What experience do you have?

[avsfan733]

i haven't done much in the way of actual on/in-car work beyond just easy stuff, but i have done a lot of carbon fiber and kevlar work for my kart as well as building all my engines (KT100) which is an enlightening experience in simplicity

[Chris Stockdale]

Originally posted by Ray Bell
One of the benefits I see in this forum is that there can be an interchange of information about simple and complex vehicle maintenance.

You might notice a thread of frugality through my posts. I do all my own work on my cars, except exhaust replacements, which are just so much better carried out on a hoist by someone with a MIG or TIG welder and the costs are usually very low. Read that it takes them a lot less time than me...

So now I'd like to know who there is that has some experience in working on their own (or others' or wives' cars). What have you done?

Who's rebuilt an engine?

Modified an engine?

Can set up a crownwheel and pinion?

Reconditioned brake calipers?

Got into trouble changing a clutch?

You get the drift, let's see who's got their fingers dirty... and who wants to try and need advice.

I do more body repair than engine work here's an example of how people can mess things up in a blink.
I was teaching my girlfriend how to drive on southport beach at 11 o clock at nite now there is nobody there at that time. But she still managed to rip the side skirt off, Side swip a piller for the pier above, and get us stuck in soft sand.


(Edited to remove sexist comment- Bluebottle)

[Maisie]

I'm fairly sure a bloke is equally capable of messing up a lot of work in an instance, and I intensely dislike your sexist comment and your crude use of language.

[Bomn]

Originally posted by Chris Stockdale
I was teaching my girlfriend how to drive on southport beach at 11 o clock at nite now there is nobody there at that time. But she still managed to rip the side skirt off, Side swip a piller for the pier above, and get us stuck in soft sand.

Well you are the instructor. You took her onto a beach and somehow she is the idiot. I would like to find the person who taught you to drive and give them a flogging.

[woodyracing]

let keep things friendly people

[Aysedasi]

Good point though Bomn

[Bluebottle]

Better get a beach-buggy Chris- more apt for your kind of driving!

[Bluebottle]

'ear, 'ang on a mo... I thought you didn't have a car Chris...

[Airhead]

Originally posted by AMoffat
Well,

I wish right now I was a panel beater! The engine swap on the Mighty Mazda has gone off OK. But there's rust around them there tail lights! I have talked the boy through the grinding back stage and have covered the metal with rust treatment and primer. But we should weld a piece in before the body filler does it's thing and I can't weld to save myself!

Then we both need to start rubbing the whole body back prior to the respray with orange paint (orange will come into vogue again - trust me).

My head hurts.

You can tell life's pretty bad when you search for half an hour to quote yourself - right? On the up-side I can still remember making this post from a few years ago...

I am now ready to sray the third car with my son. Well, to be truthful, the second car, this one is coming round for the second full sray job. I have withdrawn somewhat from the full-on preparation. For this incarnation I have donated three days of rubbing back only.

He has done the rest. Taping and primer go on tomorrow. I will be safe at work.

[DAVID PATERSON]

We expect to see pictures.

[shinchley]

i changed a clutch on a 1985 ford fiesta on my driveway !!!!! i was so pleased !!!!!

[DAVID PATERSON]

Last weekend, we removed the engine and clutch from my XU-1 Torana and stripped them. Next weekend, we will put them back in again.

[Airhead]

last weekend's effort...

[Airhead]

a bit dark, but partial reassembly and the current state of play...

[DAVID PATERSON]

Moff, why exactly are you resprayaing a car you resprayed not so long ago?

And why change colours, isn't your life difficult enough?

[Airhead]

Well Dave,

It was white when my son bought it, then it went a deep sort of royal blue and then eighteen months down the track he decided that there were elements of the spray job/car presentation he wasn't happy about. So he goes to a friend at a auto paint supply shop and they mix up some custom colour that he thinks is great - it does look good - and before you know it I'm getting dirty with wet and dry sandpaper.

It has copped a lot of paint, then a fair bit of clear. He has chequers that he had down in white in a diagonal band from the middle of the bonnet to the left side of the windscreen, he believed they were too 'bogan' for the car and I think this started him thinking of respraying it.

But he is a compulsive fiddler so if he has the car in two years time I expect it may be another colour to that in the photos above.

[DAVID PATERSON]

Yesterday we removed the engine and gearbox from my mate's Datsun 180B, replaced the gearbox and refitted the lot, all before dinner.

[Bluebottle]

Late dinner?

[StuiE]

I changed most of my interior yesterday, seats, carpet, steering wheel, door trims....

before:

[StuiE]

Half way through....couldn't get the back seat to fit (from a sedan) because of one impossible to get to bolt, the sedan and wagon seats are remarkably similar though

[StuiE]

Finally done, Silhouette seats and door trims, Import HR31 GTS-X steering wheel, and new-ish carpet that doesn't fit properly

Took an hour to bolt one of the seats in, it just didn't want to line up!

[StuiE]

Took auto gearbox out today, manual box/pedals/flywheel etc. goes in tomorrow