Good progress over long weekend

[Jamieg285]

Over the last few days I've had plenty of time to dedicate to the car, so a few jobs have been completed:

* - repair rust bubble on rear arch.  I was expecting this to be a simple rub down, Kurust and re-paint, but ended up being 2 inch square piece being cut out of the lip and a new bit welded in.  All going well until the final coat, but that should be easy to sand back and reapply next time.

* - refitted trunk torsion springs - no longer need a bit of bar to hold the boot open (except in windy conditions, but that was always the case)

* - refitted the rear window chrome trim.  Hasn't gone back on 100%, but it's close enough and doesn't appear to falling off.

* - repair drivers seat.  The 4th gen seats came out of a write-off that had rolled.  I didn't realise until they were fitted some 6 months later that the seat was bent and always slightly lent back and to the left (just on the border of being comfortable.)  Anyway, a few months ago I picked up a pair of front seats for 99p (ebay ) so stripped it down to understand how it all fits together and use as spares.  I was expecting it to be a bent frame, which required complete dismantling of the seat, but it turned out to be the outer hinge, which was much easier to change.  I can now sit straight, and upright if/when I want to!!

* - re-wire cooling fans.  I'd converted to electric fans a couple of years ago and have been fiddling with the control method ever since.  I've now got the right temp range sensor and thermostat, but I'd wired the fans with a permanent feed, which mean the fans would often kick in for a good few minutes after shutting the engine down, which wasn't doing the battery any favours.  I've now fitted a relay inline with the temp sender, so it will only transmit the signal when the ignition is on.

* - Rear parcel shelf.  The rear panel has been bare for many months now and I finally had the time to measure, cut and cover the mdf board, and fit the 7x10 Kenwoods that have been patiently sitting in the loft for nearly 5 years. End result is a massive improvement, in both looks and sound quality. I've also done some of the prep work to be able to fit some deck mount 3-point seat belts later this year.

* - Trunk divider trim.  You may remember from my last project weekend that I cut away the rear trunk panel, giving and access hole behind the now folding rear seats. That was left as cut edges, so I've now taped some plastic angle around the edges to cover the sharp ridges.

* - Engine and Transmission, oil and filters changed.  Both long overdue.  There was a worrying amount of shavings in the transmission pan, but there's nothing I can do about it now, so fingers crossed.


I also did a bunch of digging in the garden, putting down a path, but that's boring stuff.

[Jamieg285]

I knew there'd be something I forgot:

* - finished refurbing the wheels and got them fitted with some new tyres too

[Andy]

Sounds like an awesome weekend! It's great when you get time to just do the stuff you want to!

What do you reckon the reason for the shavings in the tranny pan could be from? - Lining up an overhaul some time soon?

[Jamieg285]

Oh, and also

* - washed, polish and waxed

[Jamieg285]

Quoting: Andy

What do you reckon the reason for the shavings in the tranny pan could be from? - Lining up an overhaul some time soon?

I know next to nothing about autos.  Brief google'ing suggests it could be any one of numerous moving parts inside the transmission or even a bad converter.

I don't remember seeing any crap in it last time it was changed *cough* 4ish years ago, so it may be that I've left it a bit too long or maybe gone low on the fluid.  I may drop the pan again in 2-3 months and take a look, but still don't know what I'll do if I do find something wrong.  

Not likely to go down an overhaul route, unless I get a 2nd box to use whilst doing the work, in which case, I might just as well do the upgrade to an OD tranny or switch to manual a few years earlier than expected.

Ho hum, just hope it doesn't fail completely on me.

[philoldsmobile]

auto's aren't *that* complicated in principal, especially the basic two and three speed American units.

I'll wager the most likely candidate for the shavings is the torque converter, but i'd expect that to come with quite a lot of whining and general noise.. If there  is no noise, then it could be a brake band wearing, its hard to say for sure.

for a very basic idea on auto boxes, get one of those two speed manual screwdrivers. when you hold the outer part, the screw driver turns at a different speed to when the whole thing rotates. the brake bands in an auto box do basically the same thing. link a couple together with a set of clutches, and you get the idea.