Datsun 510 wagon
Proving sometimes the copy is better than the original. I believe this photo is of a 510 wagon, which was Japan’s attempt to match the BMW 2002. While the 510 will never be as good as the 2002, I have to admit that the 510 wagon is way better than the 2002 touring.
And my favorite…
The new Audi
I’ve always been a fan of Audi’s, especially the wagons and the A3. My bad track record with VW’s has kept me from buying one, but I finally caved in to my own internal peer pressure. Which brings us to my new (to me) 2006 Audi A3. It’s got the premium package and comfort package, but unfortunately no sport package. It is white, which is a huge bonus. It has four doors, a hatch, and a modest 200hp. I only wish it was a quattro and not just FWD. Upon arrival I had my buddy Grant from Renu Auto give it a full over pampering, including full exterior/interior wash, and wheel repair on all four wheels. I was amazed at how that kid got my wheels looking brand new again. I also had my buddy Dan come by and smoke both my tails and headlights. I shot this quick time lapse as Grant and Dan were finishing up late at night. Thanks guys!
Race cars and best friends
A few weeks ago Arri and I had a chance to got to Miller Motorsports Park for the Ferarri Challenge. It was an amazing opportunity to see some absolutely incredible cars out on the track. What was even more amazing though was Arri’s ability to make friends. In a couple hours time he was able to make two best friends with perfect strangers. I guess I’m not the only one that thinks he is the coolest kid in the world.
Little Helper
Last Saturday I went over to my buddies house to help him pull the engine out of his deaded 2002. I kept telling him how easy it was and how I did mine in 30 minutes. I brought my little helper Arri along with me. He had a blast carrying tools around, getting dirty, and riding his bike. The actual engine pulling took a while longer than 30 min. I had forgotten that there were literally only two bolts holding my entire engine and transmission in place. Luckily with a little help the three of us were able to get it all done.
Making room
I may have mentioned it before, but the tearing apart really is my favorite part. Maybe that’s why I never finish a project. Unfortunately (or fortunately) I am almost at the end of the road for removing things. With the M10 engine out it was time to clean up the engine bay as much as possible. The reasons are twofold. First I will be repainting the whole car, so I want to get it cleaned up for paint and bodywork, second, the new M20 takes up a little more space than the old engine, so I needed to make some room.
For the sake of painting, I removed the brake booster and pedal box, along with the complete wiring harness. With those out of the way it was time to break out one of my favorite tools, the grinder. After a lot of sparks and smoke I was able to cut out the battery tray (I’ll be relocating the battery to the trunk) a good chunk of the front nose support, and the dreaded “big bumper” reinforcements found on the late model 2002’s. You can see the nose material prior to cutting in the first picture, and a keen eye will spot the bumper reinforcements in the second picture. What I was left with, besides a nose full of black boogers, is a nice big open engine compartment.
Hopefully it is enough room for two extra cylinders, a turbo and if heavens permit, some AC equipment. Before any I start any body work I need to do a bit of reinforcing in the nose area, as well as mock up locations for the new radiator, electric fan and intercooler which will all require some custom brackets. I have decided to get those little bits all squared away before I even think about paint. Unfortunately that means I need to acquire a M20 engine, radiator, intercooler etc BEFORE I can do any body work. That means my original schedule to get it in paint by summers end might be a distant dream.
Engine is out!
I’ve never felt so manly in my entire life. Seriously. In a few short hours I managed to pull an entire engine and transmission out of a car, and no one was killed.
I was sitting around wondering how cheap I could find a engine puller online, when I found an add for an engine hoist, load leveler and engine stand for $200 or trade for car audio equipment. The stuff was all from Freight Harbor and had only been used once. After a couple frantic minutes of digging around in the garage I had fired off some photo’s of old car subs and amps that had stacked up over the years. A couple hours later I was cramming a large pile of orange steel into the back seat and trunk of the Volvo. With some junk out of the garage, and only $100 lighter in the wallet I was ready to take on the world.
The actual task of pulling the engine was easy. Scary easy really. Once I got it all hooked up to the hoist, I quickly found out that the only thing that was holding the engine and transmission in place was the transmission brace. Two bolts later, the whole thing was ready to be plucked out. With a little wrestling I was able to get it all out with out much trouble at all. The load leveler was a real life saver. Once out, I split the tranny from the block and was pleasantly surprised to find a brand new clutch. Too bad I won’t be able to use it with the new engine I plan on putting in. With the engine bay much cleaner, it shouldn’t be too much longer until I am ready to send it off for soda blasting. Now if I only had the cash for the paint work.
One down…
I mentioned the fantastic two for $500 deal that Rich and I had gotten on our 2002’s. As much as I loved the little green roundie, it had too much rust and bondo to be a practical restoration. With that in mind I had been stripping all the useful parts off of it with the exception of the engine and transmission. I even went as far as to saw off both the nose and tail. With all the useful parts stripped off, it was finally time to send it to 2002 heaven.
The good news is that we got $100 cash for the car just for scrap metal. While it was sad to see it go, it’s time to move on.
A new project
My car ADD is well documented, but in a seemingly futile attempt to find a car that can keep my attention for more than a couple months I have gone back in time, way back. I picked up not one, but two BMW 2002’s thanks to a little help from a friend.
While it started out as a low budget purchase, ($500 for both cars) I’m sure that the whole restoration will be much closer to the $10,000 mark. Luckily I’m in no hurry to get it done. I plan on spending the next year or two auto geeking out about every single little detail of the car, and what I want to do with it. The green car shown below is going to the crusher now that we got all the good parts off of it. I’m now in the process of starting to strip the yellow one down to a rolling shell and then I’ll save my pennies to ship it off for body work and a paint job. Any votes on what color to do it?
If I get on the ball enough I’ll be documenting the whole process here. Stay tuned….
Lumpy love
I have already admitted I have a bit of a thing for Volvo’s. Weird, I know. I think it’s because my first car was a Volvo, so now I have a soft spot in my heart for them. I have recently sold all of our cars (big surprise) and I was looking for a good cheap car to drive for the winter. A Lumpy. I found a perfect candidate in a 1989 Volvo 240 DL with 235,000 miles. Despite the age and miles it is in amazing shape, and thanks to some fine suspension tuning with a sawzall and a grinder, she’s looking even better.
FJZ80 Land Cruiser - For Sale
FJZ80 Land Cruiser
In the constant ebb and flow of vehicles that is known as my life, it is finally time to let go one of my favorite vehicles I’ve had in a while….
I’ve had this car for almost two years now and it has been wonderful. I bought it from a gentleman in Heber who had done a lot of work to it. Most of the work was done at Slee off road in Colorado. In case you don’t know Slee specialized in working on 80 Series Land Cruisers, so you know all the work done on it was done right. Slee added the amazing Old Man Emu 2.5” Heavy Load lift kit ($872) which makes it ride even better than when it was brand new, Cooper Durango Radial A/T 285/75R16 tires with new wheels ($1,000?), Slee Short bus front bumper ($965) with 8,000 lb Warn M8000 winch ($960). They even went as far as to give it a fresh coat of black paint!. In addition they went through everything to make sure it was in top notch mechanical conditional and all the required maintenance was up to date. Since I have owned it I have had a new radiator put in at the dealer and had a premium tuneup done. While the miles are starting to get up there, it still runs like a dream. This amazing straight six still has a lot of life left in it. It’s my wife’s car, and the only reason we are selling it is she is getting tired of climbing in and out of it with two small kids. The third row seating is great, and this has been an amazing car. KBB and NADA both put it at around $9,500 before all the work that was done to it. I paid over $12,000. Looking to get $10,500 out of it. Serious inquiries only.
Volvo 122s
I have never really thought of myself as a car guy, but the fact that I have owned 16 cars in the last 14 years seems to prove otherwise. My wife calls it Automotive ADD, I just call it a good time.
It may have all started when I was a kid and I was obsessed with Richard Scarry’s Cars and Trucks and Things That Go, or that little matchbox car I had that I couldn’t quite decide which was the hood and which was the trunk. One thing is for certain though, that love of cars was cemented with the purchase of my first car. A Volvo 122S. I bought it from my uncle for $200 before I even had a drivers license and spent countless hours stalling it while I learned how to use a manual transmission. It would last me two long years before it finally threw a rod and found it’s way to Volvo paradise. I’m not sure a car will ever be as loved by me as it was.
Fiesta Movement Entry Video
A while ago I heard about a little contest that Ford was putting on. They were giving away a 2011 Ford Fiesta to 100 lucky individuals. All you had to do to win was submit a video along with a resume. They were looking for people who were into social networks and had an audience to which they would be able to share their experience. I figured it would be fun to enter, so I threw together this short little video and submitted it. Little did I know that I would actually win a car. I pick it up April 28th. Anyone need a ride?