Hogsubie

I've never used one of these but have heard of and seen them. I was told they don't remove the adhesive. Is that true? What's your take on it?

I had a van I bought from a delivery company and it still had the lettering and stuff on it. I used the 3M product mentioned above and it worked. However...it takes LOTS of elbow grease in addition to the aerosol. It would take several applications before the adhesive would start to break up, then it would start gumming up and form boogers that still stuck before it would finally come off. I found it helped if I turned the rag a lot and then got new rags when the old would start collecting the boogers, otherwise they would redeposit back on the paint. The adhesive remover is paint friendly but it will take off any wax you have on there. It actually cleaned up the paint a little (oxidized layer) so I had a shinier spot where I cleaned.

You know those little "Do Not Eat" packages you get with electronics and leather goods. The stuff is called desicant and you can buy it in larger quantities/packages and it does a real good job of sucking up moisture. One of the editors from Grassroots Motorsports had a similar issue and used the stuff after he cleaned everything really good. Do a search on their board at http://www.grmotorsports.com/board/ and I'm sure you come up with something. I did a google search for the stuff as well and there are companies out there that sell the stuff, mostly wholesale bulk, but some retail though.

Arch is right...there's just not much mass to 13" wheels. That is why they weigh about 8lbs. Mazda Miata standard stock 14" alloy wheels from 90-93 (the Minilite looking design) only weighs about 11lbs.

I had a similar problem with my 81 dl wagon. Upon startup it would rev really high until it was warmed up. If I tapped the throttle it would start revving even higher, sometimes continuing to climb (probably past redline as I had no tach), in which case I'd shut it down. I also had issue with the brakes as well, but I don't really think it was due to a vacuum leak (maybe in part though). I think it had more to do with the fact that the engine would hold a high rev until warmed up and when in gear it wanted to continue pushing until the clutch was engaged (rev's < redline). His car has an auto, the high revving engine is continueing to push if he's not dropping into neutral, so it's putting more pressure on the brakes because his brake system is probably heating up potentially leading to failure.

That's funny, I had one of those sitting under my spare on my 81 dl wagon. It was 4wd though. That thing even stayed in the spare tire area when the spare wasn't there, didn't fall out or anything. I didn't know what it was so I just left it there.

Great links! A lot of useful information, plus links to more threads as well. I think the next step would be to figure out the output specs on the XT-6 compressor to find out if it would be worth it (considering you already own it) versus buying a j/y compressor out of a Caddy or Volvo (like the Toyota guy used).

I'm no expert and have no actual experience, but you would want to have a tank of some sort to fill up, then you could run tools off it. I have seen stuff online, but don't have any links, on some 4X4 boards that explained how to set up a system using an A/C compressor from big old domestic cars (Caddilacs and Chryslers have good ones IIRC). I knew a guy who had a setup on his Scout and he used his roll cage and nerf bars as air tanks. I though that was kind of wild. He could run just about anything with short to moderate burst. I'd start searching some of the hard core off road boards to see. I think if you had the XT-6 pump set up properly and had a large enough reserve tank it would work. After all, it's just an air pump.

The time I replaced mine on my 81, it took me a long time to get the pin back in and I had it in the big hole and lined up. I found that laying on my back under the car on jackstands just didn't give me enough room to really get behind the hammer, and there wasn't enough room to even move the hammer from above. It was tough, but I finally managed to get it all the way in.

Just for reference...I suggested to Barry to post over here with you guys. I found him over on Grassroots Motorsports board. Here's the thread.... http://www.grmotorsports.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=6167

Nice job! I would never have guessed that was your first attempt. That looks like something you'd buy from a manufacturer.

Triumph...British company that makes motorcycles and used to make cars. The TR-6 is a very cool car, 2 door/seat convertible, big straight 6 cylinder engine, reasonable fast(can be made wicked fast). Very square by todays design standards. All in all a very British sports car.

If you stick to light loads you should be just fine, and towing your mower for short distances over relatively flat roads should be fine as well. As for hitches, start searching online. I just got, for my Suzuki XL-7, a class III receiver hitch, receiver, ball and locking hitch pin for less than what it would have cost locally to purchase just the hitch before sales tax. I did go ahead and buy the Suzuki wiring harness so it would plug right in to the factory plug. All in all, I saved over $50-$100 compared to local puchase/install prices. My total cost was about $175. It was simple and only took about an hour for everything, wire harness and hitch. The place I ordered from had free shipping on purchases over $100, which you are guaranteed to exceed to cover all you need. I can't remember the name of the place but I can get it if you want.

I replaced the alternator Friday night. I drove the car on Sat, Sun, and today to work. I haven't had any other problems so I;m pretty sure it was just the alternator. Honestly I don't know if my 81 has an electric fuel pump or not. Thanks though for your response.

I learned something the last time I went tire shopping and this is not ultimately a bad thing either. You can see two horizontal lines in the rubber, one just above the sticker and one at the top of the pic as the tire is rounding over. The are from the mold, which is made of probably 8 sections. Like I said not neccissarily bad, because their are major name brands that use this technique as well, but it does take a little more to balance the tire. Michelen for example uses a two piece mold that leaves one vertical line down the middle of the tire. It takes less to balance a tire that way. I bought a chinese tire for my merc sable, it was an aggressive tread pattern and had a higher speed rating but had a tough compound, I forget the name. It was made the same way Michelen makes their tires. They had a good price, a good look and were recommended by the tire guy. I can't give you long term results because I traded the car off after a couple months. While I had them the performed well. I'm not sure why but we are seeing alot more chinese made tires coming into the US, and they seem to be a good quality product at a good price for the most part.

Well, it turns out my alternator was bad. I had it tested earlier and left it at the store for my core refund. I installed the new alt and took it for a drive, no idiot lights,no stalling, and no funny noises. Atleast no new funny noises, all the old funny noises are still making noises. The only problem I had was getting the long bolt on the left side by the air filter housing to thread back into the bolt/bracket thing. I couldn't do it, so I turned it around and was able to get it to thread on tight. The threads on the bolt were pretty bunged up so the wouldn't catch. Wasteland mentioned the Voltage regulator, I haven't checked it yet becuase I don't know what it looks like. The haynes manual shows it taken apart but not put together or where it's located. I think it's just behind the coil, can anyone help me out on it's location?

Does any one know if that bumper would work on an EA81 wagon?

i don't think anybodies mentioned it yet, and I seen a lot of talk recently about: Transmission Mounts How about fan control coil thingy just about everyone needs, so we can have all 4 stages of heat and A/C

Thanks guys, I'll keep you posted.

To start, I have a 1981 DL 4wd wagon... I ran out of gas today and while trying to move the car off the road, I couldn't push it myself so I cranked it while letting out the clutch, a couple times. I didn't do it for very long. After I get gas and get on my way, all the idiot lights are on and the car dies on me while driving, I can restart it and go aways more but then dies on me again. Also I hear a whirring noise where the pitch goes up and down with the revs. The sound is coming from around the alt area, can't get too close with the belt and fans going. I bought a reman alternator at Autozone on the way home, my wife had to pick me up. I had to leave the car parked at the grocery store. Before I install the new one I'm going to have the old one tested. I'll go get it tomorrow after work with a tow dolly. Any tips for towing?

Pilot sells a seperate wire/relay set up you can use with their lights. I've seen them at Autozone. I don't know the price. I've actually got one that my brother took off his car.

Some of you old schooler's will enjoy this... http://www.westcoastvintage.com/tshirts/73subarutshirt1.jpg I found it on another message board.

Maybe you jarred the wheel bearings, or tweeked a brake pad mounting clip thingy. I don't really know. I also don't know about rallycross, but if there's risk of curbage while autocrossing, that's a bad course and course design. I know I wouldn't run on a course like that. It would also make me think twice about participating with a group that would choose to operate in such a way as well.

I've got the same problem with my 81 DL...OEM it's about the same as the reman'ed Caliper for just the boot and some other misc. parts. I've just been living with it. Mine leak a little fluid and I refill it every so often. Fluid's tarnished the paint some as well, doesn't really matter as the rest of the paint is crap anyway. I went to change the piston seals when I first noticed the fluid, but then realized that wasn't the problem. It was a pin hole in the caliper boot. I changed my pads while I was at it because the outer pad was worn down and really uneven, inner pad was good though. After I changed the pads, all the pressure blew a big chunk of the caliper boot off. The car still stops just as poorly as it did before the new pads!

Well, the car disappeared on me over the weekend. I guess they sold it. I just figured they'd keep it around for a few months for me to look at when I drive to and from work. They didn't even ask me! The nerve of some dealers. All I can say is he'll never get my business.