End of Week 12 update
Not much progress on the car except for fixing some of the body work. All of the engine parts/gaskets have arrived ready to be installed.
Both rear quarters have small dents in them so I've knocked what I can out and filled the rest ready for sanding. The rear hatch has had some deep scratches removed/filled and sand back. Etch primed was applied where it went back to bare metal, before several coats of primer was applied. Hatch is now ready for final sanding before spraying the colour.
More goodies have arrived! Yes it is offical... I am an ebay junkie and proud of it :thumbsup: All this shipped out from the US for $215AUD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was quoted well over $500 for this from both Supercheap and Ripco.
- Full Upper and Lower gasket set including head gasket and Valve stem seals
- Timing Belt Kit including tensioners
- Water Pump
Aluminium CNC Machined Underdrive Crankshaft Pulley (lightweight) purchased to replace the existing unit. Weights 80% less than the stock pulley and will drive the alternator, power steering and air con at 25% less power. This all equals extra power at the wheels. How much power you ask?...... Probably only a few KW, but we will have to see.
Total cost so far
$3375 - Total Cost from week 9
$80 - Underdrive Crank Pulley
$215 - Timing Belt Kit, Full VRS Gasket Kit, Water Pump
$320 - 8mm Ignition Leads, Spark Plugs, Thermostat, Oil filter, Oil, Fuel Filter, Distributor Cap and Rotor, Distributor Seal Kit,
Gearbox Oil, Radiator Fluid, Radiator Hoses, Brake Fluid
$3990 TOTAL
================================================== ======
No real progress to report except that the gearbox is back in with the engine supporting itself (instead of a jack lol!!!). The Front lower control arms have been removed in preparation for new bushes - Caster offset for the rear bush. The bushes have to be made as no stock is kept any longer, so hopefully should only be another week or so. The castor offset bushes are usually used by smash repair guys to correct bad alignment on front ends due to accidents, but I'm going to use these at full offset to help increase the front camber during cornering. Also have a set of 4 camber offset bolts - one for each strut to dial in an extra 0.5 degree all around.
The bushes fitted along with some goodies from Japan below should help the Astina handle!
Mazdaspeed Adjustable shocks with Eibach/Mazdaspeed springs. These should lower the car down approx 30-35mm and improve handling 10x. They are used and a little rusty, but have no signs of leakage. Fingers crossed they are ok, but for the price I paid...... I don't care! I'll be replacing the boots/rubber seals and testing the shocks these before they go in along with a new paint job. New bump stops and rubber boots have been ordered.
JIC Pillow ball tops with camber adjustment on the front :biggrin: To be fitted to the shocks above when rebuilt.
Factory FOG lights for the front bar - in near new condition!
Can anyone say "GIVE ME SOME CAMBER" lol :biggrin: Just need to get new CV's, refit the suspension, rebuild the brakes, and I'll have a rolling shell again! Then the engine work can begin once in the garage :whistling: Bring on the warmer months!