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This is my favorite all time thread
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Sep 25, 2019 04:55
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Syri the dog making wookie noises Remaining tasks: Fix driver's window track Fix / Replace wiper motor (intermittent mode doesn't work, and it's the motor, not the relay. FUN!) Reinstall the wind blocker for the sunroof Redo the sunroof panel upholstery Redesign the rear brake setup to use a drat parking brake - 135i rotors might work and I've got a set from my last brake change in mine to test. This requires pulling and replacing the rear wheel bearings (they're pretty new) Adjust suspension as needed with new sticky rubber Replace tired RTAB bushings and see if it fixes my toe out on the driver's side rear. If not I can probably get the trailing arm straightened at a frame shop on the cheap so says the forums [s]Figure out what is causing slop in the steering rack/[s] Maybe wire up a horn again Replace blower motor resistor pack Wax the fucker Make a straight pipe axle back for shits and giggles Fabricate an intake to replace the factory stuff, or at least a bracket to hold the filter Mount the e92 M3 speed cloth seats maybe, and reinstall the seat belts. Gotta decide if I want to drive another 8 hours down to NC in a bucket with a six point harness or not. It's really nice on the tail, sucks everywhere else. I took apart the window switches and sure enough they were full of gunk and the contacts were pretty dirty. It was pretty easy to clean them, and the windows worked a lot better afterwards.    The plastic ring that secures the shift boot broke in half, and everything came unglued because I did a lovely job the first time around. I plastic welded the ring successfully, and reglued the boot.   Also I decided to try and use some felt tape to cut down on the squeaks from the center console. I need to spend more time here and pinpoint the source.  It's probably the tabs. The interior is back together for now  Time to take the dogs to the dog park! 
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Sep 29, 2019 01:07
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 I'm overdue for an update! I picked up a parts e30 that was down the street. Shame it was left out to the elements so long - it had a clean sport interior at one point. Also someone shot it a few times. $400 delivered! It's a manual 85 325e. The drivetrain will pay for the car easily.   The key rusted off in the trunk, and one of the lug bolts was broken. Time to buy some new bits.  I nicked the wheel slightly, but no biggie.  I snagged the tires off of one of the spare sets of 15" e34 wheels I had and put them on so the black e30 has some safe rollers. The tires on the bottlecaps were dry rotted to hell.    My brother is moving, and he hooked me up with a ton of his old stuff! The garage is cluttered again. Gotta find room for it all! I also made a trip to HF and picked up a Titanium 170 MIG, among other things.  I had two more parts cars to get to my house - the '95 525i and a '94 740iL. I borrowed a truck and trailer from friends and hauled them home. I had to unload the 525i solo, and the brakes were sticking, so I did something dumb.  It worked, though. Once I had that car off I headed to the other yard to pick up the e32. I needed all the V8 specific parts in the engine bay like the remote brake booster, so I just decided to pick up the whole car and snag another M60 in the process. Whichever one of the two I have is better will go in the brown car, and the worse one will supply its heads to a 4.4L bottom end from a vanos M62.   Getting it off the trailer was a bit of an ordeal since it was missing both passengers wheels and most of the suspension on those sides.  With help from a friend, and my father who had came up to visit, we got it off smoothly. I did my first bit of metal fabrication for my father - the ramp on the back of his trailer was too heavy and he wanted it converted to a vehicle ramp for his side by side. It was originally one piece. I cut out the middle of the ramp and boxed in the angle iron where it meets the hinges with the scraps to stiffen it. Without the boxed section it twisted too easily.  The friend who was over helping unload the trailer needed a muffler for his truck - it's an OBS Ford with a hydraulic dump bed he built out of three different trucks! On whim we grabbed the muffler from the 740iL parts car and we actually made it fit. It was REALLY quiet but sounded good at WOT - exactly what he needed. I want to eventually fabricate a proper exhaust for him, but we were pressed for time and he's been driving it around basically straight piped.  I wanted to get some of the other projects rolling, so I decided it was time to take the white e34 to the paint shop to fix a few things. The front bumper was cracked to hell, but I had a nice replacement from a '94. It's the only year that came with those vents in the front lip. I stripped the plastic trim off to get it ready for paint, did a little plastic weld repair, and dropped the car off at the paint shop.    I put the brown car on the lift and started on the rear trailing arm bushings - the poly ones in there are years and years old, and I had some weird behavior from the rear end so I thought it was related. Turns out the driver's side axle nut had backed off some and the hub was loose! I had already committed, so I decided to replace the RTABs anyway. Unforunately, my dumb rear end had the garage open and I hit the roof with part of the garage door mechanism. Guess its good I was planning on a respray anyhow. I had to make my own tool to get them out. I'm glad I decided to mess with them because holy poo poo, look at that awful brake fluid!   I picked up some 1 series floormats for it too. They fit pretty well!  Also I need to stay off FB marketplace.  I don't need it. Party Alarm fucked around with this message at 04:54 on Oct 24, 2019 |
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Oct 24, 2019 04:52
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If there's anyone who needs a ramp truck other than Finnegan, it's you.
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Oct 24, 2019 05:00
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Wait, people actually buy those BMW eta engines?
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Oct 24, 2019 08:18
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Party Alarm posted:Also I need to stay off FB marketplace. DO IT  I've decided if I get a dedicated hauler it'll be an older step van, just need to find one with a six foot wide rear door.
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Oct 24, 2019 09:26
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I'd love to see if it was possible to mod that truck with an air suspension so you can just dump it on the ground for loading and unloading. Then you put a winch on the front and a pulley at the back so you can winch cars both on and off.
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Oct 24, 2019 16:56
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That was what I was planning when I was looking at a ramp truck, they're fairly easy to bag but the ramp surface may limit how low you can go. I'd do the same thing if I go the step van route. Arrive at track, dump the rear and raise the front so you don't need super long ramps and your angle is safe for low cars.
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Oct 24, 2019 17:14
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You Am I posted:Wait, people actually buy those BMW eta engines? I've seen a few end up as stroker engines, sometimes with a turbo
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Oct 26, 2019 20:03
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The eta isn't really worth much, but the 5 spd swap parts certainly are! I was scheming ways to make a ramp bed into something more usable on the day to day so I could use it as a normal truck. If you hinged the tail section, or made it removable... Anyways, I dropped the rear trailing arms to check if they were straight. Everything measured up right (they're rotated a bit off in this pic). That means my alignment issue was probably due to worn out RTABs. They were seized up, and definitely old.  I got new ones stuck in from Garagistic and lubed up. I definitely noticed a difference in ride quality, noise, and handling. I'll have to get on an alignment rack to see if my toe issue in the rear is gone.  The brake fluid got NASTY  These calipers will be replaced with Wilwoods over the winter. I've had them sitting in the garage for over a year now  Have I mentioned how awesome having a lift is?  A friend I worked with overseas showed up with his new acquisition - a MINT 3rd gen Supra!  I made ribs   So, when I did my big online Harbor Freight order, they couldn't fulfill the trans jack for some reason. I came home from work this week to find this:  And they only charged me for one! Current state of the workshop:     Also I'm trying to buy this:  Wish me luck!
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Oct 31, 2019 03:28
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Starting to look like a real shop pretty quickly. Good luck on the MR2
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Nov 1, 2019 15:15
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Ugh, someone bought it before I could. Hard tops are so hard to find
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Nov 11, 2019 01:35
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 I bought myself a christmas present
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Dec 28, 2019 23:27
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Yessss more turbo MR2s! It's like reliving my past through other people.That blue looks great.
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Dec 28, 2019 23:30
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I couldn't have done it without Adiabatic, he looked the car over for me since he's local. Saved me a ton of rear end-pain too since the car had some issues, which while minor, would have prevented me from driving it home if I flew down to check it out. He was really thorough too! They're fixing a few things and I should have the car in a few weeks 
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Dec 28, 2019 23:40
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Well, the MR2 is up in the air now - Kaker over in the import thread was kind enough to track down the original auction details, and it has me seriously questioning this car and the dealer  I've got a set of wheels on order from Ehrlich Wheel Works - 17" BBS RSs. They are intended for the wagon but they will fit on the brown e30 and e30 M3 as well! I should have them soon. They'll look very similar to this:  I also had some paint repair done on the white e34's door, and had the spare front bumper I had resprayed!   The driveway is a mess full of parts cars.    I should be able to free up some parking soon. The e30 parts car is a eta that has sat in a field for along time and was shot at. Has a bitchin armrest I can restore though. It bolts into the side of the seat. Never seen one like it.  Also pictured - a friend's Galaxy. He's the same guy with the white Firebird  I needed a welding cart, so I hacked up a HF hand truck and used one of the cheapo toolbox bottom sections I had gotten from the earlier auction. Some of the welds are poo poo because I forgot to switch polarity when I changed to gas, like a moron.   A friend dropped by and helped me start stripping the e30 parts car. I grabbed some stuff from the trunk       COULD IT BE?   Someone is missing their 10mm socket. Got a free pair of vice grips too!  I put the welder on its first real fab job - getting the e30 front clip I had on casters so I can start on the V8 swap engine mounts and other fabrication bits      I have to redo the front arms as the ended up on a slight angle, and I need to reinforce them as well for peace of mind. I don't want to run any braces so I can maximize access to the bottom for the exhaust and header fab, so I'm probably just going to add a thick side plate and call it a day. Also the 135i got backed into. Welp! 
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Dec 31, 2019 04:15
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The batteries in most of my cars are in a sorry state after sitting for so long. The 540i's battery is toast, as is the one in the e30. At least the e30's battery is still under warranty. After some charging and jump pack action, I got the 540i on the lift. I needed to do some basic maintenance (plugs, oil change, ext), and I wanted to put the new bumper on as well as repaint the flaking grill trim.    Meanwhile, Syri was busy excavating the yard  The cruise control had stopped working, and I suspected the module was at fault. They can strip plastic gears. However, it looked mint inside. I might have a problem in the clutch or brake switch instead. Gotta do some work there and track it down.  I need to get some photos in the sun tomorrow. She looks great! 
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Jan 6, 2020 08:07
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When the cruise control stopped working in my E28 it was because the Bowden cable broke between the throttle and the cruise control, idk if it works the same way on the M60
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Jan 6, 2020 13:04
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Yup, check/lube the cable then verify the clutch and brake switch aren't sticking.
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Jan 6, 2020 16:28
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Cable is good, next I gotta check the electric bits
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Jan 6, 2020 17:16
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We had a few days of decent weather, so I took the 540i out to work a few times. I really missed the noise it makes!  The 135i took it's spot and I addressed a few issues - the most annoying being an exhaust rattle  I need to remove the garage door opener and convert to a jackshaft type opener. I can't get enough height to use my high rise jackstands and transmissions jacks right now  Looks like I've got some oil leaks to take care of. I've got a crack in the plastic valve cover - one of the many typical problems with the 135i. I'm going to order a new valve cover and gasket and fix it for sure. I love the 135i, but I need to thin down my fleet and it's first on the chopping list. I'm going to fix the few small issues it has and then list it. While I may love it, it's the most replaceable, and I'd rather have those funds go towards the e34 touring. It's been a great car to me the last 60k miles, but it's not my ideal 135i spec, so I don't feel bad getting rid of it. I'll probably get another some day, or at least another N54 powered car. It's a magical engine when it's working right.   The exhaust rattle was a result of my Berk midsection hitting a crossmember brace as a result of the stock exhaust mounts sagging. I had a universal one sitting around that was the perfect size. Easy day!   I also finally found a decent deal on an air compressor. It's a 60 gallon unit with a Speedair compressor on it. It should be enough to run the media blaster at short intervals, and do some light painting. I just need to figure out where to put it and how I want to plumb the air lines. I have a general idea for a 70% solution. Ideally, it would be mounted in a shed adjacent to the garage and plumbed through the wall into both the fabrication area and garage area with enough hose to reach outside for tires. I'll probably just put it inside the fab area for now as it isn't that loud.   I started mounting some tools on my pegboard, and assembled the two trans jacks I got from HF. I ordered one, but they sent me two. Freebie!  I finally cleaned up my welding table too. Getting closer to starting on the swaps. I need to get those drat parts cars stripped and out of here, though.
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Jan 18, 2020 02:54
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Party Alarm posted:
Here's the interesting part - How hard is it really to open a garage door manually? Like I understand if you're parking there and in your car and want it opened so you can drive in, but if it's your work bay, why not just remove the opener now? By the way I love this thread and am very jealous of your multitude of cars and bays and dogs.
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Jan 18, 2020 04:18
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Party Alarm posted:I need to remove the garage door opener and convert to a jackshaft type opener. I can't get enough height to use my high rise jackstands and transmissions jacks right now You could look into a 'high lift' kit for the garage door, would raise the opener and rails up against the ceiling. Jackshaft style will open up more space as well.
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Jan 18, 2020 13:35
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Oh, I plan on just removing it first - I'm not waiting for the jackshaft opener first. I want to do the high rise conversion at the same time to both doors as I think I'm going to obtain a 4 post lift so I can get more in-garage parking. In other news, my MR2 arrives next week!
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Jan 18, 2020 20:34
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*tokyo drift music in the distance*  Y'all this thing is so fun and happy. It needs some work before I can thrash on it after the winter, but I'm so in love with the little thing
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Jan 24, 2020 06:25
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 Dogs.  WHEELS. They ship out this week!  MR2. I found out the pop up headlights can be actuated without the key. So, if you're ever feeling down, you can just open the door and flash the high beams    I have a ton of poo poo in the garage right now between my last junkyard run and stripping the parts cars. I snagged of 2012 550i cinnamon brown heated and ventilated seats for the wagon, and a set of coral red sport seats from an e82 for the black e30 coupe!. $150 a pop. I also grabbed two GS6-53BZ transmissions - one from a V8 car, one from a 335i.  This is the V8 GS6-53BZ up against an e32 740i automatic. Doesn't appear to have any bolts that line up. That's not why I bought it, but I was curious. If it fit, it would have been a great trans for all my M60 applications - the GS6-53BZ is a GREAT unit that handles a ton of power, is reliable, and shifts great. The getrag lump normally behind the M60 V8 manual cars kinda sucks, has some syncro issues, and can't be repaired. No one sells parts and you need some ridiculous factory jig to actually disassemble them. Also the GS6 boxes are cheap right now.  This is why I bought it. 6/12 bolts line up, enough to make the rest of the fab work a breeze. ITS GOING TO WORK
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Jan 28, 2020 00:47
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Party Alarm posted:
6/12 is not bad, plenty enough to hold things in place to fab up the other six.
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Jan 28, 2020 14:47
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The only annoying part is none of the dowels are in the right spot, so I'll have to bring the trans to a machine shop to have two holes counterbored so I can get the needed dowels in place. This needs to happen before I can actually bolt on the transmission and see how much I need to modify the subframes. I will also probably need to do a steering rack conversion. It might actually clear the stock steering, but a rack would feel so much better I'd like to convert it anyway. A friend is mailing me a toasted flywheel + clutch setup that may be bolt on. If it is, that means I can source a COTS single mass lightweight flywheel for this combo!
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Jan 28, 2020 16:16
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Two months and no update, shame on me. Here's a doggo picture dump to make up:      Spring is here, finally. My attention is somewhat split because I've been prepping the gardens for some plants. I've got a lot of room to grow poo poo so I'm trying to take advantage this year. Let's start with the MR2! I found a few.. issues.    So, the front tires rubbed pretty bad. I couldn't adjust the coilovers, as they were seized. The wheels are aggressive - 8.5" fronts, I think the offset is around et35. The stickers are gone so I only have rough measurements. Also, I found NO loving AIR FILTER WTF GUYS. The dealership I bought it from accepted responsibility and sent me a nice check, though. I fixed the issues and put some sticky tires on it, and the few times I've had to be at work these past two months I've driven the MR2. I loving LOVE THIS THING!    I picked up some goodies for it too  It still has some small things I want to fix, but I'm pretty happy with it for now.
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Apr 13, 2020 14:02
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Yay! So happy you're posting again!
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Apr 13, 2020 22:19
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Please let me know if you ever want to sell those wheels! My MR2 would look so good with them.
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Apr 15, 2020 21:41
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Some good rear end doggos on this page
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Apr 16, 2020 00:15
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Thanks y'all! RIP Paul Walker, I might get some different wheels down the line, but these are staying for a while since I just had to get new rubber for them. I made a wheelchair for my brother's doggo. He has a degenerative spinal nerve disease. Poor guy is having a lot of trouble walking.  I went and visited my buddy's shop. He's building a gasser for drag week (assuming its still on for this year)    He's my roadkilliest friend Oh, and I almost caught my house on fire. Good times!   Also I helped a buddy fix a control arm on his daily. Thankfully it fell off in his driveway and not on the road.     It was surprisingly easy to remove given the level of rust. Oh, that clutch I thought might work? It arrived!   And it fits kinda! Gotta drill a hole for a locating pin but that's it. The crack in my garage back wall is getting worse. Gonna have to address this soon.  Also those wheels arrived  SO PRETTY I went ahead and redid the garage lights too, based on garage journal recommendations.  In the process of prepping for springtime, I finished stripping two of the parts cars and moved all the cars into better spots. This was a huge pain in the rear end to do on my own, especially since the white e32 had no wheels + tires and was missing hubs / spindles to bolt something on. I ended up using an engine hoist and some harbor freight dolleys, my truck, and a come-along to get it in position   This is all a backlog that's mostly pre-covid. I've been on mandatory telework for a while now, and haven't made many trips out. I've been more focused on my gardens for now - I'm going to actually try and plant things this year! 
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Apr 16, 2020 02:41
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That control arm  Very slick BBS.
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Apr 16, 2020 04:06
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Spent most of May planting plants and working on all kinds of random poo poo. I have a backlog of stuff to post. The brown car is up on the lift getting more prep work before I take it to the tail of the dragon in July. After 10 years I'm finally putting the fan on a temp switch lol. The V8 is in the mock up front clip and I've started on the engine mounts and header modifications. Inshallah it'll be running this year! Also turns out e90 sport seats nearly bolt in to e30s
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Jun 15, 2020 02:18
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Let me guess the front tyre sizes were something like 205/50/16 on the front of the mr2, you don't run into issues with normal struts using that size tyre but if you run coilovers with higher offset wheels it scrapes on one side like that. Also the coilovers always have tighter wheel clearance between the strut and the wheel compared to the normal struts you get. I forget what wheels they are, they are a pretty common aftermarket choice for mr2's tho so they should be allright fitment wise. 35 offset 8j 9j staggered is fine for mr2's. Thats what i run, my track wheels are something stupid like 29 offset and with the correct sized tyres they don't rub.
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Jun 15, 2020 03:22
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How are the cars and dogs?!?
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Jul 18, 2020 15:51
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Still alive - I'll update soon. I picked up YET ANOTHER CAR. Also the trip to the dragon was canceled due to rona and I'm pretty sad about it
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Aug 18, 2020 03:43
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Party Alarm posted:Still alive - I'll update soon. I picked up YET ANOTHER CAR.  I want more! (My spring trip to dragon was also cancelled... I rebuilt the rear end of my 335is during the downtime and am ITCHING TO GO AGAIN) Goon meet on dragon?
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Aug 20, 2020 03:11
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jink posted:
I have some vacation I have to use and am thinking about riding my Ducati up to the Dragon in early October. Still trying to figure out if that's before the leaves start to drop, though.
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Aug 20, 2020 03:28
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