Seahag1978

Am I missing something here? Seems California is a bit biased. Yes, I know it's "Hollywood"... but how can the good folks at Overhaulin' take a really old car and exchange the engine for something that was a lot bigger than the stock issue... is it contingent on the age of the car? The one in question was a '75 Mustang fitted with a big block Ford 450+ hp. Then, they cut out the rusted front clip and re-welded the frame and still made it legal? (I am assuming that they can use the car as a daily driver when they return it.) I didn't think that was kosher in any state... is that a wrong assumption?

I came home yesterday and found a white '91 Legacy wagon in my driveway... Tim's son, Joe's, friend came out to move it so we could park. Seems this kid is a little protective of his car... Joe's other friends park their high dollar cars on the street. I remarked... "WOW! You drive a refrigerator?" He looked at the car with a tilt of his head, laughed like heck and said in defense, "HEY! I LOVE that car, it's a GREAT car." I said, "Of course you do, and it IS a great car." and I showed him my 3 babies. I then told him there was a website where there are over 10,000 other people who also love their Subies. It was a little lost on him... as far as he's concerned it's just a great car and he loves it. <sigh>

Does shoegoo stay wet while you try to slither it into place? Where does one get shoegoo?

There's a channel that runs around the "heel" that needs to be glued and then slid in so the metal rim of the opening is in the channel... I can't even get it in with no glue

We went yarding yesterday looking for split bench seat for Tim's F-1. Well, while he was getting his seats out, I went poking around. I found a pristine set of leather buckets in a newer Mercedes that had just come in with a totalled front end... the car still smells new inside... all glass intact. We measured them up... with a little adapting/fabrication and they'll go into the '86 Brat! $150. for the pair! I saw a set that wasn't anywhere near as nice on eBay for $799. a pair and $499. for a set that I'd throw out! Oh, I got the paint yesterday... Viper red it is.

The Brat runs great now, my 84 year-old mother wanted to go for a ride to the bank in it... she was loving it... even the part where the cabin suddenly filled with smoke and I pulled over, unhooked her seat belt and made her jump out. I figured out that the crankcase exhaust gasses are still routed to the undercarriage and then shifter boot isn't fastened in so it flaps opens up when I shift, letting the gasses into the cabin... the sun streaming in makes it look a lot worse than it is. LOL! After driving a whole 20 miles... it's now developed a strange non-rhythmic loud clicking (almost "snapping" noise). I have no clue what it could be... everything's new? Could be a bad rebuilt axle? Here we go again! Arrrggghhh!

No problem... what goes around, comes around... a karmic thing... I just got a package from Russ Hill... a most beautiful pair of outside door pulls for my '86... woohoo!

Caboobaroo has the set for me. I don't need them anymore since I solved the falling keys problem. They're paid for, just have him ship them to you with my compliments. Russ? Can you do that?

I got the new carb from Roo-Builders http://www.ccrengines.com/roobuilders/ They came highly recommended. The Hitachi carb was $195 plus shipping and a core charge. It came with all the screws and external doo-flickers (choke, throttle linkage, ADS) they were all rusty, loose and wiggly on mine. Just Plug 'n Play. As a note: I tried to get one through my local parts man and he told me that only 1 in 5 rebuilts that he gets in works... the other 4 fail and need to be returned. He deals with 2 other companies (Tomco & American?) and has no confidence in their products so he didn't want to order one for me... he's a great guy, honest and very knowledegable. He's anxious to hear the results of the Roo-Builders carb.

Actually, Tim and Skippy drove up around the mall and started onto the highway... Tim heard a rubbing noise and decided against it... then it seems the noise left after a while... must have been rust from non-use. I started vacation today, I'll take it on my errands tomorrow and see if it's still happening. This is VERY, VERY exciting! I'm grinning so much my cheeks hurt!

Sorry. You came to the absolute wrong end of the earth for old Subie parts. In fact, most yards won't even let you "browse". A lot of my parts come from the board members here or a very occasional eBay score. I do have a wonderful local parts man who finds a lot of the comestibles for me (and he doesn't laugh)... he's in Peabody... about 17 miles from you, as the crow flies... driving takes about an hour, not far off 128 or 107. He's Paul at Hawkes Auto Parts. Awesome guy!

I came home for lunch and there was a branny-new rebuilt carb sitting there from Roo-Builders! Within 45 minutes, Tim got it in and it's running great! It comes up to temp and stays running, no stalls! Tim said he never even had to adjust anything... worked right off the git-go! Thanks Kerry, for an outstanding job! You rock! Actually, Mudrat79 made the final diagnosis of the problem I was having... he gave us a series of tests to be made and it failed them ALL... we talked and he described what to look and feel for. Thanks John! You rock! All my neighbors heard me today! And Skippy finally got to ride in it! She's not just a pretty face anymore! A major victory! Tim rocks!!

Read the first post... I would think that any print shop would have it by the gallon and would spare some. You'll only need a few ounces or so. When you go to get it... be sure to have a metal container for it... it isn't too kind to plastic. I used a coke can wrapped in electric green paper adorned with skull and crossbones. I'll find something a little more suitable next time I grab it.

No, you'll buff it dry with a fresh terry towel, don't let it air dry. The headrest in the picture is clean and dry. Yikes! No slopping it on!!! Use two fingers wrapped in a terry towel face cloth and just moisten the tip (like mom did to get the schmutz off your face). As it gets used, just moisten some more, dip the toothbush in it to get it wet. Q-Tips come in handy for tight spots. A little goes a looong way! I can't stress this enough... remember to test the material in an inconspicuous area... apply a tiny bit with a Q-Tip, and then using a dry finger, it should feel oily... if it feels sticky, STOP! Keep it away from paint, plastic and non-rubber components.

Paul, I'll get to the other components when this hand is a bit better... I really messed it up. The headrest was off the car and it didn't require too much precision so I could do it with my left hand... I am soooo right-handed that I can't even wave straight with my left hand!

My '78's ignition lock and original key are so worn that the keys have an annoying habit of falling out onto the floor... especially on an incline. I had a new key made (they used a Nissan blank), it solved the problem... the keys stay in now... a minor victory in the looong list of challenges yet to be conquered!

I just posted a pic of the headrest I did today for demonstration. The terry towel I used was quite black with all the junk it pulled out. In addition to the terry towel, I used an old toothbrush. Funny that RR melts plastic, but toothbrushes stand up to the stuff for some odd reason, I guess if they can stand up to people's mouths... ewwww... I just grossed myself out. Anyway, I scrubbed it into the little leather-like grain and star logo. Once I dried it out, we hit it with a lambswool bonnet on a buffer... the headrest pictured is completely dry, no Armorall or other enhancers. I'm happy with the results... what do you think? Here's the link: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/photos/showphoto.php?photo=6430&sort=1&cat=500&page=1

I busted up my hand this morning. It's all swollen, I have no strength in it and it's thumping worse than rap in a low-rider. I'll check more out tomorrow I'm sure it'll be better. On top of that, it was almost 100 degrees here, high humidity. Nasty! Jeez, last week I had the heat on... as they say... if you don't like the weather in New England... wait a minute.

^^^ what he said... a used car is just that... used.. but I'll add this... no matter how lighty used it seems. My 6 mo. old 5,000 mi. perfect condition Hyundai fetched a dismal amount toward my trade... it was the same overall value from every dealer, not just one trying to make a killing...

Every headrest and RUBBER part on an old Subie has oxidization to it. Well, I'm an offset printer by trade and have been using a product called "Rubber Rejuvenator" for years. It's a very potent solvent that cleans the ink and paper impurities from the rubber blanket that's used on an offset press. It absorbs into the rubber to make it more pliable and increases its resiliency. I brought some home and tried it on the headrests and jump seats. I wet a terry towel with the "RR", scrubbed out the oxidization with a soft cloth and immediately buffed it out with a dry terry towel.. they looked great. I checked it again tonight... they still look new! I'm going to try it on other rubber components like door seals and window gaskets to see how they fare. I sure hope it's a feasible alternative to recoating with Mothers Back to Black or Armoral every minute. Soooo... hit up your local print shop for a few ounces... offer to buy it from them or trade out this bit of info... that high dollar "Blanket Fix" they use is actually a repackaged and relabeled product called "5F5 Paint Remover". (When you have a "smash up" on the press, the rubber blanket gets way over-compressed and this stuff "fluffs" it back up, saving $$$) The 1980 price, (when I discovered it while stripping an antique desk and the smell was the same) was $16.00/4 oz. for Blanket Fix while the 5F5 Paint Remover was selling for $3.00 quart from our local hardware store. They get you coming and going! IMPORTANT!!! PLEASE READ! ***USE WITH CAUTION*** Rubber Rejuvenator will eat a styrofoam cup before you can blink and melt MOST plastics, it'll take off paint and any silkscreened printing. Test a small patch before using it... when testing, use a dry finger... if the surface feels "sticky" STOP IMMEDIATELY! Leave it and pray the "melted" area will reharden to its original state... (it probably will)... I have seen quite a few indiscretions by trainees on materials that were not rubber

Skip, I have the tan... NICE... no oxidization... if I can get the black off of it... seems to come off real easy from the window cranks, so I don't think it's an issue... Yellow Sub.. can you get me black?

Welcome to the board... Ahhh... haggis... I read a recipe for it once and laughed like heck when it came to the whistling windpipe hanging out of the pot... it may have had some humor added, but trust me... sorry. there ain't enough whiskey (or ketchup) in the world to try it...

My nephew knows lots of "trails" in the New Ipswich area... it'll be by invitation only. I'll get in touch with him and get the info... BTW he's a Jeep kinda guy.

It's the way of the world here. We do have 2 small yards that let us in to scout... no old Subies... mostly newer American models. I just heard of another yard about 1/2 hour from here that sounds promising for scouting But usually, when I call for a part, the standard answer is that the car was crushed "last week" I do have another possible yard about 1 1/2 hours from here that is clearing out and supposedly hasn't found the 2 or 3 '83 Brats up in the far corner yet...the owner of the yard swears they're up there, but the guy I have been dealing with isn't sure... he said they are old stock numbers, so surface rust means rotted at this point in time... I thought they were in the business of selling used parts? Silly me.

Trudy, Find an old car club forum and get recommendations from them. They seem to know where to get safe, reasonable shipping. I learned this after my shipping fiasco. It was a nightmare. The driver had an emotional meltdown and was holding all the cars, he threatened that I would never see the car again. I had to report the car stolen before I finally got it a month later. Research the shipper very carefully. Good luck! Mary