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I'VE MADE A TERRIBLE MISTAKE. Details at 10.      
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Jan 16, 2016 02:41
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| # ? May 16, 2024 11:17 |
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Does that odo really read 33400?!
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Jan 16, 2016 04:09
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ShittyPostmakerPro posted:Does that odo really read 33400?! 334400.
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Jan 16, 2016 04:13
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Can't wait for the 
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Jan 16, 2016 04:18
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At first I thought it was just a brag about the mileage. Then I saw the light.
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Jan 16, 2016 05:09
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I don't usually do story time as I'm terrible at this, but this was just an odd adventure- so please bare with me. Last night I'm browsing the net and a fellow Rx-7 owner posts this link to a local Facebook group.  1994 Rx-7 R2 Twin Turbo, 5 speed, Lowish miles? Interesting. $3995? Must be a car lot or a scam. Blown engine? Yep. No title? Would turn most people away. The ad only showed a few profile shots. A missing or broken window, flat tires, and overall straight body. I looked up the number, it was a used car lot. At this point, my curiosity peaked and I reached out to a friend that was closer to the "seller". I asked him to call and find out the details. 15 minutes later, I new two things: 1) I was going to be driving 10 hours tomorrow and 2) I had to get it before anyone else. Now, I honestly had no idea what I was getting into. The "seller" only relayed what little he knew. The car was purchased at auction, did not run, had been sitting and had a a bill of sale from the auction/PO. I pulled the ad back up and started to scour the pictures posted. Even if it was just a parts car, I could make my money back. Well, that's what I told myself anyways, completely neglecting the fact I have exactly enough money to either buy this or build my 20B engine. I started calculating the risks associated with the trip. Our truck has 334k on it and a random misfire. Our faithful dolly has never had the wheel bearings repacked and the straps need replaced. The car had been sitting for years, who knows what shape the tires were in- especially for a 10 hour journey. Ironically, working at my real job was not a concern. Somehow, despite the above, it was still worth it. My mind went into overdrive, planning everything I would have to do the next day. I ended up falling asleep at 1:30am. At 6am my alarm went off. I got ready, loaded the truck, and hitched our faithful dolly. The journey up was uneventful. My stomach ached as I choked down a fast food breakfast. Tacoma/Seattle traffic was terrible as expected. It was right around Tacoma I realized I forgot two important things. 1) My compression tester, I ended up not needing it. 2) To let the seller know I was coming... In my scattered brain, I somehow forgot to call him back. I was 3 hours in at this point. I tossed back and forth the idea of just showing up, but finally decided it would be best to call. A random sales guy answered. "Yea I think we still have it over at the "old" lot, someone should be there". This was less then reassuring. When I finally arrived, I found myself at your typical run-down, buy-here pay-here lots. The yelp reviews tell a better story then I ever could. The lot was scattered with bottom tier used imports and domestics. I wondered around, finally finding the car parked behind the office. I was overjoyed, at least for a brief moment. I looked it over, finding a broken passenger door handle (common) and some random missing parts. The front and rear bumpers had been poorly resprayed at some point. As I popped the hood, the joy faded. I knew the car had sat, but I have never seen a car this rusty from sitting- except when around salt water. Two lot workers randomly appear. They were apparently cleaning out a small storage building near by and heard me open the car. They offer to find the keys so we can crank it over. They worry I won't be able to "hear" the compression, because they removed the spark plugs. It actually makes it easier. One of them volunteers to sit in the wet seat to crank the motor over... *wheeeeeeze-puff-puff*. Any lingering joy immediately turns to disappointment. The motors has little to no compression. I can just barely hear a slight puff-puff-puff from at least one semi-functional rotor, but it's dead Jim. A blown motor can mean a lot of things to different people. I had somehow convinced myself last night this one was most likely flooded. "Because we had it running at some point." Yea... I'm sure you did buddy. I'm soaked by the ongoing drizzle at this point. I ask the lot guy if he thinks his boss will take a offer. Yes. I lowball. Hard. I explain that the car is just trashed, basically good for parts. He agrees and calls his boss. He hands me the phone, he wants to talk. "Hey this is Boss X. I want to fill you in on the details of the car. I'm a huge fan of them and I bought it for myself. A neighboring lot was closing and I got it from the owner. It was in better shape, the window got broken out 9 months ago. They only stole the shift knob a strut bar. I really wanted to build it into something awesome. It does have a bill of sale from the auction it was purchased at, but I've never tried to title it. You might have better luck. My guy says you offered X. i know that's low, but we're in the middle of moving the lot and I need it gone. You sound like a good guy, it's yours. Lot guy will find you the paperwork." It was too late to turn back. I counted out the cash and handed it over to one of the lot guys. Concerned about the tires, I had brought a decent set of spares. The lot guys were nice enough to help me swap the wheels. They even offered to use a lot car to tow it, as the car was on a pretty good incline. One of the guys grabs a little Geo Tracker and all I can here is KNOCKKNOCKKNOCK. "Don't worry, it will be fine". As he pulled the car up the small hill, I heard the unmistaken sound of a metal under tray dragging. We jacked the car up and that's when I found it. Sand. Sand everywhere. Everything clicked. It's a flood damage car. The rust, the corrosion, the auction title. There were no signs of rust inside, so who knows how bad it actually is. I won't until it's on the lift. We get the car loaded and they find the paper work. There's no bill of sale, just a receipt from the auction. The owner won't answer. God drat it. At least it was cheap. Behind the receipt was a car fax: 1-Owner. Florida. Full records from 1995-02/2006 when it was declared a TOTAL LOSS. Florida JUNK TITLE ISSUED. Auction SALVAGE TITLE ISSUED. It's a Katrina car. gently caress. I part ways and head towards home. I remind myself this is still a killer deal. It's one of the straightest cars I've seen, probably garaged it's entire life. It's just not the diamond in the ruff I was hoping for. An hour later, I'm in Tacoma again. The trucks struggling. It starts misfiring bad. God drat it. I pull over and check it over. I know it needs a coil pack, but I have no idea which one. A few miles of straight misfires later, a code finally appears and it smooths out? I call a friend in the area, he's got a scanner and is home. Wahoo! As I merge off the highway, I notice the car behind me is staying way to close. Now's a probably good time to mention the battery died some time ago and the hazards on the car were now out, but the dolly lights were working. A few miles later, I approach the sharp turn in front of my friends house. I signal. I brake. I turn. BAM. The car behind me locks their brakes and rear-ends the Rx-7. I pull into the drive way and SCREECH. They drive off. Mother fucker. I check the car, there's just a small scratch and some spiderwebbed paint. We pull the truck's codes after I calm down. LEAN BANK 1. Great. That's super helpful. I decide to limp the truck to my parents in Olympia for the night. I post a picture on my Facebook and I get three offers for double what I paid. At least it was worth my time. Oh and my job? They laid 100 people off today. 1/5th our workforce. I wasn't one of them, this time- but who knows what will happen there next. I've spend the last bit reading through DMV laws and reviewing the paperwork provided. Unless someone here can answer some Florida title law questions, I won't know if I can title this thing or not. the spyder fucked around with this message at 06:01 on Jan 16, 2016 |
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Jan 16, 2016 05:44
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Holy poo poo, dude.  Welp, nothing left to do but tear the bitch apart and start fixing it. In my province, flood cars are branded as "unrepairable," but it sounds like at least this one is just "salvage," unless the junk title persists. Here's some guy trying to get a VA "for parts" title reversed out of state: http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/finance/1334588/ Ugh Katrina flood car Seat Safety Switch fucked around with this message at 05:53 on Jan 16, 2016 |
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Jan 16, 2016 05:48
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I'm really, really hoping the auction issued SALVAGE TITLE supersedes the JUNK title. Reaching Florida law, JUNK title haven't existed since 90~ so car fax could be wrong. I also can find no record of a COD which means there's a super slim chance I can get a salvage title. Join me for tomorrows adventure: Hot water pressure washers and NW burn wards.
the spyder fucked around with this message at 06:03 on Jan 16, 2016 |
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Jan 16, 2016 05:51
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Well, that's lovely. Or good? I can't tell. Didn't realize you were in the pnw, thought out east for some reason.
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Jan 16, 2016 06:40
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I've got a buddy here in Seattle trying to help a family sell their dead sons RX7. Do you know any specialists selling them. It's an FD, don't recall year with a fair amount of motor work and a hideous(to me) wide body kit in montego blue. Pretty sure it has been converted to single turbo but not certain.
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Jan 16, 2016 07:19
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I'd buy that LHD sweetness and rock it all over canada in the sea of RHD
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Jan 16, 2016 07:28
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If you can track down the actual florida title, it should mention on the title itself if it was a flood vehicle. Also, florida has 2 kinds of salvage titles, rebuildable and nonrebuildable. If its the second, florida law says it must be sold for parts only. Tomorrow I can call the local tax collector's office with any questions you have if you want, but I dunno how helpful they will be. Usually anything more than handing them money to renew registrations ends up as a clusterfuck.
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Jan 16, 2016 08:50
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Enourmo posted:334400. Yeah poo poo thats what i meant, hence the surprise 
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Jan 16, 2016 15:11
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Elmnt80 posted:If you can track down the actual florida title, it should mention on the title itself if it was a flood vehicle. Also, florida has 2 kinds of salvage titles, rebuildable and nonrebuildable. If its the second, florida law says it must be sold for parts only. Tomorrow I can call the local tax collector's office with any questions you have if you want, but I dunno how helpful they will be. Usually anything more than handing them money to renew registrations ends up as a clusterfuck. I have the title number. 0069385860 Have you called the DMV before? Our offices are terrible about answering the phone.
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Jan 16, 2016 16:25
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Maksimus54 posted:I've got a buddy here in Seattle trying to help a family sell their dead sons RX7. Do you know any specialists selling them. It's an FD, don't recall year with a fair amount of motor work and a hideous(to me) wide body kit in montego blue. Pretty sure it has been converted to single turbo but not certain. I do. I haven't seen it posted anywhere and there have only been a handful of wide body MB's in the area that I'm aware of. Either myself or my friend (who's house I was visiting when I got rear ended) can help. Have him send me an email. fd3sengineering@gmail.com
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Jan 16, 2016 16:27
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Small update: There's a good chance this is NOT a Katrina car. It was last registered in Key West and damage was not reported for 5 months after Katrina. I'm trying to find flood records for the area, but I've got a theory. The car's underbody and exhaust is covered with what looks like normal beach sand. I would bet money someone parked this on a beach and forgot about the tide. Haha. Guess I'll never know the real story.
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Jan 16, 2016 17:07
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And the pickup?
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Jan 16, 2016 17:20
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Commodore_64 posted:And the pickup? If it's the 4.6 new coils will keep that thing running for a long time. And I assume the plugs haven't tried to violently exit the engine. Which is a problem with these if a) you never change them or b) tighten the buhjeesus out of them. The 4.6 triton is such a better motor then the 5.4
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Jan 16, 2016 17:23
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I can't wait to see you tear it apart and build it back up 
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Jan 16, 2016 17:24
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SouthsideSaint posted:If it's the 4.6 new coils will keep that thing running for a long time. And I assume the plugs haven't tried to violently exit the engine. Which is a problem with these if a) you never change them or b) tighten the buhjeesus out of them. The 4.6 triton is such a better motor then the 5.4 It's a 5.4.
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Jan 16, 2016 17:43
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Ohh.. well that's the older style which I forget existed. When they changed the body style they changed the head designs in the 5.4 . Still a good motor I work on them at work all the time. One of my customers has four ford trucks of that vintage ranging from 125k to 300k like yours. It really depends on how you treat them. Regular oil changes and plugs at least every 100k or sooner and they just keep running. Except in the rust belt the manifolds become rust in months. And all the manifold studs are chooched in the block.
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Jan 16, 2016 18:12
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You are crazy and I love it
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Jan 16, 2016 18:19
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the spyder posted:It's a 5.4. If you look in the Panther thread, there's a brand of coils that supposedly re branded Motorcraft, I forget the name of them. You can get an entire set on Amazon relatively cheap, you might as well replace them all unless you've done a few already. [e] The brand is Visteon, apparently a European Motorcraft brand. Looks like Amazon doesn't offer them anymore but Ebay does. The MSD coils are really good too if you don't mind spending a little more. Also if that car was in the Keys or anywhere on the coast of FL there is a really good chance it was driven into the water on accident or on purpose, water surrounds roadways all over the place and people drive their cars into the water a lot. Applebees Appetizer fucked around with this message at 18:48 on Jan 16, 2016 |
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Jan 16, 2016 18:34
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the spyder posted:I have the title number. faaaaaaaart Have you called the DMV before? Our offices are terrible about answering the phone. As it turns out, ours are terrible at answering on a saturday too! Mostly because they are closed. (I'll call them monday for you, i've got the title number saved)
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Jan 16, 2016 19:00
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the spyder posted:Small update: There's a good chance this is NOT a Katrina car. It was last registered in Key West and damage was not reported for 5 months after Katrina. I'm trying to find flood records for the area, but I've got a theory. The car's underbody and exhaust is covered with what looks like normal beach sand. I would bet money someone parked this on a beach and forgot about the tide. Haha. Guess I'll never know the real story. Well this is good news at least!
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Jan 16, 2016 19:16
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Visteon is a Ford OEM supplier, they make everything from coilpacks to differentials. or more likely subcontract them all out to other firms specializing in each type of product, depending on how their business model works. But either way, they sell direct to FoMoCo. I'd say they are most comparable to being the ACDelco of the Ford world.
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Jan 16, 2016 20:08
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kastein posted:Visteon is a Ford OEM supplier, they make everything from coilpacks to differentials. Ah, ok. All I know from my Panther experience is that they are the only trusted "cheaper" coils other than OEM, and some people speculated that Visteon coils were just re branded Motorcraft.
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Jan 16, 2016 20:27
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Well. gently caress. Today's been an absolute roller coaster. This morning I woke up early and drove home from my parents in Olympia.  As I was prepping to leave, my dad looked over the car and noticed a sticker I somehow glazed over. This is amazing. It made my day. The fact the car was inspected at the salvage auction by the WA state police and issued a pass for a salvage title means I most likely can get a title.  I headed towards my friends shop to use his works hot water pressure washer. I asked my wife to meet me there with some rain clothes and planned on getting lunch from a local restaurant we used to eat at when I worked in the area. 15 minutes after I arrived at the shop, I got a panicked call from my wife. The car was totaled just down the street from our house. She had a sprained wrist and burns from the airbag. Our son was ok, but shaken. Seeing how the truck was attached to the trailer, we hopped in my friends ghetto Subaru and hauled rear end. It was at least a 45 minute drive, but we made it in 25. Here's what I arrived to.   A 86 year old lady ran a blinking yellow light and turned in front of my wife. She then panicked and threw the car in reverse, driving through the intersection and taking out the intersections signals- and hitting a parked SUV.   The police were super nice. The old lady was taken to a trauma center due to a head injury. On one hand I'm joyed the car is finally dead and amazed this is what killed it. On the other, it did it's job and protected my family. So, while my wife was being checked out at the hospital, me and my friend came home and waited for the police to drop off the accident report. Since I had a second set of hands and needed to distract myself, I tore the rear end out of the White 94.   The trans fluid looked clean ish. The diff was black.  Oh look, a tooth? Ugh. It will be getting a new diff.  After everyone came home with a clean(ish) bill of health. I went back to my friends shop to retrieve the truck and car. We spent 30 minutes and cleaned the car.       Just as I was leaving, disaster struct. We've known for years the straps on our dolly needed replaced. I could never find direct replacements and at some point planned to adapt the newer straps. I knew going into this trip they were weak, so I made sure to add the safety chain around the subframe. A strap broke was when I was turning around in the parking lot. The car rolled 1/2 way off the drivers side ramp and pinched the cars fender to the dolly fender. It was a tight corner and god.drat.it.   So, now I'm left with a softball sized dent in the fender. I unloaded the car, parked it behind the shop and headed home. I'm now sitting here with a nice glass of scotch.
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Jan 17, 2016 08:30
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That actually looks about average for the underside of a florida car near the coast. 
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Jan 17, 2016 09:32
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That dent blows, man. It could be a lot worse, and you said the paint was already not in the best nick, so I guess now you have another excuse for a respray? 
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Jan 17, 2016 10:02
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SouthsideSaint posted:Ohh.. well that's the older style which I forget existed. When they changed the body style they changed the head designs in the 5.4 . Still a good motor I work on them at work all the time. One of my customers has four ford trucks of that vintage ranging from 125k to 300k like yours. It really depends on how you treat them. Regular oil changes and plugs at least every 100k or sooner and they just keep running. Except in the rust belt the manifolds become rust in months. And all the manifold studs are chooched in the block. Stepdad has an 01 with the 5.4. The engine has been solid, despite him driving it for several years sans air filter.  (we won't talk about the intake manifold cracking) The transmission took a poo poo around 120k though, and the interior hasn't aged well at all. I blame that more on him being too prissy to get anything without leather, then refusing to take care of the leather.
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Jan 17, 2016 10:15
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Looks like you need to get it high up on the lift and pressure wash the gently caress out of the underside of it. But overall it looks like it's gonna be ok, how's the interior?
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Jan 17, 2016 18:16
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gently caress. I'm glad your wife is alright. Too bad about the dent.
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Jan 17, 2016 18:21
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Has anyone said "Mazda curse" yet? Sorry man, that's a poo poo run of luck.
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Jan 17, 2016 19:56
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Eh, I've had worse curses. Haha. I'm just happy everyone was safe and the nightmare Mini is GONE.
the spyder fucked around with this message at 04:09 on Jan 18, 2016 |
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Jan 18, 2016 02:54
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I slept like a rock last night. I ended up getting up at 9am, meeting the officer (who never showed up yesterday) at 9:30, and headed out to my friends shop. This time I took my trailer, which I should have used in the first place... Commodore64 came along. The cheap HF winch did a great job.  We stopped by a parts store on the way home and these will be invaluable working on this car.  Too many FD's!  Oh my. rear end-up face-down that's the way I like to... drain the tank. It STANK. There was only a quart or so of fuel, but it was RANK. I still smells.  Bleh.  Uhhh... why are the lower control arms bent? God drat it. I'm guessing this was from loading/unloading at the auction.  After we got it unloaded, we moved it to the shop. Since the White 94 is getting the rear subframe powder coated, it's occupying the lift. There's just enough room that I continually bash my head on the lift arms and tires... oops. First order of business was the disappearing coolant. I added water last night and it was gone today. Welp, here's the problem!  But it still leaked... So i pulled it further apart.  drat it. The radiator's shot.  Next up was plugs. I removed the throttle body and pulled the plug wires. The lot guys told me the plugs were removed, but I found the front plugs still installed. No wonder I only heard ~3 poofs (vs 6, one for each face of the rotor).  gently caress. The front plugs were rusted, which means the rotor and seals are rusted. Guess this motors coming out.  I found a few broken/missing hoses. Very common.   Oh look the key light works!  Regardless that the plugs were basically hosed, I still added Seafoam. It won't get it running, but it will make the teardown easier.  I fixed the passenger door handle, kinda. It's still broken, but opens now with just the right motion.  Next up was the drivers window. I had a piece of glass from a lot of parts I bought years ago. Much better .  The last thing we did today was toss the Dehumidifier in. It's already pulled a cup of water out of the interior. 
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Jan 18, 2016 03:20
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Sisyphus:Rolling rocks up hill as Spyder:Saving disaster FDs that no one else will. The question is what was your crime... Reminder, you still need to coming racing with me. Portland, June, think about it.
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Jan 18, 2016 03:26
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the spyder posted:Too many FDs! SACRILEGE
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Jan 18, 2016 03:30
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parid posted:Sisyphus:Rolling rocks up hill as Spyder:Saving disaster FDs that no one else will. The question is what was your crime... When? I'm in Japan in for 1/2 of June!
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Jan 18, 2016 03:33
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| # ? May 16, 2024 11:17 |
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Unf. I love this thread. There's always something cool going on. Your in the PacNW, right? Me and the spouse want to hit the area next year in June, though I hear the Portland Speedway has vintage indy car racing in June/July, can you confirm/deny?
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Jan 18, 2016 03:42
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