New Ride....and it's not a truck!

[nubuilder]

I'm not really sure if anyone took a look at my off-site thread, so I'll just whore it up here too.

2/16/13

Got the plugs and wires changed last night. A shop my buddy works at let me bring the car in. It was nice to do it inside!! Plus, they had a lift open so I got get the car up in the air.

Changing the plugs was WAY easier than I was expecting. I was lucky and all came out easily. First I removed the wires from the front 3, keeping them attached to the coil and laid out on the core support in order. I blew out the plugs with air first, cracked them loose, finger snugged them, then blew them out again. A spark plug socket and a 3in extension was perfect for all of them, except the back right (driver's side) one which required a second 3in extension. The process took me between 1.5 - 2 hours, but probably could've been closer to 1hr. I like taking my time. I used anti-seeze on all the plugs and dielectric grease on both ends of the wires.

I also believe I found my miss-fire.....

These came from the back middle and back left (passenger's side). Any idea what caused this? Could it be bad injectors? (I hope not!)

The car is running great now. I got up to around 5psi of boost. Now this car is a blast!!!! (as it should be) :bwoohoo:

I have quite a few pics from under the car, but I'll post those later. For now, I just wanted to get these up and let you guys know.


2/20/13

Headlights

Before

After

Technique used HERE. Thank you crash93ssei for posting this!!!

I removed the headlights. Sanded with 400, 600, 1000, 1500, 2000. I put on 3 light coats of polyurethane, waiting 4 to 8 hrs between. They're by no means glass smooth (mostly due to contamination), but they sure as heck look amazing!

I installed Philips CrystalVision Ultra bulbs in the lows, highs, and fogs (once I get another fog light lens and sand both of them). I'm very happy with the light output of them. I went with these because they're a slight upgrade, but still available at parts stores (mainly my local Farm & Fleet). Ordered them off Amazon for $60.

 

[nubuilder]

2/26/13

Seats & Carpet Removed

Had extra time after work and it was relatively decent out so I decided to pull out the seats, console, and carpet. Seats were a breeze, especially with another person to remove them. The center console was an entirely different beast.... This is my first time doing this so it was hard, but then became super easy as I found some good info on here as to how to go about removing it. 00Beast, I know I saw a post somewhere from you that really helped.

I'm not gonna bore you with carpet pics. The carpet is in pretty good shape. I'll shampoo it another time. For now, I'm going to focus on the floor itself.

Passenger Side

Driver Side

The padding under the carpet, especially on the passenger side, is soaked. The front driver's is wet, but not as bad, and the rear driver side is just about totally dry. I haven't had a chance to cut into the rubber lining under the dash to inspect the sunroof drains yet.

Any ideas as to how long it will take for the carpet padding to dry out? It's inside the house laying on the floor upside down.


Switch Investigation

While I was at all this, I decided to investigate my rear passenger side window switch that isn't working and my window lockout button that isn't working. I ohm'd the window switch, trying all combination of pins, and got nothing. Then I tried a known-good switch just to make sure and it tested fine. So I need a new switch.

Then I figured I'd pull apart the driver's main controls and test it....wrong! I tried testing the one button for the window lockout and didn't get any ohm readings. Gonna need a whole new switch panel I guess. This isn't individual switches. Since I dissected it, I figured I'd share.

In this one, you can see the clear plastic pieces that help disperse the light to the switches.

This is what is under the rubber membrane.

This is the bottom side of the circuit board.

 

[nubuilder]

2/27/13

Front Passenger Side Sunroof Drain

(thread that I referenced)

I was able to get my utility knife in (and all the wires/connectors out of the way) and cut a flap for the passenger side. I ended up cutting down to where the wire harness comes through the rubber and up along the ridge/bend on the right side. My cuts worked out great, but probably could have gone more to the right of the ridge/bend. The rubber cuts really easy. I went over a few spots 3 or 4 times just to make sure I didn't go too far through it.

Pretty sure I found the main contributor to my water problem.

The lower rubber hose actually ended up being plugged. I stuck a wire (solid copper with insulation on it) down the hose, but couldn't get past about 8" into it. Then I did another search on here and found More Information on Sunroof Drains so I started pulling the wheel well liner out of the car.

Didn't quite get it all the way out, but it still worked fine.

So once I found this little guy, I took a bare copper wire (solid) and started pushing it up into it. What I found was a slimy, pasty sand and water mixture. It took a few times of putting the wire in and taking it out to get the majority of the gunk out. Once it was out, I could push the wire about 8" into it before hitting a bend or something.

Next I flushed out the lower hose using a large syringe (it was actually an old battery acid tester that was missing all the floating balls; seemed to work great for my purpose: getting the water in with not much pressure).

All fixed up with a hose clamp (1/4" to 3/8" that was $0.79 at my local store).

Now I just need to test the whole thing (this drain that is) and make sure its all good.


side note: The underside of my carpet is drying out nicely. I think it should be dry by this time tomorrow. I tried removing the back seat seat back, but one of the bolts holding the seat belt clicker is stuck pretty good. I don't think it has ever been out. I want to get it out so I can vacuum and clean/investigate more.

up next: investigating driver side front sunroof drain

 

[nubuilder]

3/2/13

Front Driver Side Sunroof Drain

Yesterday, I got the driver side drain taken care of. I was able to flop the park brake pedal assembly out of the way without disconnecting anything. I honestly wasn't expecting this side to be disconnected since the carpet wasn't nearly as wet underneath. Guess I was wrong....

Here's the outlet for this one.

Some other stuff

This looks like it's the temp sensor for the automatic climate. There's one on each side by your feet.

What is this? There's one on each side by your feet also.

Is there supposed to be a trim piece running across here? There's still a gap at the ends of the back of the back seat and it is clipped in properly.

Behind the back seat

Am I missing something here? (broken plastic hanging there by the white pegs)

To me, this looks like it may or may not be factory. There's a red and an orange wire that seem to be spliced into the wire harness and taped up. The connector is also supposed to be clipped to the metal, but it really didn't want to reach the clip.

 

[nubuilder]

3/3/13

Interior Back Together

While I had the seats out, I cleaned them with Mr. Clean Magic Erasers, then in an attempt to recondition/rehydrate them, I got an ice cream bucket of water and dissolved half a bar of Dove soap in it. My logic was if it's supposed to be good for your skin, it could work for leather too. IMO, it did help the seats feel softer and not dried out.

All back together like nothing ever happened (other than cleaner seats, console, plastic along the sides of the doors, and vacuumed carpet).

Everything really went back together really easily and really quick. I could've probably had everything back in in an hour, but I was taking my time and double checking everything.


Here's the covers that hide the bolts for the front seats.

As you can see, the black ones have 2 tabs (or ears) on each of them. You need to pry these up to be able to remove the covers. I used a screwdriver for one hook and a small pick to get the other. Doing this, they slid right off. The interior-colored piece just snaps down.


I also pulled the trunk apart again. I disconnected the rear drains for the sunroof and made sure they were clean. I put my copper wire up both tubes as far as I could (about a foot) and didn't really get anything out. I was able to blow air up them and hear it come out by the sunroof with no problems. In the spring, I might take down the headliner and check everything out just to be safe, but I think most of the issues are the front drains that are now fixed.


Pretty sure I found my trunk leak....

Looking at the bottom of the trunk lid where the seal meets the lid, there is a line of dirt, then it dips where this crease is and it's clean, then the dirt continues on. It seems like the seal is glued on instead of sitting on a piece of steel (a ridge) like the door seals on my trucks do.

Any ideas how to fix this?

 

[Kennyray]

You could try putting a peice of rubber hose in the weatherstrip to bring it back to shape.

 

[OldCracker29]

You've been busy. I'd be guessing preignition on those plugs.

 

[nubuilder]

You could try putting a peice of rubber hose in the weatherstrip to bring it back to shape.

I would try that, but there's no break in the seal (at least that I have found yet) and it's glued down. I'm afraid to pull it up for fear of not sealing again due to no glue.
Is there anything I can use to glue it back down??

You've been busy. I'd be guessing preignition on those plugs.

Well, I started the project and took over my dad's garage (which I'm very grateful to be able to do). Once I started, I just wanted to get it done and back together. The only thing keeping it in the garage now is needing plastic pins to put the front plastic wheel well liners back in (hopefully ordering today) and fixing the trunk seal.

Jeff, I do know that the previous owner burned 87 octane, not 91 or higher. I'll be running 91 or higher all the time.

 

[NMRam]

Most auto parts stores should have the plastic pins for the fender liner.

As far as glue for the gasket, I would try some black RTV.....but that's just me.

 

[nubuilder]

Most auto parts stores should have the plastic pins for the fender liner.

As far as glue for the gasket, I would try some black RTV.....but that's just me.

They do, but they only have a 2-pack for $2.49....I need like 10 or more clips and they only had 2 packs in stock. O'Reilly's is supposed to call me today. They can get a 25pk for $11. I'm not in a hurry so I'll wait and it's a way better deal.

I suppose I could try some of that. I have do have some....