My GS panel has same issue. Nice work. Ill have to do the same to mine one day.
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My GS panel has same issue. Nice work. Ill have to do the same to mine one day.
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Roadster7 (05-10-2017)
Paul B (05-10-2017)
ALWAYS wear ear and eye protection, even if you think you're safe.
That's me after grinding aluminum with a dremel and having metal shavings stuck in my eye. No permanent damage, but it was painful.
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Greasemonkey2000 (05-13-2017),JamieH (05-11-2017),Martin (05-11-2017),MiataQuest (05-11-2017),Paul B (05-11-2017)
Glad you're ok man!
I wear prescription glasses from the time i wake up until bed time so Im covered for most projects. But major metal grinding, sparks or cutting disk tasks i always wear goggles over my glasses.
And usually use my gun range ear muffs for the loud stuff.
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I decided to play around a bit and see what cream-colored roundels would look like on Moby. Quick render in PS.
Taking inspiration from this, of course:
Thoughts?
Greasemonkey2000 (05-13-2017),oldgrayleather (03-09-2018),Paul B (05-12-2017)
Yes please!
Roadster7 (05-12-2017)
Began work on my control arm bushings last week. Car went up on jack stands and the disassembly process began.
Rented a few tools from AutoZone, a ball joint separator, a pickle fork, and a 3-claw puller. Ended up needing only the ball joint separator.
Garage is in a state of organized chaos.
After reading up on bushing removal, I decided to put together a DIY tool for the job. The bolt and nut pictured below are grade 2, but I recommend ordering grade 5 or higher. I actually tore a few bolts while removing the old bushings. Grade 8 bolt and nut are on order from Fastenall for the installation process.
Details below:
A general idea on how this works:
Bushings removed, control arms ready to get stripped.
Last edited by Roadster7; 05-22-2017 at 09:31 PM.
freedomgli (10-06-2017),Greasemonkey2000 (05-22-2017),HarryB (05-23-2017),JamieH (05-22-2017),MiataQuest (05-22-2017),oldgrayleather (03-09-2018),Paul B (05-22-2017),RustRat (05-23-2017),Slampen (05-23-2017)
I spent a couple of days stripping the paint from the control arms. I was surprised to find quite a bit of surface rust under the paint, and ended up going through 3-4 wire wheels in the process of cleaning these up. Wire splinters, wire splinters everywhere.
Most of the control arms needed to have the paint completely removed. Some were in good enough shape for just spot cleanup here and there, which is why you see some paint still on a few of them.
The bushing holes/barrels in the control arms had some surface rust on the edges as well, so this got cleaned up in the process. I've seen some suggestions against painting the inside of the barrels, but I wasn't about to leave this unpainted. I didn't spray directly into the barrels, but I made sure there was enough coverage on bare metal. Nothing was masked off on purpose. Paint on the inside of the barrels did not in any way affect the installation of new bushings.
Prepped with alcohol. Two coats of Rustoleum Professional Primer (first coat pictured).
Three coats of VHT Epoxy Paint.
Greasemonkey2000 (05-31-2017),oldgrayleather (03-09-2018)
24 hours of drying later, I began installing the bushings. Comparison of old vs. new below. I cut off one of the lips on the old bushing to make removal easier, so this was not the exact condition of the bushing while it was in the car. The rip down the middle and the stress fracture on both sides was caused by 23 years of wear and tear though.
Installation was pretty painless. Soapy water and the tool from my earlier post. The white powder you see in the photo below is dry soap. Make sure you center the bushings in the barrel or else the arms will not fit on the car easily.
14 hours later, everything is back on the car.
Total list of installed components:
- I.L. Motorsports bushings
- R-Package tie rod ends
- OEM lower ball joints
- OEM upper ball joint boots
- OEM eccentric bolts
It took me 2 weeks to complete this, and I estimate a total of 35-40 hours spent on the project. I write off a lot of that time to inexperience and learning, so this is easily a 3-4 day project with the correct tools, knowledge and free time. Most of my work was done on Saturdays, and before work in the mornings.
BRGNA8 (05-31-2017),Greasemonkey2000 (05-31-2017),HarryB (05-31-2017),MiataQuest (05-31-2017),oldgrayleather (03-09-2018),RustRat (06-01-2017)
I also decided to raise the car a bit for more suspension travel. I felt like the rear was low enough that I was riding on bump stops through corners most of the time. This job was easier said than done though - I spent nearly an entire day adjusting the height corner by corner. I would adjust one, another would be off. Adjust another, and the other two would be off. Adjust both at the same time, something else is out of wack. Eventually got it down to the following pinch weld measurements, around 3/4" higher than before:
Front: 4.75"
Rear: 5.25"
You can see how shot my tires were in those last photos. I am embarrassed to say that Moby had never gotten an alignment until today. Never in 4 years. Sad. We will never know what the alignment looked like before I put the suspension back together, but I can't imagine it was any better.
Moby is by no means a track car; spirited driving and an occasional run up in the mountains is all of the action it sees, so I went with a street setup. Specs are pictured below, with just a bit of camber bias, zero toe, and maxed out caster. An incorrect right rear camber measurement in the current measurements - should say 1.8, but the machine would fluctuate between 1.7 and 1.9, so they got it as close as they could. Falken Azenis also went on.
Once the car was on the alignment machine, and my height measurements turned out to be a little off. Passenger side was ~1/4" lower than the drivers side. After measuring the height again with a driver inside, everything levels out so I am very happy with the result.
Needless to say, the driving experience is on another level now. Extremely pleased with the current state of the car.
Last edited by Roadster7; 05-31-2017 at 04:41 PM.
BRGNA8 (05-31-2017),Greasemonkey2000 (05-31-2017),MiataQuest (05-31-2017),oldgrayleather (03-09-2018),RustRat (06-01-2017),ueru (06-03-2017)
Excellent job, as expected by now. Needless to say I am jealous of all the arm/bushings updates!
Roadster7 (05-31-2017)
Amazing work especially the control arms! its definitely something i want (need) to do on mine as well! Certainly an inspiration.
I personally found that with just a simple alignment with the correct settings, it transformed the car immensely through the twisties. Made it so much more fun to drive.
Really loving your updates mate! Keep em coming!
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Roadster7 (06-01-2017)
Time for another update.
I decided it was time for Moby to lose the M Edition badges. They really got old, and are going to be replaced by side markers in the future.
Also, the dash frame was cleaned of rust and painted.
Vents reinstalled.
BRGNA8 (06-19-2017),HarryB (06-20-2017),oldgrayleather (03-09-2018)