I'm done...wait...just kidding. I noticed that through some act of the almighty that my shifter cables, although attached with nothing previously moved...had magically slipped out of alignment. What I mean is my car was registering "neutral" in the "3rd" gear position. WTF!!! Ok, three deep breaths and lift the car back up and disconnect the under plates and then a looooooooonnnnnngggggg stare at the system to see how it worked. Easy. If I knew where neutral was all I had to do was re-position the sifter with the cables disconnected and then move the linkage to re-align with the new position. So, with the wife in the car (again)...(thanks Honey!!)...I disconnected the linkage (after I knew that it was shifted in neutral. Then I had her move the lever and hold it in the exact neutral position. Then, unscrew the retaining nut and move the bracket (screw it up or down to adjust the length) until it lined up with the new length. Then tighten the retaining nut and put it all back together. Keep in mind that there is literally .0001 mm of clearance for the shifter cable retaining nut to insert properly. If you are off by 1 rotation it will look almost perfectly aligned but it will not insert. You need to turn your retaining clip 1/2 of a rotation or more till it inserts perfectly. You will know when that happens because the nut will feed through it perfectly. **my car is getting detailed right now...when it comes back I'll post some pics to help illustrate this thread since I didn't see it located anywhere on f-chat***
Finally...with the coolant system bled and all the fluid levels checked I started her up. As you probably know the first time you start it you need to touch nothing for about 10 minutes as the computers re-learn all the information. I left it running for about 30 minutes as I bled the coolant system and let everything kind of break in. This is the exact order I followed: -Bleed brakes/clutch with the key in the #1 position -Start car and let it sit for 10 minutes -Bleed coolant system using both the top and the bottom bleed nipples on the firewall -Turn off the car and unplug the battery. Let the car sit overnight. -Re-connect the battery -Start the car and let it sit for 30 minutes -Drive the car around the block and look for any strange noises/smells/weirdness -Make sure the car shifts properly in all the gear and that there is no "mushiness" in the brakes -Drive the car for about 20 minutes and highway speeds and let things start to break in. I did not let the revs get above about 5k. I'm treating her gingerly for a few days till all the parts get worn in properly. And that's it....now enjoy your hard work, your great accomplishment, and the knowledge that you really did something awesome. Here is a video of her purring like a mean little kitten....I couldn't be happier!
I've been trying to load it all day....either Fchat hates videos or my internet is too slow. I'll keep trying.
Here is a pic of the car all detailed...damn she looks all shiny and pretty. I also took a pic of all the parts I changed just so you get an idea of what comes out and what goes in. Kind of sad to think how really small the parts are when you consider the time etc associated with the job. But hell...I learned a ton. Happy wrenching to all of you and if you do your service and have any issues PM me and I'll be glad to share my thoughts. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Congrats on getting it all back together! Yep, the shock towers have always been the trickiest part of the re-install process for me too.
I purchased R12 from eBay and drove the car down to Tallahassee to get it filled. No one in my small town would touch it unless it was 134 and I do not want to convert it. As for the alignment I did not do one. I have checked the tires pretty frequently and there is no uneven wear on them. So I'm happy with how it is.
