Hi everyone, sorry for the long gap in between posts. But it's been mostly because I've been having so much fun actually driving this thing around now that it's out of it's 3 month cocoon. I took it to an exhaust shop the Monday after it started up and I checked for leaks and did a short test drive. I got a Magnaflow muffler and mandrel bent 2.25" piping installed for a reasonable price. It's still a bit buzzy for my tastes as the exhaust guy recommended Magnaflow for the quietest 4-cylinder with a header. I still thinkg the Flowmaster Delta 50 or 60 would have been better, perhaps I need to revisit a resonator in the near future. I will reevaluate once I have the soundproofing and carpet in (still bare metal floors and panels), but with the windows down at near-WOT, it's pretty buzzy. No pictures of it yet, I'll have to grab some this weekend.

So the weekend I got it back, it started a blazing hot 2 weeks of 90+ heat and humidity in the Northeast. But I think I spent 4+ hours each day that first weekend just driving. Was able to get it washed which was nice. And the only issue after all that disassembly/reassembly, was a slight leak on the lower radiator hose. I think it was because it was my first experience with silicone hoses and I didn't realize how much you needed to actually crank down those clamps. So I stopped in a Pep Boys parking lot, took out my ratchet set and crawled under. Fixed. Still no leaks.

The next weekend I had a music festival way up in the Catskills, a 250 mile drive each way on the NJ Turnpike, Thruway, etc. Again, it was going to be very hot, 95+ and I was a bit nervous about hitting those roads in that heat for that distance. But I decided to drive and aside from it being unbearably hot as I haven't gone about getting the parts to re-install the AC, it drove like a champ. I was surprised that I was able to cruise at 70 MPG in 5th no issue, and even 75-80 without much struggle either.

So, I'm going to be taking a bit of a break from doing work to actually enjoy the truck. Next steps are to start the rest of the soundproofing, in preparation for installing the carpet. I also am waiting for the upholstery to come in so I can get the seats redone.

One little project, I got some OEM mudflaps off eBay in pretty good shape, save for the white lettering. So I repainted those, matte clear coated as well. I was very careful, using 3m green automotive tape and an eXacto knife, but they came out great: