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I got both the '02 and '11 washed today thanks to the nice 70 degree day in PA in loving march! Got the inside of the '11 all cleaned up as well. I also decided to swap the all-seasons back on the '02 and shelve the snow tires. Winter is dead.
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Mar 12, 2012 05:15
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DogDodger posted:I had big plans today. I was going to change the oil in the TT and my girlfriend's Mini, and put the summer wheels on the TT. Thanks to this, however, the only thing I accomplished was changing the TT's oil and tearing the hell out of my arms and knuckles. I can't tell if you did it or not, but for an oil filter that just will not come off, the working solution I've found was to get a screwdriver and a hammer and impale the screwdriver through the filter and use that for more leverage.
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Mar 12, 2012 05:39
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Rorac posted:I can't tell if you did it or not, but for an oil filter that just will not come off, the working solution I've found was to get a screwdriver and a hammer and impale the screwdriver through the filter and use that for more leverage. I've seen this just turn into the even worse situation of having a piece of mangled, oily shrapnel stuck to the side of your engine.
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Mar 12, 2012 06:13
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Guinness posted:I've seen this just turn into the even worse situation of having a piece of mangled, oily shrapnel stuck to the side of your engine. This is always what as happened to me. The solution has just been to use one of those chainsaw chain scary bastard strap wrenches to remove it, and then just only do the oil myself from then on. Strap wrenches shouldn't be sold without a 2 day training course in why they should never be used to screw on oil filters.
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Mar 12, 2012 07:01
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More stupid stuff removed with a lot of this happening  but at least I can see the exhaust manifold now! (It comes off tomorrow)  [edit] All this discussion about oil filters makes me glad they're so easy to change on rotaries (hurr durr because frequent oil changes pee pee poo poo it is on the top of the engine) MiniFoo fucked around with this message at 07:12 on Mar 12, 2012 |
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Mar 12, 2012 07:06
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MiniFoo posted:[edit] All this discussion about oil filters makes me glad they're so easy to change on rotaries (hurr durr because frequent oil changes pee pee poo poo it is on the top of the engine)  It's up there to make the frequent oil changes easy.All this talk about oil changes makes me glad that the oil filter on my Jeep's 4.0 isn't encumbered by any intake/exhaust shenanigans and doesn't even drip on the suspension when I take it off  .
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Mar 12, 2012 07:26
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EightBit posted:
 Also, I don't know whether to put this in the stupid questions thread, but for those of you that have paid for powder coating (as in, didn't do it yourself), what kind of price would I be looking at for this pile of metal? I'm getting a quote in a couple of days, and supposedly it will include masking and media-blasting/cleaning, but I'd like to be somewhat mentally prepared for the bill. 
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Mar 12, 2012 07:39
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Spent some quality time on the Ranger this weekend - yesterday, pulled all four wheels and inspected things. Confirmed that I need new upper balljoints (which means control arms, they're one piece), new lower balljoints, a set of wheel bearings for the right front (there's slack in the hub and the parts are so cheap it's not worth trying to adjust the ones that are in it), all four shocks, and a full rear brake job (shoes and all hardware). The shoes are pretty worn but are clearly not autoadjusting because it looks like most of the recent wear is at the very tips at an angle. I manually adjusted it and suddenly the parking brake stops it from rolling backwards too! Today, I used it to sell some speakers for $250, and then turned around and threw that money into buying all of the above parts. Thanks to Rockauto and Amazon, I'm in for just under $300 for all of it.
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Mar 12, 2012 08:07
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bull3964 posted:I got both the '02 and '11 washed today thanks to the nice 70 degree day in PA in loving march! Got the inside of the '11 all cleaned up as well. I also decided to swap the all-seasons back on the '02 and shelve the snow tires. Winter is dead. In '97, we poured the concrete for my grandma's sidewalk (house to driveway, about 60 feet), signed our names in it, and wrote the temperature and date in there too. 79 degrees on January 5th, about an hour west of Philadeplphia. PA has loving screwy weather some years. Splizwarf fucked around with this message at 18:28 on Mar 12, 2012 |
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Mar 12, 2012 18:23
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Rorac posted:I can't tell if you did it or not, but for an oil filter that just will not come off, the working solution I've found was to get a screwdriver and a hammer and impale the screwdriver through the filter and use that for more leverage. Thanks. I contemplated doing this, but I was having trouble finding an angle that would net both good leverage on the screwdriver and space to swing the hammer. The filter isn't in a real friendly place. You can see it in about the center of this picture, just below the ribbed cable:  You have to go at it from the bottom, and once you remove the belly pan there are a few flexible hoses to move as well as a rigid structural hose that connected the two SMICs.
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Mar 13, 2012 00:33
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Mercedes mega maintenance begins now.  Are you a mann enough dude to maintain el presidente?
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Mar 13, 2012 00:39
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New shocks and struts on Saturday, new tires yesterday, new fuel injectors today. Still need to iron on the busted speedometer on the e30 though.
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Mar 13, 2012 00:43
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bull3964 posted:I got both the '02 and '11 washed today thanks to the nice 70 degree day in PA in loving march! Got the inside of the '11 all cleaned up as well. I also decided to swap the all-seasons back on the '02 and shelve the snow tires. Winter is dead. This has been the warmest winter in my 12 years in PA. Not that I'm complaining, as this whole week in central PA is supposed to be around 65 degrees.
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Mar 13, 2012 01:04
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It's the same here in Minnesota. Well, today it was raining and 55, but tomorrow it'll hit 70 as well. I'm loving it. What I'm not loving, however, is this goddamn exhaust: It's completely free from the chassis, including the manifold. I can't drop it down intact though, because not only does it wrap itself over the axle housing in the rear, but the heavy iron manifold won't clear the steering bar/idler arm/ball joint up front. The combination of the two means that I'll need to man up and deal with this rust.  Naturally I'll just try to separate the cats from the intermediate pipe, since I'm replacing the front half of the entire system anyway...  Oh. Looks like I'm getting a new intermediate pipe. At least I have more room to work. Three hours later:   gently caress this poo poo, I'm buying a Sawzall.
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Mar 13, 2012 04:50
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Installed a rear bar on my new Mazda2. That's right, a rear bar on a torsion beam.
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Mar 13, 2012 05:02
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Phone posted:Installed a rear bar on my new Mazda2. That's right, a rear bar on a torsion beam. How long have you owned your Mazda2? What are your thoughts on it? I took one for a test drive today but didn't really get to put it through its paces, salesman was with me.
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Mar 13, 2012 05:04
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I've had it for almost 2 months now and it's been pretty good. I bought it because I desperately needed a daily driver that wasn't giving me issues (see: my Miata). I've talked about it most in the Fiat thread and said that if I was in the market for a cheap, no frills car to drive, I'd look at the 2. Funny how that works out. Here's a crosspost from my local car club: quote:The dash has a lot of textured plastic, but there aren't miles and miles of it and it isn't postured in an offensive way (see: Ford Focus). The clutch feels good, the steering is spot on, and the brakes are boosted the proper amount. It has no power and is actually slower to 60mph than my Miata, but it doesn't feel slow unless if you're staring at the tach and expecting to feel the non-existent torque throw you somewhat into the back of the seat... it was almost like driving a Honda. The rear seats are easy to get into and there is some leg room for normal sized people. The car is super engaging and fun to drive. On paper it loses out to a bunch of other cars, but the Mazda2 seriously has passion behind it; other cars in the segment just don't have it. I've been averaging 33mpg mixed highway/city and it's been trouble free so far. If I had to have one complaint about it, it would be the super soft engine mounts that sometimes make me miss a shift; however, people have upgraded to one that is harder and while it makes the shifter engagement more positive, it also vibrates the entire car. I think you'll see the differences more clearly if you do a back-to-back test drive with other cars in the segment: Fiat 500, Versa, Fit, the Kia one.
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Mar 13, 2012 05:18
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I just wish that the U.S. had the 3-door version too, because it looks so much better.
MiniFoo fucked around with this message at 19:00 on Mar 13, 2012 |
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Mar 13, 2012 05:33
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MiniFoo posted:It's the same here in Minnesota. Well, today it was raining and 55, but tomorrow it'll hit 70 as well. I'm loving it. What I'm not loving, however, is this goddamn exhaust: I have to do something like this tomorrow. My rear exhaust hanger broke apart in several pieces due to rust and I had to ziptie it up the hanger mount to get to work today. Rust 
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Mar 13, 2012 07:10
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Oh hey there VQ30DE power steering pump, gently caress YOU for being such an obstinate bitch to put on.
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Mar 13, 2012 07:12
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MiniFoo posted:gently caress this poo poo, I'm buying a Sawzall. I read through your whole post thinking "why doesn't he just get out the Sawzall? It's a tool that everyone should have, especially if you are going to turn a wrench on an exhaust system. Please follow up your post telling us how mad at yourself you are after you get the Sawzall and have the whole thing dropped in 5 minutes.
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Mar 13, 2012 12:14
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EVERYWHERE 
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Nodoze posted:I have to do something like this tomorrow. My rear exhaust hanger broke apart in several pieces due to rust and I had to ziptie it up the hanger mount to get to work today. Sounds like it's already fixed.  Hey, you know what won't rust away into dust? Zipties.
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Mar 13, 2012 13:09
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MiniFoo posted:It's the same here in Minnesota. Well, today it was raining and 55, but tomorrow it'll hit 70 as well. I'm loving it. What I'm not loving, however, is this goddamn exhaust: Something looks very very wrong here. 
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Mar 13, 2012 15:30
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Looks like a stitched together panorama.
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Mar 13, 2012 15:56
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I just thought it was a Raptor!
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Mar 13, 2012 16:11
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Changed the Tensioner on my 1999 Saturn SL2 in march without freezing my hands off. <3 Central PA's weather right about now.
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Mar 13, 2012 17:28
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IOwnCalculus posted:Spent some quality time on the Ranger this weekend - yesterday, pulled all four wheels and inspected things. Confirmed that I need new upper balljoints (which means control arms, they're one piece), new lower balljoints, a set of wheel bearings for the right front (there's slack in the hub and the parts are so cheap it's not worth trying to adjust the ones that are in it), all four shocks, and a full rear brake job (shoes and all hardware). The shoes are pretty worn but are clearly not autoadjusting because it looks like most of the recent wear is at the very tips at an angle. I manually adjusted it and suddenly the parking brake stops it from rolling backwards too! I hate to be the bearer of this news... but MrRebates can get you 6% back on Autozone purchases 5% back on Advance Auto, and 5% back on Auto Parts Warehouse, among many others. I went with the Moog upper control arms on my Ranger and they're doing great so far. What ranger do you have? In mine the front wheel bearings are part of the brake rotor, I just waited until I needed brakes to swap the wheel bearings out and it was no problem.
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Mar 13, 2012 19:03
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I couldn't justify the Moogs yet, compared to the cheap-as-poo poo option even the replacement balljoint only is more expensive than the whole arm. The number one goal of this Ranger is to be cheap, cheap, and cheap again, which so far it's done quite well. And on the pricing...Autozone wants $98+tax for the Dorman upper control arms for my Ranger. Rockauto and Amazon have the exact same part for about $40 shipped. I'll have the one from Amazon at my doorstep today or tomorrow, and the one from Rockauto by the end of the week. My Ranger is a '98 2WD four-cylinder, so I also have the wheel bearings integrated into the rotor (as opposed to a separate hub like the 4WD trucks). The PO did the front brakes not long before I bought it, though; I can still clear-as-day read the Monroe label on the back of the pads, and it looks like he had replaced the left-front wheel bearing at the time, judging by the blue grease. Too bad he didn't do a good job hammering the drat dust cap on so I had to throw some more grease in there and hammer it on properly. I'm into all of those parts for right about $300 total.
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Mar 13, 2012 20:01
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Splizwarf posted:Sounds like it's already fixed. And it's gonna stay this way for a little while. I have to drop the exhaust to get at the opposite side hanger mount since it's blocked by the battery box from the right, and the muffler from the left. So if I have to drop the exhaust I might as well just upgrade it true AI style
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Mar 13, 2012 20:12
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Gave my MX-5 a wash for the first time in far too long. The drivers side sill is starting to look bubbly.  Phone posted:Installed a rear bar on my new Mazda2. That's right, a rear bar on a torsion beam. I miss my old Seat, it had an almost solid rear beam and no front sway bar. Thing could cock a rear wheel better than a Golf and would lift-off oversteer on roundabouts. *E* If I remember right you could also get a real sway-bar to strap to your rear beam that had a "sway-bar" already welded into it.
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Mar 13, 2012 20:13
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I've seen plenty of pictures of Mazda2s tripoding with just a rear sway bar. The Racing Beat one is a 4 U-shaped brackets, 8 bolts, 8 locknuts and resides inside of the torsion beam.
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Mar 13, 2012 22:27
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opengl128 posted:Looks like a stitched together panorama. Ding ding. meatpimp posted:Please follow up your post telling us how mad at yourself you are after you get the Sawzall and have the whole thing dropped in 5 minutes.   I took a lot of pictures today, and some funny stuff happened too. Maybe I should just make a "build" thread, even though it's kinda boring.
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Mar 14, 2012 01:43
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MiniFoo posted:Maybe I should just make a "build" thread, even though it's kinda boring. Yes please. Fixing cars is never boring.
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Mar 14, 2012 05:46
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The funny thing is that it wasn't really that broken to begin with. Actually, it wasn't broken at all, just rusty. Actually, that's pretty AI, now that I think about it. ... ...I'll start making the thread. 
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Mar 14, 2012 06:29
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Sold my YJ! I'll miss it, but it's a meager sacrifice compared to the A3/335/god-help-me-why-am-I-even-considering-a-minivan that will end up in my driveway as soon as I'm done with my Genesis Coupe. Now I just have to resolve the internal debate of whether I'd rather cart my kids around in an SUV with nearly 100K miles while I get a kickass new DD, or put them in something new, safe and more reliable (and make my wife happy) while I bite the bullet for a year, trudging around in a boring DD while saving for a pristine 260/280Z. PCJ-600 fucked around with this message at 21:05 on Mar 14, 2012 |
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Mar 14, 2012 20:58
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"More safe" comes in smaller and smaller increments every year. What's the SUV, and how old is it?
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Mar 14, 2012 21:07
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Splizwarf posted:"More safe" comes in smaller and smaller increments every year. What's the SUV, and how old is it? 2006 Mitsubishi Endeavor - it's been really great in an appliance kind of way, and other than routine maintenance I've had one $100 repair in 6 years, a faulty O2 sensor. It's a little small with 2 child seats in the rear and all the peripheral kids' equipment, not to mention the lack of entertainment packaging and updated electronics. It's also getting just a little ratty around the edges. Both options are appealing since with a van I'd get a nice cruiser for road trips and eventually hit the nostalgia button with an old Z, but on the other hand, there isn't any good reason the SUV couldn't continue to serve well as a family car for a few more years, and I do put in about an hour a day in a car and would like to have something I really enjoy. I just worry about the possible eventual breakdown happening when there's a real emergency or children involved versus happening to me where I could diagnose or deal with it much more easily. PCJ-600 fucked around with this message at 21:37 on Mar 14, 2012 |
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Mar 14, 2012 21:32
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Rear bumber I'd like you to meet this tree stump. Tree stump I'd like you to say hello to my rear bumber. Oh, you two don't play nice.
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Mar 15, 2012 01:48
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PXJ800 posted:2006 Mitsubishi Endeavor - it's been really great in an appliance kind of way, and other than routine maintenance I've had one $100 repair in 6 years, a faulty O2 sensor. It's a little small with 2 child seats in the rear and all the peripheral kids' equipment, not to mention the lack of entertainment packaging and updated electronics. It's also getting just a little ratty around the edges. That's still a relatively modern, safe vehicle - there isn't any reason to believe its going to leave you stranded any time in the near future.
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Mar 15, 2012 09:16
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tobu posted:Rear bumber I'd like you to meet this tree stump. Tree stump I'd like you to say hello to my rear bumber. Back it up 'til it sounds expensive! (bumber?)
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Mar 16, 2012 00:03
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