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Ripped the motor (and blower) out of my other SVT so I can finally get it out of my life and off to someone who wants the shell for a build.  
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Mar 1, 2020 04:37
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I wanted to see how many lights I could illuminate on the instrument cluster by choice. The answer was 9, although I know the low fuel light may be controversial.
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Mar 1, 2020 17:18
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StormDrain posted:I wanted to see how many lights I could illuminate on the instrument cluster by choice. The answer was 9, although I know the low fuel light may be controversial. For some reason, I thought the symbol under "MPH" was a duck.
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Mar 1, 2020 18:31
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StormDrain posted:I wanted to see how many lights I could illuminate on the instrument cluster by choice. The answer was 9, although I know the low fuel light may be controversial. I've definitely done this in all my cars at one point or another while bored in non-moving traffic.
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Mar 1, 2020 18:43
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 God drat whoever rightstuffed this bastard onto the motor is a prick. That took 3 dozen razor blades and a tiny hammer to get it separated enough to actually pry it off. Came away largely unscathed (purposefully working at the side that's nearly 2" away from a port) and it'll lap clean on a surface plate without a problem.
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Mar 1, 2020 21:35
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 Helped my brother do some prep work on his Land Cruiser today. Drilled a bunch of holes in his fender and a-pillar for the snorkel (you can sorta see it and the fender on the roof), pulled the hood, cowl, and passenger fender, and started a little bit of interior tear out. The whole truck is going to get bedlined in what should be a similar green to the factory color (the lower portion is already bedlined black) and then all new seals/weatherstripping installed. Then we get to fix his crashed Legacy 
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Mar 2, 2020 01:23
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I made assembly progress.   Oil seems a bit low however.  
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Mar 3, 2020 00:37
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Went back to my OEM headlights after having intermittent issues with the right headlight, and deciding that they're not quite bright enough. Might put en back once I get new bulbs, probably 5000k. I believe their current ones are 4300k. Old lights on the bottom. I like them aesthetically more, cant wait to get them back on. 
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Mar 5, 2020 00:47
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Changed oil on the wife's Corolla, but the real job tonight was my brother's Transit 150 rear brakes. I was worried when I learned the process involves removing the axle, but the real problem was compressing the caliper piston. No store in town kept a set that would go counterclockwise for the passenger side caliper, so we had to put the old rotor and pad back on while we wait for a proper tool to arrive by mail. Nothing quite like doing a job twice, especially when I have three other cars that need attention as well! No one told me what being a car guy is really about: frustration.
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Mar 6, 2020 06:18
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GOD IS BED posted:Changed oil on the wife's Corolla, but the real job tonight was my brother's Transit 150 rear brakes. I was worried when I learned the process involves removing the axle, but the real problem was compressing the caliper piston. No store in town kept a set that would go counterclockwise for the passenger side caliper, so we had to put the old rotor and pad back on while we wait for a proper tool to arrive by mail. What engineer thought that was a good idea?
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Mar 6, 2020 13:29
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C-Bangin' it 
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Got the oil analysis back from Blackstone for the Outback (it took me weeks to get it sent off.) Verdict: she's healthy! Everything within expected specs for the mileage on the car and the oil. Good to know!
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Mar 6, 2020 22:06
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Colostomy Bag posted:What engineer thought that was a good idea? If I ever find out, he's doing the job when the tool comes in!
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Mar 6, 2020 23:19
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But but but If I have to construct another thread for the passenger side I can't use the mirror command in CAD Oh the humanity.
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Mar 7, 2020 11:58
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Just a small addition; 440g Skunk2 shift knob for the S2000. Stock is 150g so this is quite a bit heftier. As a bonus the colors match the car perfectly. I have a couple other small detail items coming as well in the next few days but it’s nothing exciting. Just a new set of OEM red floor mats to replace my heel-worn ones, and an owner’s manual. 
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Mar 7, 2020 19:57
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Had to do the brakes on the Mazdaspeed3, figured I’d go a little extra this time around. Painted calipers red, put on stainless steel lines, slotted rotors, and Stoptech 309 pads. Also put in metal inserts for the caliper slides instead of the stock rubber ones. Took me all last weekend, but overall I’m pleased with myself, having never painted calipers or replaced lines before.  
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Mar 7, 2020 22:36
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   Finally getting this other SVT out of my life now that I've got the motor out, dude buying it is bringing a tow dolly now and in the process of checking out the rear end, broke all but 1 stud. Can't get replacement nuts because of these trash wheels so I had to extract them.
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Mar 8, 2020 05:26
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Mom's car (03 Avalon). Noticed a slight radiator leak 2 years ago, ordered a new Denso radiator. She never "had time" for me to to put it in before I moved, and kept finding excuses when I'd make appointments with my mechanic to get it swapped after the move. She smelled coolant last night on the highway, noticed a rapidly rising temp gauge, and proceeded to drive to the next exit, get off at the exit, sit through a traffic light, then finally pull into a parking lot, before shutting it down with the fans screaming and the gauge pegged. Probably ~10 minutes from the time she smelled coolant, so figure at least 5 minutes of the engine running with no coolant. Damnit mom. Hopefully she didn't pop the head gaskets. I know the 1MZ-FE is a tough motor, but she said the gauge would shoot up to full hot, then suddenly spike down to normal, then spike back up, etc after she got off the highway, which tells me the pump was occasionally sucking up coolant and shooting it through the rest of the engine (hello thermal shock). It's at the shop now, with the new radiator that I bought for her ages ago. They're replacing both radiator hoses as well, confirmed the radiator split one of the tanks open like goatse, but she doesn't have the money to pay them to do anything except shotgun the obviously broken stuff (it's not at my mechanic; he'd do it as a favor for me if I asked - it's at stepdad's mechanic). Fingers crossed that the engine survived unscathed, but with how far she drove with it hot (and the temp gauge jumping around as it'd occasionally suck up coolant), I'm betting the car gets junked. It's in fantastic shape otherwise, but between the miles (~210k), the evap issues, and the fact it's an 18 year old car with a bunch of miles, it's really not worth doing head gaskets on, or dropping a used engine in. The upside is she said it was still running fine, CEL wasn't blinking (it's been lit for 4 years for the evap issues though, and I'm not close enough to pull codes), and the tow truck driver drove it onto the truck instead of winching it. Fingers crossed the engine is okay. She's been actively looking for another car, but (a) she needs this one until then and (b) selfish as hell, but it was supposed to get added to the STR Fleet whenever she finally does get something else. It's a drat nice 1 owner car in fantastic shape, I don't want to see it get scrapped. randomidiot fucked around with this message at 19:40 on Mar 8, 2020 |
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Mar 8, 2020 19:29
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I'm surprised she wasn't thinking of using it as a trade-in (unless she was getting absurdly low trade-in figures for it). Meanwhile, I think I finally solved my little Northstar problem. 
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Mar 8, 2020 21:44
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Balliver Shagnasty posted:
Traded it in?
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Mar 8, 2020 22:14
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Balliver Shagnasty posted:I'm surprised she wasn't thinking of using it as a trade-in (unless she was getting absurdly low trade-in figures for it). She wasn't planning on trading it - I was supposed to get it whenever she finally decided on another car, but hard times happened, then stepdad decided he needed a brand new F-150 more than she needed a newer car (... he went to Aamco when the transmission poo poo on his F-150, then went back the next 4 or 20 times it poo poo itself over the next few months [it got 3 rebuilds in 3 weeks at one point], might have something to do with it). The KBB private party on it is ~$3k in excellent shape, KBB trade is <$1k. It's a 2nd gen Avalon, they hit the bottom of the depreciation curve years ago. You can find them all day on Craigslist here for $1500-4500. Hers is a higher mileage example, but the body and interior are in fantastic shape, everything works on it (LF window motor is loud, but it's a $25 used ebay motor/window regulator that I chucked at it when the cable frayed on the original). All it really needs (assuming the engine survived) is motor mounts and a new subwoofer (surround is gone on it, I cut a wire to it so it would stop rattling a few years ago). The KBB hasn't budged in several years on it. She'll basically get scrap value or slightly above for trade-in on it - if nothing else, because of the miles and check engine light. The only way we've been able to smog it for 3 years now has been by clearing the CEL, driving it with a full tank of gas for a bit (not letting it get below half a tank), watching live data on OBD2 until it shows only evap not ready, then hauling rear end to get it smogged (TX allows one not ready, and evap is the last to complete on most cars). It's a 1MZ-FE, so of course it blows a puff of blue smoke on a cold start, but it's spent its entire life getting ~3-5k Mobil 1 oil changes; I know it's just valve guides, and I know it'll run for at least another 300k like that without getting much worse. Stepdad revealed to me a few hours ago that he's been car shopping for her, cross shopping Camrys, Avalons, ES350s, and.... a Cadillac CTS. Now keep in mind my grandfather (on mom's side) owned a Cadillac dealership when he was still alive (along with multiple other GM dealers); she drove nothing but Cadillac from 1981 until she got the car she had before her Avalon (a 99 Olds Intrigue that belonged to a cousin before she got it; the 3800 was glorious, the rest of the car was a pile of poo poo and fell apart around the engine before it even had 60k). She's never owned a car with more than 40k until the Olds; she got rid of it at 55k when it popped the head gaskets (water pump took a vacation... and the interior looked like it had 300k on it by then, every panel was falling off, lots of stuff didn't work, leather was ripped, it was on its 3rd AC compressor, etc). I told him to hard pass on the base model CTS (I'd drive a CTS-V, but a base CTS... the interior won't be much better than my Saturn, aside from having leather). She's been driving a top of the line Toyota for 18 years and over 200k miles, and this is only the second time it's ever been towed (the first time was when a bushing let go suddenly on a LCA and the steering went to poo poo). I think the CTS will probably ride nicer, but I really doubt it'll hold up nearly as well - every Cadillac she owned/leased got towed at least twice a year over breakdowns. I know GM is a lot better today, but a CTS is miles of hard plastic vs the nice interior she's used to (her last Cadillac was a 96 SLS, FWIW). The older Cadillacs had much nicer interiors IMO. I'm pushing him toward either a Camry or Avalon for her. Even my pretentious father (not stepfather), who pulls well into 6 figures a year and has always driven either luxury cars or sporty cars most of his life (he's owned two Starions, a few other turbo/MT GSMs, a G35, plenty of Acuras, etc), is driving a 4 cylinder Camry these days (with every option available on it, but still a Camry with a 4 cylinder that puts out more power than a lot of the cars he had in the 80s). It has more standard equipment than the loaded Acura TL he had ages ago, drives just as well, has just as much power, and gets way better mileage. I talked to stepdad on the phone a little while ago. He was sitting at a Toyota dealership talking to them about a demo Avalon hybrid. I didn't even know they made a hybrid Avalon, apparently it's new for the 2020 model year? If he actually springs for a car for her, I'm gonna fall over. But whatever car she lands in next will probably be the last car she owns. She's in her 70s, has some health and mobility issues, and at this point, doesn't drive a whole lot. More than I drive, but her only drives over 20 minutes are when she comes to visit me (~3.5 hours each way). A hybrid would be perfect for her driving (~8 miles each way on city streets to/from work, quick trips to the grocery store <1 mile away from home outside of that). She doesn't ever get on the highway unless she's on a road trip. tl;dr it's essentially worthless as a trade, and has been for a few years, despite being a 1 owner in fantastic shape and up to date on all maintenance randomidiot fucked around with this message at 19:46 on Mar 9, 2020 |
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Mar 9, 2020 19:18
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I polished a turd, almost literally: Before on right, SOS pad scrubbed on left:  (yes, SOS pad. Removing oxidation and, uh, texture, from a very amatuer spraycan paintjob. Oxidation was *way* worse before I washed and scrubbed it a month ago) Then buffed on right, SOS pad on left:  Results:   A little shine, but a loooot thinner paint. I'd spray bomb it better, myself, but I'm trying to sell it before I let myself do that. This is how oxidized it was previously:  (That spray can is what color it's supposed to be.)
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Mar 9, 2020 20:30
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Wrar and I gave my Civic an exhaust leak this weekend.
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Mar 9, 2020 23:17
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Mom's Avalon is finally out of the shop (2 days to replace a radiator, when she supplied the radiator that I bought for her over 2 years ago  ). Seems to be running fine, but senior citizen + 1/4 million mile car that used to be old enough to buy cigarettes = she's test driving other cars and doesn't really trust it anymore. It seems to be running fine, but the shop told her "it needs an $800 sensor to get rid of the CEL, plus labor" (it's been throwing a "small evap leak" code for 3 years, we get it through smog by clearing the ECU and driving it until only evap is showing not ready). I asked her to go by AutoZone to get codes pulled. Betting it's either one of the primary O2s, or the MAF. The MAF is definitely spendy, but it uses a (semi) wideband for each primary O2, so they're a little expensive too (~$150 for the OE Denso part from Rockauto). One of them was replaced about 5 years ago with a Denso sensor, the other is original.The upside, I guess, is the car is running fine. She's keeping an eye on the oil for signs of Wendy's popping in to visit with a Frosty machine. It got new upper and lower radiator hoses while it was apart, which I expected. Failure was the neck for the upper hose snapped off of the radiator... which is also what I expected, I saw a lot of stains around that area ages ago. I'm just amazed it didn't completely break before then. e: she went to my stepdad's mechanic instead of mine (though stepdad did pay for the repairs...). mine would have turned it around the same day, and would have quoted a realistic price for whatever sensor it supposedly needs randomidiot fucked around with this message at 19:04 on Mar 10, 2020 |
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Mar 10, 2020 18:59
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I don't know anything about the Avalon drivetrain but that restyling looks very cool in my opinion.
Chunjee fucked around with this message at 23:15 on Mar 10, 2020 |
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Mar 10, 2020 23:07
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im glad the glorious state of washington ended emissions testing
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Mar 11, 2020 03:51
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Dropped these guys off to get mounted. Should be putting them on by this weekend, pretty excited. 
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Mar 19, 2020 04:37
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I love this.
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Mar 19, 2020 11:20
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Randomly got a gorgeous day so I popped the wheels on. Really happy with how it sits. I was expecting the wheel gap to be a lot worse. I'm gonna drive it like this for a while and if it starts to bug me I may get some minimal drop springs (around half an inch). Initial driving impressions are great. Moved from 255/40/19 front and 275/40/19 rear to 285/35/19 square. Understeer is completely gone, its super neutral in corners now. Feels great. Also super noticeable is the 10lbs per corner of unsprung weight I saved with the lighter wheels. It just feels much more nimble. Oh and my OEM center caps popped right in which was nice, there are conflicting reports as to whether or not they fit. Went with Indy 500 tires, I loved my Pilot Sport 4S's but these were $400 cheaper for the set and I've been wanting to give them a shot. So far they ride great, much quieter than the old set (which probably had 30-40% tread left after around 15k miles.) Being able to rotate them will be so nice.   
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Mar 20, 2020 22:37
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Those look great. 
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Mar 21, 2020 00:25
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Day ??? in a day just like any in a post-toilet paper world. One of the brake cylinders decided that sharing is caring a month or so ago. Made a big mess.  The part arrived this week. Put it in today. Not interesting enough for an "after" photo. Just cleaner and with a new brake cylinder.
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Mar 21, 2020 06:34
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Colostomy Bag posted:Traded it in? Not quite.  Not mine, but same color. It's the car I should have bought in the first place, but cheap Northstar-powered Caddies will always hold a special place in my automotive heart. Haven't decided on what to do with the STS, but potentially dumping $3k or more so it won't simultaneously drink its own coolant while farting exhaust gases into the coolant reservoir isn't one of them. It's loaded to the gills. Ventilated/heated seats, reclining rear seats with a/c and radio controls, nav, parking sensors, radar cruise control, etc. Amazing how much stuff this thing was packing in 2001 that's drat-near commonplace today.
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Mar 21, 2020 07:02
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One of the funniest features on my MB is on the back right there is a "chauffeur" button. It allows that passenger to then control the front seat from the back.
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Mar 21, 2020 12:18
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MrOnBicycle posted:I love this. It’s got *oodles* of patina, now. It actually would have worked if their slap-dash paint job hadn’t been so thin. I was surprised at how well the spray paint polished up, such as it was. opengl128 posted:Randomly got a gorgeous day so I popped the wheels on. Really happy with how it sits. I was expecting the wheel gap to be a lot worse. I'm gonna drive it like this for a while and if it starts to bug me I may get some minimal drop springs (around half an inch). Suburban Dad posted:Those look great. Those are one of my favorite wheels styles, and you nailed the figment, looks like.
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Mar 21, 2020 20:24
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Who just drove 2 hours to buy a non-running 1993 Nissan Hardbody? This guy. I bought a truck: bad decisions ITT  Just got it unloaded off of the flatbed. The seller said it has a "new" engine with 110k miles and a new clutch, and ran up until a week ago. So far, it wants to start, it turns over, but doesn't fire up. I'm excited though.
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Mar 22, 2020 04:56
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Bought an entire other Rugger a couple months ago, took the OEM wheels off it, stripped and painted, installed new tires and put the center caps on them, put them on MY Rugger.  Just gotta track down the front 'Rugger' badge (impossible) or settle for the non-JDM 'Daihatsu' one (almost impossible)
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Mar 22, 2020 05:21
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Achtane posted:Who just drove 2 hours to buy a non-running 1993 Nissan Hardbody? Is it really trying to fire up, like with some pops and such? Or just turning over with no signs of life? If it's the former, my money's on timing. Getting the distributor lined back up after removal on those is kind of a pain. Otherwise either something electrical or a crank position sensor. Those engines are dead nuts simple (assuming it's the 2.4, I know nothing about the 3.0). The ECU has built-in diagnostics. You don't have to have the engine running for it to blink them out. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RK4ADgSKTA
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Mar 22, 2020 08:08
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STR posted:Is it really trying to fire up, like with some pops and such? Or just turning over with no signs of life? Nah, it's the latter. And yep, it's the 2.4. Thanks for the leads, I haven't even gotten a chance to really check it out yet. There was a lot going on at the time and we didn't get it home 'til dark. It does seem pretty simple, and I especially like that there's a very minimal amount of previous owner electrical rigging going on under the hood.
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Mar 22, 2020 14:19
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Replaced the condenser to compressor hoses on my SS, host itself failed. I used a UV kit to do it and while it worked, it was a super awkward spot to put the dye in the system and resulted in it shooting everywhere (and also into my eyes). Also the job itself was a huge bitch. Dryer kit comes in Monday and then I'll take it around the corner to vac it and charge it.
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Mar 22, 2020 19:21
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Gave the S2000 and the Si hatch a hydrophobic coating and then my older son decided to take some pics of the hatch (it’s “his” car).    Full album here: https://imgur.com/a/EbPWhsd
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Mar 22, 2020 20:40
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Did two coats of ceramic hybrid on my car, hard to capture it, but it's crazy how much better and easier it is to apply than wax.  
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Mar 22, 2020 23:20
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