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my first shot at an NA

A place for members to show off their pride and joy. Also room to document your projects.
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storm
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my first shot at an NA

Postby storm » Tue Feb 03, 2015 3:09 pm

Having been on many forums over the decades I know how annoying it can be when people have many pages dedicated their car, so I hope to start just this one thread about the life of my 92 Eunos Roadster.

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She was bought in Reading for the princely sum of ÂŁ600, since I hadn't ever owned one before I. had no idea what to look for except rust (of which there was none in the sills). the fella who sold me the car is now a friend and admits it wasn't thoroughly checked over before I took her away (tyres were bald, hard and generally unsafe), but I guess I should be familiar with the expression "Caveat Emptor". I decided to change all fluids and consumables straight away as well as give her a once over with some cleaning products.

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Funny thing was that once all cleaned up and with almost all new fluids she decided to die on me. She would crank but not fire up.
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I tried the CAS,
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Spark amplifier,
(Image missing, but its that little black box on the driver side wing)

Battery,
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Coil pack,
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Fuses,
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Fuel pump,
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Plugs & HT Leads
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You name it, i tried it! at the end i called in some "professionals" who instantly removed my old lazerline immobilizer and said it was at fault,.... except they failed to make her start. in the end they threw in the towel and said the ECU was shot. having built MANY cars in my past i refused to believe this and decided to open up everything again and try everything till I fixed her (I'm stubborn).
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By now having met many of my local "parts suppliers" (Shaun & Woody) and having discussed this problem to a point of exhaustion and spending countless nights in the garage i managed to get her started up after 8 days of her dying. It turns out the AFM was probably fiddled with and I must have given it the final knock when i was cleaning the engine. The three little solders which are behind the 2 small screw on the outside of the AFM seem to have been either pulled or have failed due to fatigue.
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Anyhow, i got a replacement AFM and she fired right up, no questions asked. The rest of the story will follow shortly,... this was just the first 8 days,.... Happy Mending! :auto-layrubber:
1. A car is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, 2. Resale wont save your life in an accident, 3. Genius has limits, stupidity has none, 4. Never argue with an idiot, they will bring you down to their level & beat you with experience, 5. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young!
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby Mazda Mender » Tue Feb 03, 2015 8:43 pm

:coffee: :text-goodpost: :text-coolphotos:
M-m
The Disclaimer:-
This post is a natural product made from recycled electrons. The slight variations in spelling and grammar enhance its individual character and beauty and in no way are to be considered flaws or defects, the articles/answers/comments are provided for information purposes and they are not intended to substitute informed professional advice, I or mazdamenders.net cannot personally be hold responsible for any damage occurred from following this procedure or any injuries from it. Proceed at your own risk.


Mk 1 Eunos 93 black V.S II 1.8 ,
Mk 2 .1/4 Roadster 99 black & gold V.S 1.8 .
Mk 1 Eunos 90 1.6 soul red ..f/ build
MK 2.1/4 Blue V.S Roadster 1.8 99 ..
MK1 1.8 ,white import.. (Ashleighs)
MK1 1.6 yellow J ltd import.f/build
MK 1 1.8 black Tokyo Ltd..f/build


http://www.mx5oc.co.uk/ http://www.mx5nutz.com/forum/ http://miata.net/ http://www.autolinkuk.co.uk/
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DavesBRG5
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby DavesBRG5 » Tue Feb 03, 2015 8:46 pm

That`s the spirit! These things are sent to try us :text-goodpost:
DAVE

1992 1.6 BRG V-Spec - 2003 MK2.5 Sport - 1992 ROADSTER 1.6.
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby Mxmurray » Wed Feb 04, 2015 12:11 am

Nice motor,looks very clean.
You clearly have more patience than me, although I don't like to be beaten.
Welcome along, I'm fairly new here myself.
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby storm » Wed Feb 04, 2015 12:32 pm

Thanks for the positive feedback everyone, it's high praise coming from you guys. shall we continue?

So after 8 days of my new toy lying dead in my garage I was excited to have her fire up, now that she had the "go" I decided to work on the "show" a little.

from what i gather many eunos/miata/MX5s have lacquer peel issues and mine was no different, infact i noticed it when I first went to buy the car but I thought it'd be an easy job to do as i have done bodywork in the past.
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While i was at it i also decided to take that (allegedly irmscher) spoiler off too and see what lurked beneath,...
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So i went and bought a few grades of paper to see what i could do,... then i sanded,....
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And sanded,...
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checked my lines and then sanded some more,...
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till i was happy with where i was for the moment. Then, as the expression goes, i "just added some water"
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and all of a sudden i felt the my NASTY looking bonnet was smooth,.... or was i just too tired to notice anything (it was getting very late)
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anyhow i was already exhausted from the previous 8 sleepless nights so i decided to throw in the towel till the following day so that i could get some food and some rest.
1. A car is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, 2. Resale wont save your life in an accident, 3. Genius has limits, stupidity has none, 4. Never argue with an idiot, they will bring you down to their level & beat you with experience, 5. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young!
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby storm » Wed Feb 04, 2015 12:45 pm

The following day I entered the garage after a hard days work to see that my eyes HAD deceived me and my work wasn't as complete as I had hoped.

With a bottle of Lucozade down me it was out with the sand paper once again.
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no job was too small
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it had to be perfect to the touch and to the eye
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ignore the rubbers as they were being changed anyways (cheers for the tip Wayne, it helped me save all but 1 clip, but more on that later)
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back to "the making of the silky smooth"
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It was never ending, but before anyone asks why i didn't use a machine, the answer is two-fold. 1. find you get a better finish by hand & 2. I need the exercise.

Speaking of exercise, it was time to call it a night and get down and dirty with a cheeseburger!!
1. A car is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, 2. Resale wont save your life in an accident, 3. Genius has limits, stupidity has none, 4. Never argue with an idiot, they will bring you down to their level & beat you with experience, 5. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young!
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby storm » Wed Feb 04, 2015 1:01 pm

She was finally on her way. i had managed to join a few Facebook groups by now and on one particular one (which I guess I cannot name here) i saw a set of 15inch OEM Mazda BBS wheels advertised.
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They even came with a nearly new set of Ditchfinders, which was fine in my eyes as the ones on my Daisys were resembling Telly Savalas (and were probably just as old).
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I just HAD to have them! They not only were nearly identical to the ones I had on my E30 318is back when in was a kid, but they were very similar to the ones I had on my Eunos Roadster on Gran Turismo,... it was fate.
so at 10pm i hopped into my company car and went to measure up & inspect the roadworks on the M25.

A few hours later i was home and grinning from ear to ear :-D
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Next morning I had a late start to work so I managed to quickly whip on the wheels,... she was looking FIIIINE!!
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Yes, i know this isn't really mending, but it was needed so that I could drive her safely.
1. A car is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, 2. Resale wont save your life in an accident, 3. Genius has limits, stupidity has none, 4. Never argue with an idiot, they will bring you down to their level & beat you with experience, 5. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young!
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby Lazza » Wed Feb 04, 2015 1:26 pm

Good work mate. Looks like she's getting the attention she deserves.

p.s. no problem at all mentioning other forums/websites/FB pages etc :wink:
Lazza

2001 Mk2.5 MX5 1.8 Sport
Hard Dog Deuce
GAZ Gold Pro
Mk3 seats
17” OZ Racing Superturissmo wheels (for the toad)
15” Rota Circuit 10 wheels (for track use)
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby Mazda Mender » Wed Feb 04, 2015 1:31 pm

:text-coolphotos: :text-goodpost:
Lazza wrote:
p.s. no problem at all mentioning other forums/websites/FB pages etc :wink:

:text-imwithstupid:
M-m
The Disclaimer:-
This post is a natural product made from recycled electrons. The slight variations in spelling and grammar enhance its individual character and beauty and in no way are to be considered flaws or defects, the articles/answers/comments are provided for information purposes and they are not intended to substitute informed professional advice, I or mazdamenders.net cannot personally be hold responsible for any damage occurred from following this procedure or any injuries from it. Proceed at your own risk.


Mk 1 Eunos 93 black V.S II 1.8 ,
Mk 2 .1/4 Roadster 99 black & gold V.S 1.8 .
Mk 1 Eunos 90 1.6 soul red ..f/ build
MK 2.1/4 Blue V.S Roadster 1.8 99 ..
MK1 1.8 ,white import.. (Ashleighs)
MK1 1.6 yellow J ltd import.f/build
MK 1 1.8 black Tokyo Ltd..f/build


http://www.mx5oc.co.uk/ http://www.mx5nutz.com/forum/ http://miata.net/ http://www.autolinkuk.co.uk/
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storm
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby storm » Wed Feb 04, 2015 2:46 pm

Thanks again for the quick and positive feedback guys. The place i found the wheels was MX5 BUY & SELL (their facebok page).

so, as i was busy sourcing parts for the dead engine (first 8 days) the seller (Shaun Plunkett - Lovely guy BTW), sourced me a working indow motor as my car was without one.
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All this time I was using an old Mercedes-Benz technique for keeping my window up without any internals,... it was a piece of wood :lol:
the drivers door card wasn't fit when I bought the car so I just removed the moisture barrier and mounted the motor. Honestly I was expecting it to be a fiddly little nightmare for the sausages at the ends of my arms, but it was easier than working on a Type-1 VW. It went straight in without any fuss and all the bolts lined up first time.
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Event the stoppers were bang on the first time round
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Granted I noticed that I forgot to do a thorough regreasing of the channels so that would be done at a later date, for now I wanted to have the windows up and the car out as it was starting to get wet outside on a daily basis.
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I should point out that the job was not 100% and I made a note of the things I must address at a later date because I wanted it to be "up to spec" so to say
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Now with the window up, a little compressed air helped me take a look at the insides of the doors. not bad I think.
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this leads me to a question,.... I found this in my door and for the life of me I cant figure out what it is and where it goes. until today I was affraid to ask in fear of being mocked but then again, it might be important. it looks like a part where the window might come and rest on but something makes me doubt my theory on that too. any clues?
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For now, job done, door in working order.
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BTW I know it's a little late to mention it now but I think that everyone who buys a Miata/MX5/Eunos should be handed this image (given to my good friend Aabir who got me into these cars and even found me mine)
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1. A car is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, 2. Resale wont save your life in an accident, 3. Genius has limits, stupidity has none, 4. Never argue with an idiot, they will bring you down to their level & beat you with experience, 5. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young!
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby storm » Wed Feb 04, 2015 3:24 pm

Thank the lord I can now post without waiting for the moderators approval :handgestures-thumbup:

Question: how many of you were caught out by the small capacity of the power steering reservoir on your first attempt?

Yeah,.... me too!

Maybe I should mention I work on my car at night when most of the stores are shut so I usually need to make do with what told I have till the morning (I recently moved back to the UK and all my tools which I collected over a few decades are still abroad btw. I rummaged around the house till I came up with this work of art (admit it you know you wished you thought of it first).
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Out came all the excess cocktail of old and new fluid, and I took this opportunity to once again fill it with fresh red stuff.

While we're discussing fluids, let's change the turret oil too. off with the 5-odd screws which hold on the centre console, unscrew the gear knob, and away we go.
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4 more screws on the upper seal and the boot just comes right up (yes mine was old and perished so I was lucky to have bought one at the moss open day (cheers the for suggestions Rob & Russell)
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Underneath I found the cap/seal for the turret, not knowing the history of my car I was expecting it to a dark and dry place under this
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3 more screws removed and surprise surprise, it's a black mess down there, but at least she's got some sort of lube in there.
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Now anyone who wants a fun drive in a miata knows that everything in the turret should be perfect if you don't want a sloppy gear change which would ruin your experience
Can you spot the difference? (new upper bush & spring washer on the top right)
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Next up was to remove the lower bush and all of its components so that I could fit all the new bit I bought.
now we had a problem, the suction pipe thing I had just used (See above) had decided to sprout legs and make a break for it. it was nowhere to be seen and I had to drain the turret..
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No problem, I've fit a new throttle linkage to a 74 VW at night on a main highway with no tools and no flashlight,... I GOT THIS!!
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....errr,... the wife isn't going to be too happy though,....
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Yes fellow menders I was swabbing it all up with kitchen roll and a finger, one CC at a time. who says I don't love my cars?
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Eventually it all came out and I refit the lower bush (lower one has an indent), bearing, washer etc and topped the turret up with the slick stuff
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While it was all open I chose to fit a short shifter as I felt the throw on the Eunos was a bit too long (my last car was a 911 so I was used to a certain "feel")
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I reused the cap at the bottom of the shifter (I have a new one still) as it seemed perfect (if it ain't broke,...) refit the new bushes at the top and test fit the short shifter
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Took me a few attempts but I finally got the right amount of fluid in the turret (to my satisfaction at least), then it was time for reassembly.
New Cap/Seal
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New upper boot/Seal went on too (part of the kit from Moss) but I must have forgot to take a pic in all the excitement.

And that is how I changed the gear turret fluid and topped up the PAS Fluid.
1. A car is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, 2. Resale wont save your life in an accident, 3. Genius has limits, stupidity has none, 4. Never argue with an idiot, they will bring you down to their level & beat you with experience, 5. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young!
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby storm » Wed Feb 04, 2015 3:50 pm

time for a quick "mend". the car was still dirty and the steering wheel which was fitted was like a milk bottle top and it made the drive too jittery even on stock suspension and stock geometry,... I sourced an original Eunos one and decided to give it a shot to see if it made a difference.
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Off with the 6 bolts holding the front on
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Off with the boss (I used the wheel spanner for this)
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Now here's the optional part (which I had to do). I f you cannot get the boss off the easy way, you'll have to remove the column cover and then use a "persuader" on the back of the boss (removing the cover gives you plenty of access)
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Open the 3 Allen bolts on the back of the OEM steering
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-aThy ... 180500.jpg

In my overeagerness I refit the column cover before fitting the OEM steering, luckily I didn't need to take it off again. time for a test fit.
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so far so good, must remember to tighten the Allen bolts on the back.
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looking MUCH better, but the test drive confirms that I had misaligned it by one tooth (had to remove it and do this process again but it was worth it)
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cleaned up and 2nd hand tonneau cover fit, it was time to take her for a drive
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1. A car is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, 2. Resale wont save your life in an accident, 3. Genius has limits, stupidity has none, 4. Never argue with an idiot, they will bring you down to their level & beat you with experience, 5. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young!
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby storm » Wed Feb 04, 2015 4:17 pm

I didn't manage to do a DIY type shoot on the following items but I think they are worth a mention as the might come in handy to someone.

HARDTOP
When fitting a hardtop, remember that there is a "dent" in the inside of your B-Pillar cover where you need to cut out if you wish to fit the mounts. I found a lack of a dremmel quite frustrating so I used a drill to make some guide holes and then used a jigsaw thingy (forgot the name) to cut it out.
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Fitting the catches is as simple as fitting a few screws (yes that is plastic "dust" everywhere)
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Then just remove 2 screws from the rear deck and replace with "frenkenstien bolts"
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I found this online and its VERY helpful when it comes to making the hardtop fit snug
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Done!
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STRUT BRACES
I wont go into too much detail here as it s just a simple matter of opening a few bolts, mounting the bars and refitting the bolts (ideally use a drop of thread lock at the end)

I should point out that the rear caused a bit of an issue as the cover fore the fuel hose has to be removed to fit the rear bar and as it is, it does not allow for the cover to be refit.
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the fronts don't have any fouling/clearance issues
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As I want my car to be fully usable at all times I decided to modify the rear cover so that it would clear the bar and still maintain some of its structural integrity.
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All that and then I find my spare tyre doesn't fit in the car anymore :angry-cussingblack:

As for the pitting on the bars themselves,... give me time. First function, then fashion (yes I know there is limited function for strut braces on independent wishbone suspension).
1. A car is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, 2. Resale wont save your life in an accident, 3. Genius has limits, stupidity has none, 4. Never argue with an idiot, they will bring you down to their level & beat you with experience, 5. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young!
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storm
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby storm » Fri Feb 20, 2015 11:57 am

EXHAUST SYSTEM

Now that I had gotten my hands a little dirty I decided to roll up my sleeves.

First I wanted to get under the car and actually have a look at what I was working with
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Didn't seem so bad, no major rust or corrosion so I decided to fit my cobalt single exit catback system which I scored at the Moss open day (feel free to edit if it looks like I am advertising)
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Now here was the fun part, the bolts were corroded on a whole different level, even the ones on my 68 VW Type 1 were in better condition!
I heard that the best (and easiest bet) was to hit them a few times with lots of WD40 and allow them to soak overnight, so I did.
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They finally gave in and opened and I removed the old system. NOW,... I've been working on cars since I was 12 and I know how importance prep work is. I've always learned to check everything and make a list of what needs to be done before tackling a job. so why oh WHY did I fail to see that the cobalt system needs a blanking plug/bolt on the pipe right after the cat flange???? Perhaps I'm getting old and forgot to take my meds or maybe I shouldn't have taken them with Vodka and Redbull!!

So I refit my old system (I say this in the loosest of terms) and went to my local garage (Broadway Autocentres in Farnham Common) to see what they can do. Now I've known the manager (Steve) there for about a year and they've always done more than what is needed for no extra cost (hence why i mentioned their name in case anyone is ever passing through and needs a good place to get work sorted). They decided to get her up on a ramp to see what is going on as they have never seem my Eunos yet and the boss also has one and was curious. They said they'd order me the bolt and get it fit ASAP,... so for once i was sitting in a coffee shop and allowing someone else to do the mending.
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On went the Cobalt and sortly after I was home (a few pounds lighter in the wallet). Before I left though they said that they were not satisfied with the way the tailipe sat as it was too close to a chassis point and it was likely the exhaust would hit on turns. Sadly I was getting late to get my boy from the bus stop so I just ignored them and hoped for the best.
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48 hours later I was back with them begging them to sort out the perpetual ringing going on behind me, turns out they were right and my rubber hanger had also started to fail which left the exhaust clanging against the chassis all the time. Steve made room on a lift, got his best guy out with a torch and very gently heated the system to get the tip centred. 20 minutes of fiddling later and she was all sorted,... total cost,... free pounds and free pence. I can live with that!
Last edited by storm on Fri Feb 20, 2015 1:32 pm, edited 2 times in total.
1. A car is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it, 2. Resale wont save your life in an accident, 3. Genius has limits, stupidity has none, 4. Never argue with an idiot, they will bring you down to their level & beat you with experience, 5. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young!
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flea
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Re: my first shot at an NA

Postby flea » Fri Feb 20, 2015 12:07 pm

cheep as chips
Eunos 1.6 special 1989 with a few added extras
Eunos 1991 1.6
Eunos 1990 1.6 project
Mk2 1999 1.8

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