CMMCK

I also own an MX5 (NB - 2002) and this is probably the most active thread on the Miata forum. So I thought I'd see if it would catch on here.

Today I determined that my burned out turn signal light - it was flashing too fast - was the right front. I bought another bulb, but it still doesn't work, so some electrical diagnostics are in order. Then I popped the T-tops off and took a drive. The western part of the county is still pretty rural and there are plenty of rolling, twisty roads to enjoy. I had a great time. My Z31 is 33 years old and unrestored, just well maintained, and it is still a blast to drive.

What did you do today?

SC4ME

While waiting for the insurance company to decided if they want to total my BMW ZHP (parked in a friends driveway and his wife backed into me) I had to get my Z31 back running. It had an oil leak that suddenly got much worse. Turned out to be two issues next to each other. The major leak was the rubber oil filter gasket which was replaced with a new filter (and new oil). The other leak was from the oil pressure sensor unit (very common problem) which was a quick fix (easiest to remove starter first) and less than $100. Now she is back on the road.
Oh its a 85 with turbo, all original as my mom bought it brand new and I acquired it during their downsizing. I dont drive it much since my preferred fun driver is a 55 Thunderbird resto-mod.

Cheers

CMMCK

Congratulations on being back on the road! I wish I could say the same. My battery keeps dying. I don't know if it's a bad battery or if there's some sort of phantom current drain - I haven't had time to start investigating. I did charge the battery when I was off work between Christmas and New Year and got in a nice drive, but now the battery has died again. Grrrrr.

B1shup

I pulled my motor! haha

CMMCK

Nothing too serious, I hope.

B1shup

mid tear down of a gasket job and timing belt replacement i found a huge amount of rust on the thermostat, the block seems to just have surface rust, but its been sitting since like, 1998. also needed a clutch job too lol.

CMMCK

Battery died a few weeks ago. With the stay-at-home situation and working from home - I seem to spend more hours working from home that I did when I went to the office - I didn't get around to replacing the battery until today. After at least a month, maybe six weeks, the Z started right up and I went for a drive. Nice to have it back on the road!

Cees Klumper

Today I fixed my passenger window motor. It would no longer manage to put the window up, the motor would run but you would hear the cog slipping, dreadful sound that. Helping it go up by pulling up the glass while the motor was struggling got old fast (I bought this car two weeks ago and so now I am fixing all the little things wrong with it. It's an '86 with 73,000 original miles, NA and no rust, California car).
I got one of those $6.50 white nylon cogwheels off Ebay, perfect copy of the original that was indeed worn down badly in one spot and missed one tooth altogether. Dismantled the door, pulled out the motor and regulator, and opened up the motor to reveal the riveted assembly. Ground the rivet off so I could replace the nylon cog, then drilled and tapped a bolt-thread so I could put it all back together, with a small locktighted bolt. Assembly otherwise was the reverse of dismantling and, three hours after starting the job, the window goes up and down super-smooth again. So satisfying to do these jobs. Also put fresh grease in the tracks.
Other jobs I did the last few days:
- corrected the timing, it was about 7 degrees too advanced and that made the engine knock when under a lot of strain. Very peppy though, chirps the tires in second gear
- dismantled the antenna that also does not go up. Ordered a replacement antenna mast with the plastic 'runner' that has disintegrated in my original one
- fixed the rear window wiper that had become frozen
- replaced a bunch of screws, nuts and bolts that were missing under the dash and around the interior

There are lots of jobs left, including replacing the radiator and steering rack, new shocks, fix the fuel gauge (it goes from 'full' to 'empty' in about 4 gallons), refinish the alu wheels, and a new heater core and heater valve. This car was put together well, and it's fun to work on. Still have to see whether the ECU has any codes.

auntjemima

While waiting for the new CAS to come I pulled my plugs and noticed they were hella black. So I cleaned them. Today the new CAS came and I installed it and the cleaned plugs and the car fired right up. So happy right now.

Cees Klumper

I just replaced my rear shocks with KYB units. The old ones were really worn as the car sat low and would bottom out when going through a deep dip. Also, when taking off quick from standstill, the car would dip low in the back and raise its nose. The new shocks were quite a bit beefier than the old ones too, not sure about the brand of those old ones but they looked kind of cheap. Anyways, car now sits almost an inch higher in the rear and is much tighter. Tomorrow I hope to tackle the front shocks and all of the stabilizer bar end links. Oh and all of a sudden the pump won't come on for the frond windshield wipers. It still works for the rear wiper bit not the front, so I suspect the stalk-switch. Gotta look into that also!

CMMCK

My Z has been sitting outside for far too long. I finally got the garage cleared out - that involved selling another car - and now the Z can stay safe and dry.

Cees Klumper

Last weekend I replaced my steering rack and front strut cartridges (aka shocks), strut caps and strut bearings. The old shocks were shot; one was leaking and neither had any 'push' left. Discovered I need to replace the lower balljoints also, surprise surprise. The old steering rack was also way past it. Looks like this car was neglected for much of its 73K mile life. Fixed the windshield washer pump - bad electrical connection at the pump housing. Now all I have left for the time being are a radiator flush, or replacement if that doesn't do the trick (overheating on highway only), and a timing belt change.

Cees Klumper

Yesterday I installed a new antenna mast into the old motor/housing. The original plastic 'strip' had crumbled inside the apparatus and the antenna was inoperable, although you could hear the motor move. The new antenna mast was something like $25 and it installed relatively easily. Put it back in the car and now it goes up and down as it should. However, no sound yet from the stereo, I think it's not actually plugged in behind in the dash. A PO had the dash out for some reason (I think to swap the heater core or something like that). Oh well.
I also checked the fan etc belts' tension and found them waaaay too loose, especially the power steering and the alternator/water pump ones. I tightened them up (bit of a fiddly job to get to the adjusters etc) and now the car no longer overheats on the highway!
Then today I decided to get a carfax report on the car. I had not done so when I bought it a couple of weeks ago but became curious. Turns out there are 0 maintenance records stored since new and I do believe it had been somewhat neglected, considering the state of some of the suspension and steering components I have replaced. Also, the car has done about 1,000 miles since ... 1999. So it essentially sat and sat. I polished and waxed the paint yesterday, that came back looking almost like new. Good news on the carfax is further that there have been no accidents reported and no other issues. Mileage confirmed as accurate at 73 thousand. But now I am super-nervous about the timing belt as it looks like it's probably the original one - from 1986. Doing that later this week, no more driving until that is done. Also replacing the auxiliary belts as those are likely also the original ones, or at best one replacement since new .... Car drives and handles really well though, which is a testament to the quality of the build.
(p.s. also decided to get a carfax report to a Bronco II that I bought last October as my sort of daily driver. I though it had 130K miles but it turns out to be 230K. Car looks and drives honestly like new, so I really lucked out on both vehicles. Both never left California and there is 0 rust on them, which is of course very good).

Cees Klumper

Yesterday replaced the timing belt, water pump, thermostat and accessory v-belts. My first timing belt ever, but I managed and it came out well. The tensioner pully bearing was a bit past it. The old timing belt ('Goodyear Gatorback') was in good shape and was not the original one, so that was ok, now has a Gates belt.
The car runs very smooth and quiet now, but gets hot on the highway; up to about 2/3 of the gauge range. Not past the line that marks, I guess, what would be considered the start of the red zone, but I would like it stay in the middle, as in city driving. After a fast highway test run today I shut down the car and felt underneath the fan, the surface of the radiator and to my surprise it was really cold! So it must be very constricted, which matches the 'getting hot on the highway' symptoms (in the city the needle stays firmly in the middle). So thevnext job will be to flush the radiator with stuff called 'Barnacle Buster' that I use to descale and clean out the cooling system on our boat's twin Caterpillar 3208 turbodiesels. Or I nay just bite the bullet and get a new (Spectra?) radiator and be done with it. Time to take off the front bumper!

CMMCK

I enjoyed the opportunity to take a drive, my favorite twisty back roads.

Last month I dropped the Z off at a shop to get a few maintenance items taken care of, things I just don't have time to tackle at the moment. The mechanic happened to notice the wires had become detached from the switch / sensor that turns the cooling fans on. It took them two weeks to track down a replacement part. Got the car back, just drove from the shop to my garage, and thought to check the air filter. I didn't remember when I last changed it and it was predictably dirty. Off to Advance Auto, the nearest parts store, where I was told they had none, but there were two filters in their warehouse in Roanoke, VA, maybe the last two filters Advance would ever get. (I have since seen that Rock Auto has a variety of filters.) I bought both, so another delay. I had reason to enjoy my drive today.