Update on the last couple problems.
1. The valve cover gaskets do not leak anymore. The Moroso blue gaskets are like gold. I love these gaskets and have them on the tranny pan too. I stll have a little oil leak somewhere, but not sure where. Still chasing that,but I need to clean up hte blow back before I can further detect.
2. Sanderson Headers are working great. I had to retorque these after 200 miles and most bolts were loose. They also built the pipes knowing that I would lift the motor upwards about 1/2". When I started that lift there is plenty of clearance around the firewall. I am really digging these headers.
3. The current problem is the motor mounts. I bought two Moroso shim kits and used most of the thick plates for a 5/8" lift. This appears to give me the clearance I was looking for over the steering linkage. But, I am having trouble getting the motor aligned properly. I need to do more research on how to do this properly. The shop could not get my car in, so I decided to try it myself. Another stupid idea, but now I am all in. I did manage to get the passenger side mount aligned and two bolts are in. I think this was the wrong path to take. I think I should have lifted the motor and attached the shims and mount to the motor then try to lower into the single carrier bolt. I need to research this. Does anyone know the preferred way to install motor mounts without removing the motor??? The tranny is connected, but the mount is loose.
Oil Pan Damage-11 Here is a look at the shim stack. I painted them all back, then used super glue just to line up the holes to make install easier. There are four plates. The two thicker plates are on the outside and the two thinner plates are inside the sandwich.
Oil Pan Damage-12 Here you can see the layers and total stack height of 5/8" Now I am ready to move forward with lifting the car, then I used a jack under the oil pan with a 2x4 to push the motor up. Bolts removed of course.
Oil Pan Damage-13 Oh, crap. I was not expecting this. So the new Summit Racing Polyurethane mounts have a plate with a dimple. This allow the plate to lock into the proper position on the mount, but I cannot stack the shims on top without a modification. So, the easiest solution seemed like using an angle grinder to create a negative dimple in the shim stack.
Oil Pan Damage-16 This added an hour to the project, but came out fine. I painted them black and now ready for the install.
Oil Pan Damage-17 Here you can see a wood block under the oil pan. The motor is lifted and you can see the damage to the oil pan. The steering linkage has zirc greese fittings on the lateral sides of the tie rods. These were apparently punching the oil pan and caused these indentions. I removed the fitting from the passenger side and replaced it with a cap. The driver side fitting was alreadyh broken off. I tried to remove the remains, but could not extract it. So, it will stay as is. I can't think of what else to do.
Oil Pan Damage-18 A closer look at the driver side damage.
Oil Pan Damage-19 A closer look at the passenger side damage.
So, the next step is to try this again. I also learned that I can loosen the single bolt that connects the motor mount to the frame mount. This may giv eme more lateral movement so I can grab the motor which is backwards 1/2". I also think that if I just mount the motor mount to the bock then lower the motor I may have an easier time prying the motor from the back firewall forwards into the frame mount. I will give this a try next weekend. I am determined to get this one done. Not like I have much choice. haha.