suprjohn

I've been wondering about making my 4WD CABLE controlled... John

Thanks again Guys! John

Oh, on the passenger area, I haven't been able to find anything so I guess ours the stock stuff for now. Keep us posted on what you find Brian! John

So I need a right front window regulator for my '89 DL wagon. I go on eBay, and they list tons of them for '90 and up, and '88 and older. They list them for sedans and hatchbacks, but no wagons. Is my wagon a one of a kind prototype with roll up and down windows? Are the doors different on a wagon or will another year/model interchange? Advice, opinions welcome. John

I actually found some charcoal, kind of industrial carpet at Menards that I'm going to lay in there. The original is pretty strained. Someone had used the car to haul firewood. Join

Flatter satin look that is. Stupid auto correct. John

Yup, it flattens out as it dries. The glossy ones are pretty freshly sprayed. I kind of like the cluster satin look. It's going to take about three cans all together. And two cans of the self etching primer. I can't wait to get it all back together! John

Hey All! anyone who's followed my posts knows i'm in the process of rehabbing the interior on my '89 DL wagon. the plastic panels in my cargo area looked BAD! i was going to paint them, but then decided to try some rustoleum truck bed liner! i prepped the panels by cleaning them with acetone, then sprayed them with self etching primer. i love the way this stuff looks! i'm not under any illusions that it will be as durable as Linex or Rhino Lining, but for the price i had to give it a try! John

Wow! You're doing pretty much what I'm doing! I'll be using Rustoleum trick bed liner that I got at Menards. I did an internet search on applying this product to plastic, and read to use a self etching primer, so that is what I'm going to try. I will be spraying from the bottom of the window down. Hoping to spray today. If I do, I'll post up some pics. John

LOL Classic. John

I'm with Discombobulated on this one. I've tried "high perf" ignition parts, and haven't really noticed any significant difference over stock, other than that my wallet was lighter. I also tried the K&N filter and didn't notice any difference, except my wallet being a LOT lighter. I'm running NGK's midrange (price wise) plugs in my '89 DL wagon, and it seems to like them fine. I'm not a fan of champion plugs on the other hand. John

I just went thru this with my '89 DL wagon, though I had the additional issue of pulling the whole dash and essentially rebuilding the HVAC system. As you might expect, replacing the bulbs is a piece of cake. the sticky part is accessing the back of the cluster. Not sure how the cluster works on an '86, but on an '89 the outer shroud and vent assembly is held on by four screws and a series of molded in clips. Not too bad too remove, though on mine the clips were a little stubborn and plastic this old is sometimes brittle, so use caution. On mine, the heater control unit needs to be unscrewed, and it's associated buttons can be stubborn; I ended up breaking one, but was able to superglue it. I also broke one of the tabs that the mounting screws go thru, but I was able to repair that with a small angle bracket and some JB Weld. Obviously, the assorted switches need tho be disconnected. Mine wetter a little though tho disconnect, after being in service for many years. I sprayed them with dielectric grease, which really seemed to help as I had the cluster in and out several times during the process. The top shroud simply snaps in, and is fairly straight forward to remove. Once those items are out of the way, the cluster itself just has two screws. There are two large wire boundless at the top of the cluster. Pretty hard to mix them up, but you might liable them left and right. Once these are removed, the cluster should pull forward. On mine, I really felt like it was worthwhile to remove the steering wheel and drop the steering column. This gives you quite a bit more room. On the back of the cluster, there are two large round wire connected, and of course the Speedo cable. Once these are disconnected, the cluster congress out as a unit. The bulbs simple screw out, and then slip out of their holders. Reverse the process to install. I took the additional step of pulling and polishing the clear plastic lens, and painting the needles with Testors florescent paint. Somewhere in the process, I broke off the needle rests, and head to fabricate new ones out of finish nails. I ground them to size, and glued them in place with super glue. Nothing to complicated, but if you're slow and clumsy like me, I'd allow at least a weekend. If I can be off assistance, let me know. John

Anything is possible. Just depends on how much time, money, desire and welding rod you want (or have) to spend. I would likely not try to fix that, but only you can decide if you have the will and resources and talent to save it. Sorry for your loss... John

Thanks guys! John

So my '89 DL wagon has a very gritty dirty engine. I'm wondering how big of a deal it is to replace the valve cover gaskets. Drivers side looks kind of tough, passenger side doesn't look too bad. Hints, advice welcome. Also, what other common oil leaks should I look into? John

I probably didn't follow very good paint prep, though I did wash with TSP. Seems to be pretty good except at sharp edges of corners. I really like the color and finish in general. Really makes the panels look like new. John

Yes I am. Not sure I'm impressed with the durability, but it's what I started with. SEM is another product that another forum member used with good results. John

Valves set too tight? No compression? John

Did you see the post a while back about using a small propane tank to find vacuum leaks? I'm going to try that... John

In a fit of thoroughness, I pulled the rest of the interior plastic pieces for painting.

I have all the plastic interior pieces out of my '89 DL wagon right now if you need any pics... John

Ugh. I'm hopeless when it comes to wiring. :-( John

I should look thru the archives and find that thread about the Nissan alternator upgrade... John

My '89 has similar symptoms. Following this thread. John

WooHoo! Drove the Soob under its own power! Gauges are calibrated, and as far as I know, responding nicely! Speedo checked against GPS, and seems tho be within one mile per hour. Close enough for me at least! One step closer to being a daily driver! John