Compression test results

By the way, rear brake drums for this thing are a PITA. Most things on this car have been easier to find than on my other AMC's, but not the drums.

O'reilly's told me they were already at reject, but I'm going to verify that for myself because I've seen a lot of drums not measured correctly.

I'm taking it to the car show this weekend heck of high water. I'll turn those old drums even if they're beyond reject just to limp it 1/4 mile to the show field.

Fortunately the manifold gaskets can be ordered and here today.

Welcome to Kansas. If you don't own a Chevy or Ford, you're SOL.

FSJunkie wrote: Choke heat tubes are kind of buggered up. Both tubes are seized into the tube that goes through the exhaust manifold and the inlet tube is broken. Tried to get the internal tube out without removing the manifold an only succeeded in destroying a couple of screwdrivers. Don't ask how... Ended up removing the whole intake and exhaust manifold assembly, which basically required removing everything else on that side of the engine. Several manifold bolts were completely loose, and the exhaust manifold had no gasket. Exhaust damper is in great shape, however. One of the studs that bolts the two manifolds together sheared off in the exhaust manifold and is sure to give me fits to remove it. Welcome to Kansas cars: EVERYTHING is seized solid or completely rotted away. I hate the blasted Midwest... I can kill several birds with one stone now I guess. I can replace my rotted choke heat tubes, new manifold gaskets, and paint everything nice and pretty. Should run a lot better.

I have NOS 232/258 choke heater tubes - the ones that go into the exhaust manifold to heat the air for the choke. I have a piece of cold rolled I turned down so that it fits into the tube and has a shoulder that rests on the top edge of the tube - the OD is the same as the tube OD, just a tad smaller. I can then drive the tubes through and not have them buggered up and getting stuck.
I use the same tool to install the new ones. I used to work on tons (LOL - probably literally now that I think of it!) of the AMC 6's. It's what many of our customers had since it was an AMC dealership shop I had worked in.
So I needed to know those things inside and out and work quickly on them. I have since lost the quickly part, though.   Be sure to follow the book on the reinstallation of the manifolds.... otherwise you risk some, well, cracks as worst, leaks at best - and things might not show up on day 1 if there's a problem.

When you have vehicles that show you the current MPG right along with the other stuff displayed on the dash, you can find out real quickly what driving habits have the most impact. We've pulled 29 MPG on our 2014 Grand Cherokee. Typical since my wife learned of that display is 24 mpg - commuting.
You'll find that the best MPG is between 55 and 60 for many vehicles. Some do best at 45-55 mph.
It depends on the shape and weight, etc. 
We have to keep in mind how the wind resistance increases with speed - it's not a straight line by any means - once you get to a certain point even a little faster really increases the forces against you.
My Eagle - with 4.0 and me driving it has done 30 mpg commuting. BAD mileage for it is 18, that's with me on the Interstate - let's not discuss the top speed of an Eagle here..... or for how long you can maintain it.
I get a typical MPG with the little Eagle in the mid-20s. My 68 with a 232 used to do low 20s.
Consider the Eagle sits high and catches a whole lot of wind in the undercarriage, has a profile similar to some modern SUVs and is heavy for a 6cly car of that era. I believe the SX/4 is 3200 pounds and the wagons a bit more, something like 3400? Where a Javelin or Hornet or Gremlin with the 6 and a stick is more like 2700 or so. Geesh, 500 pounds difference! AND Eagle people are pushing against extra friction, too.
Tells me that a 2x2 AMC with a 6 should easily get mid-20s if properly tuned...........
Some of the simple tricks - keep the air from catching under the car against the rough undercarriage - it's meeting a lot of resistance there and the turbulence is a factor as well.
That's one place spoilers and ground effects come in handy.

farna wrote: It's not just Kansas... it's really just OLD cars! All states seem to be about the same, especially metal parts that got a lot of heat. Heat opens up the grain structure of the metal and actually accelerates rust. That's why exhaust manifolds and cooking grills rust so quickly. It could be worse, if you're in snow country where salt was used extensively...

Good point. Exhaust gases are corrosive anyway. Many times I heat the manifold studs before I even try to loosen them.

billd wrote: If you've ever observed where rust forms on even body parts where there has been heating or welding - a bare metal part can remain 'unrusted' to the naked eye for months - but if part of that is heated say by a welder or torch, let it sit and see where the very first visible rust forms... around the heated area. The rest may remain relatively 'unrusted' to the eye. I have a PERFECT example in my shop now - a deep dent was removed via torch and cold water and then dolly and hammer. The torch/cold trick shrunk the metal "by the book", and the panel though bare metal had no rust at all - except that one spot. Heat also allows more chemical reaction with the water molecules in the air - all of which goes with farna's explanations.  If you want to accelerate most reactions, apply some heat.

yes, and that's also why welds rust faster than the unwelded metal.