car stuff
shortish post, gotta pack for hiking...
Lara and the kiddos left for Illinois this morning. In theory I'm supposed to be working on the basement while they're gone, but there will be plenty of time for that. ;) So, no surprise to anyone, I worked on the car.
In short:
replaced the parking brake shoes
replaced the serpentine belt, and attempted to replace the A/C belt (but I got the wrong size)
fixed the window regulator on one of the doors
put all of the door panels back on
bought a muffler ("catback") off of somebody in town to replace the too-loud one that's currently on there.
tried to install said muffler
A few lessons:
Old rusty bolts are hard to remove. And you'll never have enough room to fit a big long breaker bar in there to get leverage. If it weren't for trying 15 different strategies to dislodge a bolt, these repairs would go a lot quicker. Sometimes there's just no substitute for muscle, and I ain't got it.
Make sure the belt is the right size before you get it halfway on, and stuck.
If you're working on your back, under a car, wear safety glasses. Things will fall on you.
If you're working on your back with a wrench or a socket above your head, don't drop the wrench or socket.
No matter how many tools you have, you won't have the one that you need.
Lara and the kiddos left for Illinois this morning. In theory I'm supposed to be working on the basement while they're gone, but there will be plenty of time for that. ;) So, no surprise to anyone, I worked on the car.
In short:
replaced the parking brake shoes
replaced the serpentine belt, and attempted to replace the A/C belt (but I got the wrong size)
fixed the window regulator on one of the doors
put all of the door panels back on
bought a muffler ("catback") off of somebody in town to replace the too-loud one that's currently on there.
tried to install said muffler
A few lessons:
Old rusty bolts are hard to remove. And you'll never have enough room to fit a big long breaker bar in there to get leverage. If it weren't for trying 15 different strategies to dislodge a bolt, these repairs would go a lot quicker. Sometimes there's just no substitute for muscle, and I ain't got it.
Make sure the belt is the right size before you get it halfway on, and stuck.
If you're working on your back, under a car, wear safety glasses. Things will fall on you.
If you're working on your back with a wrench or a socket above your head, don't drop the wrench or socket.
No matter how many tools you have, you won't have the one that you need.
posted by Steve
2 Comments:
Oh yeah, I know all about rust and other crap falling on your face when under the car. Terrible feeling. Have you tried PB Blaster on the stuck fasteners? I love that stuff, especially on old rusted, locked shut exhaust bolts.
Haven't tried PB Blaster, but I ended up getting an impact wrench. Assuming you've got the space to get it on the nut, it'll unstick anything.
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