So, i borrowed a guard roller, as my rear guards rub with weight in the rear on hard cornering - which isn't often, but enough to be annoying.
Figured i'd test it on the Astina Wreck - i didn't care if i ****ed up the guards on that LOL
And i thought i'd see how far i could flare the guard at the same time - to also see how it looked, as i've always wondered.
So, lets start. It's got a folded lip of about 9mm, and as you can see it's already rubbed the paint away on the tyres.
And here's the end result on the Wreck, with it flared as much as possible without damaging the paint. Pretty impressive!
I then did the Wrecht, but just folded the lip up - no flare for me.
While i was at it, i figured i'd testfit one of the 17x9 MS-02 rims....and yeah, that's not going to happen. I'd need a 8-10mm spacer (making it a +28-30mm offset) to make them fit as currently they're not going to clear the struts, and then i dunno if they'd be in the guards. Maybe not! Haha
on the car:
with 2 x 3mm spacers:
Yeah...no. Shame though!
Next Project: Swapping over the handbrake cables.
I'm a bit skeptical of the tightness of mine ever since last year, and it's adjusted as much as it can be (at the adjustment screw in-cabin), so i figured i'd rip them out and compare them to the ones in the Wreck. They're attached to the rear trailing arms, bolted just in front of the fuel tank, and then circliped just behind the handbrake, where they combine into the one unit to go to the actual handbrake.
So i pulled all four out, and discovered that there was two that were slightly shorter that mine, Maybe only 3mm, but obviously that's enough to make a difference. But i reckon the first part has stretched as well - this bit:
This is where the two combine, and the sheathing is cracked in a few places, plus there's more of a gap to the end of the cable than on the other one, They were both much the same length though.
The plan is to get it shortened by about 10mm, that'll decrease the amount i have to lift the handle (which is a high amount). Looks like the end in the bracket will have to be drilled out and repositioned, which apparently isn't too hard.
Next project of the day: Swapping the rear suspension
The V6 Astinas have a fair few upgraded parts ofer the I4 version (which is what mine was...once). The rear suspension has much beefier tubular trailing arms compared to the C-section of the 4cyl.
And a few months ago i got some Whiteline poly bushes to go in them, so i figured i'd kill two birds with one stone.
Comparo of the V6 vs I4 trailing arms
There is a slight weight penalty - the I4 ones are about 1150g, the V6 ones are 1360g. Not a lot, and i figure the strength benefit is worth it.
Removing the bushes was fun - i tried burning one out but that was a waste of time. In the end, brute force was the winner. Hammering them out with a rubber mallet look a couple of minutes each end. These are the new poly bushes - 2 part ones, with grease and new collars. Easy to assemble, and liberally coated with the supplied grease.
Plus i then realised i might as well put in the adjustable endlinks hanging around for months (...again)
Comparo of the stock vs adjustable ones.
...and then i ran out of light to finish it all off
