snowstormer

i have tried mothballs but they have never worked for me. some people claim they work though. if i see a mouse is making a home somewhere i either try a good old fashioned mouse trap with some peanut butter on it or i put a container of d-con in that area for a while. you will be able to see if they are taking the bait. the one problem with d-con is- you do not know where the rodent will die, could be in a place you do not want it. a trap will get them right there. also be careful if you use d-con so that it is not available to other animals, pets, children or whatever. it has to be accesible only to the rodent to be safe.

i dont know about a brat for sure but on a wagon they are right at the bottom of the windsheild- in front of it on the cowling. you can see them with the hood open. you can feel air sucking through them slightly if you have your heat or defrost on high. i was checking the oil on a beater lincoln town car for a friend today- they have screen over the heater intake right from the factory. so there must be something to this. if i had a digi cam i would take a pic. sorry no got. but you will be able to figure it out.

there is more comedians on here than on the tonight show

i have 4 soob wagons, 2 for summer- 2 for winter. i live out in the woods and if i park one of them for more than a week, it usually gets a mouse in the heater. and from the heater, inside the car. i have cleaned out the ducts and removed the blower motors numerous times to get them out. and the smell! ugghh. i am sick of stinkin mice. so, i am hoping they are getting in through the vent ducts that are under the hood. where the heater system sucks in the air from outside. i cant see anywhere else they could be getting in, since they usually end up in the heater. the factory holes in the vent are big enough for a mouse to get in. my solution is to get some metal screen, cut it to fit nicely over the vent holes, and glue them on with some clear glue type of gunk. i did two cars tonight. i am gonna do the other two tommorrow. if i dont get any mice in any of the cars in a few weeks, i will consider it a success cause the dirty stinkin buggers are lookin for a home this time of year. its gettin cold out.

try your horn and see if it works. the ecu is on the same circuit. i bet you have no spark and no power to the ecu. check and see if you have spark, then report back. you have to do this somewhat sytematically.

nice brat seahag! i have an 81 brat. they are cool cars, i see why you like them. the main reason i posted was.... your board name- ha ha- its cool! did you get that from the old popeye stories? seahag! lol-lol

also, is the car mpfi, spfi?

also check the horn fuse, it is possible the horn fuse also powers the ecu. check the other fuses while your at it. can you see if the ecu gives you any codes?

do you have spark?

might want to check the radiator to make sure you have enough coolant if you suspect it may be leaking. and keep an eye on it for a while. be sure to check when it is cold though, so you dont get burned. you dont want to give yourself more problems than you already have... just a thought to avoid future problems.

any electrical types out there? why would the fuses and wires for the headlights [where the wires go into the fuseblock] get incedibaly hot when the headlights are on? fuseblock is cool unless lights are on- turn them on and the fuse for headlights gets real hot, does not blow, yet. got hot enough where the plug- in connector on the back has started to melt. old wiring? so the resistance is too much? bad ground? fuse is the correct amperage and is tight in the connectors. should i wire the headlights on a seperate new circuit? im not an electrical genius, or any other kind, so any pointers? thanks for any replies.

got any pics? how rusty is the brat?

thanks dave- pics would be great

basically, i want to lift it 3" or so and get some 27" tires on it, on pug wheels. i really like your ride- do you have a bigger pic? it looks awesome. i have to keep it realitively simple as i have no fabricating experience, and i dont know how to weld. i am looking for a bolt on type of thing, like the byb type of lifts. i am going to email ccr and see what emily has got to offer. i do not want to trim the wheel wells or anything, thats why i need to know if pugs with a 27 inch tire will clear the rear wheel wells on a gen 1 brat. i thought i remember reading somewhere that they would not fit due to rubbing on the inside or something. although sometimes my mind plays tricks on me... i like my gen 1 brat, but if i can not do a bolt on type of lift to it, i may sell it and look for a gen 2. i do not plan on beating it up offroad, i like the looks of a lifted soob, and the way they drive. lifted soobs are great in the winter snow up here, both on and off road.

hows it goin? there is a good write-up in the repair section on engine tapping. you will get other replies, if you wait a little though- i came to the same conclusion on car ownership a few years ago myself, i have 7 subarus now... its a good theory.

would 14" pugs fit on a lifted, say 3" gen 1 brat, or are there clearance problems?

i think this ? has been asked but i can not remember the reason. can you lift a gen 1 brat (1981)? if not why? just curious, i got a nice one, but since getting it, have fallen in love with the lifted soobs, and find myself only driving my lifted wagon... has anyone done one or have any pics of one? thanks for any input

i have a lifted 87 gl wagon in northern wi. if you are up by duluth or in northern mn, i could show you mine also....

looks good! and a nice job documenting the process.

if after you have tried everything, and it still diesels, then you can use the backwoods anti diesel method: at the instant you turn off the car , have your foot on the brake hard and the car in first gear, then let out the clutch- stops dieseling every time.

fianally got the sucker runnin! she fired up and after spewing a little smoke from the manifold teardown she settled down and ran pretty nice. the engine bay is down to simple simon- vac line to heater control and disty advance and everything stripped off the manifold. the idle quality is not quite as good as it was with the spfi, as the rpms flucuate slightly in about a 200 rpm range, but considering i did not rebuild the carb that had been sitting for 2 years i think its ok. the throttle response is good and the engine seems a little peppier. i am curious to check the mileage next week when i start driving back and forth to work. it was getting about 25 with the spfi, (3 inch lift and 27" tires) the computer is still in the car and hooked up but it does not seem to relize its not needed anymore. i guess i will just leave it there. THANK YOU to everyone who responded to my no spark threads- calebz, xsnrg,and anyone else who took the time to try and help. i really do appreciate it.

i am going to call myself a dum***. to answer my own question, i forgot to hook up the big ground wire that is in top of the intake manifold. now i have spark again!!! amazing what having a ground will do. talk about basic electrical 101. poured a little gas down the carb, the beloved old- oldfashioned carb, and got the sucker to hit on a few cylinders!! i just need to finish some wiring on the fuel pump and hook up some fuel lines, then see if i can get this sucker runnin again. it really stinks not having a lifted soob to drive once you are used to it. driving a regular sized one, although good, just aint the same.

arrrgh. i cant believe this. if anyone has read my no spark thread then you know where i am at. i was almost done switching to carb and new disty, got to the point to fire it up. car fired once, it had good spark, i checked it 5 or 6 times by cranking it over for 5-10 seconds. had consistent good spark. well, after it fired once, it would fire no more. checked spark again, now it has no spark again! this is the weird thing and is maybe a hint to someone smarter than me: when you crank it over there is no spark, but then when you turn the key off, one big spark will jump every time. no spark when you crank, then one big spark at the instant you turn off the ignition. this is with a 87gl ea82 carb with the carb type disty. does anyone have any clues?

heep70- a word of advice for someone who is-was in the same boat. take your time and keep spraying, twisting, and LIGHT prying. these things WILL break. how do i know? i just broke one yesterday. i know, im a dumb**** but after 2 days of dinkin with it, i got impatient and used a little too much force, cracked the alum shaft right by the o-ring. so i went to get another one out of another block and it came out in 2 seconds just like the last 5 times ive pulled one out. patience is a virtue i have yet to learn 100 percent of the time. good luck.

someone please correct me if i am wrong!! as far as i know if the car is carbed, it does not have an ecu. the fuel injected cars do and it is located under the steering column(sp?). the only time a carbed car would have an ecu is if it has an electronically controlled feedback carb. again, there are many people on this board that knows more than me so you might want to wait for a confirming response.