Roadkill Garage Season 6 Episode 64 Bang-Shifting Cougar and 2 New Projects!

Roadkill Garage is back with an all-new season, and in this episode, titled "Bang-Shifting Cougar and 2 New Projects!", the team takes on not one, but two new projects. The first of these is a 1967 Mercury Cougar, which had been fitted with a Ford 429 V8 but was let down by sloppy workmanship. The engine had been put back together without proper torque specifications, leading to a knock that the previous owner couldn't diagnose.

Steve Dulcich and David Freiburger get to work on the Cougar, analyzing everything from the carburetor to the spark timing. They find that the carburetor had been fitted with a mistaken jet size, which was causing the engine to run lean. After fixing that issue, they check the timing and find that it's way off. Once that's set correctly, the engine runs smoothly... for about two minutes before it starts knocking again. It looks like there's a persistent issue in the valvetrain, so they'll have to tear the engine down to diagnose it properly.

While the Cougar is on hold, Steve and David move on to the second project: a 1963 Chevrolet Nova that they've dubbed "The Alley Rat". The Nova had been fitted with a 400 small-block Chevy engine and had been raced for a long time, but it had been sitting idle for a few years. The team faces a number of challenges with the Alley Rat, starting with a rusted-out fuel tank that needs to be replaced.

They also find that the engine has a broken rocker arm stud, which is causing a loud tapping sound. The team changes out the stud but discovers that one of the pushrods is bent, which they suspect is due to the previous owner using the wrong length pushrod. After replacing the pushrod and testing the valve lash, they find that the engine still isn't running great. This time, the issue is traced to a faulty valve spring, which they replace, and the Nova is finally running like it should.

With both projects back on track, the team turns its attention back to the Cougar, but it turns out that the valvetrain is going to need more extensive work than they can manage on the show. They decide to send the engine out for professional rebuilding, but before it leaves the shop, they decide to test out a four-speed manual transmission that they've been trying to source for the Cougar. The transmission, which they scored from a 1977 Ford F-150, turns out to be a perfect fit for the Cougar, and Steve spends some time banging gears around the parking lot.

In the end, the Roadkill Garage team comes away with two successful projects: the Alley Rat is running great, and the Cougar is now poised for a whole new level of excitement with its newly installed manual transmission. Fans of the show will love watching Steve, David, and company troubleshoot their way through these projects, and the new transmission is sure to delight those who love old-school muscle cars. It's just another episode in the long-running and beloved Roadkill Garage series.