AZ Drifter's '80 FI Project Log

Off come the teeth.


The holes are getting back-filled with fiberglass mat. After two layers, I will work from the outside and smooth with Bondo.


Ew.


Since I'm going to be applying Bondo and spraying stuff, might as well fill in the seams that run from the rear turn signals to the bottom of the car also.


Fiberglass: the smell of custom.
 
Looking good. I did most of the same to mine last year (though not as good a job as you're doing I admit). Ditching those bumpers is a good thing.
 
You must have learned Italian at Watsa Matta U. :)

Here's the back, just rattle-canned for now.



I found a nice, cheap piece of heavy gauge aluminum in this box.


Here it is cut to size with a coat of fiberglass.


I can't figure out the best way to support it from behind yet. It's a little flimsy even after I reinforced it quite a bit. It needs a brace in the center.
 
Maybe something along these lines? I fibreglassed a strip of aluminum channel (from home depot, door edging, or something) across the center, then added the overlay end tabs. No center flex with this.

IMG_7406.jpg
 
At last the front end is cleaned up.


Sooner or later I will get some bumperettes, but for now it's workable. Thanks Ricardo for the inspiration to make a spoiler. :worship:

I bought some Panasport wheels from M-B, which came with tires mounted. The date code says 2002, but they must have been stored properly. Beyond any reasonable expectation, they still have R Compound grip, and I should be able to get three autocross events out of them. I applied several coats of "Formula V" traction treatment/rubber conditioner, and we are ready to go racing. Almost.

I need a trailer and hitch for the racing rubber, toolbox, and jack. I still have the hitch assembly that I removed from my 350Z a year ago, and whaddaya know? It works great for an X 1/9. I had a friend weld the bumper shocks, and I fortified the aluminum bumper mounts with some fat steel bolts and washers. Rigging the lights was a cinch since I still had the old setup from the Z and all the wires in the X's trunk are exposed. While I was back there, I fixed a rusted out brake light socket and got the light to work again.




When I get to the track, the two bolts in the trunk release the bumper assembly, and that's all there is to it.

Meanwhile, my kitten made good on his New Years resolution and caught his first bird.
 
The new radiator and fan from Bob G. went it this weekend. Painless job aside from having to work around the bracket I mounted to the radiator mount for the spoiler.
Old one, 20 lbs.


New one, 12 lbs.


Hiding behind the grille


Bonus shot in the paddock at the autocross with Panasports! She looks tiny next to a Mustang.
 
I see you are continuing to do...

some great work here.

Thru-bolting the hitch and bumper to the mounts was a great idea! I don't know if welding up the shocks was necessary though as many have pulled these cars by bolting tow-bars directly to the front shocks.

Thanks for posting, some good ideas here!
 
Passenger Door Handle

I finally got time to fix the door handles today. The driver's side interior handle was jamming to the point that I had to roll down the window and let myself out. The passenger door exterior housing was in bad condition, and it wouldn't lock.
Mostly, everything needed a good shot of lubricant. I found out why the door wouldn't lock- the connecting rod between the lock and the latch mechanism had broken. I have a replacement, so no worries. Here's the exploded diagram.


Everything is held together with pressed-in pins. There is a little bugger on the back of the latch. You need something really strong and narrow to hammer it out. I started with an icepick and moved on to a finishing nail.


The little ball joint was what had broken off the old part.
There are pins pressed into the handle that double as hinges. They can be pressed out by opening the door handle for access.



Installation was the reverse of dis-assembly. It looks much better now.


Here's a close up of the ball joint that connects the lock to the mechanism. I used even pressure on both sides to remove it, and pressed it back on. It took a lot of force.


All done. Now if only the door wasn't all dented up from having to slam it shut. :sad: The aftermarket weatherstripping makes it impossible to close the door all the way gently.

 
Long time, no report

So the X is grounded with a leaking head gasket. Luckily it completed a five hour journey including a balls-to-the-wall hillclimb in the desert before anything went wrong. Yesterday I went out for a spin around the block and a miss developed. Upon inspection, there was fresh oil on a spark plug and a little drip of coolant from somewhere around the engine block. I will be trying to remove the head without removing the engine.

In the meantime, I also investigated the fuel sending unit. It's in here behind the air meter...




And here's the culprit, the so-called fuel wiper rheostat. It was reading from full to about 3/4 tank, then it would freak out for a while and stop altogether. This explains a lot...


I looked into a repair but couldn't figure out what kind of wire to use. Luckily, Vick's has a sending unit for $50.

I went in search of the alternator access port in the trunk that Tony talks about, and found more than I bargained for. After removing the false floor and insulation, there was this...


Some rust remover, paint, and high-temp insulation is in order. While we're at it, the false floor can stay out and I'll take my extra inch of trunk depth, not to mention a little weight loss.

I ordered my Delco Remy 63 amp alternator and bracket, too. The head gasket will eventually be addressed. Need to make sure the head didn't warp at some point.

The wife and I were in Long Beach last weekend for the Japanese Classic Car Show. Here's some pics of what ya might have missed.




So maybe I have a thing for old Celicas :headbang:
 
Always enjoy your updates...

We seem to be tackling similar projects on similar looking X's :)

FWIW my trunk looked pretty bad too when I removed the shelf. I think a lot of them do... Mine had only surface rust -- no rot -- so I had it media blasted and sealed/painted when I got re-sprayed a few years ago.

I think the trunks tend to rot because water gets trapped in the fiber insulation between the shelf and trunk-floor and between the trunk-floor and heat shield. You can remove the insulation but will probably get more heat into the trunk area. I opted for some foil-backed insulation which I adhered to the bottom of the trunk floor and bottom of the shelf. I also re-did my shields. My car rarely gets wet but everything is holding up well these past two years and my trunk gets warm during long runs but not too hot. My experience here: http://xwebforums.com/forum/index.php?threads/21929/

I also pulled my sender last year and tried cleaning/repairing it. It works OK right now but gets a little bouncy between 1/4 and 1/2 so I may just replace it with your recommended Vicks solution.

Gotta pull the head on my X as well this Fall/Winter. Mine runs OK for short-trips but I get air in the cooling system -- so I'm taking these last few weeks of good Fall weather to enjoy it before pulling into the garage for the fun job of pulling the head.
 
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Az Drifter - I rebuilt my sender using info from this site. Bought the correct wire online for less than $10. As for removing the head without removing the motor, I have done it. If the head hasn't been off in a while and if you have studs you will need a head removal tool. I happen to have one.
 
I searched for info on the wire and came up with an Ebay listing number that didn't work for me. The thought of doing about 94 windings, spaced 64 the first inch and 30 the second 1.25 inches is a little daunting. If you have the info on the wiring, I would be curious though. Head's off and at the machine shop. The machinist said that coolant leaked into the intake mani through the mani-to-head gasket, which may have come loose due to overheating. The oil could be from a crack in the head, but it needs further investigation. Supposedly it can be repaired if that's the case.

Geekdaddy, thanks for the link to your trunk post. I think I will use a product from Second Skin Audio. It's good for up to 800 degrees F. and takes up little space. Nice work, BTW. I will copy your idea.
 
John,

So does this mean we won't see you and the better half at BFI in November?? We all enjoyed meeting you last year. Maybe with good luck you'll resolve the current problem and can make it out to the left coast again this year.

Mike
 
Next year we can make it out there with a little luck. The X should look and run a lot better then. It was a great time last year between the people and the machinery.
 
AMEN to what Mike said... I taught him everything he...

knows... or maybe it was the other way around???

Alas, JC WHITNEY no longer carries the door weatherstripping. I wrote them to confirm just a few days ago. I also did a search and came up with a few possibilities including Mr. Obert here in NorCal. Whitney had a great price and product, but no more.

Think about posting a new thread and asking for ideas...

OH, and BTW, the weatherstripping terms are "side (hollow) bulb, clip-on", 16mm x 16mm x 30mm or about 5/8" x 5/8" x 1 1/4". Need about 26 feet for a continuous wrap from the top of the windshield, down and around the door bottom, up and over the Targa bar, and doing the same on the other side. Corner pieces if desired, can be obtained from Ricardo Borja here...

HTH... See you in a few weeks???
 
Today I made the brackets to mount my new Remy 63 amp alternator. At first the measuring seemed daunting, but then it occurred to me that I could figure it all out by lining up both alternators.

I took a straight edge to line them up, and measured the difference between the size of the old bracket and the room needed for the new one. This resulted in the accessory belt lining up perfectly on the first try. Just like those mechanics on TV, who always get it right the first time!


I had a real nice picture of how to actually cut the bracket, but lost it. You cut in at an angle from alongside the top bolt, then cut in trom the side. Lay the bracket flat and cut through the cylindrical section as far as possible. Then drill a large hole in the area where the cuts should meet. From there, you can stick a hacksaw blade through the hole and finish cutting the part that's left.



And here's the other bracket. It needs some washers and a water pump bolt that is 1/2" longer than the original to work.


The original belt works fine. We will see how it does once the motor is back together.
 
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