Another P5 on a College Budget....Meet Ozzie

[esnave09]

Well, I think I figured out ^that^ issue when poor Ozzie quit on me last night. I was delivering when all of a sudden I hear a terrible grinding and feel like I'm dragging quite a bit. I hit the brakes and start slowing down more, but at about 15 mph suddenly I lurch to a stop in the middle of the street. I throw on my hazards and look at my car all around, thinking maybe one of my rims came loose or something. My front passenger brake caliper decided it was done with it's job and dropped to the outside of my rim, because the mounting bolts had disappeared. I honestly don't know when that happened, but it must've been when I took it to the lab Friday, cuz it was just fine before then.

So basically, someone ****** with my car, but I'm surprisingly okay about it. The only time it could've happened without someone messing with it would be when I took the rim off to bleed the brakes, and I didn't really pay attention to it for 2 hours while I was waiting for the guy behind me to leave and I talked to my roommate. Maybe I'm okay with it cuz I should've used Loctite on those bolts, but it just hasn't really affected me yet. Sure, I had to work inside the rest of the night and have my car towed, but I don't really seem to mind. Or maybe it's the other numerous issues that I'm having with my brakes. And this seems like a cure to it. Mostly.

 

[31N007]

Sorry to hear about the brake caliper. I would suggest using anti-seize on the caliper bolts. Unless you don't plan on taking them off. Then loctite the hell out of the bolts. I thought maybe it was the caliper mounting bolt but didn't think to say anything about it. Did both bolts disappear? That is really suspicious but hey, as long as it's not a massive issue, I guess you could let it slide. I wonder if your shop has security cameras??

 

[esnave09]

Yeah both bolts are gone. I tried looking on the stretch where the grinding started but I couldn't find any bolts at all. So it was really weird....And no, I'm pretty sure they don't have cameras in the shop.

I'm planning on loctiting the new bolts like crazy, I just havfe to get them. And figure out which ones I need. It's crazy winder here today though (45+ mph winds ahead of a rain/ice/snow storm Tuesday), so looks like I might not be doing it today. I'll have to take a look in a bit. As soon as I get out of bed..... haha

 

[31N007]

To make you feel a little better, I'm missing 3 wheel bolts. All on pass side. I must've forgotten to tighten them down :S I also broke a bleeder nipple on the pass rear caliper. I may just try and get used ones (or refurbed from RA) as I think both calipers are seized.

IMO I think you may have forgotten to put them in. I wouldn't think they could back themselves all the way out. Stranger things have happened though I guess. If worse comes to, junkyard run to pull them off another car. I don't think they would have to be too special so an auto store should have them for sale...

 

[esnave09]

I almost lost some. I've noticed when my wheels have sounded loose and tightened them down as much as I could. And they stay most of the time. At least you haven't lost a rim yet! And I broke a bleeder nipple halfway through my MZ6 brake swap, so I was forced to finish the swap that day. But that doesn't sound good! It's a common problem with P5 brakes tho, so you're definitely not alone. haha

I know I remember putting them in. The caliper would've moved itself a lot sooner. Plus my rear caliper that is/was leaking is loose now too. So I think I'll just retighten all of them tomorrow when I can get in the lab. Obviously I'll need to do the front one today, but I can't do it outside much longer. It's super windy and cold. Damn you, winter....

 

[31N007]

Oh don't even mention losing a damned wheel! I usually tighten the hell out of my lugs until I can't anymore. I think factory torque spec would be way loose now... On the topic of hearing when they get loose, I felt a bit of something when I was driving the other day then I went to take the lugs off and went "oh, that's not very good." I shot a piston out of the caliper that I broke the nipple off of. Heh, I really need to think before I do things sometimes...

Glad you did get the brake swap done. I'm going stock as I'm hoping to sell this summer... I'll go back to stock most likely and try and find a younger kid who would want it. Really whoever has the cash and will treat it right.

Winter is the bane of all car owners' existence. I'll say this though, if winter didn't make everything brittle, I'd work in the winter over the summer. Someone on here mentioned layering. You can dress up, but you can only get so naked when it's warm out.

 

[esnave09]

Haha you and me both need to think more. When I did my struts I undid the top nut on my strut piston rod before I undid the strut mount, and the rod shot straight back into the strut and scared me. And my roommate on the other side of the lab. Haha

I guess trying to stay stock will be good for selling it. While having a bunch of mods on your car is cool and will get the attention of every boy racer out there, they don't always add value if there's other issues. I've been thinking about this too, maybe just posting an interest ad on Craigslist or something. Problem is that to get a decent 3 like I want to I need at least $5k and to be really lucky with finding one, plus I have a lot of money to make up from getting stuff for Ozzie. I've invested over $2500 since March and I bought him for $3700. And I have almost nothing in savings. My perfect 3 would be a manual hatch version with a sunroof, and while I just found one for $3800, I wanna find one with lower miles. And not a yellow one. haha

I get ya on the layering though, I kinda like working in the cold. Especially since the heaters in Proteges are amazing (even with the fan off). I like layering up, especially goin to sleep. That's the best! Summer on the other hand.....

 

[31N007]

Especially since the heaters in Proteges are amazing (even with the fan off). I like layering up, especially goin to sleep. That's the best! Summer on the other hand.....

FTMFW. The heater warms up faster than my dad's 2012 Altima and mom's 2007 Grand Cherokee. And the A/C is better too... Odd considering the age but what can I way, Winry's special.

The only thing I'm planning on keeping on the car is the foglight mod. Nobody'll notice unless they leave the button pressed and go to lock the car (installed an OEM alarm system, woohoo) The reason I got the Mini H1 projectors is because they fit through the hole in the sedan (and probably hatch) headlamps without any cutting. I'll need to try and find some caps for the holes I cut to put the rear strut brace in. Oh well, I have a few months to think about that yet.

I'm beating myself up because I really want a Speed3 and there's a really good one for sale locally in good shape but I can't get a loan as I'm a bum and don't work during college. When summer hits, I work 40s at the company my dad works for. What sucks is I can't get a "loan" from him, but that's just how it goes unfortunately. If you can, keep Ozzie as a daily and get something else either 1) for the summer, or 2) for the winter. If I can swing it right, I'll keep my P5 as a winter beater... The engine now runs just fine but I could probably use the extra cash for mods towards the Speed when (I'm hell bent on getting one) I get one...

I don't even want to think about how much I've put into Winry. I'll come up with a price tomorrow. It won't be pretty... Lol

 

[esnave09]

I know, right? It warms up faster than my parent's 06 Odyssey and 07 Civic (although they're Hondas, you can't expect much lol). But the Odyssey has heated seats, and even though they're slow, you can't beat those.

Hooray for the alarm! I need one of those, but not before I replace, well, what used to be my horn. It's now literally down to being quieter than my talking level. Those Mini H1s seem to be a big thing, and I wanna give them a shot. I'd have to replace my headlight housings though, cuz mine are scratched like crazy on the inside. The rear brace covers shouldn't be that hard to find, as long as you find a car at a scrap yard.

Honestly, don't worry about it. I don't think I could get a loan either, and I work 40s with classes. I'd for sure have to have my parents or someone cosign the loan, which sucks. But my parents told me they would take away my college money if I got a credit card, so I don't wanna know what they would do if I got a car loan. haha I wish I could afford a Speed3, but I can't even afford a decent one at an auction right now. I have to dip into my savings for rent this month (series of unfortunate expensive events last week), so I'm kinda in trouble. Thankfully I get paid Friday, so that'll make up for it. I'm planning on keeping Ozzie for a while, since I just got snow tires (so excited for the storm tomorrow!), and then when spring (and tax time) rolls around I'll look again. If I don't find anything or if I feel so inclined I'll keep Ozzie and get him a bunch of birthday mods (one year in March). haha It's crazy to think that I've already put on almost 12k miles in 8 months! Coming up with a price for Ozzie would be tough for me too, cuz I tend to forget what I've done to fix/mod my car. There's so many little things that I don't notice until I compare it to other P5s. But each one adds value in the right condition!

 

[31N007]

I picked it up from a bloke on FB (Alex) as he's got just about everything I could want for a P5/Protege...

He'll probably have a horn for you if you wanted to go factory. Though I'm sure you'll use it more than I use mine so stock might not be the way to go... I love the MH1s. If you want to do a true "retrofit", I think the FX-Rs are pretty good? But once you retrofit, there's no going back as you'll have to cut the reflector bowl. Maybe if you get new headlamps, you could retro one set and keep the other and swap the lense out if/when you go to sell. The rear brace cover isn't as simple as it seems... <iframe src="https://skydrive.live.com/embed?cid=50C06A9C62DCD437&resid=50C06A9C62DCD437%211529&authkey=ACOf23LfS3MFqgM" width="240" height="320" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe>
The holes aren't a "standard" size I don't think. When I go to sell, I'll figure something out.

At the end of the day, save your money and put it toward the things that matter. You'll have plenty of time to get a cool car later on in life. I'm a hypocrite and I'll still try and find a way to get the Speed. Lol. But yeah, you'll be able to find a way to get things done eventually!

I gotta say, massive props to you and others out there who support themselves as far as rent and college go. I think I'm a little spoiled when I step back a bit... College is paid for- I just need to get the grades...

Is Ozzie's b-day when he was made or when ya bought him? Lol. That reminds me, I had Winry since October 10 last year IIRC. I didn't do anything special though, so new rear brakes are in order! I'll look for a hood too, may as well.

 

[esnave09]

Haha I definitely don't want to go stock, cuz I use my horn a lot. I'm planning on getting a Cadillac 4-note horn, but I need to figure out the wiring first.

As for that rear brace, I was thinkin of the ones that go across the strut towers, not one like that. That's really interesting, especially since it's hidden by the cargo cover. I'm thinking about saving my money though. I'm buying a lot of little things lately, now that my big things like struts and brakes are done, and it's taking a bigger hit on my checkbook than I thought it would. And with Christmas coming up, I can save my money for gifts now, and then put a lot of the little things on my Christmas list and cross my fingers that my parents check my Amazon lists. I definitely don't mind paying for everything myself though. I was brought up doing that, everything from a candy bar to an X-Box, so it wasn't a huge surprise until I bought my first car and they told me not to take my insurance out of my savings. And I appreciate it now. They give me some college money, but definitely not all of it, and I'm okay with that. Helps me to make better choices, and keeps me from partying all the time. ha

I right now consider Ozzie's birthday to be when I got him. I gotta check for sure, but I wanna say his manufacture date is close to that, but I'm not sure. I'll check in a little bit when I go to reattach the brake caliper (hurry up online class and finish! haha). But yes, look for a hood and rustproof the s*** out of that thing! haha I have yet to see how bad your hood is.....Mine's starting to get rust through the paint by the driver's headlight, as well as a few rock chips rusting.

 

[esnave09]

Got it finished! 45 minutes later checked and tightened down the bolts up front, as well as the left rear (which wasn't loose at all), and my braking seems fine now! (cabpatch) And on top of that, I don't think I'm leaking brake fluid either!

The downside, I forgot the Loctite. When I picked up the bolts I had to ride my bike in the cold to Ace (the closest place to my apartment, 2 miles away), and I didn't realize it until I was halfway back and already quite chilled. And seeing as I wanted to drive to work tonight, I thought I would go back and do that another time. But I picked up extra bolts too, so if I lose some bolts it won't be a huge issue if I have access to my tools.

Also, I checked the manufacture date......MARCH! 03/02 Whoop Whoop! So I bought Ozzie around his 11th birthday!

Sorry, unnecessary excitement. But I was pretty psyched about it.

 

[31N007]

Hey, not unnecessary. It's cool that this is the case.

Glad you got the brakes sorted out! That's fine about loctite. Tighten them down a little more than ya did last time I guess...

I shouldn't think the horn would be too difficult to wire up but what do I know, I'm going into mechanical engineering.

That is the strut tower brace and the holes are at the top of the towers.

I'll get and post a pic of what my hood looks like in the morning. Somehow I think it'll look similar to yours (a little rustier though)

 

[esnave09]

Ah gotcha. I didn't think it would be too hard to wire the horns either, but I don't wanna give it too many amps and fry them, or not enough and not have it be as loud as it could/should be. I just can't remember what little electrical engineering I've learned to remember what to do in this situation.....

But it looks like the strut brace is lower. It just mounts at the top and drops to the middle for the extra rigidity? It makes sense I guess.

Now I gotta figure out where the money for my horn is coming from......

 

[31N007]

Bloody hell. And I thought I was up early...

Nope again on the brace. Lol (not trying to be rude. just woke up)

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That's how it sits. I too thought it would sit a little closer to the cargo cover, but I can't complain. I use it to hold down a massive sleeping bag as well as a blanket for those nights where they would become necessary (haven't had any yet lol)

Aaaand, lastly, the rust:

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and

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and lastly, for fear that I'm taking over this thread and shouldn't

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[esnave09]

Haha I was just getting off work, about to go to bed. And wow, I'm not good at this guessing game. lol

But dang. Mine's not quite that bad on my hood, but the fenders are waaay worse on mine. And my tailgate only has rust by the P5 logo. I can grab some pics when I get back from class if the snow hasn't started yet.

BTW, I'm super jealous that your P5 is silver. I love black and all, but these cars look sick in silver imo. Get some dark gray on the rims, smoke the lights and you would have a badass P5! After the rust is repaired, of course.

 

[31N007]

Lemme find pics of the rear taillamps- they're tinted lightly. I'll snap a pic later on today. Around 6. Because college. Lol

 

[esnave09]

Ah I know that feeling. It sucks so bad. Hurry up stupid classes....

 

[esnave09]

Photo Update!

I feel like it's been a while, but I finally got pics of my rust (excluding door corners, which aren't that important to me). Sorry the car is a little dirty, so it makes it hard to tell the difference between rust and dirt in some of the pics.
So here's the rust on my rear fenders (with driver's side being the worst)



A more focused shot of the worst stuff

Typical rust around the P5 logo (above and below the "ro")

And last but not least, the spot on my hood where it's about to pop through the paint, along with some rusted rock chips


When my brake caliper dismounted itself, I had the driver's front wheel off for a couple days, and you can definitely tell that it rained while the rim was off and the car was up in the air (2 days, got lazy and didn't think to ride my bike to a hardware store).

Also, a couple pics before and after the tow (not that anything happened in between)




I went home for the weekend, and me and my Dad ran to a junkyard and picked up a set of 4-note horns from this donor Buick


And finally for a couple random pics. Needless to say, I can't wait to have my new phone and better camera!




And I think that's all of them.

Now I just have to figure out the best way to wire up the 4 note horns. Any advice? I'm probably gonna have to do a combo of parallel and series, but I'm not entirely sure. And I gotta figure out if I need another relay.

 

[esnave09]

I got my 4 note horns in! Had to cut up the grill a bit to get them to fit, but since going through a car wash and having the bitter cold here it seems only 2 of them are working. It could just be the ghetto wiring that me and my roommate did, but everything seems to be together still, so I'm not sure what's going on. Hopefully I can get a video together soon...

Also, I burned out another low beam (possibly both) over the weekend. Frustrating, since I just replaced them both in the spring, if not early summer. I just noticed the second one tonight, but it's also the one with the twitchy plug, so I'm hoping it's related to that. That headlight has been acting up quite a bit lately (probably the cold), so I might be trying to replace the socket soon. But I have more in a minute on that....

My alternator belt has been squealing a lot lately too (almost every time I pull away from a stop now), so I'm gonna take it back to the shop and hope their warranty is still good on it (the alternator and belt were both replaced in March), and they told me Thursday when I was in there that my belts were cracking.

Back to the lighting issue, I had put a set of HIDs on my Christmas list, but I've also been throwing around the idea of an LED headlight kit. Brighter lights, longer life, lower power draw, etc.... Long story short, I caught wind of this after a craigslist search, and I was wondering if anyone had heard anything about this kit or about LEDs in general with headlights. Also, would this work with projectors, like I was planning on getting?