Car update
I brought the car up to Perrysburg for Thanksgiving weekend to change the timing belt and a few other minor things. My dad and I started the job early Thursday morning and didn’t finish up until Friday afternoon. We had a some trouble getting a few parts off of the engine, mainly due to old age and lack of proper tools, but the job was pretty straight forward. While the car was disassembled, we also replaced the oil seals, water pump, thermostat, and radiator hoses.
I identified a rattling noise coming from the right rear shock absorber. I bought some Tokico Blue shocks and replaced both rear shock absorbers. After getting the old ones off the car, I discovered that both were worn, so they were due for replacing anyway.
I ran power wires and a bunch of speaker wires for a 4 channel amplifier in the hatch of the car. I’ve always been a fan of maintaining a stock look for the radio. This keeps theives away and keeps the dash looking original. Of course the factory radio lacks any power at all, and in this case, only has a cassette player. The additional amp allows me to hook up my Ipod as well as providing significantly more power to the speakers.
I also began blacking out the chrome trim. The chrome look is a just a little too 80’s for me. I finished the t-tops, but had to stop on the rest of the car until the weather warms up again.
The clutch developed a whine while I was up in Perrysburg, so that will be the next big maintenance item to address.
Here is a list of what I have replaced so far.
- Hood struts
- Battery terminals
- Wiper blades
- Rear shocks
- Cam shaft oil seals and crankshaft oil seal
- Radiator hoses
- Thermostat
- Water pump
- Timing belt
- All accessory belts
- Headlights
