead that the car was originally equipped with, those Ardun heads are extremely large, making this a very wide motor, despite its identical length to the stocker. Add in the associated complications of fitting a new front chassis clip, independent suspension, steering, and new ABS electric brake system, and making all the components fit in the same small space required some intricate planning and fabrication. The end result is an extremely neat build, beautifully finished, and we're sure, not a little inexpensive, both in parts and labor, but then some things are just worth having, whatever the outlay! I enjoyed watching the project come together, and picked up a number of tips for future use on my personal projects, as I'm sure you will too. Here's how the guys at Wheeler's Speed Shop wrapped up the install with brakes, oil pan, headers, and exhaust.  Here's where we left off last...  Here's where we left off last month: with all the heavy fabrication done, the Fatman clip tacked in place, along with the modified crossmember. Note all the inner and outer fenders and gravel pan are in place as are the bumper brackets and bumpers, to check for final fit before the Merc gets torn down for the last time.  The heater motor housing and...  The heater motor housing and air ducting required substantial re-working to clear the massive cylinder heads and retain a factory appearance. A large diameter elbow will be fabricated to join the two.  The stock brake pedal was...  The stock brake pedal was modified to pivot on this fabricated bracket in order to actuate the new master cylinder.  Once the clip was removed,...  Once the clip was removed, this small recess was let into the top of the crossmember to allow clearance for the lower universal joint on the steering column.  While the front clip was at...  While the front clip was at the powdercoaters, there were plenty of smaller jobs to be completed, not the least of which being this bracket to mount the master cylinder from ABS Power Brake. Note the residual valve also mounted to the bracket on stainless brake lines.  With everything final welded,...  With everything final welded, the Fatman Fabrications clip was removed from the chassis. While usually it would be welded permanently at this juncture, the Merc's chassis was powdercoated for the first build, so the clip was sent out for powdercoating prior to welding in place. Once welded, the areas around the joints will be blended with paint.  Once the front clip was powdercoated...  Once the front clip was powdercoated it was welded to the chassis, the joints ground smooth and primed before blending with paint. The areas where the original trans crossmember was removed were also painted.  With the chassis work completed,...  With the chassis work completed, powdercoated, and painted, final assembly could begin. Here, the electric ABS master cylinder and accumulator are installed and plumbed with stainless lines.  Through-frame fittings were...  Through-frame fittings were used on each side of the chassis to route the brake lines to the front calipers.  Assembly of the Fatman front...  Assembly of the Fatman front suspension could now begin.  With all parts either powdercoated...  With all parts either powdercoated or stainless steel, care was taken during assembly. Note the use of rags to prevent scratches during the process. Here Andy Humenik is removing part of a spring compressor required when installing the coils.  One of two causes for the...  One of two causes for the slight delay in progress (the other being waiting for the 700-R4 trans to be powdercoated and rebuilt) were the front hubs. While the Wilwood aluminum hubs are faultless, the owner wanted to retain his 5-on-5 1/2-inch early bolt pattern wheels, and the Wilwood hub was of insufficient diameter to allow re-drilling to suit. New hubs will be machined for the car, but were not finished prior to our deadline, hence the bare steel "roller" wheels used on the front for the remainder of this story.  With a jig fabricated to where...  With a jig fabricated to where the oil pan was bolted to ensure the mounting surface remained flat, reconstruction began. The first attempt was to retain the fins on the whole bottom surface, but the finned sections weren't long enough (arrow) and would require labor-intensive fabrication.  We showed you the beautiful...  We showed you the beautiful cast finned aluminum oil pan from Ardun Enterprises last month, and how it was going to require modification to fit this application. After measurements were taken to ensure it would clear the crank and rods, a Sawzall was used to remove sections that could be reused. The front part of the lower sump for instance was relocated farther back.  The final result features...  The final result features a V'd lower section to clear the crank, lending some character to the finished article, while saving on labor time and still looking like a cast piece. Once it was welded and ground smooth, it was blasted with coarse media to give a cast appearance. Mission accomplished!  Installed in the car you can...  Installed in the car you can clearly see how the oil pan is notched at the front to clear the steering rack, and how it now fits above the dropped crossmember.  Here's how the stainless steel...  Here's how the stainless steel exhaust looked at the beginning of this project. Most of the front section would be removed from the mufflers forward.  With the dummy block in place,...  With the dummy block in place, along with all ancillaries, like the starter motor, shifter arm, brake pedal, oil pan, and oil lines, header fabrication could start. New collectors were joined to the old system using V-band clamps (arrow), available from companies like Deeds Engineering or Dynatech, which provide a leak-free joint that can be removed and reused indefinitely. A temporary jig was used to ensure both collectors would be at similar heights and then header construction could start.  This is the driver side header...  This is the driver side header almost completed. Fabricated from sections of mandrel-bent stainless tubing, each tube was welded and ground smooth during installation. The tubes will now be sent out for polishing before they're welded to the header flange and collector, then polished again. This way no welds will be visible on the tubes themselves, and they'll be polished even in between the tubes, impossible to do after they're assembled.  Looking up at the driver side...  Looking up at the driver side header flange, you can see how the tubes exit the heads vertically. They'll be welded inside the flanges. The masking tape is holding everything in position during fabrication.  Almost too nice to install...  Almost too nice to install in a car, the all-aluminum Ardun is a work of art. The polished ribs on the valve covers are replicated on the air cleaner, while a PowerGen alternator mounts in the stock Flathead location. Even the oil fill tube is a ribbed Ardun piece.  When fabricating an exhaust...  When fabricating an exhaust system, especially headers, it's vital that all other components are in place, such as the external engine oil lines in the previous picture. Likewise, ensure that components, such as the starter motor, can be removed and replaced without having to remove the headers. That's why the header tubes on this side curve away from the engine.  This is where we leave the...  This is where we leave the project, as it's still awaiting its new trans and front hubs, plus some minor work such as the heater, which may now be changed for an A/C unit inside the car.  With the headers nearly completed,...  With the headers nearly completed, the system's almost done. You can see the new forward section of the system, with the mufflers left where they were before. A new crossover section was added just aft of the trans pan. The headers vary in shape from side to side in order to clear the steering shaft and starter motor.  The water inlets on top of...  The water inlets on top of each head were reduced in height. That's a stock piece on the left.  While he may have opted for...  While he may have opted for a vintage (albeit brand-new!) motor, the Merc's owner had run vintage carbs on his old blown Flathead, and this time opted for a Demon four-barrel. Ardun Enterprises offers this four-barrel manifold to suit the Ardun, which features separate flanges, as a one-piece intake wouldn't be removable, owing the engine's "overhanging" cylinder head flanges.  New top water "hoses" were...  New top water "hoses" were fabricated from stainless steel. Is this going to be one clean installation or what?
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