NEMOC Random BS Thread

Another REPU update.

Amanda used a vinyl-safe degreaser on the seats and got about 85% off. I think a more aggressive cleaner might get the rest. The floor still needs attention too. While she was working on that I bled the clutch with her help. That was real easy since the slave cylinder is within easy reach from the engine bay. It is still losing pressure though. I adjusted the pedal travel thinking that would solve it but the longer your foot is on the clutch the more chance you have of it re-engaging. It's best to keep it in neutral until you are ready to move. I replaced the speedometer cable with the one the seller gave me. Pretty easy job. I then took her for a longer test drive. I'm getting some back firing at WOT in 2nd but it is smooth if I ease off the throttle. Handles great at 60mph.
 
Another REPU update.

Amanda used a vinyl-safe degreaser on the seats and got about 85% off. I think a more aggressive cleaner might get the rest. The floor still needs attention too. While she was working on that I bled the clutch with her help. That was real easy since the slave cylinder is within easy reach from the engine bay. It is still losing pressure though. I adjusted the pedal travel thinking that would solve it but the longer your foot is on the clutch the more chance you have of it re-engaging. It's best to keep it in neutral until you are ready to move. I replaced the speedometer cable with the one the seller gave me. Pretty easy job. I then took her for a longer test drive. I'm getting some back firing at WOT in 2nd but it is smooth if I ease off the throttle. Handles great at 60mph.

Good to hear Chris... Hopefully, you can show the photos of the before and after to the shipping company about their horrid handling of the cars.

If need be, I can all up Manny and b**** him out about it as I have currently a few people I have referred to him...
 
So I'm starting to compile a big TODO list. As far as the mechanics and body work goes, the truck is tip top. It basically needs nothing except maybe a tune up and possibly a replacement clutch master/slave cylinder. Brakes are perfect. Suspension is comfortable.

Radio: Its there, but nothing is hooked up and there is no speaker that I could find. Lots of dangling wiring harnesses under the dash that I need to sort out.

Heat: Most of it is there, but also not hooked up. The blower spins, the knobs move from side to side. ducts are missing to connect the blower to the defrost ducts. Not too big of a deal since I probably won't need heat. It won't be driven in the winter, but who knows if i'll run into a misty morning in upstate conneticut where I need the defroster.

Dash: There are a few pots that don't seem to connect to anything. I'll have to research what they were supposed to do. There is also no cigarette lighter so I'll have to install one so I can charge accesseries like a GPS.

Interior: I really need to get a better seat. The one in there is comfy, but it sucks up a good 2" of horizontal room and at least 1" of vertical room. I can drive it, but its a tight fit and my knees get too close to the signal shaft on the left and the parking brake on the right.

Other: The exhaust contains a nice header, a silencer, and a muffler. All of this is before the rear axle. The pipe just ends after the axle. I'd like to extend that to the back of the truck. It has a bit of a drone at low rpm at cruising speeds. With only 4 gears its hard to keep it in a range that is quiet.

Wheels: It looks like they are 8" rims with 215/50/16 tires. The fronts rub if you turn the wheel too much. I tried to measure the backspacing so I could get a ballpark figure for new wheels but it was too hard to measure accurately with the wheel mounted. I'll take one off later and figure out the dimensions.

PS, I think I'll start a separate thread to track all this. Don't want to flood the BS thread with details.
 
morning all...back to the paying job today!

chris, sounds a build thread is in order! good luck with the truck...you've got a few weeks to get her ready for the cape meet!
 
Morning!

Chris, make sure you put a link up for that thread. I'd love to sub and follow that.
 
Happy Monday!

Chris, that sux about the condition the REPU arrived in! Keep us updated regarding the handling of your issues with the company. They should def. make good for it!

Heard a squeal on Friday that sounds like it's coming from the LF but I could be wrong. When I apply the brakes, it goes away so guess what I'm shopping for? Just crossing my fingers that another caliper isn't seized.

Kyle, those damn rusty bolts will get you every time. How was the EGR fitment?
 
I was checking the quote I received again. It says right on it that the vehicle will be picked up and dropped off by the same driver and not be loaded or unloaded. That was a load of crap. A guy in a flatbed showed up to get the truck in CA...and somewhere an attempt was made to move it once it was loaded....otherwise the driver wouldn't have told me the battery was dead the second he arrived.

I contacted the shipping company and the woman asked me to send her the photos. I just finished emailing her a list of all the issues. I called it a catasrophe but Amanda said it could have been much worse. I suppose there could have been body damage...but if the grease doesn't come out, I'm looking at reupholstering the seat, door panel, headliner, and visors. That'll be just as expensive as fixing dents.
 
Hi all!

I am not sure where the most appropriate spot for this is and didn't want to start a new thread in the NEPOC section, so I figured I'd ask here.

I'm curious if any of the NEPOC locals recognize a car I'm looking at in the Boston area. Link to vehicle. The extra tires (though they look unevenly worn) and super clean look like the mark of an enthusiast, so I'm thinking there's a chance it's a known car. High miles, but I'm not terribly concerned with that - though I'd love any tips, links or other advice about concerns / problems / etc. that I should start searching.

Off to look around the main site for stuff that would be important. Thanks!

flyingelvis.gif




BTW - That REPU is gorgeous! Hope you get positive results dealing with the shipping company.
 
There are definitely some bargaining points with this example. The tires are a starting point. First of all, the spare set is junk, don't accept them. If you check the vehicle out, bring a tire gauge to inspect the tires that are on it. It could be that the car is out of alignment and that is what caused the other set of tires to wear unevenly. A bad alignment could be the first sign of the vehicle being in an accident. The stock exhaust, stock intake, and non-matching summer tires leads me to believe that it wasn't an enthusiasts car. It also appears that it was parked on city streets often. The front and rear bumpers are in pretty bad shape and several of the rims are curbed. One is missing a center cap. I see rust on the insides of the doors. The radio knob is obviously missing. Dealer says it has 7 speakers but the presence of the roof rails probably means there is not a subwoofer in the spare tire, so its actually a 6 speaker system. The roof cross rails are missing, but I forget if they sold some without them before switching over to the no-rail version. NADA says clean retail is $6,100. They are being realistic about the asking price but I think there's another $1,000-1,500 to negotiate. A few things to check on this car and any others you find...

* Look for rust around the wheel wells, the edges where the rear bumper meets the rear fenders, and around the emblems on the hatch
* Make sure the A/C works and the light stays on a highway speeds. Some models had an intermittent flaw where the A/C would shut off
* Check for the ABS light to come on then turn off when you start the car (if you don't see the light it doesn't have ABS, if you see a light and it stays on, that means the ABS is broken)
* Bring a CD to make sure the radio works (even if you plan to replace it, its a bargaining point).
 
elvis, if you want i can check it our for you, i go right by there,,,anyway, it looks pretty good, unmolested and about what you'd expect to see with 130k miles, and we'd wanna know if the timing belt and water pump has been changed..lmk
 
Nice catch on the rust. I hadn't expanded the pics while at work today - and I'm not 100% sure I even would have caught that anyway! I agree there's definitely lots to work with. You may be right about the tires. I was thinking the mismatched and obviously worn tires was a smart dump by an owner . . . let the dealer pitch the garbage. lol

Alignment was my first thought, too. And my initial finds on searching brought up some alignment issues anyway. Thanks for the thoughts on other areas to look at - that'll be a huge help if I check this one out.


Bazooka Joe . . . that's a very nice offer. If you're really right in that area & don't mind, I'd love that. It's not too long a ride (30 mins) for me but time is tight w/a newborn expected any day now. The short version - I need more space for a second car seat b/c my 4 year old is too tall to fit comfortably behind me in my 8, so it's going to have to be swapped. I've always loved the Protege5 and could walk away w/more room, reliability, better fuel economy and a grand or two in my pocket w/out having to completely give up the beloved Zoom!

I'll keep digging around on here. Thanks again!
 
ok elvis..lmk, have you introduced yourself? ;) we have a cape cod meet coming up, you should check it out!

morning all....just did my gas mileage 29.6 mpg!!!
 
Thanks again for the thoughts. I'd definitely consider that 3. I appreciate the link.

I have introduced myself, and likely met a few of you over the last few years. I did the first Cape run (07), a Cars & Copters meet, and various cruises along the way. I've been out of commission for the last 18 months or so and haven't been on 8club at all in that time b/c I've been so busy - I go by dmc27 there. I did see the thread on 8club for this year's CC run but I'll have a newborn at home who will be 13 days old at that point. New house, new baby now . . . crazy year or two.
 
Hello NEPOC!

Congrats on the new house and soon-to-be new addition to the fam Elvis!!!
 
Whats up NEPOCERS!! Can you believe the wife actually complained on friday about having to take my car? She complained about taking a BRAND NEW car for the day.... I guess that tells me how much she likes her CX9! Had to take hers to Mazda for a new key. The spare remote wasnt working so they gave us a new one. So she took the new one, I took the old one that works and the one with the remote that didnt we have as just a spare KEY...

How was everyone's Easter? I had to work til 3 but then came home and had dinner and hung out with the family. In-Laws and Niece and Nephews were over. First year of no Easter egg hunt!
 
LMAO! Just goes to show that you can never figure a woman out. :) Does she have a new appreciation for cars now? I know Tam did after we got the Mazda3. Before that a car was to get from point a to point b and she could care less about the other stuff, as long as it was running. Within two months of getting the 3, she had handwashed and vacummed out a car for the first time ever!

Easter was good, went to the in-laws where we had ham from a pig my bro-in-law killed back in March. It was delicious! Our first year w/o an Easter egg hunt as well and our daughter spend the afternoon at her boyfriends house and then came over to eat dinner with us. :(
 
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