GeneralDisorder

Start your own thread gravedigger. GD

21 if the regulator is working properly. 50 from the pump if you pinch off the return line. GD

Typically it's easiest if you just drop the exhaust header/cat sections off and pull them out from under the car. It only takes a few minutes to remove them. GD

You should change the fuel filter before you do anything else. And if that doesn't cure it run a check on the fuel pressure. If you plug in the two green connectors under the dash the ECU will flash the codes to you in long/short flashes. GD

Discount Import Parts can get them but will still have to order the kit and that can take a day or two. Personally I don't lilke the Redline kit as well as what carbsunlimited.com can build for you. Call them and tell them what you need. If your car isn't lifted let them know you need the "short" air filter or they will give you the tall one that won't fit under the hood. You can also specify what type of choke you want, etc. With the redline kit you don't get that choice. I prefer the manual choke DGV-5A. GD

Watch for signs of head gasket failure. Almost a sure bet with that engine. GD

The stock snorkel already does that without the potential for hydro-locking your engine - that's what we are trying to tell you. It's a gimick - one that will do nothing but cause potential problems. GD

Yep - much better to leave it stock. All you will get by modification is noise and potential hydro-lock. The air you get under the hood will be warmer = less power. GD

You are better off buying a kit with a brand new carb and adaptor plate included. By the time you figure the cost of the used carb, the adaptor plate, the rebuild kit, some jet changes, and possibly a choke change you will be at or near $200 and a lot more labor. The kit will be jetted, the carb will have no throttle shaft wear - overall it's a much better option for very little more money and a ton less work and hair-pulling. The kits can be had near or slightly over $300. GD

I have a similar system - two bags - one is 3/8" drive plus screwdrivers. The other is 1/2" and 1/4" drive. The big stuff goes in an open shoulder tote - the canvas style with the rigid metal frame and the shoulder strap. Makes it easy to haul around and easy to find things - I can pile it into a wheelbarrow at the junk yard and it's all accesible. What amazes me is all the people I see at the junk yard carring a single phillips screwdriver - like what they hell are you planning to do with that pal? GD

Shelving and plastic tote containers. Any big stuff goes out to the shed out back. That's my system for parts. I try to organize the parts along generational lines - EA81/EA82/EJ22/etc. Tools are hung on the wall or are in rolling chests. I keep a seperate tool set for the junk yard and mobile work. Still - I don't get enough time to organize and clean. Every day I have a list of things that need to be done that's longer than the day before. GD

Yes - 12pt - that's common with larger bolts when the head needs to fit in a tight clearance area - either 12pt or socket-head. If they made them 6pt heads they would have to be a 16 or 17mm head vs. a 14mm with the 12pt - it gives more grip with the socket over a 6pt or a socket-head. Makes the bolts more expensive but sometimes that's worth it. GD

In case you aren't aware, the die-case material on the Atlas's is called ZAMAC. That's the primary reason I stayed away from them when I went searching for a lathe. Although apparently you can still get some of the parts and those machines are very common being sold by Sears. I just didn't feel good about that ZAMAC stuff nor Clausing's support of those old machines - they sold out and are importing Chinese machines. GD

Inspect carefully - sawdust and chips are not kind to metal-working equipment - it absorbs lubrication (which was hopefully being used regularly ). My Logan was used by an old alfalfa farmer for most of it's life - he restored Model A's and Model T's but I think he got a little funny in the head in his old age because not everything was put together right on my machine - I had to dissasemble the QCG and flip some things around - and he didn't oil some bits that he should have. It wasn't terribly abused, but it wasn't owned by a real machinist either GD

80 through 84 should all be similar, yes. '82 through '84 for sure will fit as well as 85 to 89 Hatch and 85 to 87 Brat. The spindle is the same as on EA82 4WD's as well as the bearing. The axles can use EA82 joint's and cup's if you have the shaft - it's shorter for EA81's. I know of two EA81's at a yard close to me but both are FWD. I'll have a look for you at the other yards when I go. GD

Yeah - I have seen some pictures of the P&W stuff - some of them were really amazing machines. I saw a picture of one on the internet with a gear reduction unit on it that could turn some rediculously low speed like 5 RPM. It was said that it could produce unbroken ribbons of material .001" in thickness, 2" wide and as long as you wanted. GD

That's a stop-leak additive to try and catch head gaskets that *could* fail in the future - it's just something that either causes swell in the seals around the coolant ports or it's got some particulates that are designed to lodge in the holes forming in the gaskets and damn them up. At best it's a stop-gap solution and won't fix it forever. It's like dropping an egg into the radiator to fix a hole. Same idea but with longer term use in mind. The idea was surely to get the head gaskets to last till the warantee period expired so they wouldn't have to pop for the labor and parts to fix them for real. So in that sense - yes it's a bill of goods they are trying to sell you. It will mask the problem for a while but it won't solve anything in the long run. In the case of the coolant additive though it's not going to hurt anything either but that's not the case with gear oil additives and engine oil additives. Those can definitely cause more harm than good over the long term. GD

Check the timing belts - sometimes they strip teeth off and look like they are intact but things aren't in time like they are supposed to be. Are you *sure* you have spark? If you have spark, fuel, and air - then something is wrong with the valve timing or ignition timing. GD

What do you need? GD

Between the valve and the metal pipe is the best place for the quarters. GD

There's several choices it would seem. I have heard anywhere from $25 at a radiator shop to it not being worth it at all. I know a place that dips car bodies that could likely do it here in Portland. I would guess their price would be somewhere around $100 or less. There is also the POR-15 gas tank repair kits that come with flushing and cleaning fluids as well as a sealer product that is supposed to even seal small leaks. That's around $75 for the kit. That may be the way I go with my GMC as it makes the inside of the tank basicaly impervious to further corrosion - which would be better even than a new tank. GD

Probably, yes. Vacuum hoses and such mosty I should think. GD

Pretty straightforward - just drain about 1/4 of the coolant from the radiator (there's a drain-cock on the passenger side at the bottom), and then remove the two 12mm bolts at the thermostat housing and pop it open. If the bolts are rusted take your time - spray them with a good rust penetrant and work them back and forth to loosen the rust. Then you scrape or wire wheel the gasket surfaces clean, drop in the new thermostat and a new gasket (dealer for both is highly reccomended) and install the bolts again (anti-seize after wire-wheel treatment of the threads, etc) and put your coolant back in. Work carefully getting to the thermostat housing so as not to break any fragile plastic vacuum nipples, etc. Twist the rubber hoses to loosen them before pulling them off, etc. Work slowely and carefully and label things as you go if you aren't familair with them - take your time and you should do fine. GD

+1 on the silverstar's - good bulbs. I don't like the JDM/EDM headlight assemblies simply because they are glass. With the plastic you can buff them out and clean them up. If the glass cracks you are screwed and you can't just pop down to the local yard and pickup a replacement. I'm not a fan of the HID stuff either - blinding and dangerous and uneccesary IMO. The HID "kits" are to be avoided for the most part since the reflectors in the stock assemblies are not designed for the high output and will not focus the beams properly. If you need more light get the Silverstar's, or a set of aux driving lights or offroad lights if that's what you need them for. GD

The PS rack in my '84 wagon leaks quite a bit - but I've pounded the hell out of it off-road for years and for a long time it had bad boots because I was too poor to afford them from the dealer and didn't know any other sources till rockauto came along - I had tried a few stores but without any luck. As for more failures - well it might just be due to heavier vehicles with more power, bigger brakes, etc. It's possible to punish them a lot harder with 170+ HP and twin-pot brakes than it is with 80 HP and 13" rims. GD