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November 2nd, 2016, 10:38 AM
#631
Driver
I haven't, and probably don't have the tools. I borrowed toe plates at Nationals and found it was 1/16" out. Seems within the realm of normal to me - I've run that on a lot of cars in the past. Possibly even the old Z, I don't remember (it's been 0 toe for a while but may not always have been). After Nationals I had the blue car re-aligned and this time the old pro was manning the machine. He didn't mention anything unusual even though I had pointed out tire wear was a problem. So yeah the car was aligned on the newer bushings. I didn't bother when it was on old bushings as I knew I'd be replacing at least two of them before running the car.
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November 2nd, 2016, 11:01 AM
#632
Yeah, 1/16" out isn't crazy no matter what, unless the toe changes radically with compression and you're a big fatso.
I would really find a friendly alignment shop that will let you ratchet down the car while it's on the rack to see what changes under compression. Maybe exaggerating the normal scenario will point out something that is missed when it's unloaded? I take my cars to the shop that does alignments for all the dealers so I know I'm getting people who know how things should be - maybe you've got a similar local shop?
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November 2nd, 2016, 02:48 PM
#633
Driver
Not local, but I do have a friend in SJ...
Again though, shouldn't be much compression going on during highway driving. Just bumps.
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November 2nd, 2016, 03:58 PM
#634
Well, I certainly agree, but if the static alignment checks out then the only other possibility is a dynamic problem, and it's a lot easier to check that out when the car is stationary than when moving...
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November 6th, 2016, 10:36 AM
#635
Driver
Took the MR2 out of hibernation for its annual drive today.
Man, I need another one of these to drive around without fear. Every time I take this car out something happens to it, or nearly so. But anyway, these cars are so awesome. It just feels right. The motor is actually the least endearing thing about it; sub-2-liter old school turbocharged laziness moving around 2800lbs. In my dreams I've stroked it to 2.2L, added a modern turbocharger, and upped the boost for a more modern experience. But it's hard to modify a car that gets driven so rarely and is being preserved as one of the few stock remaining examples.
Just need to hit the lotto for that 10 car garage so I can get another one, modify it, and put it alongside a Supra TT for good measure.
Every winter I think about doing work to the car since I haven't touched it mechanically/cosmetically in years. Every year I don't do anything. Hmph!
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November 7th, 2016, 04:53 AM
#636
Bad Taste
How are the rubber bits (both bushings and weatherstripping) holding up?
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November 7th, 2016, 08:14 AM
#637
Driver
Pretty well considering their age. I think some of the bushings are just starting to feel a little sloppy (indeed one of the rear arm bushings has several cracks around the visible outer rim). The weatherstripping is doing very well thanks to not seeing much sun, I think. I need to treat it again, though, it's feeling a little dry. One piece of weatherstripping has an oxidation look to it and a few years ago I looked into replacing it - only comes as part of the side rear window assembly, and only '94-95 style is available. Hmph, again.
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November 7th, 2016, 04:41 PM
#638
Driver
I'm a little surprised the alignment feels off now on the '03 after replacing the right rear knuckle assembly. The bushings in both new (used) and old assemblies looked about the same. The wheel bearing was the big difference, but the car was last aligned when the old bearing was doing OK and it drove straight and true. I would have thought the new knuckle would be located and angled much the same as the outgoing one but something feels off now. Don't feel like spending another $90 on an alignment so soon after the previous one, though. Being a cheap perfectionist sucks.
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November 7th, 2016, 05:30 PM
#639
Places like Big O will check it for free. At least you could find out if that's the problem or something else.
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November 7th, 2016, 05:34 PM
#640
Driver
Here was a fun one from the mad dash STU build process.
The e-brake is a drum-in-hat setup and I had to disconnect the cables to change subframes. Which meant partially disassembling the shoe control mechanism. I know it's hard to see what you're looking at in the pic below, but the brake rotor (aka drum hat) is removed and the green arrow points to the head on the back of a stud. On the right of the photo are the springs for the shoes.
The red arrow points to a little part that I'm not sure of the purpose of. As best I can tell it prevents the e-brake cable from being pushed too far out (I suppose possible if it's misadjusted in a big way?). It's designed to hinge on one end and in this picture you can see it is swung out about as far as it goes. In this position the back of the stud strikes this part when the hub rotates. Ok, so obviously that's not how it's supposed to be. But the way this part is angled even when not pulled out like that, gravity can totally put it in that position. What the...? I couldn't (and still can't) figure this one out. Since I didn't have the luxury of time, my solution was to inspect the bracket mechanism from my spare knuckle assembly (purchased for the wheel bearing replacement on the '03!). Lo and behold, this little mystery part is more snugly held in place to the mechanism just by friction. Tolerances! So I swapped mechanisms. Solved.
But this (as seen in the picture) is how loose that part was on the car before removing the mechanism. No issues. But gravity totally should have made that part run into the rotating studs and destroyed something.
Last edited by CudaMan; November 7th, 2016 at 05:36 PM.
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