I finally get excited about getting my 79 ready for registration for January 2009, so, after sitting in my garage for 5 years, no battery and no way to start her I decided yesterday to put some fuel in her and a battery and crank her over, she cranked for about 10 seconds and then fired in to life, a testament to the 350 SB, I was happy.

Then I put my foot on the brake, put her in gear and drove her out in to the daylight, this is when the problems began to appear.

1. Virtually no pressure on the brake peddle, lines full of water most likely.
2. Just about every seal in the engine and transmission leaked almost all fluids in the last 5 years. Transmission is nearly empty, red fluid all over the ground under where she sat. Engine front and rear leaking badly, green radiator fluid leaking from around timing chain cover once pressure built in radiator.
3. Put it over the pit to see damage and found every suspension rubber is perished beyond functional use in the front end.

Where do I start? I guess i have to ......

1. pull the motor and transmission, strip them and seal them all back up again.
2. Bleed brakes and hope no pitting of slave cylinders.
3. May as well detail the engine bay while it's empty.
4. Full set of neoprene throughout the front suspension.

Any other thoughts before she goes on the road????

Cheers, Dennis.

 

Yep, thats a good start. Bleeding the brakes ain't gonna get it tho, flush them, rebuild the calipers if nt pitted and replace the rubber hoses

 

Be careful - you're going to run into the "while I'm at it" problem very soon...

 

My '77 had sat for 6-7 years when I bought it. After having gone through this once, here's what I would do in this order.
1. Fix the brakes. Don't waste time rebuilding or replacing the calipers one at a time. They are all going to leak after you have driven it a week or two. Ask me how I know this? Just go ahead and replace the calipers and rubbers hoses now and be done with it.

2. Transmission and power steering leaks. Although mine hadn't completely emptied like yours has, I would still try adding some Lucas transmission and power steering additive to each one, top them off with fluid, then drive it a week or two and watch for leaks. Mine leaked a little at first, but have since stopped. It's worth a try.
3. Coolant leak. Tricky. Could be radiator hose, water pump, or radiator itself. I would top it off with coolant and drive it some to pinpoint the leak. You say it looks like it's leaking around the timing cover. I found out with my car that when the motor is running and the fan is turning, it's hard to pinpoint the exact source of the leak. Takes time. I thought my radiator was leaking when it actually turned out to be the water pump was worn out. You say yours is leaking around the timing cover, I would guess a bad water pump.
4. Worn out rubber in the suspension. Only one fix. Replace 'em.
5. After sitting unused for 5 years, I would go ahead and replace the radiator hoses and all the belts, just for piece of mind.
6. One other note on the transmission. I would drop the pan, put in a new gasket, and refill. That pan gasket may be part of your leak.
Good luck, hope this helps some.
Kenny